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Pearl Jam Appreciation Thread of Grunge Still Lives

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peppermints

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I love Pearl Jam. That's all there is to it. There's just something about Eddie Vedder's voice that strikes a chord with me. The raw power in it, the energy and emotion. For my money he has the best voice in music today. Possibly ever? Hyperbole, maybe but it's certainly my favorite. Of course, this isn't the Eddie Vedder appreciation thread. Jeff Arment, Stone Gossard, Mike McCready and Matt Cameron make a great band. Perhaps individually they aren't the greatest musicians in the world, but together they create some pretty magical stuff.

Given the history of the band and their "genre", I'm amazed and very happy that they're still around today.

Anywho, here's my ranking of Pearl Jam's albums, in descending order.

1. Ten
ten.jpg


Song for song this is their best. Later albums may be more developed and polished, but this one just screams passion. Songs like "Black", "Alive", "Porch" and "Once" can't be topped when it comes to that.

2. No Code
nocode.jpg


Not only does it have my favorite PJ song ("Off He Goes"), but I think it has the strongest lyrics. Probably the least "heavy" of all, though.

3. VS
vs.jpg


VS took everything great about Ten but also added some things musically different than the grungy sound. "Daughter" is one of their most popular songs, and for good reason. But this album has some severely under looked gems, such as "Go" "Rearviewmirror" and especially "Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town".

Those are my top three. So this post isn't a picture zoo, here's the rest:

4. Vitalogy- tied with No Code for most diverse.
5. Pearl Jam- "return to form", if you will.
6. Riot Act- "I am Mine" and "Thumbing My Way" rank up there with the best
7. Yield- This is a weird one.. a mixed bag, but still a few gems.
8. Binaural- I never really got into Binaural. It's not bad, just not great.

So, fellow Pearl Jam fans. What are your favorite albums/songs? Have you seen them live? Just like "Even Flow" because it was in Guitar Hero 3? That's cool too!

in before Soundgarden and Alice in Chains and Nirvana are better
 
for me it's

Vitalogy > Vs. > Ten > No Code

Just really, really loved Vitalogy, not expecting most people to agree, but that's cool...

I haven't really listened to them much since to be able to form an opinion on their other stuf (pretty sure I bought binaural but never got into it)
 
I think Pearl Jam is a pretty cool guy eh makes good songs and doesn't affraid of anything

That pretty much sums up my attitude towards Pearl Jam. They're a pretty cool band but not one of my favourites (I always preferred Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, and Nirvana.) If I had to list my 3 favourite albums I'd say

1.VS (by a long way)
2.Ten
3.Pearl Jam

I also own Vitalogy but never really got into it, and have never bothered to listen to any of their other stuff. I'm glad they're still going though and glad that they continue to make decent music.

Edit: Also my favourite song is Rearviewmirror
 
eudaemonic said:
Versus, Ten, then Vitalogy, then I stopped caring.
Click to expand...
This. Ten is astounding, still one of my favorite albums ever. Vs is nearly as good, but not as cohesive. Half of Vitology is truly excellent; the other half, well, isn't. I heard their next few from friends - No Code, a few others - and thought they were pretty bad.

I picked up the self-titled album last year (the most recent release), since I heard it was great. Really didn't care for it, none of the song stuck. I listened to it twice and it's collected dust since then. Still, those first three albums are simply great.
 
Seems like quite a few people like Vitalogy. Maybe I should give it more of a chance? It's been sitting in my music collection for about 2 years and I never really bothered to listen to it.
 
NutJobJim said:
Seems like quote a few people like Vitalogy. Maybe I should give it more of a chance? It's been sitting in my music collection for about 2 years and I never really bothered to listen to it.
Click to expand...
Some great stuff on it. "Better Man" and "Corduroy" are two of my favorite PJ songs. "Bugs" is strange, crazy fun. Some of the more experimental stuff (like the last track) are pretty bad.
 
Don't forget "Nothingman" on Vitalogy. Very mellow and serene track. But yeah, you should definitely give it another listen. "Corduroy" is amazing as well.
 
Pearl Jam albums are hard to rank for me. I think every album of theirs has a handful of amazing songs, then a bunch of forgetful stuff.

Favorite songs off of Ten:
1) Black
2) Jeremy
3) Even Flow
4) Alive
5) Once

Vs:
1) Dissident
2) Daughter
3) Indifference
4) Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town
5) Go

Vitalogy:
1) Nothingman
2) Better Man
3) Immortality
4) Corduroy
5) Satan's Bed

No Code:
1) Off He Goes
2) Who You Are
3) Around the Bend
4) Hail Hail

Yield:
1) Low Light
2) All Those Yesterdays
3) Do the Evolution
4) Push Me Pull Me
5) Wishlist

Binaural:
1) Nothing As It Seems
2) Parting Ways
3) Light Years
4) Sleight of Hand
5) Thin Air

Riot Act:
1) Thumbing My Way
2) I Am Mine
3) All or None
4) Save You

Pearl Jam:
1) Come Back
2) Inside Job
3) Parachutes
4) Gone
5) Unemployable

Of course my favorite PJ song is the b-side Yellow Ledbetter, but Off He Goes is a close second.

