Pearl Jam In Profile

After the dissolution of Mother Love Bone, two of its members assembled the band that would become Pearl Jam, the Seattle quintet who were one of the key Grunge bands and an early force in the Alternative Music explosion of late 1991. Their debut, Ten, remains one of the most important albums of that era. Pearl Jam have remained an important band with a sturdy discography, despite Grunge slipping out of fashion sometime in the late 1990s. The band have also positioned themselves as righteous spokesmen against big business, bringing a lawsuit against Ticketmaster in 1994. Pearl Jam are still going strong today.

Pearl Jam guitarist Stone Gossard and bassist Jeff Ament started their music career in Green River, arguably the first Grunge band. The Seattle five-piece came together in 1984 and also featured future Mudhoney leader Mark Arm on vocals. That act released only a series of 7" and 12" records. When Green River disbanded in 1988, Gossard and Ament went on to create Mother Love Bone, another seminal Grunge quintet. They issued 1988's Shine EP and their lone LP, 1990's Apple, before lead singer Andrew Wood died of an heroine overdose in March of that year.

Gossard and Ament joined with guitarist Mike McCready, drummer Dave Kruzon, recording demos that made their way to San Diego surfer Eddie Vedder, whose lyrics and vocal overdubs earned him the spot of lead singer. Originally named Mookie Blaylock, the band chose "Pearl" and then added "Jam" after witnessing one of Neil Young's extended live performances. Their first album, Ten, released in 1991, would hit #2 on Billboard and help spawn the explosion of national media exposure for the Seattle heavy rock style sound, Grunge. Thanks to Ten and anthemic singles like "Alive" and "Jeremy," Pearl Jam were instant stars.

Pearl Jam's next two records topped the Billboard chart and sold millions. Vs. ('93) and Vitalogy ('94) cemented their status at the top of the new Alternative era. While similar to Ten, Vs. revealed a tighter, road-tested sound and featured some acoustic cuts. Vitalogy had leaner production and greater sonic experimentation, earning the band high critical marks. Meanwhile, Pearl Jam sued Ticketmaster, claiming they made it impossible to play to their fans without charging exorbitant prices for tickets. A powerful and creative band, Pearl Jam were also conscientious participants in the big business of rock and roll.

By the latter half of the 1990s, Grunge had mostly run its course, leaving Pearl Jam to fend for themselves in an era dominated by Teen Pop, Electronica, and Gangsta Rap. Their 1996 album, No Code found the group further incorporating Eastern sounds and structures into their material. The record hit the #1 spot, but puzzled many listeners and generated mixed reviews. Perhaps in response, their next album, 1998's Yield, was Pearl Jam's most straightforward rock album yet. The writing was not as strong as their early work, however, calling into question Pearl Jam's relevance at the decade's end.

With 2000's hard-hitting Binaural, it seemed that Pearl Jam were through second-guessing and had gone back to the business of playing anthemic, creative hard rock with a message. Although album sales have not been as strong for Pearl Jam in the 21st century, their music has been consistently good, regarded well by fans and critics alike.

In order to get better-than-bootleg quality concert recordings to their fans, the group recorded and released 72 live albums in 2000 and 2001. Thus far, Pearl Jam have issued two more strong, rock-focused records in this decade, 2002's Riot Act and 2006's self-titled disc. Now well into the second decade of their recording career, Pearl Jam remain a vital alternative rock band.

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