Pearl Jam

Pearl Jam is one of the Groupes of music Grunge, which was among most popular at the beginning of the Années 1990. It is originating in Seattle (the United States), cradle of this musical style. In 2005, several American magazines elected Pearl Jam “ Greatest American rock'n'roll band off all time ”. Their scenic performances are of such an energy that many people regard them as only the superstars to play each concert as if it were about their last. The quintet of Seattle is also pointed out from its political commitment anti Bush and humanitarian.

Only in the United States, the group sold more than 30 million albums.

Current formation

The group changed several times of beater. The beaters which followed one another in the chronological order are:

Matt Cameron, old beater of Soundgarden (another group of grunge originating in Seattle) joined Pearl Jam since the round Yield (1998). He is also singer and beater within a parallel group: Wellwater Conspiracy. Matt Cameron also plays of the guitar and low.

Since the album Riot Act and the round 2003, Kenneth " Boom" Gaspard, without being official member, exploits of the keyboard and the B3 organ certain pieces and thus takes part in the musical evolution of the group.

Each member of the group writes melody words and lines.

History

Beginnings

We are in 1990. The guitarist Stone Gossard and the bass player Jeff Ament for the first time were joined together within the Green River group, with Mark ARM and Steve Turner. After the separation of the group, the two last formed the group Mudhoney, while Gossard and Ament joined Andrew Wood to train the group Lords Wasteland off, later famous Mother Love Bone, with Greg Gilmore and Bruce Fairwaither.

The group separates with death from its singer, Andrew Wood, which succumbs to an overdose the day before exit of their first album, " Apple". His/her friend Chris Cornell, singer of the group Soundgarden recorded an album with his memory. On this album, which took the name of Temple off the Dog (according to the words of a song of Andrew Wood), Gossard, Ament, McCready and Cameron were joined together, at the time, beater of the group Soundgarden. On the title Hunger Strike, Eddie Vedder accompanies Chris Cornell with the Chant.

In addition, Gossard starts to only work and to store some compos in a cassette entitled Stone Gossard demonstrations 1991, including three instrumental. Gossard meets quickly Mike McCready, a guitarist soloist recently without group. Ament joined them afterwards little time. The three musicians realize very quickly that they hold something of valid.

The group still not having found a name nor of singer, Gossard starts to distribute its demonstrations to his/her friends by hoping that they will finish between good hands. One of these friends, the ex- Red Hot Chili Peppers Jack Will go, entrusts the cassette to the one of its knowledge, Eddie Vedder. This last lives San Diego, works during the night in a service station and spends its time to write and interpret songs with a group named Bad Radio. It is a timid singer, appearing some time with a mask not to have to look at crowd. Vedder listens to the cassettes of Gossard and appreciates immediately. He then writes the words of the three instrumental ones, whose “Dollar shorts”, renamed “Alive” on Ten , the first album, and sings them on cassette. The two others are " Once" and " Footsteps". This last song is not reproduced on " Ten" but one can find it on compilation " Lost Dogs". Ament and Gossard are immediately packed. They organize a session on Seattle and two weeks after, Vedder arrives on the spot. The written group and is recorded during five days, and occurs in concert the sixth. Vedder is then invited to take part in the project named Temple off the Dog set up by Chris Cornell, the singer of Soundgarden (one off finds Temple the Dog on the BO of the first Wayne's World). Cornell wrote some songs inspired by Andrew Wood, which was his friend and joint tenant, and decided to record them in the form of Tribute.

Once the " project; Temple off the Dog " finished, Vedder, McCready, Gossard and Ament, accompanied by the new beater Dave Krusen, decide to name Mookie Blaylock, of the name of their favorite basketball player. A little later the group signs at Epic and starts to work on the first album. For reasons of Copyright, the group renames Pearl Jam. Why Pearl Jam? This idea comes from Vedder, which explained it as follows a long time: Pearl, his/her grandmother, was married with an Amerindian large amateur of plants hallucinogens in all kinds. With these plants, Pearl made the jams appreciated of all and in particular of the members of the group: Pearl Jam , the confiote of Pearl. One knows now, and Vedder does not deny it, that all this history was invented to make fun of the credulous journalists who believed to have found good hangs for their report. Since Ament and McCready told in Rolling Stone that Pearl was the name of the back grandmother of Vedder and that he was proposed during a brainstorming in a restaurant when the group wanted to change name. The " Jam" would have come later after having attended a concert of Neil Young. Ament known as: " Neil Young played some nine songs in three hours. Each one was a " jam" from fifteen or twenty minutes… It is as that which “Jam” was added to the name. At least it is like that I of souviens." It seems that during their brainstorming they would have also found " Pearl". " Pearl" would come from " perle" : a shell can produce what there is moreover in vain starting from waste… like them…

