Ten (Pearl Jam Album)
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''Ten'' is the debut studio album by the American
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...
band
Pearl Jam Pearl Jam is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. One of the key bands in the grunge, grunge movement of the early 1990s, Pearl Jam has outsold and outlasted many of its contemporaries from the early 1990s, ...
, released on August 27, 1991, through
Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...
. Following the dissolution of their previous band
Mother Love Bone Mother Love Bone was an American Rock music, rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, in 1988. The band was active from 1988 to 1990. Frontman Andrew Wood (singer), Andrew Wood's charisma and songwriting helped to catapu ...
in 1990, bassist
Jeff Ament Jeffrey Allen Ament (born March 10, 1963) is an American musician best known as the bassist of rock band Pearl Jam, which he co-founded alongside Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder. Ament wrote or co-wrote many of Pearl Jam's hits, ...
and guitarist
Stone Gossard Stone Carpenter Gossard (born July 20, 1966) is an American musician and songwriter who serves as the rhythm guitarist for the rock band Pearl Jam. Along with Jeff Ament, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder, he is one of the founding members of the ...
began rehearsing with new guitarist
Mike McCready Michael David McCready (born April 5, 1966) is an American musician known for being a founding member and lead guitarist of Pearl Jam. McCready was also a member of the side project bands Flight to Mars, Temple of the Dog, Mad Season (band), Ma ...
. The group recorded a five-song instrumental demo tape that included contributions from
Matt Cameron Matthew David Cameron (born November 28, 1962) is an American musician who is the drummer for the rock band Pearl Jam. He first gained fame as the drummer for Seattle-based rock band Soundgarden, which he joined in 1986, appearing on each of the ...
on drums. Copies of the demo were eventually given to drummer Dave Krusen and vocalist
Eddie Vedder Eddie Jerome Vedder (born Edward Louis Severson III; December 23, 1964) is an American singer, musician, and songwriter. He is the lead vocalist, primary lyricist, and one of three guitarists for the rock band Pearl Jam. He was previously a gues ...
, both of whom were invited to audition for the band in Seattle. Many of the songs on ''Ten'' were instrumental jams or reworked Mother Love Bone songs for which Vedder provided lyrics. Despite its reputation as a quintessential
grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock Music genre, genre and subculture that emerged during the in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, particularly in Seattle and Music of Olympia, Washington, O ...
album, ''Ten'' is often noted for displaying a stronger
classic rock Classic rock is a radio format that developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, it comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the early-1990s, primarily focusing on comm ...
influence than other contemporary grunge releases, drawing comparisons to the work of
Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
and
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...
. The album is also characterised as having an anthemic, rich sound. ''Ten'' was not an immediate commercial success, but by late 1992, it had reached number two on the ''Billboard'' 200. The album produced three hit singles: " Alive", " Even Flow", and " Jeremy". "Jeremy" became one of Pearl Jam's best-known songs, and received nominations for Best Rock Song and Best Hard Rock Performance at the 35th Grammy Awards. MTV put the video for "Jeremy" into heavy rotation; it received four awards at the 1993 MTV Video Music Awards, including Video of the Year and Best Group Video. In 2021, the album was inducted into the
Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...
. Beyond its role in consolidating the mainstream success of grunge rock in the early 1990s, ''Ten'' is generally considered to have been instrumental in the rise and dominance of alternative rock throughout the decade.Pearlman, Nina. "Black Days". ''
Guitar World ''Guitar World'' is a monthly music magazine for guitarists and fans of guitar-based music and trends. The magazine has been published since July 1980. ''Guitar World'', the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original a ...
''. December 2002.
The album has since been ranked by several publications as one of the greatest albums of all time. By February 2013, it had sold 13 million copies in the US, becoming the 22nd record to do so in the
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era, and has been certified 13× Platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
(RIAA). ''Ten'' remains Pearl Jam's most commercially successful album.


