Pearl Jam & Grateful Dead Comparison (article)
From: Pastemagazine.com
Published at 8:15 AM on September 18, 2009
By Justin Jacobs
Pearl Jamband: Is Pearl Jam a Modern Grateful Dead?
Pearl Jam has long been linked to flannel, but what about tie-dye?
As the band closes in on its second decade making music, Pearl Jam and its follow-them-anywhere fans have slowly become one of the tightest communities in rock ’n’ roll, complete with a vibrant bootleg trade centered around the band’s ever-changing, much-lauded live show that many claim transcends the pomp and circumstance of normal rock shows for something more human.
Sound like a mouthful? Sure. Sound like the Grateful Dead? Absolutely.
The most quantifiable Pearl Jam/Grateful Dead parallel came in cassette tapes, and now comes in MP3s. Just like the Dead’s intricate network of tapers and bootleggers, Pearl Jam fans have got you covered if you couldn’t make the show. PearlJamBootLegs.org, to name just one site, has 665 Pearl Jam shows recorded and available for your listening pleasure. While even that figure pales in comparison to some Deadhead tapers (Rob McKeever of WheelToTheStorm.com has 2,318 Dead shows archived), it’s still approximately 55 days worth of Vedder and Co.
The argument exists, of course, that Pearl Jam, not being a real "jam band" complete with 25-minute guitar solos, couldn’t truly be the successors of the Grateful Dead. Phish would, right? Well, maybe not.
The Grateful Dead was the first band in a genre it created, spawning countless musical children (Phish, Widespread Panic, moe., String Cheese Incident), and the band’s following was stronger than all of the bands that came after. Pearl Jam, similarly, is the forebear of a genre (though it hasn’t released a real grunge record in 15 years), and has spawned countless musical children (Everclear, Silverchair, Creed, etc.). And Pearl Jam’s following is undoubtedly stronger than any of these so-called "post-grunge" bands.
Beyond each band’s genre, the Grateful Dead and Pearl Jam fill similar roles overall in pop culture. Both bands are known by virtually any music fan by their hits (we all know “Jeremy”; we all know “Truckin’”), and they remain ever-present on the peripheral of the public’s musical mindset. Putting Pearl Jam’s mid-'90s superstardom aside, of course, the band is no Coldplay just as the Dead were no Rolling Stones.
Where the Dead/Jam parallels fray a bit, though, is in fan identity. Mention "Deadhead" to the guy sitting in the next cubicle and he’ll likely summon the usual image: tie-dye T-shirt, fingers in a peace sign and a joint dangling from his lips. Although even that stereotype is increasingly false (Even Ann Coulter has admitted Deadhead tendencies), the image sticks.
So what do Pearl Jam fanatics look like? Sleeveless shirts and long hair? Dudes in flannel? Unless we’re speaking of the lumberjack constituency of the band's fanbase, the answer is tough to conjure.
To Einat Shaul, a 28-year-old Pearl Jam fanatic from Israel, fans are united not in appearance, but in dedication. As the Vedder’s “All the Way,” an ode to the Chicago Cubs, goes, she says, “We aren’t fair weather fans; we’re foul weather fans.”
Few people understand the bands’ connection better than Dean Simmons. At 53, the Philadelphia retail manager has lived in the communities of both bands. “Jerry Garcia got onstage and my eyes opened up and my mouth dropped open,” he said of his first Grateful Dead experience. And though it happened decades later, his first Pearl Jam show in 2003 wasn’t so different: “There’s a flow of energy, from the band to the people and the people to the band. It’s like a group karaoke. Like a group hug.”
The correlation goes well beyond the rapturous musical experience that Pearl Jam and Grateful Dead fans ascribe to their favorite band—the concerts of both bands are like a town hall meeting of the faithful, with friends reconnecting and new friendships made—as well as other things
“We like to party loud before and after the shows,” said Shaul of her 46 (and counting) Pearl Jam shows. She's currently following her favorite band on their European tour—and it’s not her first time, either. Like the generation of Deadheads that followed the band in VW vans, Shaul has traveled behind Pearl Jam with a whole assortment of similarly-obsessed fans through Australia, the States and thrice through Europe.