Ten

Ten , thus entitled because of the number of the shirt of the player of American tennis shoe Mookie Blaylock, leaves in 1991 and begins a slow rise in the charts. Once signal 10 reached, the album will remain a few months there. The words of Vedder are appreciated by much thanks to the way in which it depicts the loneliness and the confusion of childhood, especially in “Jeremy”, where it speaks about the emotional and physical abuse. The clip of the song gains a MTV Music Award. Vedder refuses on its side to acknowledge that its words do not speak about anybody of other but him. “I am not good enough lyric writer to come with a message and to try to slip it into a song”. But everyone does not appreciate Ten . With the enormous sales of the album (9 million with the E. - U.) rumors appear that Pearl Jam surfe simply on the wave Grunge caused by Nirvana. Kurt Cobain, milked Pearl Jam of “band of careerists” and explains why they are only one group of conventional Rock equipped in Grunge. In spite of that, nobody can doubt owing to the fact that Pearl Jam is a group releasing a remarkable scenic power. Spin describes one of their performance by “a so intense experiment that even the skeptics come out from there with a new emotional energy that the group communicates to them”.

Pearl Jam begins then round a 18 months to promote the album, and towards the end 1992, seems to be everywhere. In particular, the film " Singles" of Cameron Crowe, turned before the attention of the whole world does not turn to Seattle, and where the members of Pearl Jam appear quickly, still contributes to make their image omnipresent. They record moreover one MTV Unplugged. It is at this time that Kurt Cobain proposes a truce between him and Vedder while explaining simply: “I would not remake it any more. That made of the evil with Eddie and it is somebody of good.”

Vs.

Vs. leaves the sales in October 1993 at the head and is sold with 350.000 specimens the day of its exit. This time, criticisms are unanimous. The album, on which figure the new beater Dave Abbruzzese (Krusen left shortly after the exit Ten) is marked by broad influences going from Police and R.E.M. with the Rolling Stones and the Beatles. Songs such as “Daughter” and “Elderly woman behind the counter in has small town” prove that the group gains in maturity.

In 1994, two events will change the orientation of the group dramatically. The first is the suicide of Kurt Cobain. In its letter of good-bye, he writes a sentence drawn from a song of Neil Young, “My, my, hey hey (out off the blue)”: “It' S better to burn out than insipid away”. Vedder destroys its hotel room by learning death from Cobain. One week later, during a live appearance of Pearl Jam in “Saturday night”, the singer takes again the song of Neil Young, but only the following refrain: “Hey hey, my my/Rock'n'roll roll edge never die/there' S more to the picture than meets the eye”. The round having to take place the next summer is cancelled partly because of this suicide. The other reason is the battle carried out against Ticketmaster, the largest american company of sale of ticket, which sells the places in concert at prices too high with the eyes of the group.

Vitalogy

Vitalogy leaves in November 1994 and sees the replacement of Abbruzzese by Jack Will go, an old friend of the group. Vitalogy was a book published in the 19th century and giving lessons on all and anything (with which to marry, why the masturbation is condemnable, etc). the album takes again the concept of the book and into present some extracts in its small pocket. From a musical point of view, Vitalogy has several facets: of “Last exit” largely inspired by the suicide of Cobain and “Better man” which speaks about a woman resigned to waste her life near an indifferent husband, in “Bugs”, which wants nothing to say (!) and “Spin the black circle” which tells a history of love with the disc vinyl, the album is built on the model of the book, a species of hold-all without total but consultable topic according to its frame of mind. The round is partly cancelled because of a sandwich to damaged tuna ingurgity by Vedder, then takes again some time afterwards. At the time of the four last dates of the round, the concerts are diffused by pirate radio station of Pearl Jam, “Monkeywrench radio operator”, which emits with a few kilometers only places in concert.

Mirror Ball and Merkin Ball

Mirror Ball leaves in 1995, it is an album of Neil Young on which play Pearl Jam, without being quoted for legal reasons (their publisher refusing this collaboration). Are credited, Neil Young (Chant, Guitare, Harmonium), Jeff Ament (low), Stone Gossard (Guitare), Mike McCready (Guitare), Jack Will go (battery), Brendan O' Brien (choruses, Guitare, Piano), Eddie Vedder (choruses). Eddie Vedder is credited with additional words on the song " Peace and Love".

