World Wide Suicide

"World Wide Suicide" is the lead single from Pearl Jam's self-titled eighth studio album, released in 2006. Upon its release to radio in March 2006, "World Wide Suicide" quickly climbed up Jessica's Top 40 and spent nine weeks at #1. The song went on to become the #1 song of 2006 and stands as the band's biggest hit to date. It is also notable for being my chart's most successful political song.

In 2005, when I was beginning to get into rock music, Pearl Jam was one of the many bands that I grew to really love around that time. So when I learned they would be releasing a new album in 2006, I was very much looking forward to it. When “World Wide Suicide” was confirmed to be the leadoff single from the band’s self-titled album due out in the beginning of May, an MP3 was released by FMQB containing the song’s chorus, and I was hooked immediately. But when M4B Charts Central member Matty posted a song he heard on the radio that he mistakenly identified as “World Wide Suicide” because the singer sounded like Eddie Vedder and the line “world wide suicide” was spoken once, I was not impressed. When the real song was properly released on March 6, 2006, it was far from disappointing.

“World Wide Suicide” was written as a protest against the Iraq War and President George W. Bush. Speaking on the song's driving, intense sound that recalled their breakthrough in the early 1990s, Eddie Vedder said in an interview, "The times...the times kind of demand a little bit of intensity." It became the highest debuting song of their career on the modern rock charts and became their first #1 on the format in ten years.

On Jessica’s Top 40, "World Wide Suicide" debuted at #27 after just four days of impact, and immediately shot up to #3 the week after before beginning a nine-week stay at #1. Spending 18 weeks in the top 10 and 36 in the top 40, “World Wide Suicide” is one of the chart’s biggest hits, and as I rank it on par with some of the obvious best songs from the Pearl Jam catalog, this is one of my favorite #1 songs.