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MEMORIES:
davidf05 remembers...I never have liked Pearl Jam, especially have watching the video entitled "Jeremy" from the Ten Album. As a kid, ... More »
Posted on 08/05/08
PHOTOS:
Release History:
1993 - Vs.
1994 - Vitalogy
1996 - No Code
1998 - Yield
1998 - Live on Two Legs
2000 - Binaural
2000 - 25-disc live European concert bootleg series
Members:
Mike McCready...guitar
Stone Gossard...guitar
Jeff Ament...bass
Matt Cameron...drums
Dave Krusen...drums
Dave Abbruzzese...drums
Jack Irons...drums
“Son, she said, have I got a little story for you…”
Born from the tragic death of Andrew Wood, the lead singer of the popular Seattle band Mother Love Bone, Pearl Jan would become a long-lasting force in the alternative music world. Following Nirvana’s musical landscape-changing Nevermind in 1991, the world welcomed grunge-rockers into mainstream music. We may not wear dirty clothes and we have gone back to washing our hair, but Pearl Jam has managed to ride it all out to continue being one of the most popular and durable acts of its time.
Jeff Ament and Stone Gossard of Mother Love Bone set out to create their next band after the disintegration of Mother Love Bone, recruiting former Shadow guitarist Mike McCready. As a trio, they began playing recreationally, even working with Soundgarden and Audioslave frontman Chris Cornell. The project with Cornell eventually became Temple of the Dog, and with the help of Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron (who would later join Pearl Jam), the group began to record a number of songs as demos. Without a drummer or a singer, the trio began looking for bandmates, even searching outside the Seattle area for people with whom they had no previous connection. The demo tapes eventually found their way into the hands of San Diego singer Eddie Vedder. Soon, they renamed themselves Pearl Jam, recorded their album, Ten, and continued working on a tribute album for Wood with Soundgarden.
With the breakout success of Nirvana, mainstream rock and MTV began to look for the next big Seattle band. Ten, a catchy blend of 70s arena rock, Neil Young’s proto-grunge style and Vedder’s angry, doubting lyrics, was also radio-friendly as a whole. The band chose to not release any single into Top 10 radio, but instead chose to film three videos for MTV, “Alive,” “Even Flow” and “Jeremy.” The latter was a fan favorite and won plenty of awards at the 1993 MTV Video Music Awards, where the band performed Neil Young’s “Keep on Rockin’ in the Free World” with Young himself) and the band became one of the big boys of rock.
Ten eventually sold over 10 million copies and the release of the Wood tribute album, Temple of the Dog, cemented their mainstream reputation. The band was building its own concert legend; their shows were electrifying and the band opened their audience to new musical experiences with covers of 70s rock anthems and some little-known songs, paying homage to their influences. The band also had a number of ecological and social causes, embracing everything from voting to Tibetan freedom. Given all that, the band continued a solid reputation in music. The 1993 release of Vs. was less radio-friendly than Ten, and intentionally so, taking a hard edge on songs like “Go” and “Animal.” Ballads like “Daughter” and “Elderly Woman Behind a Counter in a Small Town” ensured that they wouldn’t lose their mainstream-rock fans. The album was a smash hit, despite the lack of a radio single and no music videos.
After the release of Vs. the band embarked on a highly-publicized legal battle with the ticket-selling behemoth, Ticketmaster. This only added to Pearl Jam’s unpredictable, ‘alternative’ reputation. The band felt that the booking company had a monopoly that was harmful to music fans, so rather than going along with it as many other bands do, Pearl Jam refused to play in Ticketmaster venues. The lack of large arenas may have hurt their touring success, but die-hard Pearl Jam fans were willing to see them out no matter where they played.
1994’s Vitalogy added another piece to the Pearl Jam lore. For the first week of release, the band insisted that Vitalogy only be available on vinyl. The album hit #55 right off the bat, and once the CD and cassette versions were available, the record shot to #1. “Spin the Black Circle” was the first single released off the album in the U.S. and the album went on to continued success with hits like “Not For You,” “Corduroy” and “Betterman,” a song originally written and performed by Vedder while he was in the group Bad Radio.
Despite venue-booking issues, life was looking good for the band. They backed their longtime idol, Neil Young, on his album Mirror Ball (credited individually on the liner notes, due to contractual obligations). Young returned the favor by backing them on their 1995 single, “I Got Id,” off the Merkin Ball EP, giving Pearl Jam their first Top 10 hit.
Grunge began moving off the pop culture radar, and Pearl Jam continued expanding its musical repertoire with Eastern music and spirituality found on their 1996 album No Code. Some fans strayed while others stayed, embracing the change of pace. In 1998, they returned to a more straightforward sound with Yield, going platinum in less than a month. Surprisingly, Pearl Jam’s biggest success to date would be with a cover of the ‘oldies’ classic “Last Kiss.” Originally released to only their fan club, the song made it to #2 on mainstream radio in the summer of 1999, reminding music fans of Pearl Jam’s enduring appeal. In 2000, they released Binaural, along with a 25-double CD series of authorized bootlegs, and set a record for the most albums to debut on the Billboard Top 200 at the same time.
Pearl Jam’s 2000 European tour ended in tragedy on June 30th, when fans were crushed and suffocated during the Roskilde Festival in Denmark, as the crowd rushed to the front. The band stopped playing and tried to calm the crowd once they realized what was happening, but it was already too late; nine people were killed. The two remaining dates of the tour were cancelled and Pearl Jam was blamed for the accident, and the band seriously considered retiring after the tragedy. They were later cleared of responsibility when it was found that safety measures by the organizers were inadequate.
In November of 2002, Pearl Jam released their seventh album, Riot Act, featuring a more folk-based and experimental sound. In 2003, the band was approached by director Tim Burton to record an original song for the film, Big Fish, “Man of the Hour.” The song can be heard in the closing credits of the film and was nominated for a Golden Globe that year.
Pearl Jam’s eighth studio album, the self-titled Pearl Jam was released in the Spring of 2006 to positive critical response and overwhelming fan support the album charting up to #2, and the first single “World Wide Suicide” reaching #2 on the mainstream Billboard charts and sitting comfortably at #1 on the modern rock charts. Pearl Jam continues to maintain and enjoy a strong and loyal fan base while maintaining an integrity not often found in the music world. Even in the post-grunge era, Pearl Jam has again proven its credentials, and will likely continue to find success into the decades to come.