And the best PJ album is Live at Benaroya Hall.
 
^^ Holy shit, that is SEXY. When I get some money saved up I'm definitely going to get into vinyl.

And agreed, that is a very powerful performance. The amount of amazing live stuff on Youtube is incredible.

*edit* to the vinyl Ten, that is. :)
 
I love Vs and Ten. I was pretty much downhill from there though. Really the only song after those two albums I enjoyed is Betterman.

Most of what I listen to these days is from the early to mid-90's

Pearl Jam
Bush
Nirvana
STP
Seven Mary Three
Candlebox
Greenday(Dookie)
Soundgarden
Alice In Chains
 
peppermints said:
^^ Holy shit, that is SEXY. When I get some money saved up I'm definitely going to get into vinyl.

And agreed, that is a very powerful performance. The amount of amazing live stuff on Youtube is incredible.

*edit* to the vinyl Ten, that is. :)
Click to expand...


I got that record still sealed for about 14$. :x


And you definitely need to check out how Eddie digs a hole in the stage after a concert and leaves through it :lol :

http://youtube.com/watch?v=A6vLXGT8NIs
 
Ok I feel like a fool for disregarding Vitalogy. I'm not even half way through it and I already like it better than that Avocado album. Can't believe I've had this CD for two years and never really bothered to listen to it:lol
New order:

1.VS
2.Ten
3.Vitalogy
 
Pearl Jam is awesome.

Maybe if you are nice to me I'll tell you the true story about the time I met Mike McCready.
 
Vicious said:
Of course my favorite PJ song is the b-side Yellow Ledbetter.
Click to expand...
I had a lot of friends who loved that song. I still can't understand a single word of it - it's as if Eddie's tongue tripled in size for the recording.
 
If you get a chance to see them live...DO NOT PASS ON IT!

Pearl Jam is still one of the best live acts out there. Their last album is incredible and it translates very well to the live show. I don't know if any other band is as fun to see live as Pearl Jam.
 
Yield - Perfection
Binaural - "Parting Ways" Best closer on any of their albums.
Vitalogy - Immortality = Incredible
Pearl Jam - Gave me reassurance my favorite band still has "it"
No Code - Melancholoy but I love it.
Ten - A true Classic album - includes favorite Pearl Jam song "Alive"
Vs. - Any other of their albums would have been a failure following the Monster that was Ten.
.
.
.
Riot Act - Just could not get into this album at all. Although "All or None" is a really really great song.

IMO
 
I love Pearl Jam. I really do. My favorite band ever. Whenever I feel down, I just play any of their records and it gives me an extra boost for the rest of the day or whatever. Their music is extremely special to me.

I have yet to seem them live, but I will someday. I won't die happy if I don't.
 
I have enjoyed most of their albums and one thing that I really enjoyed is that their sound has evloved over the years. I still like the occasional older track but I prefer most of their new stuff. I guess because it is mellower and I am getting old.
 
Ten has sort of aged, I still listen to Vs. and Vitalogy when I am in the mood.

Their later albums have quite a following as well, but eh...I always give their new albums a listen but just never seemed to click with me.
 
I think we all know that Nirvana, Soundgarden and Alice in Chains are infinitely better.































j/k, Do the Evolution is my favorite track
 
I wholeheartedly agree with this thread!! I get super happy nostalgia anytime I hear Pearl Jam. Hell, I'm on a totally early nineties grunge revival right now.

Although not grunge, but early nineties and late eighties, I can't stop listening to Faith No More too. Fuckin hell it's amazing.
 
Jeff-DSA said:
If you get a chance to see them live...DO NOT PASS ON IT!

Pearl Jam is still one of the best live acts out there. Their last album is incredible and it translates very well to the live show. I don't know if any other band is as fun to see live as Pearl Jam.
Click to expand...
Got to second that.

Great in a small venue as you get a really intimate, pleasing experience but at the same time they can rock a stadium with equal but different buckets of awesome.

I need to catch another show by them soon, last one I went to was the Mansfield, MA show of '03 I believe, 25K venue and I got to say, very few things are as surreal as when they break into one of the old favorites and over half the crowd begins signing along word for word.
 
Best band ever, no contest. Probably the only band from the last generation that did it and still does the right way

1.Vs
2.Self Titled (love these 3 equally!)
2. Yield
2.No Code
5.Vitalogy
6.Ten
7. Binaural
8. Riot Act

of course anything recored live is better. Pissed I can't make it to Bonaroo this year, did make it to Lollapalooza last year though, have seen them 6 times

Anyone that hasn't checked out Self titled/Avocado needs to, it's one of their best, I know Binaural and Riot act made a a lot of people tune out...

