Trying To Improv On An Improv

Today's song (if you can really call it that) is Improv by Pearl Jam. It's not really a song though which makes this kind of difficult. It comes from a 2003 show at State College which at the time was boasted as being the longest Pearl Jam show ever (I believe it clocks in at three and a half hours over three discs or was it four?). All it is is the band screwing around for three minutes in the middle of the set. It's a bands way of free styling I suppose.

Improv or songs like it tend to be something the band does often when live. It's that nice filler in the set that helps lead into the next song or the band just feels something and wants to explore it. There is a level of fun to the song and the fact that it's not on an album nor will it be makes it a little special. There's the possibility that the Improv you're seeing might be the only time that specific Improv is being played. Actually if they played the same Improv at different gigs then wouldn't that discount it as an improv? Isn't improv supposed to be something that comes off the top of your head? Like comedy? How many more times can I say improv in this post?

Like I said it's hard to write about a "song" that doesn't really mean anything. There is no real story being told in the lyrics. Improv songs are just unfleshed out thoughts of music that could have been. At least with comedy it leads to laughs. In music it just seems to lead to something that could have been awesome. Then again what do I know? How do I know that the band wasn't inspired by their little Improv and used it as the basis of a new song (for the record I like to believe I have a great understanding of Pearl Jam and I haven't noticed this tune or lyrics in anything else of theirs). Improv is just a tease of something that could have been. Fun to hear live yes but leaves you wanting more in almost a teasing like manner. That's just mean.

Note: The version of Improv used on this post isn't the version that played on my ipod this morning. I was unable to find it on the interwebs and thought one improv was really as good as any other.