Background

Guitarist
Stone Gossard Stone Carpenter Gossard (born July 20, 1966) is an American musician and songwriter who serves as the rhythm guitarist for the rock band Pearl Jam. Along with Jeff Ament, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder, he is one of the founding members of the ...
and bassist
Jeff Ament Jeffrey Allen Ament (born March 10, 1963) is an American musician best known as the bassist of rock band Pearl Jam, which he co-founded alongside Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder. Ament wrote or co-wrote many of Pearl Jam's hits, ...
had played together in the pioneering grunge band Green River. Following Green River's dissolution in 1987, Ament and Gossard played together in
Mother Love Bone Mother Love Bone was an American Rock music, rock band that formed in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, in 1988. The band was active from 1988 to 1990. Frontman Andrew Wood (singer), Andrew Wood's charisma and songwriting helped to catapu ...
during the late 1980s. Mother Love Bone's career was cut short when vocalist Andrew Wood died of a drug overdose in 1990, shortly before the release of the group's debut album, ''
Apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...
''. Devastated, it took months before Gossard and Ament agreed to play together again. Gossard spent his time afterwards writing material that was harder-edged than what he had been doing previously. After a few months, Gossard started practicing with fellow Seattle guitarist
Mike McCready Michael David McCready (born April 5, 1966) is an American musician known for being a founding member and lead guitarist of Pearl Jam. McCready was also a member of the side project bands Flight to Mars, Temple of the Dog, Mad Season (band), Ma ...
, whose band Shadow had broken up; McCready in turn encouraged Gossard to reconnect with Ament. The three then went into the studio for separate sessions with
Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil, and bassist Hiro Yamamoto. Cornell switched to rhythm guitar in 1985, replaced on drums initially ...
drummer
Matt Cameron Matthew David Cameron (born November 28, 1962) is an American musician who is the drummer for the rock band Pearl Jam. He first gained fame as the drummer for Seattle-based rock band Soundgarden, which he joined in 1986, appearing on each of the ...
and former Shadow drummer Chris Friel to record some instrumental demos.Greene, Jo-Ann. "Intrigue and Incest: Pearl Jam and the Secret History of Seattle (Part 2)". '' Goldmine''. August 20, 1993. Five of the songs recorded—"Dollar Short", "Agytian Crave", "Footsteps", "Richard's E", and "E Ballad"—were compiled onto a tape called ''Stone Gossard Demos '91'' that was circulated in the hopes of finding a singer and drummer for the trio.
San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
musician
Eddie Vedder Eddie Jerome Vedder (born Edward Louis Severson III; December 23, 1964) is an American singer, musician, and songwriter. He is the lead vocalist, primary lyricist, and one of three guitarists for the rock band Pearl Jam. He was previously a gues ...
acquired a copy of the demo in September 1990, when it was given to him by former
Red Hot Chili Peppers The Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1982, consisting of Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Flea (musician), Flea (bass), John Frusciante (guitar), and Chad Smith (drums). Their music incorporates elements of a ...
drummer Jack Irons. Vedder listened to the demo, went surfing, and wrote lyrics the next day for "Dollar Short", "Agytian Crave", and "Footsteps". "Dollar Short" and "Agytian Crave" were later retitled " Alive" and "
Once Once may refer to: Film, television and theatre * ''Once'' (film), a 2007 Irish musical film by John Carney ** ''Once'' (musical), a 2011 stage adaptation of the film * ''Once'' (TV series), a 2017–2019 Argentine telenovela * Canal Once (Mex ...
", respectively. Gossard and Ament heard the demo with Vedder's vocals and lyrics, and were impressed enough to fly Vedder out to Seattle for an audition. Meanwhile, Vedder had written lyrics for "E Ballad", retitled "
Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
". Vedder arrived on October 13 and rehearsed with the band (now joined by drummer Dave Krusen) for a week, writing eleven songs in the process. Vedder was soon hired as the band's singer, and the group signed to
Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...
shortly thereafter.


