"Save You" is a song by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band

Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. One of the key bands in the grunge, grunge movement of the early 1990s, Pearl Jam has outsold and outlasted many of its contemporaries from the early 1990s, ...

, released in February 2003 as the second single from the band's seventh studio album, ''

Riot Act The Riot Act (1 Geo. 1. St. 2. c. 5), sometimes called the Riot Act 1714 or the Riot Act 1715, was an act of the Parliament of Great Britain which authorised local authorities to declare any group of 12 or more people to be unlawfully assembled ...

'' (2002). Although credited to all members of Pearl Jam, it features lyrics written by vocalist

Eddie Vedder Eddie Jerome Vedder (born Edward Louis Severson III; December 23, 1964) is an American singer, musician, and songwriter. He is the lead vocalist, primary lyricist, and one of three guitarists for the rock band Pearl Jam. He was previously a gues ...

and music primarily written by guitarist

Mike McCready Michael David McCready (born April 5, 1966) is an American musician known for being a founding member and lead guitarist of Pearl Jam. McCready was also a member of the side project bands Flight to Mars, Temple of the Dog, Mad Season (band), Ma ...

. The song peaked at number 23 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Mainstream Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock is a music chart published by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States. It is an administrative category that combines the " active rock" and " heritage rock" ...

chart. The song was included on Pearl Jam's 2004 greatest hits album, '' rearviewmirror (Greatest Hits 1991–2003)''.

Origin and recording

The guitar riff for "Save You" was written by guitarist

, who said about the song:

Well, what happened with all that was, I was sitting down with Stone, and I had two ideas, and one idea I worked really hard on and thought it was totally great and then I played it for him, and he goes, "Well, that's not...well that's okay. You got anything else?" And so, the other thing I had was the "Save You" riff, and he goes, "Oh, that's cool." You know, so it's...I was really built up to wanting to play this other song, and nobody seemed to be very excited about it...but they were about the "Save You" riff. It's something I came up with, I live in California, I just came up with the riff down there, and then Stone and I kicked it around in the studio before we went in, and it just...it had good energy to it. And it was more his excitement about it that made it happen.

In another interview, McCready stated:

I came in with that riff and we just kind of started jamming on it. It was a blast to play. The track that actually ended up on there, halfway through the song, Matt lost his headphones. He was going off. That's my favorite part of that song, his crazy drum fills. I like the solo too, but the drum fills are insane how good they are. He's doing them without his headphones, just by watching the bass.Cohen, Jonathan. . ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
''. November 2002.

During the recording of the song, drummer

Matt Cameron Matthew David Cameron (born November 28, 1962) is an American musician who is the drummer for the rock band Pearl Jam. He first gained fame as the drummer for Seattle-based rock band Soundgarden, which he joined in 1986, appearing on each of the ...

lost his headphones. He was able to finish the recording of the song by watching bassist

Jeff Ament Jeffrey Allen Ament (born March 10, 1963) is an American musician best known as the bassist of rock band Pearl Jam, which he co-founded alongside Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder. Ament wrote or co-wrote many of Pearl Jam's hits, ...

's fingers as he played the bass. Cameron stated:

It was me watching Jeff's fingers and hoping I was in time, you know? There's a breakdown of just me and Jeff. I hit a cymbal, moved my head, and the headphones went flying. A little point of interest there for the listener!

Lyrics

The lyrics for "Save You" represent the anger felt by anyone who watches a close friend waste away his or her life.Kaufman, Gil
"Pearl Jam: Readin' The Riot Act"
VH1.com. November 7, 2002. Vocalist

about the song:

One thing I've learned about addiction in the last few years is that having seen other folk go through it, and really not having done that, with heroin which can grip you that intensely. I didn't have a complete understanding and a lot of times it was easy to come to the conclusion that you place blame on the person or accuse them of weakness or ask, "Why couldn't Kurt obainkeep it together?" There was always that in the back of your mind. So with all the sympathy and empathy you could muster you still felt like, "Wow, there was so much to live for." What I've learned is there really isn't any blame. It has happened to some folks I cared about so much and had it so together, so it really isn't blame thing. I think the song is expressing how badly you want to help.

When asked in an interview about the profanities in the song's lyrics, Vedder stated:

It ''is'' a term of endearment. Really, it is, especially when you're a little bit frustrated...It's just something I've experienced a number of times and...It came out quick. I couldn't figure out any other word besides
ucker The Uecker () or Ucker () is a river in the northeastern Germany, German states of Brandenburg, where it is known as the ''Ucker'', and of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. It flows northward from Uckermark (district), Uckermark to the Szczecin Lagoon. Pa ...
that had the same impact. Another potential radio hit. I did have it up pretty loud a few times in traffic and even I felt a little bashful. That and I had a uckingmohawk.

