"Last Kiss" Analysis

The song "Last Kiss," although most commonly associated with Pearl Jam, was actually written by Wayne Cochran in 1962. Cochran was inspired to write his song after a car crash near his home killed three teenagers and injured others. Two of the teens killed, J.L. Hancock and Jeanette Clark, were a couple. Cochran wrote "Last Kiss," from the perspective of Hancock who was driving, using many literary devices to tell the story of that fateful evening.

Throughout the song, Cochran creates a constant mood that consists of the feelings of loss, love, and pain. Using the perspective of the teen boy, he was able to display all of these because the boy's love was dying. An example of this mood is when he states, "I held her close, I kissed her our last kiss/I found the love that I knew I would miss." To help balance out some of the undesirable aspects of the song, Cochran used euphemism. He says, "The Lord took her away from me," and, "She's gone to heaven..." to tell the story and to create the correct emotions without saying how truly unpleasant her death was. He also uses euphemism in the paradox, "But now she's gone, even though I hold her tight."

The imagery in the lyrics is very strong. Cochran tries to describe the scene to the listener by saying lines like, "The screamin' tiers, the bustin' glass/The painful scream that I heard at last." He uses imagery to explain the boy's first sights after the car crash when he says, "When I woke up, the rain was pouring down/There were people standing all around." Trying to enhance the appeal of listening to the song, Cochran uses several alliterations such as, "I lost my love, my life that night," and the phrase "... so I got to be good," which appears in every chorus.

Cochran wrote this song pertaining to an event that happened back in the 1960's. His lyrics, however, still have the ability to evoke emotions and are about a relatable circumstance. "Last Kiss" was covered by several bands, even being redone into Spanish by a few singers. It was Pearl Jam, however, that was able to give the song the right tone and sound to match the powerful lyrics.