Recording

The band, then named Mookie Blaylock (after the basketball player of that name), entered London Bridge Studios in
Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...
, Washington in March 1991 with producer
Rick Parashar Rakesh "Rick" Parashar (December 13, 1963 – August 14, 2014) was an American record producer, recording engineer and musician. Along with his brother Raj, he founded London Bridge Studio in Seattle, Washington, in 1985. During his career he wo ...
to record its debut album. After working with Parashar on '' Temple of the Dog'', Stone and Ament asked him to co-produce and engineer ''Ten''. Parashar also contributed piano, organ, percussion, co-wrote vocal harmonies and co-wrote the intro/outro of the album. A few tracks were previously recorded at London Bridge in January, but only "Alive" was carried over from that session. The album sessions were quick and lasted only a month, mainly due to the band having already written most of the material for the record. "Porch", "Deep", "Why Go", and "Garden" were first recorded during the album sessions; everything else had been previously recorded during demo sessions at some point. McCready said that "''Ten'' was mostly Stone and Jeff; me and Eddie were along for the ride at that time."Weisbard, Eric, et al. "Ten Past Ten". ''
Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spin (physics) or particle spin, a fundamental property of elementary particles * Spin quantum number, a number which defines the value of a particle's spin * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thr ...
''. August 2001.
Ament stated, "We knew we were still a long way from being a real band at that point."Coryat, Karl. "Godfather of the 'G' Word". ''Bass Player'' magazine. April 1994. The recording sessions for ''Ten'' were completed in May 1991. Krusen left the band once the sessions were completed, checking himself into rehab. According to Krusen, he was suffering from personal problems at the time. Krusen said, "It was a great experience. I felt from the beginning of that band that it was something special," and added, "They had to let me go. I couldn't stop drinking, and it was causing problems. They gave me many chances, but I couldn't get it together." In June, the band joined Tim Palmer in England for mixing. Palmer decided to mix the album at Ridge Farm Studios in
Dorking Dorking () is a market town in Surrey in South East England about south-west of London. It is in Mole Valley, Mole Valley District and the non-metropolitan district, council headquarters are to the east of the centre. The High Street runs ro ...
, a converted farm that according to Palmer was "about as far away from an L.A. or New York studio as you can get." Palmer made a few additions to the already-recorded songs, including having McCready finish up the
guitar solo A guitar solo is a melody, melodic passage, instrumental section (music), section, or entire piece of music, pre-written (or improvised) to be played on a classical guitar, classical, electric guitar, electric, or acoustic guitar. In 20th and ...
on "Alive" and tweaking the intro to
Black
. Palmer
overdub Overdubbing (also known as layering) is a technique used in audio recording in which audio tracks that have been pre-recorded are then played back and monitored, while simultaneously recording new, doubled, or augmented tracks onto one or more a ...
bed a pepper shaker and a
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as percussion on "Oceans". In subsequent years, band members have expressed dissatisfaction with the way the album's mixing turned out. In 2001, Ament said, "I'd love to remix ''Ten''. Ed, for sure, would agree with me. It wouldn't be like changing performances; just pull some of the
reverb In acoustics, reverberation (commonly shortened to reverb) is a persistence of sound after it is produced. It is often created when a sound is reflected on surfaces, causing multiple reflections that build up and then decay as the sound is a ...
off it." In 2002, Gossard said, "It was 'over-rocked', we were novices in the studio and spent too long recording, doing different takes, and killing the vibe and overdubbing tons of guitar. There's a lot of reverb on the record." In 2006, Vedder said, "I can listen to the early records xceptthe first record...it's just the sound of the record. It was kind of mixed in a way that was...it was kind of produced." According to ''
Guitar World ''Guitar World'' is a monthly music magazine for guitarists and fans of guitar-based music and trends. The magazine has been published since July 1980. ''Guitar World'', the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original a ...
'', Mike McCready's undisguised
Stevie Ray Vaughan Stephen Ray Vaughan (also known as SRV; October 3, 1954 – August 27, 1990) was an American musician, best known as the guitarist and frontman of the blues rock trio Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble (band), Double Trouble. Although his ma ...
passion saw him bring Strats back into vogue. The guitarist described his playing on "Black" and "Even Flow" as an SRV “rip off”. Both guitarists used Marshall JCM800s for dirty tones and Fenders for clean parts.


