My Amazon Reviews: Pearl Jam "The Essential Pearl Jam"

Very Evenflow
4 Out Of 5 Stars

What Pearl Jam did, maybe even unwittingly, was to weld the thick sludgy minor-chord sound (and general angst) of grunge to arena size rock choruses and guitar power. In doing so, they managed to quickly outshine their nearest peers (Nirvana) commercially and ultimately become the vanguard for rock through the 90's. Along with Red Hot Chili Peppers and maybe Soundgarden, they shaped the sound of a decade and thrived to see their success sustained creatively.

"The Essential Pearl Jam" (a repackaging of Rearviewmirror, as reflected in the title) reflects (har har) that 12 years between Ten and Binaural in solid fashion, even if does lean heavily on the first three albums. It also offers a dozen later track to show that, even while the band's spotlight had faded somewhat, albums like No Code were better even while the band purposely was making music that antagonized fans expecting more of "Jeremy." Treats like "Do The Evolution" and "Man Of The Hour" sound just as powerful as any of the pre-Vs. material.

And for those who argue that Eddie Vedder is a big old sourpuss, they miss out on fun stuff like the tribute to old 45's "Spin The Black Circle" or the totally un-ironic cover of "Last Kiss" (that actually hit the top ten in 1999). Guitarist Stone Gossard rips some particularly innovative riffs through the proceedings here, and it's worth noting that Goassard (as well as the rest of the band) usually co-wrote the band's songs. On "Rearviewmirror," they are divided into two CD's, with an "Up" disc of rockers and the "Down" side of more pensive or acoustic material.

It is the second disc where more of the interesting material lies for me. I've always personally felt "Better man" to be the best song Pearl Jam ever wrote, and the closer, "Yellow Ledbetter" is a damn good blues number with Mike McCready hitting a terrific facsimile of Jimi Hendrix. There is plenty of meat spread between the two discs, and for the casual radio fan of Pearl Jam, this is a great sampler at a fine price.

     

My Amazon Reviews: Pearl Jam "Lightning Bolt"

Like a Bolt From The Blue
4 Out Of 5 Stars

Pearl Jam's discovery that just being a great rock and roll band has its merits again has been a joy to hear. They continue this hot streak started with "Backspacer" with "Lightning Bolt," a mixture of pulse pounding rock and even some punk fury, along with some deeply touching songs that expose just what an affecting singer Eddie Vedder can be.

"Getaway" sets the tone from the beginning, decrying that everyone searching for a better place, but you have to come through "the dark stormy weather." Still, Vedder is happy to claim that "what's mine is mine." This is just before launching into the furious guitar attack of (first single) "Mind Your Manners," a barely three minute detonation. Even with that level of brevity, Mike McCready unleashes a spike of a guitar solo. If you were watching the videos for the Wrigley Field debut of "Lightning Bolt" (complete with Mother Nature adding visual effects), you already know that the mystery woman gives the band something to tear through as it builds to its crescendo.

The moments of balance come with the softer "Sirens" and "Sleeping by Myself" (which first appeared on Vedder's solo "Ukelele Songs"), where nuance rules the day. They've come to understand that softness doesn't always have to come with caustic. That's really driven home on "Lightning Bolt's" closer, the positively lush with emotion "Future Days." The sound of grown men taking on a world that perhaps "Jeremy" would have grown up to love, it's a gorgeous song, rating with the band's absolute bests.

Lest anyone get the idea that Pearl Jam might be forgetting their purpose in life, they haven't. The rock is still fierce, Vedder can still emote like few singers of his era, and McCready retains his status as the band's utility weapon of choice. They haven't forgotten their love for music, once again dipping to the spinning of the black circle for the guitar boogie of "Let The Records Play." But now that's tempered by a man who can say (on "Future Days") "I believe, I believe because I can see, our future days...days of you and me." "Lightning Bolt" may contain plenty of thunder, but Pearl Jam can now also see the calm after the storm.

PS. The Album packaging is sumptuous enough to give an old geezer like me nostalgia trips to when the album sleeve was part of the fun of buying new music. There are some things a download just can't replace.

     

My Amazon Reviews: Pearl Jam "Ten"

Once Upon a Ten
5 Out of 5 Stars

Pearl Jam's debut album, "Ten," helped to upend the state of American Rock and Roll. Coming off the remnants of several other noteworthy bands (most of all, Mother Love Bone) and recruited San Diegian singer Eddie Vedder, "Ten" stripped the fluff and posturing away from late 80's hair-metal and scraped it down to primal guitar and deep angst. Vedder gave this perfect voice, and guitarist Mike McCready stayed more inside the classic rock manual when it came time for guitar leads.

The result was an a album that resonated both the current rock lovers and the grunge crowd that was lusting for anything that gave of something that resembled Nirvana's grunge vibe. "Evenflow," "Alive," "Jeremy" and "Black" soon became established on radio and MTV, and the rest,as is often said, is history. That established, the most exciting thing about this deluxe remaster is the obvious care the band, producer Rick Parashar, bonus disc remixer Brendan O'Brien and other contributors put into this edition. The original album sounds as blistering as it always did, and the second disc rethinks the original while losing none of the impact. O'Brien reins in the echo/reverb, pushes Vedder more to the fore and makes things a bit cleaner. Disc one is like getting caught in a ravaging sandstorm, the remix is like getting a sand blaster applied in a precise location. Either way, you're getting pounded and laid bare.

The DVD is the MTV Unplugged performance of March 1992 (roughly when "Ten" was beginning to peak), and captures the band in all its anti-swagger glory. The DVD is also devoid of clutter and scraps, making it a more valuable watch. The scraps are in the main packaging, with articles about Mookie Blaylock (Pearl Jam's original name), lots of pictures, posters, passes, and plenty of Vedder's surprisingly good sketches. The deluxe version of "Ten" is exactly how a re-issue should be done; no waste and plenty of value, respectful to both fan and band.