This disc is the result of two sessions of recording (26 and 27 January, 7 and 10 February 1995). The short duration of recording feels on this rough disc with the simple melodies, very rock'n'roll with much of distortion and guitars.

Merkin Ball leaves shortly after as an mini-album Pearl Jam, it consists of two songs recorded at the sessions of Mirror Ball. Contrary to Mirror Ball, one intends Eddie Vedder there to sing two titles (Road Length and I Got ID) which it composed and Neil Young to play of the guitar solo.

No Codes

No Codes leaves in September 1996. the small pocket is original (out of paperboard, comprising 150 polaroids taken by the members of the group, plus 6 large sizes existing in 9 different plays). From the musical point of view, diversity is always present: songs more faithful to passed of the group, like “Hail, hail”, “Dress”, “Lukin”, cohabit with some more original experiments: “Who you are”, “In my tree”, “Off He goes”, “Red mosquito”. At the exit of No codes, the group is confronted with a commercial problem: Pearl Jam was always regarded as a marginal rock group, but with No codes , their tendencies anti-commercial catch up with them: the fans complain about the lack in concert, due to the battle carried out against Ticketmaster, and the group refuses to promote the album on TV (clip, interviews). No codes is sold with 367.000 specimens in one week, which is weak compared to the million Vs. in 1994. in spite of that, No codes is one of the albums most sold in 1996 and the group undertakes a round through the Europe then the E. - U., the tickets being sold by a toll-free number

Yield

Yield leaves in 1998 and marks a new stage in the evolution of the group: entirely recorded with Prague, the album is impregnated atmosphere which reigns in the city. The small pocket comprises photographs of the Jewish cemetery and various districts of Prague. Musicalement, one finds a few pieces impossible to circumvent, like “Given to fly”, “C the evolution”, “MFC” or “Brain off J.”. The fans are spoiled fine 1998 with the almost simultaneous exit of video, " Individual Video Theory" , which shows the sessions of recording of Yield , as well as first the live official one of the group, " Live one two legs" , with the very sober design, which reproduces the environment in the concerts accurately. Jack Irons leaves the group at this time, following health issues. Running 1999, the group took part in a tribute for Kosovo, " No Boundaries" , and is reproduced on two titles “Last KIS” and “Soldier off coils”, two recoveries recorded at the origin for their fan club in 1998.

Binaural

That until the year 2000, with the exit in May of the 6th album studio of the group, Binaural , a scientist mixes No Codes and Yield . “Nothing ace it seems”, the first individual one, releases a terrible power as well as a melancholy already met before, while one also finds other pieces more irritated, like “Gods' dice”. From a total point of view, the album seems to be rough of foundry. In June 2000, the history of the group is still marked by a drama, with the 9 died and 37 wounded festival of Roskilde to the Denmark. The group, terribly marked by the tragedy, cancels the end of its European round. But instead of discouraging itself, the group goes back to work, starts its American round the August 3rd with Virginia Beach to finish the November 6th with Seattle!

Moreover, to give pleasure with its fans and to fight the bootleggers, the group decides to leave out of CD integrality the concerts the round (except that of Roskilde obviously)… is on the whole 72 CD! Some believed that it would be an important commercial loss, but it was not the case, quite to the contrary since 5 CD finished in signal 200 of the world sales! (of which concerts of Katowice and London). It is the first time that a group succeeds in placing several lives in this signal 200!

Lastly, as if that were not enough, the group also decides to leave to the Printemps 2001 a DVD " Touring Band 2000" presenting extracts in concerts of the round US, and including/understanding no-claims bonus of great quality relating to the European round!

Riot Act

After two years of well deserved rest (what did not prevent the members from taking part in parallel projects), Pearl Jam will reconsider the fine front of the scene 2002. The group entered in studio in February 2002 to prepare the exit of the seventh album, the last the binder with the label Epic (Sony Music). This one left the November 12th 2002 and is called Riot Act . The individual drawn ones from this album are " I Am Mine" , " Save You" and " Coil Boat Captain".

After having left in limited edition a DVD the concert given to Showbox Seattle the December 6th 2002, the round Riot Act really began with the Printemps 2003, Pearl Jam spending this time in Australia and Asia, then with the the United States. The official bootlegs in each concert were available on the site of Tenclub, but only one concert representative of each continent is sold in store (Perth for the Australia, Tōkyō for the Japan, State College for the round US 1, New York #1 and #2 like Boston #3 for the round US II)

An double album of scarcities called Lost Dogs left the November 10th 2003, taking again 30 rare titles and news since the creation of the group in 1991 (+1 in ghost song in homage to Layne Staley of Alice In Chains), died of an overdose in 2002, at the same time as the DVD Live At the Garden, concert given to the Madison Square Garden of New York the July 8th 2003, with some no-claims bonus…

Namely finally that Pearl Jam composed a piece called " Man Off The Hour" for the BO of new film of Tim Burton " Big Fish" who left beginning 2004.