Although Shaul’s never been a Grateful Dead fan, you wouldn’t know it from the way she describes Pearl Jam shows: “You’re all on one trippy journey together, like you’re around a campfire with your closest friends. People coming back for their 90th show feel like they’re coming home.”
Published at 8:15 AM on September 18, 2009
By Justin Jacobs
Pearl Jamband: Is Pearl Jam a Modern Grateful Dead?
Pearl Jam has long been linked to flannel, but what about tie-dye?
As the band closes in on its second decade making music, Pearl Jam and its follow-them-anywhere fans have slowly become one of the tightest communities in rock ’n’ roll, complete with a vibrant bootleg trade centered around the band’s ever-changing, much-lauded live show that many claim transcends the pomp and circumstance of normal rock shows for something more human.
Sound like a mouthful? Sure. Sound like the Grateful Dead? Absolutely.
The most quantifiable Pearl Jam/Grateful Dead parallel came in cassette tapes, and now comes in MP3s. Just like the Dead’s intricate network of tapers and bootleggers, Pearl Jam fans have got you covered if you couldn’t make the show. PearlJamBootLegs.org, to name just one site, has 665 Pearl Jam shows recorded and available for your listening pleasure. While even that figure pales in comparison to some Deadhead tapers (Rob McKeever of WheelToTheStorm.com has 2,318 Dead shows archived), it’s still approximately 55 days worth of Vedder and Co.
The argument exists, of course, that Pearl Jam, not being a real "jam band" complete with 25-minute guitar solos, couldn’t truly be the successors of the Grateful Dead. Phish would, right? Well, maybe not.
The Grateful Dead was the first band in a genre it created, spawning countless musical children (Phish, Widespread Panic, moe., String Cheese Incident), and the band’s following was stronger than all of the bands that came after. Pearl Jam, similarly, is the forebear of a genre (though it hasn’t released a real grunge record in 15 years), and has spawned countless musical children (Everclear, Silverchair, Creed, etc.). And Pearl Jam’s following is undoubtedly stronger than any of these so-called "post-grunge" bands.
Beyond each band’s genre, the Grateful Dead and Pearl Jam fill similar roles overall in pop culture. Both bands are known by virtually any music fan by their hits (we all know “Jeremy”; we all know “Truckin’”), and they remain ever-present on the peripheral of the public’s musical mindset. Putting Pearl Jam’s mid-'90s superstardom aside, of course, the band is no Coldplay just as the Dead were no Rolling Stones.
Where the Dead/Jam parallels fray a bit, though, is in fan identity. Mention "Deadhead" to the guy sitting in the next cubicle and he’ll likely summon the usual image: tie-dye T-shirt, fingers in a peace sign and a joint dangling from his lips. Although even that stereotype is increasingly false (Even Ann Coulter has admitted Deadhead tendencies), the image sticks.
So what do Pearl Jam fanatics look like? Sleeveless shirts and long hair? Dudes in flannel? Unless we’re speaking of the lumberjack constituency of the band's fanbase, the answer is tough to conjure.
To Einat Shaul, a 28-year-old Pearl Jam fanatic from Israel, fans are united not in appearance, but in dedication. As the Vedder’s “All the Way,” an ode to the Chicago Cubs, goes, she says, “We aren’t fair weather fans; we’re foul weather fans.”
Few people understand the bands’ connection better than Dean Simmons. At 53, the Philadelphia retail manager has lived in the communities of both bands. “Jerry Garcia got onstage and my eyes opened up and my mouth dropped open,” he said of his first Grateful Dead experience. And though it happened decades later, his first Pearl Jam show in 2003 wasn’t so different: “There’s a flow of energy, from the band to the people and the people to the band. It’s like a group karaoke. Like a group hug.”