Music and lyrics

''Ten'' has been described as a
grunge Grunge (sometimes referred to as the Seattle sound) is an alternative rock Music genre, genre and subculture that emerged during the in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, particularly in Seattle and Music of Olympia, Washington, O ...
,
alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...
, and
hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...
album. Several of the songs on the album started as instrumental compositions that Vedder added lyrics to after he joined the band. Regarding the lyrics, Vedder said, "All I really believe in is this fucking moment, like right now. And that, actually, is what the whole album talks about." Vedder's lyrics for ''Ten'' deal with subjects like depression, suicide, loneliness, and murder. The album also tackles social concerns such as homelessness ("Even Flow") and the use of
psychiatric hospital A psychiatric hospital, also known as a mental health hospital, a behavioral health hospital, or an asylum is a specialized medical facility that focuses on the treatment of severe Mental disorder, mental disorders. These institutions cater t ...
s ("Why Go"). The song "Jeremy" and its accompanying video were inspired by a true story in which a high school student shot himself in front of his classmates. Many listeners interpreted "Alive" as an inspirational anthem due to its decidedly uplifting instrumentals and chorus. Vedder has since revealed that the song tells the semi-autobiographical tale of a son discovering that his father is actually his stepfather (his real father having died long ago), while his mother's grief turns her to sadly embrace her son, who strongly resembles the biological father. "Alive" and "Once" formed part of a song cycle in what Vedder later described as a "mini-opera" entitled ''Momma-Son'' (the third song, "Footsteps", appeared as a
B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...
on the "Jeremy" single). Vedder explained that the lyrics told the story of a young man whose father dies ("Alive"), causing him to go on a killing spree ("Once") which leads to his capture and execution ("Footsteps"). It was later revealed that Vedder's lyrics were inspired by his long-held hurt in discovering at age 17 that the man he thought was his father was not, and that his real father had already died. While ''Ten'' deals with dark subject matter, it has generally been seen as a high-water mark of the early 1990s
alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...
sound, with Vedder's unusually deep and strong (and later much-imitated) voice alternating between solidity and vibrato against the unrestrained, guitar-heavy,
hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...
sound that drew influence from
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1968. The band comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones (musician), John Paul Jones and drummer John Bonham. With a he ...
and other rock bands of the 1970s. ''Ten'''s musical style, influenced by
classic rock Classic rock is a radio format that developed from the album-oriented rock (AOR) format in the early 1980s. In the United States, it comprises rock music ranging generally from the mid-1960s through the early-1990s, primarily focusing on comm ...
, combined an "expansive harmonic vocabulary" with an anthemic sound.
Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and former senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of multiple artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance ...
of
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
stated that the songs on the album fused "the riff-heavy
stadium rock Arena rock (also known as stadium rock, pomp rock or corporate rock) is a style of rock music that became mainstream in the 1970s. It typically involves radio-friendly rock music that was designed to be played for large audiences. As hard rock ...
of the 1970s with the grit and anger of '80s
post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...
, without ever neglecting hooks and choruses."Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Biography"">"Pearl Jam > Biography"
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
. Retrieved on June 22, 2007.
''Ten'' features a two-part track entitled "Master/Slave" that both opens and closes the album. The first part begins the album, before "
Once Once may refer to: Film, television and theatre * ''Once'' (film), a 2007 Irish musical film by John Carney ** ''Once'' (musical), a 2011 stage adaptation of the film * ''Once'' (TV series), a 2017–2019 Argentine telenovela * Canal Once (Mex ...
" starts, and the second part closes the album, after "Release". It begins about ten seconds after the album's closer "Release" as a
hidden track In the field of recorded music, a hidden track (sometimes called a ghost track, secret track or unlisted track) is a song or a piece of audio that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, LP record, or other recorded medium, in such a way as t ...
, but both count as one track on the CD. The song is entirely instrumental (except for random unintelligible words Vedder utters throughout) with a dominant fretless bass line making up the core of the song (which Ament referred to in a 1994 ''Bass Player'' magazine interview as "my tribute to (fretless bass instrumentalist)
Mick Karn Andonis Michaelides (Greek: Αντώνης Μιχαηλίδης; 24 July 1958 – 4 January 2011), better known as Mick Karn, was a British musician who rose to fame as the bassist for the art rock/ new wave band Japan. His distinctive fretles ...
"),Coryat, Karl. "Godfather of the 'G' Word". ''Bass Player Magazine''. April 1994. along with some guitar and sounds that seem to come from the drums. Producer Rick Parashar stated in 2002, "As I recall, I think Jeff had, like, a bass line...I heard the bass line and then we kind of were collaborating on that in the control room, and then I just started programming on the keyboard all this stuff; he was jamming with it and it just kind of came about like that." In a 2021 interview with Kyle Meredith, Ament also revealed that he took inspiration from
Cheap Trick Cheap Trick is an American rock band formed in Rockford, Illinois in 1970 by guitarist Rick Nielsen, bassist Tom Petersson, lead vocalist Robin Zander and drummer Bun E. Carlos. Their work bridged elements of '60s pop rock, guitar pop, '70s har ...
's bass sounds for songs "Why Go" and "Jeremy".


