So, Green River dissolves, Mother Love Bone meets a premature ending with the tragic death of Andrew Wood and Stone Gossard & Jeff Ament are left with all these beautiful broken pieces. I’m sure it had to go through their mind, can we make an impact a 3rd time? Is it even worth it anymore? Luckily for the music world, Stone & Jeff both decided they wanted to keep playing music. They enlisted a local guitar player named Mike Mccready and began crafting what would be hailed as one of the greatest albums of the 1990’s. Initially, they booked studio time and concentrated on an instrumental demo, enlisting Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron for the sessions. Once done, they planned on circulating the demo to find a drummer and singer. The demo tape made it to Red Hot Chili Pepper founding drummer Jack Iron’s who suggested a friend from San Diego check it out. That friend was Eddie Vedder. Eddie received the tape that September in 1990, played it over and over and decided to go out surfing. When he got back home he had all the lyrics done. Those first three songs were called Alive, Once and Footsteps. This legendary demo, birthed almost entirely by chance, would forever be known as the “Momma/Son Tape”. And cement Eddie Vedder as the vocalist for Pearl Jam.

The band entered London Bridge Studios in Seattle, WA in March of ’91as a full band having now acquired Dave Krusen on drums. Almost all of the music for Ten was written by Jeff & Stone with the exception of Porch which was written by Eddie on his trip to audition with the band for the first time. Wow, what a song to just pull out of thin air single handedly! The recording sessions for Ten were completed in May of ’91 and released that same year on August 27th through Epic Records.

The album opens up with the ferocious Once. The second in the original Momma/Son Demo trilogy, the song was the continuation of “Alive”. Having been told this life-changing news and being left to deal with it spurred anger. Eddie once referred to it as a decent into madness. During the bridge, Vedder mutters the line “You think I got my eyes closed but I’m lookin’ at you the whole fuckin’ time…” When I first heard Ten this song was a stand-out for me, and still is. To me it’s about mourning, in some ways, what you’ve become. Longing for the way things used to be. “Once upon a time I could love myself.”

The next track, Evenflow, would catapult the band even further, although Stone was never quite satisfied with how it came out. Ament recalled, “I know it was a great song all along, and I felt that it was the best song that we got the worst take of on the first record. There were a hundred takes of that song and we just never nailed it.” McCready added, “We did Evenflow about 50, 70 times. I swear to God it was a nightmare. We played that thing over and over until we hated each other. I still don’t think Stone is satisfied with how it came out.” Nevertheless, it connected in a huge way to fans all across the world and would become another live staple for the band, even becoming Kim Thayil and Matt Cameron of Soundarden’s favorite track. Matt Cameron said, “When I was in Soundgarden and we were making Badmotorfinger Eddie brought up the mixes to Ten and I distinctly remember hearing the chorus for “Evenflow” and thinking that’s HUGE. So hooky, its got a really rad Zeppelin huge rock feel to it. Although we’ve played it a couple of thousand times since I’be been in the group, I think thats the quintessential Pearl Jam song. Even though it gets played out, the nuts and bolts of that song are just amazing.” The band would agree to a video for this song but only with live footage.

The third track and second single to be released was Alive, lyrically inspired by Vedder’s own life having been told that the father he knew his entire life was actually not his father. His real father was known to him as a family friend, who at this point had died. “I’m still alive,” although on the surface a hopeful message, was actually meant by Vedder to be a curse. A burden. Alive would go on to become one of Pearl Jam’s most famous songs, and in recent years Eddie has stated that the fans have changed the meaning of the song, and changed the way even he sees it. He said the curse was lifted. FYI – This song was written in’88-’89 and originally a Mother Love Bone Song entitled “Dollar Short”. Andy died before recording any vocals to it so back in Stone’s demo pile it went.

In Why Go Eddie paints yet another great picture of youth in peril. Based on true events about a girl put into a hospital after not being able to get along with her parents. This one is actually dedicated to Heather in the Ten liner notes. The lyrics, “It’s been two years and counting since they put her in this place. She’s been diagnosed by some stupid fuck and mommy agrees. Why go home? Why go home? Why go home?” really demonstrates the hopelessness of longing for a place you are no longer wanted.

