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Pearl Jam|rearviewmirror (greatest hits 1991-2003)

rearviewmirror (greatest hits 1991-2003)

Pearl Jam

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Joe Strummer once claimed that the Clash had stardom in their hands, then they dropped it on the floor and broke it. Pearl Jam took the opposite tact: they purposely left stardom behind. Nirvana may have ushered in the age of grunge and alternative rock, but Pearl Jam were the biggest band in the land during the first half of the '90s, dominating radio airwaves, MTV, and college dorms alike. Most bands would have embraced such widespread acclaim, but the quintet bristled at this vein, and started to restlessly explore new musical territory, a move that eventually whittled their fan base down to just the hardcore by the beginning of the next decade. That hardcore following was still large, and the band could still have the occasional surprising crossover hit, like the 1999 cover of J. Frank Wilson's teen tragedy classic "Last Kiss" that went to number two on the Billboard charts, but they were no longer the biggest band in the land. Spanning two discs, Rearviewmirror (Greatest Hits 1991-2003) chronicles that journey and it does an expert job not only of capturing the moment when Pearl Jam were monstrously popular, but proving that they still turned out good music even when they were fading from the spotlight. Unlike most career-spanning, multi-disc retrospectives, Rearviewmirror does not emphasize latter-day albums in order to achieve a sense of balance that's inherently phony. Of the 33 tracks, only 12 date from the post-Vitalogy era, which means that the bulk of the collection concentrates on their early-'90s heyday, and nearly every radio hit and concert staple is here, outside of the Victoria Williams cover "Crazy Mary" and "Tremor Christ." While their presence would have been nice, they're not terribly missed, partially because such non-LP cuts like "State of Love and Trust," "I Got ID," "Last Kiss," and "Man of the Hour" are collected here, but mainly because the compilation plays so well. The songs are divided into the "Up Side" and "Down Side," meaning the first disc has all the rockers and the second disc has all the ballads. At first, this seems like a questionable strategy, since it's usually preferable to have all the hits follow in chronological order, but what makes this work is that the songs on each disc are presented in chronological order, and they sustain their mood quite well (this is partially helped by Brendan O'Brien's new mixes of "Once," "Alive," and "Black," which retain the feeling of the original songs but remove much of the dated glossy sheen in the production). Distilled to their hits and anthems, all of Pearl Jam's best qualities shine through and they sound bigger, better, and frankly more coherent than they do on their full-length albums. And that's why Rearviewmirror is a cut above most '90s hits collections: it not only gives casual fans all the hits, but it captures why the band mattered, while providing a better listen than their proper LPs in the process.

© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo

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rearviewmirror (greatest hits 1991-2003)

Pearl Jam

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1
Once (2004 Remix)
00:03:16

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Stone Gossard, Lyricist - Rick Parashar, Organ - Rick Parashar, Percussion - Rick Parashar, Piano - Rick Parashar, Producer - Dave Hills, Engineer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Don Gilmore, Engineer - Adrian Moore, Engineer - Dave Krusen, Drums - Bob Ludwig, Mastering Engineer - Brendan O'Brien, Re-Mixer - Jeff Ament, Bass - Walter Gray, Cello

(P) 2004 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

2
Alive (2004 Remix)
00:05:41

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Stone Gossard, Lyricist - Rick Parashar, Organ - Rick Parashar, Percussion - Rick Parashar, Piano - Rick Parashar, Producer - Dave Hills, Engineer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Don Gilmore, Engineer - Adrian Moore, Engineer - Dave Krusen, Drums - Bob Ludwig, Mastering Engineer - Brendan O'Brien, Re-Mixer - Jeff Ament, Bass - Walter Gray, Cello

(P) 2004 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

3
Even Flow Explicit
00:05:03

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Stone Gossard, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Jeff Ament, Bass - Walter Gray, Cello - Dave Krusen, Drums - Mike McCready, Guitar - Rick Parashar, Organ - Rick Parashar, Percussion - Rick Parashar, Piano - Rick Parashar, Producer - Don Gilmore, Engineer - Dave Hills, Engineer - Adrian Moore, Engineer - Time Palmer, Mixing Engineer - Bob Ludwig, Mastering Engineer

