Editing Man of the Hour

{{short description|2003 song by Pearl Jam}}
{{use mdy dates|date=April 2016}}
{{Infobox song
| name       = Man of the Hour
| cover      = PJMOTH.jpg
| alt        =
| type       = single
| artist     = [[Pearl Jam]]
| album      = [[Big Fish (soundtrack)|Big Fish: Music from the Motion Picture]]
| B-side     = "Man of the Hour" (demo)
| released   = November 26, 2003
| recorded   = October 2003
| studio     = [[Studio X]], Seattle, Washington
| venue      =
| genre      = [[Alternative rock]], [[grunge]]
| length     = 3:46
| label      = Self-released
| writer     = [[Eddie Vedder]]
| producer   = [[Adam Kasper]]
| chronology = [[Pearl Jam]]
| prev_title = [[Love Boat Captain]]
| prev_year  = 2003
| next_title = [[World Wide Suicide]]
| next_year  = 2006
| misc       = 
}}
"'''Man of the Hour'''" is a song by the American [[rock music|rock]] band [[Pearl Jam]]. Written by vocalist [[Eddie Vedder]], "Man of the Hour" accompanies the [[closing credits]] of the 2003 film ''[[Big Fish]]'', and is the first track on the [[Big Fish (soundtrack)|film's soundtrack album]]. It was released as a single on November 26, 2003. The song was included on Pearl Jam's 2004 greatest hits album, ''[[rearviewmirror (Greatest Hits 1991–2003)]]''.

==Origin and recording==
Director [[Tim Burton]] approached Pearl Jam in 2003 to request an original song for the soundtrack of his new film, ''[[Big Fish]]''. After screening an early print of the film, Pearl Jam vocalist [[Eddie Vedder]] went home, wrote "Man of the Hour", and had a demo ready by the next day. It was recorded by the band four days later.<ref name="wdiv">Lammers, Tim. [http://www.clickondetroit.com/sh/entertainment/stories/entertainment-275199620040108-180124.html ""Man Of The Hour" Up For BFCA, Golden Globe Awards"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080705085306/http://www.clickondetroit.com/sh/entertainment/stories/entertainment-275199620040108-180124.html |date=July 5, 2008 }}. [[WDIV]]. January 8, 2004.</ref> Guitarist [[Mike McCready]] stated, "We were so blown away by the movie... Eddie and I were standing around talking about it afterwards and were teary-eyed. We were so emotionally charged and moved by the imagination and humanity that we felt because of the movie."<ref name="wdiv"/>

==Lyrics==
The wistful song is a young man saying farewell to his father: "The man of the hour has taken his final bow/Goodbye for now."<ref name="fanclub"/> According to ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' magazine, the "acoustic-tinged track is accented by wistful slide guitar work, with lyrics reflecting how the father/son bond can be rocked by what seem like insurmountable obstacles."<ref name="billboard" />

According to Vedder at a June 1, 2006 concert in [[East Rutherford, New Jersey]] at [[Continental Airlines Arena]], "Come Back" from the band's 2006 album, ''[[Pearl Jam (album)|Pearl Jam]]'', is set with the same young man from "Man of the Hour" talking to the departed two months later.<ref>Vedder, Eddie. (Speaker). (2006). ''6/1/06, Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, New Jersey'' [Audio Recording]. Ten Club.</ref>

==Release and reception==
"Man of the Hour" was released as a single on November 26, 2003, just prior to the release of the film. The single of this song features a demo version of Vedder alone on vocals and guitar as a [[A-side and B-side|B-side]]. The single was made available for purchase through the band's official website as well as through [[Amazon.com]]. It was Pearl Jam's first [[Self-publishing|release without a label]],<ref name="billboard">Cohen, Jonathan. [http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/68294/pearl-jam-reels-in-exclusive-fish "Pearl Jam Reels In 'Exclusive' Fish"]. ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]''. November 6, 2003.</ref> in partnership with Amazon.com.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=176060&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=478580&highlight= | title=Pearl Jam Joins Amazon.com's Advantage Program to Sell Music Directly to Fans | access-date=2007-07-02 | date=2003-12-17}}</ref>

"Man of the Hour" was nominated for the [[61st Golden Globe Awards|2004]] [[Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song]], but lost to [[Annie Lennox]]'s "[[Into the West (song)|Into the West]]" from ''[[The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.goldenglobes.org/nominations/year/2003 |title=Golden Globes Nominations & Winners |publisher=goldenglobes.org |access-date=2008-02-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080201120641/http://www.goldenglobes.org/nominations/year/2003 |archive-date=February 1, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> It was also nominated for a [[9th Critics' Choice Awards|2003 Broadcast Film Critics Association Award]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bfca.org/NomineesWinners.asp |title=BFCA Nominees/Winners |publisher=bfca.org |access-date=2008-02-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080209025732/http://www.bfca.org/NomineesWinners.asp |archive-date=February 9, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and a [[World Soundtrack Awards 2004|2004 World Soundtrack Award]].<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.worldsoundtrackawards.com/awards.cgi?go=history&category=Best+Original+Song+Written+for+a+Film&year=2004&type= |title=WSA awards |publisher=worldsoundtrackawards.com |access-date=2008-08-02}}</ref>

