Jeremy is a song by Pearl Jam, with lyrics written by vocalist Eddie Vedder and music written by bassist Jeff Ament. Jeremy was released in August 17, 1992 as the third single from Pearl Jam‘s debut album, Ten (1991). The song was inspired by a newspaper article Vedder read about Jeremy Wade Delle, a high school student who shot himself in front of his English class on January 8, 1991. It reached the number 5 spot on both the Album and Modern Rock Billboard charts. It did not originally chart on the regular Billboard Hot 100 singles chart since it was not released as a commercial single in the US at the time, but a re-release in July 1995 brought it up to number 79.
The song gained popularity for its music video, directed by Mark Pellington and released in 1992, which received heavy rotation by MTV and became a hit. The original music video for Jeremy was directed and produced by Chris Cuffaro. Epic Records and MTV later rejected the music video, and released the version directed by Pellington instead. In 1993, the Jeremy video was awarded four MTV Video Music Awards, including Best Video of the Year.
Jeremy is based on two different true stories. The song takes its main inspiration from a newspaper article about a 15-year-old boy named Jeremy Wade Delle from Richardson, Texas, who shot himself in front of his teacher and his second-period English class of 30 students on the morning of January 8, 1991. In a 2009 interview, Vedder said that he felt:
“The need to take that small article and make something of it to give that action, to give it reaction, to give it more importance.”
Delle was described by schoolmates as “real quiet” and known for “acting sad”. After coming into class late that morning, Delle was told to get an admittance slip from the school office. He left the classroom, and returned with a .357 Magnum revolver. Delle walked to the front of the classroom, announced “Miss, I got what I really went for”, put the barrel of the firearm in his mouth, and pulled the trigger before his teacher or classmates could react.
When asked about the song, Vedder explained:
“It came from a small paragraph in a paper which means you kill yourself and you make a big old sacrifice and try to get your revenge. That all you’re gonna end up with is a paragraph in a newspaper. Sixty-four degrees and cloudy in a suburban neighborhood. That’s the beginning of the video and that’s the same thing in the end; it does nothing … nothing changes. The world goes on and you’re gone. The best revenge is to live on and prove yourself. Be stronger than those people. And then you can come back”.
The second story the song is based on, involved a student that Vedder knew from his junior high school in San Diego, California, who committed a school shooting. He elaborated further in a 1991 interview:
I actually knew somebody in junior high school, in San Diego, California, that did the same thing, just about, didn’t take his life but ended up shooting up an oceanography room. I remember being in the halls and hearing it and I had actually had altercations with this kid in the past. I was kind of a rebellious fifth-grader and I think we got in fights and stuff. So it’s a bit about this kid named Jeremy and it’s also a bit about a kid named Brian that I knew and I don’t know … the song, I think it says a lot. I think it goes somewhere … and a lot of people interpret it different ways and it’s just been recently that I’ve been talking about the true meaning behind it and I hope no one’s offended and believe me, I think of Jeremy when I sing it.
Tracklist:
- Jeremy (single version)
- Footsteps
- Yellow Ledbetter
The picture used for the cover was taken by Lance Mercer and the little girl who appears on it is Jessica Curtis, daughter of Kelly Curtis, the group’s long time manager.
Pearl Jam
Eddie Vedder: vocals
Mike McCready: lead & acoustic guitar
Stone Gossard: rhythm guitar
Jeff Ament: bass guitar, twelve-string bass
Dave Krusen: drums, tambourine
Additional musicians
Walter Gray: cello
Rick Parashar: Hammond organ, percussion
