Pearl Jam

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Lore & Background

Pearl Jam was recorded at Studio X in Seattle, Washington. The band began work following the 2004 Vote for Change tour in November 2004, again employing producer Adam Kasper, who worked with them on predecessor Riot Act. Recording sessions started in November 2004 and continued off and on through 2005, interrupted when the band toured North America and South America. Bassist Jeff Ament attributed the length of time recording to lead vocalist Eddie Vedder having a child and the band touring in the middle of recording. As with Yield (1998) and Binaural (2000), the band members did not go into the recording sessions with any completed songs, only guitar riffs. Vedder admitted the band 'really went in with nothing.' In just one week they had completed ten songs. Ament described it as a 'real collaborative effort,' and Vedder described it as 'absolute democracy.' A total of 25 songs were written before coming down to the 13 on the final track listing. Manager Kelly Curtis signed a one-record deal with J Records, which during production became, like Epic, a subsidiary of Sony Music after said company merged with J's parent company BMG. Vedder said J was picked as they searched for 'somebody who'll allow us to be who we are and respects how we do things.'

In Their Own Story

The album begins with a number of up-tempo songs before expanding to a variety of tempos for its second half. Vedder attributed the faster and more aggressive songs to the band writing a lot of material that kept getting pared down, leaving behind mid-tempo songs. Ament suggested the 'physicality' came from being out on the road. Current socio-political issues in the United States are addressed, with Vedder claiming the record 'deals with real content and the moral issues of our time,' crediting as inspiration both frustration with George W. Bush being reelected and the birth of Vedder's daughter. The Iraq War is addressed in 'World Wide Suicide,' 'Marker in the Sand,' and 'Army Reserve.' Many songs are written from the point of view of a protagonist, emerging from an early idea of turning the record into a concept album. Guitarist Stone Gossard explained, 'we did consider using narration to thematically unify the album, but ultimately a less conceptual structure just felt right.' Vedder added that many songs were inspired by the death of fellow musician Johnny Ramone, whom he described as 'the best friend I ever had on the planet.' The lyrics of 'Life Wasted' were written after attending Ramone's funeral. Damien Echols, one of the three members of the West Memphis 3, co-wrote the lyrics to 'Army Reserve.' For the first time, Mike McCready contributed lyrics to a Pearl Jam album, writing the lyrics to the closing track 'Inside Job.'

Reader's Guide

The album's cover art, photographed by Brad Klausen, depicts an avocado cut in half with the pit still in place. McCready said, 'That symbolizes just kind of ... Ed's at the end of the process and said, for all I care right now, we've done such a good job on this record, and we're kind of tired from it. Let's throw an avocado on the cover.' Because the album is self-titled, many fans refer to it as 'Avocado' or 'The Avocado Album.' The cover was named in Pitchfork Media's top 25 worst album covers of 2006. The liner notes art features footage from the 'Life Wasted' music video, directed by artist Fernando Apodaca, with photographs involving the band members with their skin decaying and animals crawling in and out of it. The album was also issued on a double vinyl. On the choice of a self-titled album, Vedder explained, 'In the end, we thought there was enough there with the title of the songs, so to put another title on the album would have seemed pretentious. So, really, it's actually Nothing by Pearl Jam.'

Did You Know?

• The album is often called 'Avocado' by fans because the cover art depicts an avocado cut in half with the pit still in place.
• As with Yield (1998) and Binaural (2000), the band went into recording sessions with no completed songs, only guitar riffs.
• 'Come Back' was written solely by Eddie Vedder and Mike McCready.
• Mike McCready contributed music to a Pearl Jam album, but the lyrics to the closing track 'Inside Job' were written by Eddie Vedder.
• The lyrics of 'Life Wasted' were written after Eddie Vedder attended the funeral of Johnny Ramone, whom he called 'the best friend I ever had on the planet.'