Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready talks new ‘MTV Unplugged’ release, ‘Gigatron’ album & more

pleatherman · October 2020

https://www.cleveland.com/entertainment/2020/10/pearl-jam-guitarist-mike-mccready-talks-new-mtv-unplugged-release-gigatron-album-more.html

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Mike McCready voted no when Pearl Jam was asked to play for “MTV Unplugged” early in 1992.

“I don’t think anybody else was of this mindset, but I didn’t really want to do it,” the guitarist says of the March 16, 1992, taping that’s coming out officially on Friday, Oct. 23, after a limited-edition release for Record Store Day on April 2019.

The seven-song set features tracks from the Seattle quintet’s breakthrough debut album, “Ten,” including the already established hits “Alive” and “Even Flow.” The buzz was strong, and McCready’s reservations were less about Pearl Jam’s status than its ability to deliver in the stripped-down setting.

“I didn’t think we were as good acoustically as we were electric,” he explains. "That’s how I was thinking back then. I felt like we were just honing that (electric) thing down. And being a lead player, playing leads on acoustic for me was really (f***ing hard. It just didn’t feel like the right thing to do, at that time.

“But, y’know, Ed (Vedder) rose to the challenge and we all did again. Everybody else I talk to seems to like it a lot. So, I guess I was wrong,” he adds with a laugh.

The “MTV Unplugged” release joins a batch of endeavors Pearl Jam has launched during the pandemic, in lieu of touring to support its latest album, “Gigaton.” The group has supported a number of online charity events and it launched a vote-by-mail initiative, PJ Votes 2020, to encourage participation in this year’s election. On Thursday, Oct. 22, Pearl Jam will commemorate the 30th anniversary of its first live show -- at the Off Ramp in Seattle -- by streaming its three-hour April 29, 2016 concert in Philadelphia, during which it played the “Ten” album in its entirety.

Despite that activity, McCready says, “None of us have hung out. I saw Stone (Gossard) from across the street once, and that’s about it. We do a lot of Zoom calls and we see each other that way, and I’m glad that exists. But I’m also missing giving somebody a high five. I’m missing that kind of contact. I miss those guys.”

He’s also disappointed that “Gigaton,” which came out during March and debuted at No. 5 on the Billboard 200, is missing its moment right now after Pearl Jam’s tour dates were postponed due to the pandemic.

“I’m very proud of that record,” McCready says. “But I feel like we put it out and not being able to play it live or work on those songs in a live setting really made me sad. Safety is No. 1, of course, but I really wish we had a chance to play those songs live so they could expand. We were getting them ready and the rug was just pulled from underneath us.”

McCready isn’t staying dormant while in “limbo,” however. He recently joined Brandi Carlile for Vote Your Values, a benefit for GALvanize USA, whose mission is to empower women in the Midwest. He’s also using the enforced time off to educate himself on recording techniques in his home studio, and he’s writing material -- some of which could surface as a solo album.

“It’s given me an opportunity to learn some stuff, which is always good,” McCready says. I’m working on my own thing right now; I’m not sure what it is, but I have a bunch of ideas and I have the time to do it, and we’ll see what comes of it. I hope something does. I really haven’t done anything like this before."