Formed after the demise of Gossard and Ament's previous band, Mother Love Bone, Pearl Jam broke into the mainstream with their debut album, Ten, in 1991. Ten stayed on the Billboard 200 chart for nearly five years, and has gone on to become one of the highest-selling rock records ever, going 13× platinum in the United States. Released in 1993, Pearl Jam's second album, Vs., sold over 950,000 copies in its first week of release, setting the record for most copies of an album sold in its first week of release at the time. Their third album, Vitalogy (1994), became the second-fastest-selling CD in history at the time, with more than 877,000 units sold in its first week.
One of the key bands in the grunge movement of the early 1990s, Pearl Jam's members often shunned popular music industry practices such as making music videos or participating in interviews. The band also sued Ticketmaster, claiming it had monopolized the concert-ticket market. In 2006, Rolling Stone described the band as having "spent much of the past decade deliberately tearing apart their own fame."
Pearl Jam had sold more than 85 million albums worldwide by 2018, including nearly 32 million albums in the United States by 2012, making them one of the best-selling bands of all time. Pearl Jam was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 in its first year of eligibility. They were ranked eighth in a readers' poll by Rolling Stone magazine in its "Top Ten Live Acts of All Time" issue. Throughout its career, the band has also promoted wider social and political issues, from pro-abortion rights sentiments to opposition to George W. Bush's presidency. Vedder acts as the band's spokesman on these issues.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl_Jam
Studio albums
Ten (1991)
Vs. (1993)
Vitalogy (1994)
No Code (1996)
Yield (1998)
Binaural (2000)
Riot Act (2002)
Pearl Jam (2006)
Backspacer (2009)
Lightning Bolt (2013)
Gigaton (2020)
Poor Girl
Pearl Jam Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The lyrics of Pearl Jam's song "Poor Girl" are a poignant and insightful exploration of the themes of heartbreak and the self-destructive behavior that can sometimes result. The song begins with an image of the titular character sitting at home, the windows tinted black, and crying over the loss of something important in life. The lyrics suggest that this person has experienced a profound trauma, something that has left them incapable of moving on or finding happiness again.
The second verse describes the aftermath of this event, with the character "taking what she gives you" and "not feeling sorry for her" as they try to pick up the pieces of their life. It is clear that the person is struggling to reconcile their desire for love and connection with their fear of being hurt again. They turn to alcohol as a means of escape, drinking in the dark and listening to the radio late into the night.
The final verse offers a glimpse into the character's internal struggles. They have been very ill and are now trying to distance themselves from others, holding onto their deck of cards as a means of self-protection. It is a sad and tragic image, but one that speaks to the ways in which we all struggle to cope with pain and loss.
Overall, "Poor Girl" is a powerful and moving song that speaks to the fragile nature of the human heart and the difficulties we all face in trying to find happiness and meaning in life.
Line by Line Meaning
You sat at home the windows tinted black
You were home alone with the windows covered, feeling isolated and sad
it hits you hard and you cried so long
Something really painful happened and you cried deeply for a long time
life turned & wandered never to come back again
Your life changed for the worse and it will never be the same again
take what she gives you don't feel sorry for her
Don't pity yourself or the person who hurt you; accept what they give you and move on
when you fell out of the starlight inn you were too hurt to walk to bad to begin
When you left the hotel, you were so badly hurt that you couldn't walk out on your own
i looked at the sign but i couldn't feel sad for you
Even though I saw the sign that said you were leaving, I didn't feel sorry for you
poor little girl ran away for good i try to explain why she won't say a thing sad sad thing
The girl you loved left for good, and you're trying to figure out why she won't communicate with you
im so far away now how can i say why she wont talk at all
You're physically distant from her and can't understand why she's not speaking to you
she holds the deck of cards she wants to be alone
She's holding her cards close and wants to be left alone
when you ran out of Pete's hotel you didn't look so good and you didn't feel so well
When you left the hotel, you looked and felt terrible
you said 'hold me tight' but i couldn't get it right
You asked for comfort but I wasn't able to provide it
she still drinks in the dark the radio is left on late
She's still drinking alone in the dark, leaving the radio on late at night
she saw a madman fight and break it up cause he hated himself and she felt better off cause she was only drunk
She witnessed a man's violent outburst and felt better off because she was only drunk, not consumed by self-hatred like him
Contributed by Natalie I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@miguelcanseco6071
You sat at home
The windows tinted black
It hits you hard
And you cried so long
Life turned and wandered
Never to come back again
Takes what she gives
You don't feel sorry for her
When you fell out of the Starlight Inn
You were too hurt to walk
Too bad to begin
I looked at the sign
But I couldn't feel sad for you
Takes what she gives
You don't cry when you kiss her
Poor little girl ran away from home
I try to explain why she won't say a thing
Sad, sad thing
I'm so far away now
How can I say why she won't talk at all
She holds the deck of cards
She wants to be alone
"I'll be very ill
And I tried waking up
Now I want to be alone"
When you ran out of Pete's Hotel
You didn't look so good
And you didn't feel so well
"Hold me tight"
But I couldn't get it right
Takes what she gives you...
Poor little girl ran away from home
I try to explain why she won't say a thing
Sad, sad thing
I'm so far away now
How can I say why she won't talk at all
She holds a deck of cards
She wants to be alone
She still drinks in the dark
The radio is left on late
She saw a madman fight and break it all
'Cause she hated himself
And she felt better off
'Cause she was only drunk
@laurawatters914
Awesome video!! I love all these clips of the most beautiful man Eddie Vedder, nothing's better than Eddie Vedder ❣️ Thank You for sharing this awesome video 😊💓🤘✌️
@marikal.5792
Wow, never heard this cover! Good job (and I am a huge X fan).
@BobbyD-po4yy
nor i. saw X starting when I was 13 or 14 at The Palace in Hollywood.
@kimisdaman
Nice version of a classic.
@bethlineham7920
This rocks! So awesome 💕❤️🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻
@solarmesiah
What the fuck!?! This is amazing! I hate how good this is.
@Stinkbug74
Wow!! First time I've ever heard this song & love it & the clip you ran with it were PERFECT, as always. :)
@bruceandrews9323
The home run here is the Supersuckers on this tune...well done.
@jasonpeters9865
I too was 16 in 1993. Jason Baldwin was 16 in 93. Cant even fathom. I was just right up road in Kansas City.
Seen Pjam 91, 98, 00, 03 and 10
@vincegarcia6416
I love X. This is a good cover.