Heather Phares of [[Allmusic]] said, "Though Burton's quirky, eerie aesthetic would normally be at odds with Pearl Jam's earnestness, the two work well together here, with the song touching on the film's warmth and adding a bit of earthiness to its daydreamy nature."<ref>{{cite web|title=allmusic ((( Big Fish > Review )))|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r672496|pure_url=yes}}|publisher=[[Allmusic]]|author=Phares, Heather|access-date=May 11, 2009}}</ref> Barry Walters of ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' said that "the star is the film's end-titles' closer, Pearl Jam's "Man of the Hour", which captures the darkness of ''Big Fish''{{'}}s central Oedipal conflict."<ref name="weisel">Walters, Barry. [https://web.archive.org/web/20090209064141/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/elvispresley/albums/album/300784/review/6211773/big_fish Various Artists: ''Big Fish'']. ''[[Rolling Stone]]''. January 15, 2004. Retrieved on May 11, 2009.</ref> In the [[Audio commentary|director's commentary]] for the DVD release of ''Big Fish'', director Tim Burton raves about the song, calling it "beautiful" and "so right" and noting how well it "matched and mirrored" the film.<ref>{{cite video|title = Big Fish director's commentary|people = Burton, Tim|type= [[DVD]]|time={{time needed|date=October 2023}}|date=2004}}</ref>

==Live performances==
"Man of the Hour" was first performed live at the band's [[Live at Benaroya Hall|October 22, 2003]] concert in [[Seattle]] at [[Benaroya Hall]].<ref name="fanclub">[http://www.pearljam.com/songs/song.php?song=ManOfTheHour Lyrics and performance trivia] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060720041250/http://pearljam.com/songs/song.php?song=ManOfTheHour |date=July 20, 2006 }} from the website of the band's official [[fan club]]</ref><ref name="billboard"/> Since the death of [[Ramones]] guitarist [[Johnny Ramone]], Vedder has dedicated live performances of the song to him.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20090322181417/http://www.twofeetthick.com/concert-chronology/pj2005/ "Pearl Jam Concert Chronology: 2005"]}}. TwoFeetThick.com.</ref> Live performances of "Man of the Hour" can be found on the live album ''[[Live at Benaroya Hall]]'', various [[Pearl Jam Official Bootlegs|official bootlegs]], the ''[[Live at the Gorge 05/06]]'' box set and the [[Eddie Vedder]] DVD ''[[Water on the Road]]''. On October 27, 2013 at their [[Lightning Bolt Tour|show in Baltimore]], the band dedicated the song to [[Lou Reed]] who had died earlier that day.<ref name="Baltimore">{{cite web | url=http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/music/midnight-sun-blog/bal-after-23-years-pearl-jam-finally-comes-to-baltimore-20131028,0,7370922.story | title=After 23 Years Pearl Jam Finally Comes to Baltimore | date=2013-10-27 | access-date=2013-10-27 | publisher=Baltimore Sun}}</ref>

During a show in Chicago on August 22, 2016, Vedder dedicated the song to his late friend [[Layne Staley]], lead singer of [[Alice in Chains]]. That day would have been Staley's 49th birthday; "It’s the birthday of a guy called Layne Staley tonight, and we’re thinking of him tonight too. 49 years old", Vedder told the crowd before dedicating the song to his friend.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://musicfeeds.com.au/news/watch-eddie-vedders-heartbreaking-tribute-layne-staley-pearl-jams-us-show/ |title=Watch Eddie Vedder's Heartbreaking Tribute To Layne Staley During Pearl Jam's US Show |date=26 August 2016 |work=Music Feeds | access-date=30 May 2017}}</ref>

==Track listing==
All songs written by [[Eddie Vedder]].
#"Man of the Hour"&nbsp;– 3:46
#"Man of the Hour" (demo)&nbsp;– 3:53

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
*{{YouTube|pXMnSTmCkfI|"Man of the Hour" (Official audio)}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20090706043429/http://www.pearljam.com/song/man-hour Lyrics at pearljam.com]

{{Pearl Jam |state=collapsed}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Man Of The Hour}}
[[Category:2003 singles]]
[[Category:Pearl Jam songs]]
[[Category:Songs written for films]]
[[Category:Songs written by Eddie Vedder]]
[[Category:Song recordings produced by Adam Kasper]]
[[Category:2003 songs]]