In about a month, Pearl Jam will re-release a remixed version of their classic debut album, Ten. Which means I should probably finish this piece, given its almost been a year since I last wrote about a band I consider an all time favorite [Why Pearl Jam Matters, Part 1 | Part 2].

I worry that the last two were received as if I was trying to find an excuse to write a bio on the band itself. I found that, in building an argument for their relevance, the history should be at least noted in the front end. That ‘note’ became an extended introduction, and, well, two entire articles leading up to the big finish. It’s somewhat ironic that I was unable to finish the article in three quick entries. Which says to me: either they don’t matter at all, or it goes a little deeper than their history in the rock annals.

Regardless, I need closure. And in the coming months, as I spin my Legacy Edition of Ten and its accompanying musical accoutrement, I’d prefer the feeling of relevance over nostalgia. The following is a final list of reasons why Pearl Jam matters, and even if you don’t listen to them, what it might mean for you:

1. Activism. Pearl Jam engages a number of charities through its own philanthropic board comprised of friends, family, and other musicians in their own community. While a lot of bands these days champion various issues, Pearl Jam has been estimated to contribute at least 1/4 of its touring income annually to charities dealing in the environment, inner-cities, foreign policy and political action, as well as institutions like the Bridge School and the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America.

2. Opening Bands. Since the mid-90s, Pearl Jam has booked opening bands for the sake of their own enjoyment, and to get them more exposure to an appreciative audience. Bands such as The Dismemberment Plan, Death Cab for Cutie, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, Kings of Leon, My Morning Jacket, Supergrass, and more. Bands who, in the years following their appearance with Pearl Jam, achieved some level of national notoriety. I’m not saying it’s to their credit these bands made it into the national spotlight, but it certainly didn’t hurt.

3. Business Sense. The band, from its inception, has learned hard lessons. From the death of Andrew Wood and the label’s cold response on the release of that album, to Ticketmaster trying to push them around, Pearl Jam has been leery of the music business and its main players. Instead of allowing those pressures push them into early retirement, the band picked up its own business and began directing itself. By hiring friends from the old days, to self-releasing records using distributors at cost, Pearl Jam has come to grips with the reality of the business without sacrificing their art. In essence, they have modeled the latter part of their career as independent, and set an example for younger bands as they approach some semblance of fame.

4. The Music. For every riff Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament wrote that ended up on radio from Ten, the band itself has written twenty more, compiling a massive canon of music true to their influences without compromise. Pearl Jam tours extensively on their own material, and no show is the same. There are no elaborate stage setups, no gimmicks, just stadiums packed with thousands of people bent on hearing classics, improvs, new songs, and the rare cover. The practice has been organic from day one, with the band still stuck in some weird creative arrested development… guitar solos are still OK, Vedder still mumbles between choruses, band members still relay demos to each other on cassette tape. And now, in the latter stages of career, with the big top circus tent of staggeringly disproportionate fame folded and placed safely away, the band continues doing what it did so long ago. It’s a rare commodity in entertainment, to continue the art after the trade seems to wear.

So there it is. No striking epiphany. No massive conversion attempt. So you liked Nirvana, great. While that legacy will live in infamy, Pearl Jam continues to simply live.

And by doing so, they absolutely matter.

Last 5 posts by James V. Mitchell

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