Jumper (song)
Encyclopedia
"Jumper" is a song by the American
rock band Third Eye Blind
, released on their 1997 self titled album
, and written by vocalist Stephan Jenkins
. Released as a single, the song peaked at #5.
has said that the song "comes from a story our manager told us about a high school friend of his who was gay. He went to a conservative school in San Diego [with] all sons of military types. Being gay was just not acceptable. He offed himself--he jumped off a bridge." In other interview he restates: "it's about a friend who's gay jumping off a bridge and killing themselves."
The song is also about Jenkins' own difficult, often alienating childhood experiences. He says, "My parents divorced, and that hurt me. We were poor and I went to a rich high school. I was dyslexic and had Attention Deficit Disorder, which I still have. So I carried all these things with me. One afternoon I had this epiphany. I said 'You know what? I don't have it all together. I come from stuff that was really difficult, and that's me. That's who I am.' I embraced that. There's a line in the song that says, 'Everyone's got to face down the demons/Maybe today we can put the past away.' It's very much a song about putting the past away."
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
rock band Third Eye Blind
Third Eye Blind
Third Eye Blind is an American alternative rock band formed in the early 1990s in San Francisco. The songwriting duo of Kevin Cadogan and Stephan Jenkins signed the band's first major label recording contract with Elektra records in 1996 resulting in two multi platinum albums. The band's lineup...
, released on their 1997 self titled album
Third Eye Blind (album)
Third Eye Blind is the eponymous debut for the American alternative rock band Third Eye Blind, originally released on April 8, 1997. It spawned several singles, including top 10 charting "Semi-Charmed Life", "Jumper", and "How's It Going to Be"....
, and written by vocalist Stephan Jenkins
Stephan Jenkins
Stephan Douglas Jenkins , is an American musician best known as the lead singer, songwriter, and guitarist for Third Eye Blind. Under Jenkins's leadership, Third Eye Blind has sold over eight million copies of four albums: Third Eye Blind , Blue , Out of the Vein , and Ursa Major...
. Released as a single, the song peaked at #5.
Meaning
Lead singer Stephan JenkinsStephan Jenkins
Stephan Douglas Jenkins , is an American musician best known as the lead singer, songwriter, and guitarist for Third Eye Blind. Under Jenkins's leadership, Third Eye Blind has sold over eight million copies of four albums: Third Eye Blind , Blue , Out of the Vein , and Ursa Major...
has said that the song "comes from a story our manager told us about a high school friend of his who was gay. He went to a conservative school in San Diego [with] all sons of military types. Being gay was just not acceptable. He offed himself--he jumped off a bridge." In other interview he restates: "it's about a friend who's gay jumping off a bridge and killing themselves."
The song is also about Jenkins' own difficult, often alienating childhood experiences. He says, "My parents divorced, and that hurt me. We were poor and I went to a rich high school. I was dyslexic and had Attention Deficit Disorder, which I still have. So I carried all these things with me. One afternoon I had this epiphany. I said 'You know what? I don't have it all together. I come from stuff that was really difficult, and that's me. That's who I am.' I embraced that. There's a line in the song that says, 'Everyone's got to face down the demons/Maybe today we can put the past away.' It's very much a song about putting the past away."
Charts
| Chart | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 5 |
Appearances in other media
- The song is featured in the 2008 film Yes ManYes Man (film)Yes Man is a 2008 comedy film directed by Peyton Reed, written by Nicholas Stoller, Jarrad Paul and Andrew Mogel and starring Jim Carrey, Zooey Deschanel, Bradley Cooper, John Michael Higgins, Rhys Darby, Maile Flanagan, Danny Masterson, and Terence Stamp...
as Carl Allen (Jim CarreyJim CarreyJames Eugene "Jim" Carrey is a Canadian-American actor and comedian. He has received two Golden Globe Awards and has also been nominated on four occasions. Carrey began comedy in 1979, performing at Yuk Yuk's in Toronto, Ontario...
) uses an acoustic serenade to try to prevent a suicidal man (Luis GuzmánLuis GuzmánLuis Guzmán is an actor from Puerto Rico. He is known for his character work. For much of his career, he has played roles largely as sidekicks, thugs, or policemen....
) from jumping off the ledge of an apartment building. After being featured in the film, the song's digital downloads spiked.
- A cover of the song has been recorded by BEDlight for BlueEYESBEDlight for BlueEYESBedlight for Blue Eyes was an alternative rock band from Berkeley Heights, New Jersey signed to Trustkill Records. Their debut album, The Dawn, was released in August 2005; the album reached #45 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart. In 2005 guitarist Justin Ortiz left the band to pursue folk...
featuring Sebastian Davin of Dropping DaylightDropping DaylightDropping Daylight is a modern rock/alternative rock band from Minneapolis, Minnesota. They have toured with Blue October and Breaking Benjamin, and more recently with Army of Anyone and Sick Puppies.-History:...
for the album Punk Goes 90'sPunk Goes 90'sPunk Goes 90's is a compilation of the Punk Goes... series created by Fearless Records that features artists covering popular songs from the 1990s. The cover art references Nirvana's iconic Nevermind cover, on which "In Bloom" originally appeared....
. Indie-pop band Daphne Loves DerbyDaphne Loves DerbyDaphne Loves Derby is an American Indie rock band that formed in Kent, Washington, in 2001. They have released three studio albums, the third in 2007 titled Good Night, Witness Light, peaked at number 30 on the Billboard Top Heatseekers chart...
also regularly covers this song in concert.
- Following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, the song was placed on the list of post-9/11 inappropriate titles distributed by Clear ChannelClear channelA clear-channel station is an AM band Radio station in North America that has the highest protection from interference from other stations, particularly concerning night-time skywave propagation. Usually known as class A stations since 1982, they are occasionally still referred to by their former...
.
- This song was used for a public service announcement on Season 5, Episode 3 of MTV's Road Rules titled "The Blind Leading the Blessed." The show originally aired on Monday, January 26, 1998.
- This song was featured in the 2011 film "30 Minutes or Less30 Minutes or Less30 Minutes or Less is a 2011 American action comedy crime film directed by Ruben Fleischer starring Jesse Eisenberg, Aziz Ansari, Danny McBride and Nick Swardson...
" on a mixtape made by Travis(Nick SwardsonNick SwardsonNicholas Roger "Nick" Swardson is an American actor, stand-up comedian, and writer. He is best known for his recurring role as Terry Bernardino in the Comedy Central series Reno 911!, for his work in Happy Madison films, most notably the 2011 film Just Go With It, and for his new Comedy Central...
).
- This song was featured in the in the American Dad! episode "The Scarlet Getter"