In the spirit of the elections, and no more bush, I present a few appropriate videos:

"No War" performed 12-6-02 when bush was drumming up Iraq support, a side of Eddie many probably haven't seen.... pretty intense http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfBSXbuQfcw

"Bu$hLeaguer" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYy7_7sb24U

And the always awesome Do The Evolution video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3C9CH3q9PLI



edit:duh was thinking we invaded sooner
 
GhaleonEB said:
This. Ten is astounding, still one of my favorite albums ever. Vs is nearly as good, but not as cohesive. Half of Vitology is truly excellent; the other half, well, isn't. I heard their next few from friends - No Code, a few others - and thought they were pretty bad.

I picked up the self-titled album last year (the most recent release), since I heard it was great. Really didn't care for it, none of the song stuck. I listened to it twice and it's collected dust since then. Still, those first three albums are simply great.
Click to expand...

The thing I found with the last 5 albums was I didn't like them at all the first few listens. I thought No code and yield were shit at first. But after that they slowly start to grow on you, and then you realize you love them. Some of my friends have had similar experience's(usually because I forced them to keep listening :lol), I think Pearl Jam's music after Vitalogy is just not very accessible at first.
 
Signed. (Washingtonian, so it's practically required.

And lets be realistic. We all know Lost Dogs is the best album. I mean come on, Yellow Ledbetter? 2 Discs? I rest my case.
 
-jinx- said:
The best Pearl Jam album is Mirrorball.

(OK, I'm sort of kidding. It's the second-best Pearl Jam album.)
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Bleh for Mirroball. Well it did produce Long Road and I Got Id, so YAY Mirrorball!
 
I could try to pick a favorite album, but it changes on a regular basis.

I listen to very little traditional rock, yet for some reason Pearl Jam is one of my favorite artists. The band isn't even that good at writing hooks, yet their music is endlessly compelling.
 
professor_t said:
I could try to pick a favorite album, but it changes on a regular basis.

I listen to very little traditional rock, yet for some reason Pearl Jam is one of my favorite artists. The band isn't even that good at writing hooks, yet their music is endlessly compelling.
Click to expand...

I would argue that after the insane success of ten they pretty much avoided hooks like the plague, I've ready stories of Eddie scrapping songs or changing the sound because it sounded too catchy. Also it took the band years of begging to get him to let the band do betterman(a song he wrote in high school) because he thought it was too radio friendly.
 
Whoa whoa whoa. WHAT THE FUCK. I was just sitting here listening to all my Pearl Jam getting hyped because they are coming to South Florida on June 11th! Finally! I come to GAF , first thread I see is this. Incredible.

They are absolutely my favorite band, I will never tire of them. All of their albums are fantastic, but VS is definately the the best collection of awsome. I love Vitalogy, I love Ten, I love Yield. Riot Act is awsome, Binuaral is awsome. I'd say the weakest ablums are PEARL JAM and No Code, but don't get me wrong, I love both of those albums as well, not to mention Lost Dogs and every other song that's on an album.

And I was listneing to PJ, I was watching this video of Eddie VEdders song for the movie "Into the Wild" Great stuff. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDorNilxPUY&NR=1
 
professor_t said:
I could try to pick a favorite album, but it changes on a regular basis.

I listen to very little traditional rock, yet for some reason Pearl Jam is one of my favorite artists. The band isn't even that good at writing hooks, yet their music is endlessly compelling.
Click to expand...

They really abandoned hooks for the most part after Versus and it seemed to be pretty intentional on the bands part. As an example here is a demo of an early version of the song Light Years which is infinitely more radio friendly even in this rought state then what they ended up with. Vedder seems to love self sabotage.

http://pearl-jam-light-years-demo--mp3-download.kohit.net/_/317322
 
VindicatorZ said:
I think the song "Sad" would have beena huge radio hit, as it is a badass song that is also catchy. I think it might have been on the radio?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84ZrN8a3RVw

Sad live, but as always Pearl Jam are one of those bands that sound even better live.
Click to expand...

The Binaural outtakes in general are all pretty fantastic. It blows my mind that Sad, Fatal, and Education did not make it on there.
 
C4Lukins said:
They really abandoned hooks for the most part after Versus and it seemed to be pretty intentional on the bands part. As an example here is a demo of an early version of the song Light Years which is infinitely more radio friendly even in this rought state then what they ended up with. Vedder seems to love self sabotage.

http://pearl-jam-light-years-demo--mp3-download.kohit.net/_/317322
Click to expand...

Hmm pretty cool listening to that! But after listening again, I kinda think Light Years as it is, is a better and still more radio friendly song. It has plenty of catchy guitar and singing.
 
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