Outtakes

The album's singles featured two B-sides from the ''Ten'' recording sessions which were not included on the album, "Wash" and " Yellow Ledbetter". The former was a B-side on the "Alive" single while the latter was featured on the "Jeremy" single and eventually became a radio hit in 1994. Both songs were included on the 2003 '' Lost Dogs'' collection of rarities, although the included version of "Wash" is an alternate take. The song "Alone" was also originally recorded for ''Ten''; a 1992 re-recorded version of the song is on the " Go" single. Another version of "Alone", with re-recorded vocals, appears on ''Lost Dogs''.Cohen, Jonathan
"The Pearl Jam Q & A: ''Lost Dogs''"
''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
''. 2003. Retrieved on May 9, 2008.
According to McCready, "Alone" was cut from ''Ten'' because the band already had enough mid-tempo songs for the album. The song "Dirty Frank", which was released as a B-side on the " Even Flow" single and often thought to be a ''Ten'' outtake, was recorded after ''Ten'' was released. Thus, "Dirty Frank" is not from the ''Ten'' recording sessions. The song "Footsteps" began as an instrumental demo and was compiled onto the ''Stone Gossard Demos '91'' tape. Vedder added vocals to this version after he received the demo tape. The music for "Footsteps" was also used for Temple of the Dog's "Times of Trouble". "Footsteps" was featured as a B-side on the "Jeremy" single, however this version is taken from a 1992 appearance on the radio show '' Rockline''. This version of "Footsteps" is also featured on ''Lost Dogs'', however a harmonica intro has been overdubbed on to the recording. Other songs rejected from the album but later included on ''Lost Dogs'' are "Hold On" and "Brother", the latter of which was turned into an instrumental for ''Lost Dogs''. "Brother" was cut because Gossard was no longer interested in playing the song, a decision which Ament objected to and almost caused him to quit the band. The version of "Brother" with vocals appears on the 2009 ''Ten'' reissue and became a radio hit that same year. Both "Breath" and "State of Love and Trust" were recorded with the intention of the two songs possibly appearing in the film '' Singles''. The versions heard in the film and on its soundtrack were recorded a year later in 1992. The versions from the ''Ten'' sessions appear on the 2009 ''Ten'' reissue. Other songs rejected from the album but included on the 2009 ''Ten'' reissue are "Just a Girl", "2,000 Mile Blues", and "Evil Little Goat".


