Pearl Jam’s fifth studio album, Yield, released in 1998, was notable for a shift in the band’s approach to songwriting. On previous albums, frontman Eddie Vedder dominated the songwriting process, particularly in regard to lyrics. For Yield’s 13 tracks, there was a broader sharing of songwriting responsibility. Vedder wrote the lyrics for eight of the album’s songs and wrote music for only two.
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One of those two songs written solely by Vedder was “Wishlist.” The initial writing and recording of the song was an intimate affair, occurring away from the band in a small studio. The substance of this gentle track feels intimate, too. It is literally a wish list of things that Vedder wants, though he takes poetic license with his wording of some of the items.
The process of creating “Wishlist” was something of an experiment for Vedder, and the final result was a resounding success. Here’s the lowdown on how one of Pearl Jam’s biggest singles came into being.
Dreaming Big
In a 1998 interview, Vedder explained “Wishlist” was improvised on the spot as a “stream-of-consciousness exercise.” Accompanied by Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready and a drummer (whom Vedder did not identify), he sang lines about wishes, one after another. At the end of the exercise, Vedder had sung about eight minutes worth of wishes.
The version of “Wishlist” that appeared on Yield was pared down to three-and-a-half minutes, with the final wishlist condensed to 13 entries. Vedder’s final wish, I wish I was a radio song / The one that you turned up, is barely audible as the song fades out just as he utters the words. Several of Vedder’s other wishes were also metaphorical, like wanting to be the souvenir you kept your house key on and the pedal brake that you depended on.
For several of his wishes, Vedder thought big. He wishes he was a sacrifice but somehow still lived on and the grounds for fifty million hands upraised and open toward the sky. Vedder even made wishes on a galactic scale, wanting to be an alien at home behind the sun and the full moon shining off a Camaro’s hood. The latter of those wishes was a reference to the vehicle belonging to his then-wife Beth Liebling.
Vedder takes note of the size of some of his ambitions, tempering his appetite with the humble request, I wish I was as fortunate, as fortunate as me.
“No More Wishes on the List”
By noting that he wishes to be “as fortunate as me,” Vedder acknowledges that we can have big, impossible dreams and still realize that we are lucky to have what we’ve already got. He underscored that sentiment prior to a solo performance of “Wishlist” at Benaroya Hall in Seattle in October 2023. In a benefit show for the EB Research Partnership, an organization that funds research to find a cure for genetic skin disorders, Vedder prefaced his performance of “Wishlist” by saying, “I have no more wishes on the list.” He expressed his gratitude for what he has in his life and told a story about how John Fogerty was updating him on baseball scores via text during his soundcheck. Vedder concluded his story by noting with astonishment, “Who could ever imagine that? John Fogerty texting. What an amazing f–king life.”
The Impact of “Wishlist”
“Wishlist” was the second and final single released from Yield, following the Billboard No. 1 Mainstream Rock hit “Given to Fly.” The song went to No. 6 on the Mainstream Rock chart, and it also registered on Billboard’s Alternative Airplay (No. 6), Adult Alternative Songs (No. 9) and Hot 100 (No. 47) charts. “Wishlist” enjoyed the second-longest stay on the Hot 100 of any Pearl Jam single. Its 20 weeks on the chart matched that of “I Got Id” and trailed “Last Kiss” by one week.
As a Vedder-penned song, “Wishlist” is, strangely enough, an outlier on Yield, but it’s a highlight on a very good Pearl Jam album. What started out as an experiment resulted in one of Pearl Jam’s most tuneful songs and also one of their sweetest. It’s also a useful reminder that having dreams and ambitions doesn’t mean you can’t also have perspective.
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