(P) 1991 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

4
Jeremy Explicit
00:05:19

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Jeff Ament, Bass - Jeff Ament, Composer - Jeff Ament, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Walter Gray, Cello - Dave Krusen, Drums - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Mike McCready, Guitar - Rick Parashar, Organ - Rick Parashar, Percussion - Rick Parashar, Piano - Rick Parashar, Producer - Don Gilmore, Engineer - Dave Hills, Engineer - Adrian Moore, Engineer - Time Palmer, Mixing Engineer - Bob Ludwig, Mastering Engineer

(P) 1991 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

5
State of Love and Trust (Album Version)
00:03:43

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Mike McCready, Composer - Rick Parashar, Producer - Jeff Ament, Composer - Brendan O'Brien, Mixing Engineer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist

(P) 1992 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

6
Animal (Album Version)
00:02:47

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Kevin Scott, Assistant Engineer - Adam Kasper, Assistant Engineer - Jeff Ament, Composer - Nick DiDia, Recording Engineer - Stone Gossard, Composer - Mike McCready, Composer - Dave Abbruzzese, Composer

(P) 1993 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

7
Go (Album Version)
00:03:12

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Kevin Scott, Assistant Engineer - Adam Kasper, Assistant Engineer - Nick DiDia, Recording Engineer - Dave Abbruzzese, Composer - Jeff Ament, Composer - Stone Gossard, Composer - Mike McCready, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist

(P) 1993 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

8
Dissident (Album Version)
00:03:34

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Kevin Scott, Assistant Engineer - Adam Kasper, Assistant Engineer - Nick DiDia, Recording Engineer - Dave Abbruzzese, Composer - Jeff Ament, Composer - Stone Gossard, Composer - Mike McCready, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist

(P) 1993 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

9
Rearviewmirror (Album Version)
00:04:43

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Stone Gossard, Composer - Jeff Ament, Composer - Kevin Scott, Assistant Engineer - Adam Kasper, Assistant Engineer - Dave Abbruzzese, Composer - Mike McCready, Composer - Nick DiDia, Recording Engineer

(P) 1993 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

10
Spin the Black Circle (Album Version)
00:02:48

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Accordion - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Guitar - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Jeff Ament, Bass - Jeff Ament, Composer - Jeff Ament, Vocal - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Stone Gossard, Vocal - Nick DiDia, Engineer - Mike McCready, Composer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Mike McCready, Slide Guitar - Mike McCready, Vocal - Adam Kasper, Assistant Engineer - Dave Abbruzzese, Composer - Dave Abbruzzese, Drums - John Burton, Assistant Engineer - Trina Shoemaker, Assistant Engineer - Kevin Scott, Assistant Engineer - Carem Constanzo, Assistant Engineer - Brendan O'Brien, Recording Engineer

(P) 1994 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

11
Corduroy (Album Version)
00:04:38

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Accordion - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Guitar - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Jeff Ament, Bass - Jeff Ament, Composer - Jeff Ament, Vocal - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Stone Gossard, Vocal - Nick DiDia, Engineer - Adam Kasper, Assistant Engineer - Mike McCready, Composer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Mike McCready, Slide Guitar - Mike McCready, Vocal - John Burton, Assistant Engineer - Dave Abbruzzese, Composer - Dave Abbruzzese, Drums - Trina Shoemaker, Assistant Engineer - Kevin Scott, Assistant Engineer - Carem Constanzo, Assistant Engineer - Brendan O'Brien, Recording Engineer