Release and promotion


Packaging

The album's cover art features the members of the band at the time of recording in a group pose and standing in front of a wood cut-out of the name "Pearl Jam", with their hands risen high and holding one another's. The wood cut-out was constructed by
Jeff Ament Jeffrey Allen Ament (born March 10, 1963) is an American musician best known as the bassist of rock band Pearl Jam, which he co-founded alongside Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder. Ament wrote or co-wrote many of Pearl Jam's hits, ...
. Ament said, "The original concept was about really being together as a group and entering into the world of music as a true band...a sort of all-for-one deal." Ament is credited for the album's artwork and art direction, "Ten: Credits at Allmusic"
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
. Retrieved on April 29, 2007.
Lance Mercer receives credit for photography, and both Lisa Sparagano and Risa Zaitschek are credited for design. Ament stated, "There was a bit of headbutting going on with the Sony art department at that time. The version that everybody got to know as the ''Ten'' album cover was pink and it was originally intended to be more of a burgundy color and the picture of the band was supposed to be black and white." Pearl Jam's original name was taken from the professional
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
player
Mookie Blaylock Daron Oshay "Mookie" Blaylock (born March 20, 1967) is an American former professional basketball player. He spent 13 years in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the New Jersey Nets, Atlanta Hawks, and the Golden State Warriors. C ...
. It was changed after the band signed to Epic Records, as record executives were concerned about
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and
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following Blaylock's inking of an endorsement deal with Nike. In commemoration of the band's original name, the band titled ''Ten'' after Blaylock's jersey number. In some versions (mainly CD and cassette releases), the cover is in gatefold form, folded in such a way that only the band members' hands are visible.


Tour

Ament stated that "essentially ''Ten'' was just an excuse to tour", adding, "We told the record company, 'We know we can be a great band, so let's just get the opportunity to get out and play.'" Pearl Jam faced a relentless touring schedule for ''Ten''.Gilbert, Jeff. "Alive & Kicking". ''
Guitar World ''Guitar World'' is a monthly music magazine for guitarists and fans of guitar-based music and trends. The magazine has been published since July 1980. ''Guitar World'', the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original a ...
''. September 1992.
Drummer Dave Abbruzzese joined the band for Pearl Jam's live shows supporting the album. Halfway through its own planned
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...
n tour, Pearl Jam cancelled the remaining dates in order to take a slot opening for the Red Hot Chili Peppers on the band's '' Blood Sugar Sex Magik tour'' in the fall of 1991 in North America. The spot was arranged by Jack Irons, who had called his former band asking for them to get an opportunity to his friend Vedder.
The Smashing Pumpkins The Smashing Pumpkins (also simply known as Smashing Pumpkins) are an American alternative rock band formed in Chicago in 1988 by frontman and guitarist Billy Corgan, guitarist James Iha, bassist D'arcy Wretzky and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin. The ...
and
Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...
were also supporting acts. Nirvana was initially brought in because the tour promoters decided that Pearl Jam should be replaced with a more successful act, but the departure of the Smashing Pumpkins still kept the group in the concert bill.
Epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film defined by the spectacular presentation of human drama on a grandiose scale Epic(s) ...
executive Michael Goldstone observed that "the band did such an amazing job opening the Chili Peppers tour that it opened doors at radio." In 1992, the band embarked on its first ever European tour. On March 13, 1992, at the
Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
, Germany show at Nachtwerk, Pearl Jam played ''Ten'' in its entirety in order midway through its set. The band would only do this again in 2016 at
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
's Wells Fargo Center, as the arena management homaged the band's tenth straight sellout concert in the city. Following the European leg, Pearl Jam did another tour of North America. Goldstone noted that the band's audience expanded, saying that unlike before, "everyone came." The band's manager, Kelly Curtis, stated, "Once people came and saw them live, this lightbulb would go on. During their first tour, you kind of knew it was happening and there was no stopping it. To play in the Midwest and be selling out these 500 seat clubs. Eddie could say he wanted to talk to Brett, the sound guy, and they'd carry him out there on their hands. You hadn't really seen that reaction from a crowd before..." When Pearl Jam came back for a second go-around in Europe the band appeared at the
Pinkpop Festival Pinkpop is an annual music festival held in Landgraaf, Netherlands. It is usually held on the Pentecost weekend (''Pinksteren'' in Dutch, hence the name). If Pentecost falls on an early date in May, the festival is held later in June. Starting in ...
and the
Roskilde Festival The Roskilde Festival is a Danish music festival held annually south of Roskilde. It is one of the largest music festivals in Europe and the largest in the Nordic countries. It was created in 1971 by two high school students and a promoter. In 1 ...
in June 1992. The band cancelled its remaining European dates in the summer of 1992 after the Roskilde Festival due to a confrontation with security at that event as well as exhaustion from touring. Ament said, "We'd been on the road over 10 months. I think there just came a point about half way through that tour it was just starting to get pretty intense. I mean just being away from home, being on the road all the time and being lonely or being depressed or whatever." The band would go on to play the 1992
Lollapalooza Lollapalooza () is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park (Chicago), Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991, with Chicago becoming its permanent location beginning in 2005. Music genres i ...
tour with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Soundgarden, Ministry and
Ice Cube O'Shea Jackson Sr. (born June 15, 1969), known professionally as Ice Cube, is an American rapper, songwriter, actor, and film producer. His lyrics on N.W.A's 1989 album '' Straight Outta Compton'' contributed to gangsta rap's widespread popu ...
, among others.


