This is the point in their career where Pearl Jam decided to chart their own path. Obviously their previous two albums had rocketed them into the stratosphere. They were one of the most popular bands of the time, but I think being one of the voices of a generation really got to Eddie Vedder and he decided to make a stand.
There’s a lot of great tracks on this album (not the least of which are Better Man and Corduroy), but the key track (at least lyrically) is Not For You. The lyrics go:
“All that’s sacred, comes from youth
…
With no power, nothin' to do
I still remember, why don't you?
Don't you?
This is not for you”
And he lets out a primal scream. This was clearly aimed at the mainstream. I think he was speaking to “his people”, letting them know that he hadn’t forgotten his roots. But who were “his people”? When you’re the most popular band in the world and selling millions of copies of your albums your people are, quite literally, the mainstream. I can imagine that it’s a tough mental balancing act. Feeling like an outsider, but actually being the person at the centre of things.
Following this album, the band had a fight with Ticketmaster, and they kind of retreated from the mainstream, but this album is great. Really great.
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