(P) 1994 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

12
Not for You (Album Version)
00:05:52

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Accordion - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Guitar - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Jeff Ament, Bass - Jeff Ament, Composer - Jeff Ament, Lyricist - Jeff Ament, Vocal - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Stone Gossard, Lyricist - Stone Gossard, Vocal - Nick DiDia, Engineer - Mike McCready, Composer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Mike McCready, Lyricist - Mike McCready, Slide Guitar - Mike McCready, Vocal - Dave Abbruzzese, Composer - Dave Abbruzzese, Drums - Dave Abbruzzese, Lyricist - Adam Kasper, Assistant Engineer - John Burton, Assistant Engineer - Trina Shoemaker, Assistant Engineer - Kevin Scott, Assistant Engineer - Carem Constanzo, Assistant Engineer - Brendan O'Brien, Recording Engineer

(P) 1994 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

13
I Got Id
00:04:51

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist

(P) 1995 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

14
Hail, Hail (Album Version)
00:03:43

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Vocal - Brendan O' Brien, Mixing Engineer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Guitar - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Mike McCready, Composer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Matt Bayles, Assistant Engineer - Jeff Ament, Bass - Jeff Ament, Composer - Jeff Lane, Assistant Engineer - Caram Costanzo, Assistant Engineer - Jack Irons, Drums - Bob Ludwig, Mastering Engineer - Nick Dida, Recording Engineer

(P) 1996 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

15
Do the Evolution (Album Version)
00:03:52

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O'Brien, Mixing Engineer - Brendan O'Brien, Producer - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Stone Gossard, Lyricist - Ed Vedder, Guitar - Ed Vedder, Vocal - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Mike McCready, Guitar - Matt Bayles, Assistant Engineer - Matt Bayles, Engineer - Sam Hofstedt, Assistant Engineer - Jack Irons, Drums - Ryan Williams, Assistant Engineer - Jeff Ament, Bass - Nick DiDia, Recording Engineer

(P) 1998 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

16
Save You (Album Version) Explicit
00:03:55

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Adam Kasper, Producer - Adam Kasper, Recording Engineer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Guitar - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Mike McCready, Composer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Sam Hofstedt, Engineer - Jeff Ament, Bass - Jeff Ament, Composer - Matt Cameron, Composer - Matt Cameron, Drums - John Burton, Engineer - Brendan O' Brien, Mixing Engineer

(P) 2002 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

DISC 2

1
Black (2004 Remix)
00:05:39

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Stone Gossard, Lyricist - Rick Parashar, Organ - Rick Parashar, Percussion - Rick Parashar, Piano - Rick Parashar, Producer - Dave Hills, Engineer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Don Gilmore, Engineer - Adrian Moore, Engineer - Dave Krusen, Drums - Bob Ludwig, Mastering Engineer - Brendan O'Brien, Re-Mixer - Jeff Ament, Bass - Walter Gray, Cello

(P) 2004 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

2
Breath (Album Version)
00:05:24

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Stone Gossard, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Rick Parashar, Producer - Brian Malouf, Mixing Engineer

(P) 1992 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

3
Daughter
00:03:55

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Kevin Scott, Assistant Engineer - Adam Kasper, Assistant Engineer - Nick DiDia, Recording Engineer - Dave Abbruzzese, Composer - Jeff Ament, Composer - Stone Gossard, Composer - Mike McCready, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist

(P) 1993 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

4
Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town (Album Version)
00:03:14

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Kevin Scott, Assistant Engineer - Adam Kasper, Assistant Engineer - Nick DiDia, Recording Engineer - Dave Abbruzzese, Composer - Jeff Ament, Composer - Stone Gossard, Composer - Mike McCready, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist

(P) 1993 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

5
Immortality (Album Version)
00:05:12

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Accordion - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Guitar - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Jeff Ament, Bass - Jeff Ament, Composer - Jeff Ament, Vocal - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Stone Gossard, Vocal - Nick DiDia, Engineer - Adam Kasper, Assistant Engineer - Mike McCready, Composer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Mike McCready, Slide Guitar - Mike McCready, Vocal - John Burton, Assistant Engineer - Dave Abbruzzese, Composer - Dave Abbruzzese, Drums - Trina Shoemaker, Assistant Engineer - Kevin Scott, Assistant Engineer - Carem Constanzo, Assistant Engineer - Brendan O'Brien, Recording Engineer

