Am I really about to kick off a potentially lengthy series after what has been a year of sporadic posts at best? You bet your bollocks I am.
I’ve been toying with a way to pick up where my earlier posts on Pearl Jam’s ‘lost’ years left off and cover the band’s rise and ‘glory’ years in a way that didn’t simply regurgitate what had been written so many times before – and lining up another candidate for a Least to Most series* so, as the meme asks, why not both?
As per previous and future Least to Most this is not my attempt at a critical “worst to best”, as this isn’t a site of critique. It’s mumblings of personal thoughts and opinions relating to music. As such I’m going to be running through, in order (though certainly not uninterrupted), my Least to Most Favourite Pearl Jam studio albums.
Of key importance to note with this series is that as a massive Pearl Jam fan, even if they’re among the ‘least’ end of this rundown, it’s a fair bet that there’s usually at least two of these albums in my car or on rotation at a given time.
Let’s spin those black circles…
*Pink Floyd will be up to bat soon… depending on how soon I can a) listen to Saucerful of Secrets and b) decide whether Piper At The Gates of Dawn really counts as a Pink Floyd album.
Mumbling About... 
I love Pearl Jam! Ten will always be my favorite album by them. Pearl Jam definitely helped to make the 90s great! The 90s had the best genre of music of all time.
I may be partially to blame/credit for this as I threw the PJ gauntlet down for Tony a while back. He is much better placed than me to do a series and/or lists on them . While I like Pearl Jam as a band and think they totally belong in the R&R HOF, I find their material to be hit or miss. Or maybe it’s a brand of rock that just doesn’t always speak to me. Sometimes it’s great; sometimes i just shrug. Anyway, I’ll listen with an open mind and hopefully pick up a few gems. And this is not my blog so far be it from me to say that you have an obligation to put together a Spotify list at some point. But of course you do. 🙂
Ah yes, the Music Enthusiast Gauntlet throw down. It did get me started on this thread so you are, indeed, to thank.
I will, of course, be dropping a Pearl Jam Essentials playlist (my own personal one is perhaps three times too ling) at some point in the series don’t worry
That would be mucho importanto, thanks.
I don’t think they ever made a great album. No Code comes closest for me.
Ah I do love No Code. Some of my favourite Pearl Jam songs are on that one. Severely underrated
I do find the early stuff a little adolescent and flawed – production on Ten is 80s stadium rock, vs is a bunch of riffs looking for songs. But they get less consistent later, so its not clearcut what their best records are.