Pearl JamPearl Jam was one of the most popular bands of the grunge music era in the early 1990s. Before their mainstream success as "Pearl Jam", certain members had recorded successfully as Mother Love Bone and Temple of the Dog. Current members
HistoryThe band Mother Love Bone formed in 1988 out of the ashes of Green River, and immediately created a buzz among critics (see 1988 in music). In addition to Green River's Ament, Gossard, and Bruce Fairweather (guitar), the band also featured Andrew Wood (lead singer, piano), and Greg Gilmore (drums). They signed to Polygram and began recording and touring. Wood checked himself into a rehab center in order to defeat a painful heroin addiction. He was found dead of an overdose before he could quit. Mother Love Bone's EP, Shine (1989 in music) and the album, Apple (1990 in music) were released posthumously, and the band decided to discontinue the name. As a tribute to Wood, Ament and Gossard, with old friends Matt Cameron and Chris Cornell (both of Soundgarden), released Temple of the Dog (also the name under which they played together). Eddie Vedder appeared as guest vocalist on the track "Hunger Strike". The album was a moderate success, and the remaining members soon formed Pearl Jam. Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament recruited guitarist Mike McCready and recorded a 3 song demo tape. This tape made it to ex-Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Jack Irons, who passed it on to Eddie Vedder during one of their hiking trips. Eddie listened to the tape shortly before going surfing. While he was out in the water, the music played in his head and the lyrics came to him. He rushed back home and in one flurry of creativity recorded the vocals to three songs (Alive, Footsteps, and Once). The songs were what Eddie would later describe as a mini-opera. They formed a story of incest, madness, and murder that became known to fans as the "Mamasan trilogy". He sent the tape with his vocals back to the band and they were so impressed that they had Vedder fly to Seattle to try out for the band. Eddie and the band hit it off and, with the addition of Dave Krusen on drums, Mookie Blaylock was formed. The band later changed its name to Pearl Jam after being signed to Epic. The name Pearl Jam was an inside joke having to do with a hallucinogenic, peyote-laced jam that Eddie's grandmother Pearl was known for. Keeping Blaylock in mind, the band decided to honor him by using his jersey number as the title of their debut album. Pearl Jam became a key member of the Seattle grunge explosion, along with Nirvana, Alice in Chains, and Soundgarden. Kurt Cobain at one point angrily attacked the group because he saw them as commercial "sell outs"; however Kurt and Eddie Vedder later reconciled and reportedly became friends. (See Green River) Their debut albumTen, contains eleven tracks, many of them dealing with melancholic issues like depression, suicide, loneliness, and murder. Their first album produced three smash hits that propelled them into the music scene (Evenflow, Alive, and Jeremy). Their only professional video, "Jeremy", was huge hit on Mtv and won several video music awards. Pearl Jam's first three albums were huge, commercially and critically. But over the next few years, their popularity declined, in part because of their unwillingness to record videos and because of a lawsuit alleging a Ticketmaster monopoly which stifled the launch of supportive tours. Also, at this time, Eddie Vedder began to steer the group in a non-commercial direction, and the music began to re-earn its alternative label. No Code is the primary example, as is Vedder's collaboration with Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan on the Dead Man Walking soundtrack. Brad, Gossard's side project, was formed around this time. Yield, upon release, was proclaimed as a return to the band's early, straight-forward-rock sound, but it failed to sell as well as their earlier albums. It seems that by this time, grunge was irrevocably dead. After the release of Binaural, and the resulting tour of Europe and North America, the band hit upon a unique idea. Noting the popularity of illegal bootleg recordings, and the desire of fans to own a copy of the shows they attended, Pearl Jam hatched a plan to professionally record each and every show on their tour. They originally intended to release these official bootlegs only to fan club members, but their record contract prevented them from doing so. Pearl Jam released all of the albums in record stores as well as through their fan club. All totalled, they released 72 albums, most of them double, and set a record for most albums to debut in the Billboard top 200 at the same time. A further 72 albums were released from the 2003 tour, and they continue releasing more of these "bootlegs" to this day. Unfortunately, the 2000 European tour ended when on June 30 a tragic accident happened at the Roskilde Festival in Denmark, where fans were crushed and suffocated as the surging crowd left them no chance to escape. Nine people died, and the band stopped playing when they realized what was happening. The two remaining dates of the tour were cancelled, and the band seriously considered retiring after this event. Some controversy arose over who was responsible for the accident, after Pearl Jam was blamed in the official investigation. On the group's 2002 release, Riot Act, the band continued innovating and refused commercialize their music. In this album, the band makes numerous political statements. However, the main concept