2009 re-release

On March 24, 2009, ''Ten'' was reissued in four editions (Legacy, Deluxe, Vinyl, and Super Deluxe). It was the first reissue in a planned re-release of Pearl Jam's entire catalogue that led up to the band's 20th anniversary in 2011. The extras on the four editions include a remastering and remix of the entire album by producer Brendan O'Brien, re-designed packaging, six bonus tracks ("
Brother A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a family, familial relationship, it is sometimes used ende ...
", "Just a Girl", " Breath and a Scream", "
State of Love and Trust "State of Love and Trust" is a song by the American rock band Pearl Jam. Featuring lyrics written by vocalist Eddie Vedder and music co-written by guitarist Mike McCready and bassist Jeff Ament, "State of Love and Trust" first appeared on the s ...
", "2,000 Mile Blues", and "Evil Little Goat"), a DVD of the band's 1992 appearance on ''
MTV Unplugged ''MTV Unplugged'' is an American television series on MTV. It showcases recorded live performances of popular music artists playing acoustic instrument, acoustic or "unplugged" variations of songs. The show aired regularly from 1989 to 1999. F ...
'' (including a bonus performance of "Oceans", which along with " Rockin' in the Free World" was originally excluded from the broadcast version),
vinyl Vinyl may refer to: Chemistry * Polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a particular vinyl polymer * Vinyl cation, a type of carbocation * Vinyl group, a broad class of organic molecules in chemistry * Vinyl polymer, a group of polymers derived from vinyl ...
versions of the album, an LP of the band's September 20, 1992 concert at Magnuson Park in Seattle (also known as ''Drop in the Park''), a replica of the original ''Momma-Son'' demo cassette, and a replica of Vedder's composition notebook containing personal notes and mementos. Regarding his remix of the album, O'Brien stated, "The band loved the original mix of ''Ten'', but were also interested in what it would sound like if I were to deconstruct and remix it...The original ''Ten'' sound is what millions of people bought, dug and loved, so I was initially hesitant to mess around with that. After years of persistent nudging from the band, I was able to wrap my head around the idea of offering it as a companion piece to the original—giving a fresh take on it, a more direct sound." The ''Ten'' reissue sold 60,000 copies in its first week, the second biggest selling week for the album since Christmas 1993. Since ''Billboard'' considers the ''Ten'' reissue a catalog item, ''Ten'' did not appear on the ''Billboard'' 200, Top Modern Rock/Alternative, or Top Rock Albums, since those charts do not include catalog items. Had it been included on the ''Billboard'' 200, the 60,000 copies sold of the ''Ten'' reissue would have placed it at number five. The reissue also re-entered the Australian Albums Chart at number 11, giving it a new peak chart position in Australia and its highest chart placing since June 14, 1992.Pearl Jam in Australian Charts
. australian-charts.com. Retrieved on May 28, 2008.
Tying in with the re-release of the album in March 2009, the entire album was made available as downloadable content for the ''
Rock Band ''Rock Band'' is a series of rhythm games first released in 2007 and developed by Harmonix. Based on their previous development work from the Guitar Hero, ''Guitar Hero'' series, the main ''Rock Band'' games have players use game controllers mod ...
'' series of video games. In addition, three ''Ten''-era bonus tracks were made available for the ''Rock Band'' video game for those who purchased the ''Ten'' re-release through
Best Buy Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American multinational consumer electronics retailer headquartered in Richfield, Minnesota. Originally founded by Richard M. Schulze and James Wheeler in 1966 as an audio specialty store called Sound of Music, it was r ...
: "Brother", "Alive", and "State of Love and Trust", the latter two as live versions taken from the band's September 20 concert.