The next song would prove to be a point of contention between the band and the record label when the label pushed for Black to be the next single. The band refused and also nixed plans for a music video. “Some songs just aren’t meant to be played between hit No. 2 and hit No. 3,” said Vedder. “You start doing those things, you’ll crush it. That’s not why we wrote songs. We didn’t write to make hits, but those fragile songs get crushed by the business. I don’t want to be a part of it. I don’t think the band wants to be part of it.” The song would still be picked up by radio and hit No 3 on the mainstream rock charts due to it’s mass appeal. Lyrically connecting to the heartbroken or those that had experienced the hurt of failed relationships, it seemed the world was in need of a kindred spirit that could express these things. I know I was, and have quoted and been quoted the lines to this song in many dramatic teenage love/unlove letters. “I know someday you’ll have a beautiful life, I know you’ll be a star in somebody elses sky but why cant it be mine?”

Jeremy. The third single to be released from Ten and the first actual video that wasn’t live footage. The video was shot in London with video director Mark Pellington and would soon be on constant rotation on MTV, even winning awards at the 1993 MTV Music Awards for Video Of The Year, Best Group Video, Best Metal Hard Rock Video and Best Director. The band wouldn’t release another video in the U.S. for 6 years. “Ten years from now,” Ament said, “I don’t want people to remember our songs as videos.” The band was beginning to pull away from the fame at this point, doing all they could to hold onto this band they created and not let it be eaten up by the label or mainstream media.

Jeff & Stone both at different times have said that Oceans was their favorite song from Ten, which I wouldn’t have really expected. An amazing song of course, but not one I would expect them to pick as their favorite. But like all favorites, they change, I’ve also read interviews where Gossard refers to Garden as his favorite. Lol, I posted a Pearl Jam Top 10 yesterday putting my favorite songs in order. Believe me, favorites can change on a daily basis! Lyrically, Eddie has joked this was a love song to his surfboard. But after the performance on MTV Unplugged he cleared it up by saying it was for a girl named Beth (whom he was married to from 1994-2000). A video for the song was shot in Hawaii in September of 1992 but released only outside of the United States by the bands request.

Porch. Words and music Eddie Vedder. How’s that for musicianship? Eddie introduced the song at Pearl Jam’s August 23, 1991 concert in Seattle by saying, “This song is about if you love someone, tell him.” The lyrics almost come out like he blurted them, one focused thought. I can imagine him on the ride from San Diego to meet Stone & Jeff for the first time in Seattle, just blasting this song out. Another one high on my favorite tracks from Ten!

Here it is guys, my favorite track off of Ten, Garden. I never knew Eddie’s meaning behind this song. Like so many of his songs I painted my own picture, we all have. It was fun that way. In recent years I heard that Eddie explained the songs inspiration as having come from the Iraq war of the early 90’s. It must be somewhat annoying to constantly be asked about song meanings, I get that us superfans want to know all the ins and outs, but I’ve always respected Eddie for the mystery he leaves surrounding so many of his songs. In the 1998 issue of Spin Magazine Eddie says about his songs, “If I want to make a song based on sound effects from the movie Mars Attacks, I can do that. That’s our legacy. That’s the good stuff. Fuck lyrics. I’m working on singing more without saying anything. It really takes the pressure off. I’m not a scholar. Don’t follow me. A lot of the songs are about escape, about letting go.” I can respect that. Deciphering the lyrics, unnecessary.

Man, the riff in this song is one of my favs. It just seems like classic Gossard. Deep is one not too many casual fans will mention or prob even know about but it’s a very vital piece of Ten in my opinion. The last taste of the band running on all 5 cylinders on the album. About the desperation and despair or addictions. “To the street below he just aint nothing but he’s got a great view and he sinks the needle deep, cant touch the bottom. In too deep.”

RELEASE. Nothing can be said,other than if you’ve ever loved and lost, you know.

I see the world, feel the chill

Which way to go, windowsill

I see the words on a rocking horse of time

I see the birds in the rain

Oh dear dad, can you see me now

I am myself like you somehow

I’ll ride the wave where it takes me

I’ll hold the pain, release me

Oh dear dad, can you see me now

I am myself like you somehow

I’ll wait up in the dark for you to speak to me

I’ll open up

Release me

Release me

Release me

Release me