David Ames' Genre 10 - Rock Albums: #2 Pearl Jam

David Ames digs through his music collection to count down his top ten favourite albums in a specific music genre. This time, he salutes those about to rock and at #2 it's Pearl Jam's Vitalogy...



From a young age, I have had a close association with the rock genre. My father would listen to classic rock almost constantly when I was younger and so from basically my infancy I have been listening to Led Zeppelin, Kansas, The Who, The Beatles, Bad Company, Journey, Foreigner, and many others. My father was also the first to introduce me to bands like Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, and Bush, three of the bands that have influenced me more than any others. Rock will always hold a special place in my heart because of its incredibly impactful presence in my life. I know all of you wonderful readers will recognize at least 80 percent of this list and here’s hoping that it triggers some pleasant memories of days gone by.



Find the other albums in David's Genre 10 Rock Albums



#2: Pearl Jam – Vitalogy



Pearl Jam is still one of my all-time favorite bands and they will forever remain there, if for nothing more than the fact that Eddie Vedder is, in my estimation, the greatest lyricist of all time. If you haven’t noticed a trend, the Seattle scene had a huge impact on my music tastes and still does today. There are so many albums to choose from when it comes to Pearl Jam, especially their first two (Ten and Vs.), but Vitalogy was just weird and resonant enough to still get regular play in my car, on my phone, on my iPod, and any other venue where I listen to music. It has a heavy punk feel while still retaining some of that great bluesy tone that made Pearl Jam famous in the first place. Vedder is in top form, as are guitarists Mike McCready and Stone Gossard, bassist Jeff Ament, and Dave Ambruzzese. The album has some of Vedder’s most poignant lyrics and a good mix of heavy and mellow songs. Also, the album ends on a track of a person with schizophrenia rambling with some subtle music attached. The whole album is an art piece but a hugely successful one.



Singles:



“Spin the Black Circle”









“Not for You”









“Better Man”









“Immortality”









Best non-single track:



“Nothingman”







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