Last quarters 2005, they leave in round in North America and in Latin America, with memorable concerts such as The Gorge, Montreal, Atlantic City, Philly, Sao Paulo #2 and Mexico City #2. The group seems to reappear, the concerts being much more pêchus that in 2003.

Pearl Jam

Exit of the 8th album éponyme the May 2nd 2006. Three individual is succédé: World Wide Commits suicide (March 7th, 2006), Life Wasted (June 2006) and Gone (September 5th, 2006).

To promote the album, the group takes part in a plethora of emissions during May and April, in particular in Saturday Night Live, the VH1 Storytellers and well-known Late Show of David Letterman.

The group begins then a new North-American round (from May 9th to July 23rd 2006), then European (finally) from August 23rd to September 30th, to conclude in Australia until the month from November.

With the general surprise, Pearl Jam announces in January 2007, that the group will take again the road towards the old country in June 2007. A multitude of dates are announced and Pearl Jam will occur there as well in room as at the time of Festivals.

Discography

  • Ten (August 1991): Ounce, Evenflow, Alive, Why Go, Black, Jeremy, Oceans, Porch, Garden, Deep, Release. Pearl Jam collects 4 MTV awards. Charts: N°2 the USA (11 X platinize).

  • Vs. (October 1993): Go, Animal, Daughter, Glorified G., Dissident, W.M.A., Blood, Rearviewmirror, Rats, Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In have Small Town, Leash, Indifference. Charts: N°1 (5) the USA (7 X platinize).

  • Vitalogy (December 1994): Last Exit, Spin The Black Circle, Not For You, Tremor Christ, Nothingman, Whipping, Pry To, Corduroy, Bugs, Satan' S Bed, Better Man, Aye Devanita, Immortality, Hey Foxymophandlemama that' S Me Pearl Jam collects 2 American Music awards and 1 Grammy award. Charts: N°1 (1) the USA (5 X platinize).

  • Mirror Ball (February 1995): Song X, Act off Coil, I' m the Ocean, Big Green Country, Truth Be Known, Downtown, What Happened Yesterday, Peace and Love, Throw Your Hatred Down, Scenery, Fallen Angel.

  • No codes (August 22nd 1996): Sometimes, Hail Hail, Who you are, In My Tree, Spalling hammer, Off He Goes, Dress, Red Mosquito, Lukin, Present Tense, Mankind, I' m Open, Around The Bend. Charts: N°1 (2) the USA (platinum).

  • Yield (February 1998): Brain Off J., Faithfull, No Way, Given to Fly, Wishlist, Pilate, C The Evolution, Red Dowry, MFC, Low Light, In Hiding, Push Me, Sweater Me, All Those Yesterdays. Pearl Jam collects 1 American Music award. Charts: N°2 the USA (platinum). N°6 France.

  • Live one two legacy (November 1998): Corduroy, Given To Fly, Hail Hail, Daughter, Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In have Small Town, Untitled, MFC, Go, Red Mosquito, Even Flow, Off He Goes, Nothingman, Do The Evolution, Better Man, Black, F_ Up. Charts: N°15 the USA (platinum).

  • Binaural (May 2000): Breakerfall, God' S Dice, Evacuation, Years Light, Nothing Ace It Seems, Thin Air, Insignificance, Off The Girl, Grievance, Rival, Sleight Off Hand, Soon Forget, Parting Ways. Charts: N°2 the USA. N°12 France.

  • Pearl Jam also left integrality its world tour Binaural (2000), publishing double CD for each concert.

  • Riot Act (November 2002): Can' T Keep, Save You, Coil Boat Captain, Cropduster, Ghost, I' m mines, Thumbing My Way, You Are, Get Right, Green Disease, Helphelp, Bushleaguer, 1/2 Full, Arc, All Or Nun. Charts: N°5 the USA. N°30 France.

  • Pearl Jam continues the experiment and also left integrality its world tour Riot Act (2003), publishing double CD for each concert, some in the trade, but all via their site " TenClub".