(P) 1994 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

6
Better Man (Album Version)
00:04:28

Pearl Jam, Performer - Unknown, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist

(P) 1994 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

7
Nothingman (Album Version)
00:04:34

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Accordion - Eddie Vedder, Guitar - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Jeff Ament, Bass - Jeff Ament, Composer - Jeff Ament, Vocal - Nick DiDia, Engineer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Stone Gossard, Vocal - Adam Kasper, Assistant Engineer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Mike McCready, Slide Guitar - Mike McCready, Vocal - John Burton, Assistant Engineer - Trina Shoemaker, Assistant Engineer - Kevin Scott, Assistant Engineer - Carem Constanzo, Assistant Engineer - Dave Abbruzzese, Drums - Brendan O'Brien, Recording Engineer

(P) 1994 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

8
Who You Are (Album Version)
00:03:53

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Vocal - Brendan O' Brien, Mixing Engineer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Guitar - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Jack Irons, Composer - Jack Irons, Drums - Matt Bayles, Assistant Engineer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Jeff Lane, Assistant Engineer - Caram Costanzo, Assistant Engineer - Bob Ludwig, Mastering Engineer - Jeff Ament, Bass - Nick Dida, Recording Engineer

(P) 1996 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

9
Off He Goes (Album Version)
00:06:00

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Stone Gossard, Vocal - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Guitar - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Brendan O' Brien, Mixing Engineer - Brendan O' Brien, Producer - Matt Bayles, Assistant Engineer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Jeff Lane, Assistant Engineer - Caram Costanzo, Assistant Engineer - Jack Irons, Drums - Bob Ludwig, Mastering Engineer - Jeff Ament, Bass - Nick Dida, Recording Engineer

(P) 1996 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

10
Given to Fly
00:04:00

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O'Brien, Mixing Engineer - Brendan O'Brien, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Ed Vedder, Guitar - Ed Vedder, Vocal - Mike McCready, Composer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Mike McCready, Lyricist - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Matt Bayles, Assistant Engineer - Matt Bayles, Engineer - Sam Hofstedt, Assistant Engineer - Jack Irons, Drums - Ryan Williams, Assistant Engineer - Jeff Ament, Bass - Nick DiDia, Recording Engineer

(P) 1998 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

11
Wishlist (Album Version)
00:03:26

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O'Brien, Mixing Engineer - Brendan O'Brien, Producer - Ed Vedder, Guitar - Ed Vedder, Vocal - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Mike McCready, Guitar - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Matt Bayles, Assistant Engineer - Matt Bayles, Engineer - Sam Hofstedt, Assistant Engineer - Jack Irons, Drums - Ryan Williams, Assistant Engineer - Jeff Ament, Bass - Nick DiDia, Recording Engineer

(P) 1998 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

12
Last Kiss (Album Version)
00:03:16

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Wayne Cochran, Composer - Wayne Cochran, Lyricist - Brett Eliason, Mixing Engineer - Brett Eliason, Recording Engineer

(P) 1998 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

13
Nothing As It Seems (Album Version)
00:05:21

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Tchad Blake, Producer - Tchad Blake, Recording Engineer - Eddie Vedder, Guitar - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Jeff Ament, Bass - Jeff Ament, Composer - Jeff Ament, Lyricist - Dakota, Vocal - Matt Bayles, Engineer - Ashley Stubbert, Assistant Engineer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Adam Samuels, Assistant Engineer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Brendan O'Brien, Mixing Engineer - Pete Thomas, Percussion - Wendy Melvoin, Percussion - Matt Cameron, Drums - Mitchell Froom, Harmonica - Mitchell Froom, Keyboards - April Cameron, Viola - Justine Foy, Cello

