How Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder convinced me of the Hulu series FX

Posted in: FX, Hulu, Music, Opinion, Pop Culture, TV, TV | Tagged: Eddie Vedder, FX on Hulu, Opinion, Pearl Jam, The Bear

I was particularly impressed by the cover of Eddie Vedder’s “Save It For Later” by “The Bear” starring Christopher Storer’s Jeremy Allen White and Ayo Edebiri.

It’s important to start a piece like this with brutal honesty. Christopher StorerThe award-winning FX series on Hulu The bear was destined to be one of those shows that I would eventually binge-watch – and then kick myself for waiting so long to finally get into it. Just to be clear? This has absolutely nothing to do with Storer’s series – quite the opposite. Everything I’ve seen and read about it – from trailers and teasers to behind-the-scenes looks and interviews with cast and creators – has convinced me that it is the kind of quality work that makes me proud to cover television. The main cast is made up of acting powerhouses who could be leading their own series in a heartbeat – Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edebiri, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Lionel Boyce, Liza Colón-Zayas, Abby Elliott, And Matty Matheson – and the cast of regulars and guest stars is a who’s who of Hollywood classics. TV critics and people I trust have done nothing but sing the show’s praises – and I’ve gotten far too many DMs from friends who are shocked I haven’t seen it.

Why haven’t I watched the series, aside from the Storer-written and directed series opener, “System”? I’m still not sure — but if I had to make a guess, I’d say it felt like The Bear was going to be a “hard” show. Having had to cover (and watch) a lot of “hard” shows — both personally and professionally — I wasn’t sure I had enough emotional capital left to invest in another show. So I resigned myself to pinning The Bear as a reminder to watch it… someday? Then I heard Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder‘s cover of The Beat‘S (The English Beat‘s over here) 1982 song “Save It For Later” in the promos for the third season.

As someone of a “certain age,” I was a huge fan of this song when it came out – and of The Who’s cover Peter Townshend is a uniquely different and heartbreaking take on the song. In fact, I first thought it was a remix of Townshend’s cover that was used in the promos and would eventually end up in the season 3 episode “Next.” But thanks to Reddit, the truth came out – Vedder had recorded a cover of the song for the then-upcoming season. It’s rare that I consider a cover to be equal to or better than the original – and I’m not going to say that here. That’s because Vedder took the song and made it his own. In a previous interview, The Beat’s guitarist said: Dave Wakeling noted that the song was “about the transformation from a teenager to a twenty-something” (and also a cheeky double entendre). While that theme is still present in Vedder’s cover, the difference is like night and day – literally.

The Beat’s original song evokes a wild energy about life and its possibilities. It resonates like the beginning of a day where anything and everything is possible – “The Day.” But with Vedder, we get a song that is definitely meant for the end of the day – “The Night.” After spending the day turning our hopes and dreams into reality, the night is our chance to be honest – even if it’s just with ourselves. It’s the time when we look back at what worked and what didn’t… where we failed and where we may have had just enough victories to keep going. It’s the time when we question whether we’re doing the right thing for those around us – those who have faith and are committed to a vision. It’s the time when we need to remind ourselves that what we’re doing is worth doing – even if it’s just for another day. Vedder’s cover became the soundtrack of that time. When I saw that it served as the soundtrack to the efforts of Carmy (White), Sydney (Edebiri), Richie (Moss-Bachrach) and the gang to make this dream come true, I understood the show and its message better.

Of course, I could be wrong – but I doubt it. I will watch the first season in one go this weekend and share my thoughts after I have finished all three seasons. But if The bear is a good place for Vedder, so why not make a reservation?

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