On this day in 1991, Pearl Jam release their debut album, Ten, kicking off their career as one of the most exciting bands in grunge.
In 1987, a new band appeared on the Seattle music scene called Mother Love Bone. Fronted by Andrew Wood, the group consisted of members of other bands as well, including Jeff Ament, Bruce Fairweather and Stone Gossard from Green River, and Greg Gilmore from Ten Minute Warning.
After a couple of years on the scene, Mother Love Bone were set to release their debut album in July of 1990, when Andrew Wood passed away of a heroin overdose only days before the release date.
Inspired to move on to new projects, Jeff Ament and Stone Gossard teamed up with guitarist Mike McCready to form a new band. While former Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Jack Irons passed on the chance to play drums for the group, but gave the group’s demo to his friend Eddie Vedder in the chance he might want to audition as vocalist.
After Vedder expressed his interest and sent the group a tape with his own vocals on it, they recruited him as vocalist. After bringing Dave Krusen on as drummer, the band played their first show as Pearl Jam in October of 1990, and soon scored a spot as the support band for Alice In Chains on their Facelift tour.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MS91knuzoOA
With the group spending plenty of time writing and playing live, they hit the studio in 1991 to finally lay down tracks for their debut album. Then, in August of 1991, Pearl Jam delivered Ten, their dark, and deeply-personal debut record that would soon set the scene for the world of alternative rock and grunge.
“So much has happened so quickly it doesn’t seem real, so I don’t put much in it. I don’t,” Eddie Vedder explained one year after the album’s release.
“We just found out we sold a million records… It doesn’t matter; it doesn’t change how you look at music, or how I’m going to play tonight. Getting a gold record was cool for about two-and-a-half minutes, [but] tonight we’re playing for people I care about.”
Check out Pearl Jam’s ‘Alive’:
