Pearl Jam
The authentic rock spirit of Seattle
Formation and early years
Pearl Jam was formed in Seattle in 1990 around Eddie Vedder (vocals), Stone Gossard (guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), Jeff Ament (bass), and Dave Krusen (drums). Gossard and Ament came from the band Mother Love Bone, whose singer Andrew Wood died from a drug overdose.
Ten and the grunge wave
The debut album, Ten (1991), sold more than 13 million copies in the United States with songs such as “Alive”, “Jeremy”, and “Black”. It rivaled Nirvana’s Nevermind at the peak of the grunge movement.
Vs. (1993) and Vitalogy (1994) confirmed the band’s dominance.
The video for “Jeremy”, inspired by a real-life incident involving a teenager who took his own life in front of his class, won 4 MTV Video Music Awards in 1993 and sparked a national debate about teen violence and guns in schools — sadly, a topic that remains relevant today.
Integrity and legacy
Pearl Jam fought against Ticketmaster in 1994 over excessive ticket prices. The band refused to make music videos for a period and maintained low ticket prices. They were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 and have sold more than 85 million albums.
Iconic guitars
Mike McCready is closely associated with the Fender Stratocaster (his legendary 1959 model is especially famous), while Stone Gossard uses Gibson Les Paul and Fender Telecaster guitars.