for the album is love. In June 2003, the band announced they were officially leaving their label of twelve years, Epic Records. This move is viewed a something of a coup and has been described as "...one institution leaving another, the most popular and important American rock band of the '90's, voluntarily rejecting the grandest label heritage...". Pearl Jam states it has "no interest at this time" of signing with another label and is "excited about our freedom". Pundits say if Pearl Jam's move is successful, it may be the death knell of the music industry as it is known today. Pearl Jam has, since their genesis, expended more than the normal effort on liner notes, producing some of the most original in the industry. No Code, for example, includes a collection of Polaroids taken by the band. And only their first two albums, when they had little clout, were released in the standard CD jewel case. "Spin the Black Circle", a track on Vitalogy, serves as their homage to the traditional vinyl format. The band was also awarded a Grammy for best hard rock performance for this track. Pearl Jam was an outspoken supporter of Ralph Nader's presidency run in 2000. In 2004, the band explicitly withdrew its support for Nader, with members appearing in Rolling Stone to promote the candidacy of John Kerry, and on the Vote for Change tour. Eddie Vedder is a huge fan of The Who, and has appeared several times on stage with Pete Townshend. He also lists Neil Young as one of his greatest musical influences. Vedder is the president of the official Ramones fan club. The group has also made the obligatory promotional appearances on television shows, such as The Late Show with David Letterman and Saturday Night Live. Samples
DiscographyMother Love Bone (1988-1991): Temple of the Dog (1990-1991): Pearl Jam (1991-present):
Hit singles
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Pearl Jam (1991-present):. A subsequent album Portrait of the Artist as a Young Ram achieved little success. Temple of the Dog (1990-1991):. Despite the controversy, the song reached number 18 on the singles charts in 1977 in the US and top ten in Australia while the Ram Jam album reached top 40. Mother Love Bone (1988-1991):. The song caused quite a stir with the NAACP and CORE calling for a boycott due to the lyrics. Ironically, the song was first recorded by blues artist Leadbelly. The group has also made the obligatory promotional appearances on television shows, such as The Late Show with David Letterman and Saturday Night Live. Ram Jam decided to rerecord the song with producers Jerry Kasenatz and Jeff Katz, best-known for their work with The Ohio Express and Buddah Records. Vedder is the president of the official Ramones fan club. Bartlett had also been a member of "Starstruck", a Cincinnati band which had recorded a song called "Black Betty" which had achieved little success. He also lists Neil Young as one of his greatest musical influences. Bill Bartlett was formerly lead guitarist for bubblegum group the Lemon Pipers while Blauvett played with Billy Joel in two bands the Hassles and El Primo. Eddie Vedder is a huge fan of The Who, and has appeared several times on stage with Pete Townshend. Its members were Bill Bartlett (guitar), Pete Charles (drums) Myke Scavone (lead singer) and Howey Arthur Blauvett. In 2004, the band explicitly withdrew its support for Nader, with members appearing in Rolling Stone to promote the candidacy of John Kerry, and on the Vote for Change tour. Ram Jam is the name of a 1970s rock band. Pearl Jam was an outspoken supporter of Ralph Nader's presidency run in 2000. Golden Classics (1996). The band was also awarded a Grammy for best hard rock performance for this track. Portrait of the Artist as a Young Ram (1978). "Spin the Black Circle", a track on Vitalogy, serves as their homage to the traditional vinyl format. Ram Jam (album) (1977). And only their first two albums, when they had little clout, were released in the standard CD jewel case. No Code, for example, includes a collection of Polaroids taken by the band. Pearl Jam has, since their genesis, expended more than the normal effort on liner notes, producing some of the most original in the industry. Pundits say if Pearl Jam's move is successful, it may be the death knell of the music industry as it is known today. Pearl Jam states it has "no interest at this time" of signing with another label and is "excited about our freedom". This move is viewed a something of a coup and has been described as "...one institution leaving another, the most popular and important American rock band of the '90's, voluntarily rejecting the grandest label heritage...". In June 2003, the band announced they were officially leaving their label of twelve years, Epic Records. However, the main concept for the album is love. In this album, the band makes numerous political statements. On the group's 2002 release, Riot Act, the band continued innovating and refused commercialize their music. Some controversy arose over who was responsible for the accident, after Pearl Jam was blamed in the official investigation. The two remaining dates of the tour were cancelled, and the band seriously considered retiring after this event. Nine people died, and the band stopped playing when they realized what was happening. Unfortunately, the 2000 European tour ended when on June 30 a tragic accident happened at the Roskilde Festival in Denmark, where fans were crushed and suffocated as the surging crowd left them no chance to escape. A further 72 albums were released from the 2003 tour, and