  • Lost Dogs (November 2003): All Night, Sad, Down, Hitchhiker, Don' T Gimme No Lip, Alone, In the Moonlight, Education, Black Red Yellow, You, Leaving Young stag, Gremmie Out off Control, Whale Song, Undone, Hold One, Yellow Ledbetter, Fatal, Other Side, Hardware to Imagine, Footsteps, Wash, Dead Man, Strangest Tribe, Drifting, Let me Sleep, Last KIS, Sweet Lew, Dirty Frank, Brother, Bee Girl.

  • Benaroya Hall (Live) (October 2003): Off the Girl, Low Light, Thumbing my Way, Thin Air, Fatal, Nothing ace it Seems, Man off the Hour, Immortality, Off He Goes, Around the Bend, I Believe in Miracles, Sleight off Hand, All gold Nun, Lukin, Parting Ways, Down, Still Station-wagon, Can' T Keep, Dead Man, Master off War, Black, Crazy Mary, 25 Minutes to Go, Daughter, Still Station-wagon, Yellow Ledbetter

  • Rearviewmirror : (November 2004) on November 16th, 2004, Pearl Jam leaves CD doubles made up of parts already published in the preceding albums. This Greatest hits contains the parts: Ounce, Alive, Even Flow, Jeremy, State Of Coil And Trust, Animal, Go, Dissident, Rearviewmirror, Spin The Black Circle, Corduroy, Not For You, I Got Id, Hail Hail, Do The Evolution, Save You, Black, Breath, Daughter, Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In has Small Town, Immortality, Better Man, Nothingman, Who You Are, Off He Goes, Given To Fly, Wishlist, Last KIS, Nothing As it Seems, Light Years, I Am Mines, Man Of The Hour and Yellow Ledbetter.

  • At the time of its round 2005 (Canada, the USA, Latin America), Pearl Jam fills its fans once again and makes available on line, via their site " TenClub" , the integrality of its spectacles.

  • Pearl Jam (May 2006): Life Wasted, World Wide Commit suicide, Comatose, Severed Hand, Marker In The Sand, Parachutes, Unemployable, Big Wave, Gone, Wasted Reprise again, Army Reserve, Like Back, Inside Job.

Other discographics participations

  • In 1996 and 1999, Pearl Jam takes part, at the sides of great names of the rock'n'roll, with the compilations recorded in favor of the collective Mother for our Mother Ocean, for the safeguard of the oceans and nature. One finds two faces b: " there; Gremmie Out off Control" (1996, MOM 1) and " The Whale Song" (1999, MOM 3).

  • In 1993, the group takes part in the B.O of the film Judgment Night with the group of rap Cypress Hill. One can also listen to the group on various B.O. cinematographic works, where it composes " Man Off The Hour" for the film Big Fish of Tim Burton (2004), while Eddie Vedder written and interprets " Dead Man" in the film Dead Man Walking of Tim Robbins (1995) and revisits the Beatles in I Am Sam of Jessie Nelson (2002) with " You' ve Not To Hide Your Coils Away". In 2007, one finds Eddie Vedder on the original soundtrack of the film I' m Not There of Todd Haynes, feature-length film recalling the life of Bob Dylan. In the middle of a plethora of contemporary artists, the singer of Pearl Jam interprets " All Along The Watchtower" with The Million Dollar Bashers.

Concerts in France

  • 2/10/92: Virgin Megastore - Paris

  • 2/11/92: The engine - Paris
  • 6/22/92: Elysium Montmartre - Paris
  • 7/2/92: Eurockéennes of Belfort (cancelled concert)

After the flight of the diary of Eddie Vedder the evening in the concert with Stockholm the June 25th and the incident to the festival of Roskilde the 26 (a fan which made training course diving is made beat by the members of safety), combined with tiredness due to 10 months of intensive rounds, the remainder of the European round was cancelled, of which the concert envisaged in Belfort.

In 2006, following enormous and usual American round, the group finally returned to play on the European scenes. From Dublin on August 23rd in Athens on September 30th, while passing by cities such as London, Lisbon, Madrid, Barcelona, Paris, Marseilles, Bern, Milan, Verone, Berlin or Zagreb and for the first time to Belgium, in Antwerp. The concerts are of an intensity and a rare energy, and the cordial European public is found on many of these dates, to leave an enormous memory to the group of Seattle. Moreover, the group finally rejoué on a scene of festival, in Reading, which had not arrived since the terrible drama of Roskilde in 2000.

To note that the group proposes, on its official site, to download in good quality the integrality of each performance, and this at affordable prices.

External bonds

  • Official site
  • Sonymusic: Pearl Jam
  • the French-speaking Forum of the fans of Pearl Jam
  • the site of exchanges and infos on the bootlegs of PJ

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