Pearl Jam:  Wishlist

Oh Eddie, you had me at I wish.  “I wish I was the souvenir you kept your house key on.” Sigh!  “I wish I was the pedal break that you depended on.” Swoon!  You see, I wish I could iron your flannel shirts all day while staring into those baby blues, Mr. Vedder, but since that’s about as likely as me moving to Seattle (and you giving up that rock star thing), I’ll settle for listening to my favorite love song, “Wishlist.” From Pearl Jam’s “Yield” back in ’98, it’s a song so simple and yet so moving, I’m stopped dead in my tracks every time I hear it.

Who wouldn’t give it up to someone who proclaimed “I wish I was the verb ‘to trust’ and never let you down?!”  A stream of consciousness kind of ditty with only guitar and drums, it shows Pearl Jam and its frontman at their gentlest, even sweetest, yet still with a wink and a nod:
I wish I was as fortunate, as fortunate as me.
Pure Eddie Vedder Gold!  Wish fulfillment resolved.  Or is it?  That’s the beauty of his song-writing, and the wonder of this song, my Valentine’s Day gift to you.