they continue releasing more of these "bootlegs" to this day. All totalled, they released 72 albums, most of them double, and set a record for most albums to debut in the Billboard top 200 at the same time. Pearl Jam released all of the albums in record stores as well as through their fan club. They originally intended to release these official bootlegs only to fan club members, but their record contract prevented them from doing so. After the release of Binaural, and the resulting tour of Europe and North America, the band hit upon a unique idea. Noting the popularity of illegal bootleg recordings, and the desire of fans to own a copy of the shows they attended, Pearl Jam hatched a plan to professionally record each and every show on their tour. It seems that by this time, grunge was irrevocably dead. Yield, upon release, was proclaimed as a return to the band's early, straight-forward-rock sound, but it failed to sell as well as their earlier albums. Brad, Gossard's side project, was formed around this time. No Code is the primary example, as is Vedder's collaboration with Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan on the Dead Man Walking soundtrack. Also, at this time, Eddie Vedder began to steer the group in a non-commercial direction, and the music began to re-earn its alternative label. But over the next few years, their popularity declined, in part because of their unwillingness to record videos and because of a lawsuit alleging a Ticketmaster monopoly which stifled the launch of supportive tours. Pearl Jam's first three albums were huge, commercially and critically. Their only professional video, "Jeremy", was huge hit on Mtv and won several video music awards. Their first album produced three smash hits that propelled them into the music scene (Evenflow, Alive, and Jeremy). Their debut albumTen, contains eleven tracks, many of them dealing with melancholic issues like depression, suicide, loneliness, and murder. (See Green River). Kurt Cobain at one point angrily attacked the group because he saw them as commercial "sell outs"; however Kurt and Eddie Vedder later reconciled and reportedly became friends. Pearl Jam became a key member of the Seattle grunge explosion, along with Nirvana, Alice in Chains, and Soundgarden. Keeping Blaylock in mind, the band decided to honor him by using his jersey number as the title of their debut album. The name Pearl Jam was an inside joke having to do with a hallucinogenic, peyote-laced jam that Eddie's grandmother Pearl was known for. The band later changed its name to Pearl Jam after being signed to Epic. Eddie and the band hit it off and, with the addition of Dave Krusen on drums, Mookie Blaylock was formed. He sent the tape with his vocals back to the band and they were so impressed that they had Vedder fly to Seattle to try out for the band. They formed a story of incest, madness, and murder that became known to fans as the "Mamasan trilogy". He rushed back home and in one flurry of creativity recorded the vocals to three songs (Alive, Footsteps, and Once). The songs were what Eddie would later describe as a mini-opera. While he was out in the water, the music played in his head and the lyrics came to him. Eddie listened to the tape shortly before going surfing. This tape made it to ex-Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Jack Irons, who passed it on to Eddie Vedder during one of their hiking trips. Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament recruited guitarist Mike McCready and recorded a 3 song demo tape. The album was a moderate success, and the remaining members soon formed Pearl Jam. Eddie Vedder appeared as guest vocalist on the track "Hunger Strike". As a tribute to Wood, Ament and Gossard, with old friends Matt Cameron and Chris Cornell (both of Soundgarden), released Temple of the Dog (also the name under which they played together). Mother Love Bone's EP, Shine (1989 in music) and the album, Apple (1990 in music) were released posthumously, and the band decided to discontinue the name. He was found dead of an overdose before he could quit. Wood checked himself into a rehab center in order to defeat a painful heroin addiction. They signed to Polygram and began recording and touring. In addition to Green River's Ament, Gossard, and Bruce Fairweather (guitar), the band also featured Andrew Wood (lead singer, piano), and Greg Gilmore (drums). The band Mother Love Bone formed in 1988 out of the ashes of Green River, and immediately created a buzz among critics (see 1988 in music). Before their mainstream success as "Pearl Jam", certain members had recorded successfully as Mother Love Bone and Temple of the Dog. Pearl Jam was one of the most popular bands of the grunge music era in the early 1990s. 2002 "I am Mine" #26 UK. from "Riot Act"
from "Binaural"
1998 "Given to Fly" #21 US, #12 UK. from "Yield"
from "No Code"
1995 "Not for You" #34 UK. 1994 "Tremor Christ" #18 US. 1994 "Spin the Black Circle" #10 UK. from "Vitalogy"
1994 "Elderly Woman Behind A Counter in a Small Town". 1994 "Dissident" #14 UK. 1994 "Daughter" #18 UK. from "Vs."
1992 "Jeremy" #7 US (1995 release), #15 UK. 1992 "Even Flow" #27 UK. 1992 "Alive" #16 UK. from "Ten"
It debuted at number 55 on the Billboard Top 200, the first vinyl record album to chart since the introduction of the compact disc format. Vitalogy was released first on vinyl, on November 22, 1994. Download sample of "Daughter" from Vs.. Eddie Vedder - Guitar, Lead Vocals. Mike McCready - Guitar. Stone Gossard - Guitar. Matt Cameron - Drums. Jeff Ament - Bass Guitar. |