The correlation goes well beyond the rapturous musical experience that Pearl Jam and Grateful Dead fans ascribe to their favorite band—the concerts of both bands are like a town hall meeting of the faithful, with friends reconnecting and new friendships made—as well as other things
“We like to party loud before and after the shows,” said Shaul of her 46 (and counting) Pearl Jam shows. She's currently following her favorite band on their European tour—and it’s not her first time, either. Like the generation of Deadheads that followed the band in VW vans, Shaul has traveled behind Pearl Jam with a whole assortment of similarly-obsessed fans through Australia, the States and thrice through Europe.
Although Shaul’s never been a Grateful Dead fan, you wouldn’t know it from the way she describes Pearl Jam shows: “You’re all on one trippy journey together, like you’re around a campfire with your closest friends. People coming back for their 90th show feel like they’re coming home.”
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96: Cork, Dublin
00: Dublin
06: London, Dublin
07: London, Copenhagen, Nijmegen
09: Manchester, London
10: Dublin, Belfast, London & Berlin
11: San José
12: Isle of Wight, Copenhagen, Ed in Manchester & London x2
I recognise some of those interviewed at board members I've read on here.
OK dangdang - the real question is who is best in your book - pearl jam or the dead? and why?
Send my credentials to the house of detention
4/5,6/9/2003, 9/1/05, 12/7/2005, 7/15,16,18/2006, 8/5/2007
6/24,25/08,6/27/08,6/28/08,6/30/08
9/21,22/2009, 10/4/2009
5/6,7,9/2010, 9/3/2011 9/4/2011, 11/15/2013,
11/16/2013, 12/8/2013, 10/5/2014, 10/12/2014,
4/23, 5/10, 5/12, 8/20, 8/22 2016,
8/8, 8/10, 8/18, 8/20 2018, 5/12, 5/13, 9/20 2022
Amen to that. (100+ GD shows and 30+ PJ shows under my belt.)
well ive seen the dead (not grateful dead) about 5 or 6 times, and ive seen pj a whole ton of a lot more than that...and no, their music is nothing alike.
however their devoted fanbase that will go to great lengths to see them i definately see as similar to dead heads following the dead all over the place... that and pearl jam's audio taping policy and the tight knit group of diehard fans... i def see the comparison
but mostly, its the business model and the fact that both bands built their following by playing great shows
major difference is that PJ makes great records that make money, and the dead put a steal your face on every little trinket known to man
musically, these bands have very little, if anything in common.
I will just say that PJ filled the musical void in my life after Jerry passed.
"Becoming a Bruce fan is like hitting puberty as a musical fan. It's inevitable." - dcfaithful
+10000000000
Sammi: Wanna just break up?
depends on whether you're hungry, or you want to sink a pirate ship...
i would think a cannon ball is better?
fade away...
I am at peace with my lust.....for Eddie.
The wishlist foundation activities and other charities BTW make all the difference in our following... and I love it that way.
See y'all at PJ20!
https://www.facebook.com/Bring.Pearl.Jam.To.Israel
Welcome back!
It must have felt really great being interviewed / quoted in an article about your favourite band...
I can see it now, "a smooth, vanilla pearly ice cream mixed with a rich blend of three kinds of jams"
Pearl Jam:
Key Arena - Seattle, WA - Sep 21, 2009
Pacific Coliseum - Vancouver, BC - Sep 25, 2011
Key Arena - Seattle, WA - Dec 6, 2013
Eddie Vedder Solo:
Benaroya Hall - Seattle, WA - Jul 15, 2011
People don't plan vacations around the Stone Temple Pilots.
for the least they could possibly do
https://www.reddit.com/r/gratefuldead/comments/bd2t88/interesting_grateful_dead_pearl_jam_connection/?captcha=1