(written: 22 October 2003)
Hidden tracks eh? They're great aren't they?
You get a little reward for being patient (oooor lazy) enough to listen right through a CD and oftentimes these songs are just absolutely stunningly beautiful.
Other times it's Alanis Morrissette singing about stalking you.
It's a win-win situation. She's totally hot.
My first experience with a hidden track (and it's really reaching) was with my first Pearl Jam album. When I was 14 my cousin Megan gave me a tape of Ten which cut out midway through Release. I got so incredibly used to the way it was when I finally got the CD of Ten I never thought to check out the end of Release. I think by the time the first ten songs had rolled by I was distracted enough to waddle away and come back to find a new CD playing.
WELL! One afternoon I remained like a cauliflower on the couch listening to Ten and as Release progressed I realised what I'd neglected to do. Listen to the full song. Imagine my surprise when an extended reprise of the intro and what sounds like Ed's digital watch start playing. And that boys and girls was Master/Slave. Not your traditional hidden track, but a nice surprise nonetheless.
Not such a nice surprise is the effort on Binaural known simply as Writer's Block. One time I left this album playing extremely loud in my house and wandered off. Upon re-entry to my room I heard a strange buzzy silence (hehe) and then CLACKCLACKCLACKCLACK!!! as Eddie Vedder whacked the hell out of his typewriter keys to illustrate his point. I screamed in horror and leapt across the room to control the volume.
Pearl Jam did it also with Hummus, a little something something for Yield fans to dance with their loved ones to.
Green Day had the right idea with "All By Myself". This song was more popular among my friends and companions than any other song on Dookie. Seriously. Who didn't at some stage love this song?
Alice In Chains and their magnificent "Love Song: Take 1" from the Sap ep are a classic example of why hidden tracks are fun and frankly essential when you buy that particular release on cassette. You get to wile away some of that giant gap between Sap and the start of Jar of Flies on the other side by listening to Layne, Jerry and the boys burping and farting and banging on a piano.
Sometimes just being from this part of the world pays off. Case(s) in point: Foo Fighters - There is Nothing Left to Lose and Chris Cornell's Euphoria Morning. We have my friends favourite Foo's song Fraternity and a french version of Can't Change Me to tittilate your eardrums.
Powderfinger, at the end of their beautiful 2nd album Double Allergic let rip with not one, not two, but three extra songs! All b-sides and all brilliant. Very well hidden too, to the point where it's annoying because you wanna hear them but can't find them. Etc.
Whenever we got together in 6th form with my then friend, the disturbingly clingly Melanie, we'd listen to the Ash album 1977. Hey! Let's get rogered and then record ourselves vomiting! OH YEAH! Let's make our fans dry retch!
Jester made 500 King of the World eps and broke up before becoming anything more than a novelty band really. They did manage to surprise me by tacking one of about 3 decent songs on the ep in the form of hidden number Mingers. You'd only know it was called that because it's semi listed in disguise on the back photograph.
Not always ending in tears is my personal favourite because it was already my favourite song by this band, Fur Patrol's hidden gem Bottles and Jars, whacked on a couple of minutes after the last track because they wanted it ON the album, but it was felt the song didn't fit with the vibe of the songs listed. To keep everyone happy they plonked it on and the world screamed in delight.
And that was my homage to hidden tracks. YOU LOVE IT.
don't you bitch?