(P) 2000 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

14
Light Years (Album Version)
00:05:10

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Tchad Blake, Producer - Tchad Blake, Recording Engineer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Guitar - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Dakota, Vocal - Mike McCready, Composer - Mike McCready, Guitar - Matt Bayles, Engineer - Stone Gossard, Composer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Ashley Stubbert, Assistant Engineer - Adam Samuels, Assistant Engineer - Brendan O'Brien, Mixing Engineer - Pete Thomas, Percussion - Wendy Melvoin, Percussion - Matt Cameron, Drums - Mitchell Froom, Harmonica - Mitchell Froom, Keyboards - Jeff Ament, Bass - April Cameron, Viola - Justine Foy, Cello

(P) 2000 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

15
I Am Mine (Album Version)
00:03:35

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Adam Kasper, Producer - Adam Kasper, Recording Engineer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Guitar - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Eddie Vedder, Vocal - Sam Hofstedt, Engineer - Stone Gossard, Guitar - Mike McCready, Guitar - John Burton, Engineer - Matt Cameron, Drums - Brendan O' Brien, Mixing Engineer - Jeff Ament, Bass

(P) 2002 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

16
Man of the Hour (Album Version)
00:03:43

Pearl Jam, Performer - Adam Kasper, Producer - Eddie Vedder, Composer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Sam Hofstedt, Engineer - Bob Ludwig, Mastering Engineer

(P) 2003 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

17
Yellow Ledbetter (Album Version)
00:05:03

Pearl Jam, Performer - Pearl Jam, Producer - Brendan O'Brien, Producer - Mike McCready, Composer - Jeff Ament, Composer - Brett Eliason, Mixing Engineer - Eddie Vedder, Lyricist - Nick DiDia, Recording Engineer

(P) 1992 Epic Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment

Album review

Joe Strummer once claimed that the Clash had stardom in their hands, then they dropped it on the floor and broke it. Pearl Jam took the opposite tact: they purposely left stardom behind. Nirvana may have ushered in the age of grunge and alternative rock, but Pearl Jam were the biggest band in the land during the first half of the '90s, dominating radio airwaves, MTV, and college dorms alike. Most bands would have embraced such widespread acclaim, but the quintet bristled at this vein, and started to restlessly explore new musical territory, a move that eventually whittled their fan base down to just the hardcore by the beginning of the next decade. That hardcore following was still large, and the band could still have the occasional surprising crossover hit, like the 1999 cover of J. Frank Wilson's teen tragedy classic "Last Kiss" that went to number two on the Billboard charts, but they were no longer the biggest band in the land. Spanning two discs, Rearviewmirror (Greatest Hits 1991-2003) chronicles that journey and it does an expert job not only of capturing the moment when Pearl Jam were monstrously popular, but proving that they still turned out good music even when they were fading from the spotlight. Unlike most career-spanning, multi-disc retrospectives, Rearviewmirror does not emphasize latter-day albums in order to achieve a sense of balance that's inherently phony. Of the 33 tracks, only 12 date from the post-Vitalogy era, which means that the bulk of the collection concentrates on their early-'90s heyday, and nearly every radio hit and concert staple is here, outside of the Victoria Williams cover "Crazy Mary" and "Tremor Christ." While their presence would have been nice, they're not terribly missed, partially because such non-LP cuts like "State of Love and Trust," "I Got ID," "Last Kiss," and "Man of the Hour" are collected here, but mainly because the compilation plays so well. The songs are divided into the "Up Side" and "Down Side," meaning the first disc has all the rockers and the second disc has all the ballads. At first, this seems like a questionable strategy, since it's usually preferable to have all the hits follow in chronological order, but what makes this work is that the songs on each disc are presented in chronological order, and they sustain their mood quite well (this is partially helped by Brendan O'Brien's new mixes of "Once," "Alive," and "Black," which retain the feeling of the original songs but remove much of the dated glossy sheen in the production). Distilled to their hits and anthems, all of Pearl Jam's best qualities shine through and they sound bigger, better, and frankly more coherent than they do on their full-length albums. And that's why Rearviewmirror is a cut above most '90s hits collections: it not only gives casual fans all the hits, but it captures why the band mattered, while providing a better listen than their proper LPs in the process.

© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo

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