Release and reception

"Save You" was released to several radio formats on December 9, 2002, while the physical release of the single was issued on February 11, 2003. "Save You" was released as a single with a previously unreleased

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

titled "Other Side," which can also be found on the compilation album, ''

Lost Dogs Lost Dogs are an American musical supergroup formed in 1991, comprising vocalists, songwriters, and guitarists from multiple Christian alternative rock bands. Their current lineup includes Terry Scott Taylor ( Daniel Amos, The Swirling Eddi ...

'' (2003). The song peaked at number 23 on the ''Billboard''

chart and number 29 on the ''Billboard''

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks between 1988 and 2009, and Alternative Songs between 2009 and 2020) is a music chart published in the American magazine ''Billboard'' since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-playe ...

chart. Outside the United States, the single was released commercially in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. In Canada, the song reached the top 20 on the

Canadian Singles Chart The Canadian music charts are a collection of record charts reflecting the music consumption of people in Canada. '' RPM'' and '' Billboard'' are the biggest publications to have published Canada's official charts for decades. However, the first ...

. Louis Pattison of ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' called the song "a magic carpet ride of bucking riffery and thrashing bead-shakers" and stated that it " ankswith Pearl Jam's best." Brett Hickman of ''

Stylus A stylus is a writing utensil or tool for scribing or marking into softer materials. Different styluses were used to write in cuneiform by pressing into wet clay, and to scribe or carve into a wax tablet. Very hard styluses are also used to En ...

'' said, "What 'Riot Act''also makes known is that the band still likes to crank it. This is especially clear on "Save You." The guitars screech and churn, while Cameron hammers home a crackling beat."

Music video

The

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

for "Save You" was directed by James Frost.Mills, Fred
"Yield Not"
''

Seattle Weekly The ''Seattle Weekly'' is an alternative biweekly distributed newspaper in Seattle, Washington, United States. It was founded by Darrell Oldham and David Brewster as ''The Weekly.'' Its first issue was published on March 31, 1976, and it becam ...

''. November 6, 2002. The video was filmed at

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

's Chop Suey club in September 2002. The video consists of a filmed live performance of the band rather than a conceptual video. It was one of five videos shot at the club to promote ''Riot Act'' (including "

I Am Mine "I Am Mine" is a song by American rock band Pearl Jam. Written by vocalist Eddie Vedder, "I Am Mine" was released on October 8, 2002, as the first single from the band's seventh studio album, ''Riot Act'' (2002). The song peaked at number six on ...

," " Love Boat Captain," " Thumbing My Way" and " ½ Full"). Up to that point the band had not made any music videos since 1998's " Do the Evolution". The video was released in late 2002.

Live performances

The band played "Save You" when it appeared on the ''

Late Show with David Letterman ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by Letterman's production com ...

'' in November 2002 in support of ''Riot Act''. The song was first performed live in concert at the band's December 5, 2002, concert in

at The Showbox."Pearl Jam Songs: "Save You""
pearljam.com. Live performances of "Save You" can be found on various official bootlegs, the live album '' Live at Easy Street'', the ''

Live at the Gorge 05/06 ''Live at the Gorge 05/06'' is a seven-disc live box set by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, released on June 26, 2007 through Rhino Entertainment/Warner Music Group. The box set documents the band's 2005 and 2006 shows at The Gorg ...

'' box set, and the live album ''

Live at Lollapalooza 2007 ''Live at Lollapalooza 2007'' is a live album by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam that was released as an iTunes exclusive on September 18, 2007. Overview The album contains Pearl Jam's set from the band's August 5, 2007 appearance at ...

''. Performances of the song are also included on the DVDs ''

Live at the Showbox ''Live at the Showbox'' is the third DVD release by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, and the first DVD of a complete show. It was released on May 7, 2003. Overview It was recorded on December 6, 2002 at The Showbox in the band's hom ...

'' and ''

Live at the Garden ''Live at the Garden'' is the fourth DVD release by the American alternative rock band Pearl Jam, recorded on July 8, 2003 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. It was released on November 11, 2003. Overview The DVD documents Pearl Jam on i ...

''.

Track listing

# "Save You" (

Stone Gossard Stone Carpenter Gossard (born July 20, 1966) is an American musician and songwriter who serves as the rhythm guitarist for the rock band Pearl Jam. Along with Jeff Ament, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder, he is one of the founding members of the ...

) – 3:51 # "Other Side" (Ament) – 4:02

Charts

References

External links

* *
Lyrics at pearljam.com
{{Authority control 2002 singles Epic Records singles Pearl Jam songs Song recordings produced by Adam Kasper Song recordings produced by Eddie Vedder Song recordings produced by Jeff Ament Song recordings produced by Matt Cameron Song recordings produced by Mike McCready Song recordings produced by Stone Gossard Songs written by Eddie Vedder Songs written by Jeff Ament Songs written by Matt Cameron Songs written by Mike McCready Songs written by Stone Gossard 2002 songs