Critical reception

In a contemporary review for ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'', music critic
David Fricke David Fricke (born ) is an American music journalist who serves as the senior editor at ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, where he writes predominantly about rock music. One of the best known names in rock journalism, his career has spanned over 40 ye ...
praised ''Ten'', saying that Pearl Jam "hurtles into the mystic at warp speed." He also added that Pearl Jam "wring a lot of drama out of a few declarative power chords swimming in echo." Allan Jones of ''
Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. In January 2001, it was merged into "long-standing rival" (and IPC Media sister publicatio ...
'' suggested in his review of ''Ten'' that it is Vedder who provides Pearl Jam "with such a uniquely compelling focus". In '' Q'', Dave Henderson called it "raucous modern rock, spiked with infectious guitar motifs and powered with driving bass and drums," and said it "may well be the face of the 90's
metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...
." ''
Stereo Review ''Sound & Vision'' was an American magazine, purchased by AVTech Media Ltd. (UK) in March 2018, covering home theater, audio, video and multimedia consumer products. Before 2000, it had been published for most of its history as ''Stereo Review' ...
''s Ron Givens said that the band "sounds larger than life, producing a towering inferno of roaring guitars, monumental bass and drums, and from-the-gut vocals." Don Kaye of ''
Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British music webzine and quarterly magazine that primarily covers rock, punk and heavy metal music. Since 2017, the magazine has been published by Wasted Talent Ltd (the same company that owns electronic music publication ...
'' defined the album as "introspective and charged with a quiet emotional force".
Greg Kot Greg Kot (born March 3, 1957) is an American music journalist and author. From 1990 until 2020, Kot was the rock music critic at the ''Chicago Tribune'', where he covered popular music and reported on music-related social, political and busines ...
wrote in the ''
Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...
'', "Occasionally overwrought and unrelentingly humorless, the music nonetheless exerts a hypnotic power at its best." David Browne was less enthusiastic in ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...
''; he found Pearl Jam to be derivative of "fellow Northwestern rockers like Soundgarden,
Alice in Chains Alice in Chains (often abbreviated as AiC) is an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1987. Since 2006, the band's lineup has comprised vocalist/guitarists Jerry Cantrell and William DuVall, bassist Mike Inez, and drummer Sean Kinney. Voca ...
, and the defunct Mother Love Bone", and felt that it "goes to show that just about anything can be harnessed and packaged." ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...
'' accused Pearl Jam of "trying to steal money from young alternative kids' pockets", with reviewer Angela Lewis deeming the band unworthy of comparisons to Nirvana and Soundgarden.
Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...
, writing in ''
The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture publication based in Greenwich Village, New York City, known for being the country's first Alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, ...
'', gave the album a "B−" and viewed it as another in a "slew of Seattle albums" that "modulate the same misguided ethos", which he said was "hippie" rather than "punk". Christgau described it as "San Francisco ballroom music" whose "distinguishing characteristics" could only be discerned by listeners if they "take the right drugs". He later gave ''Ten'' a " two-star honorable mention", citing "Once" and "Even Flow" as highlights, and quipped, "in life, abuse justifies melodrama; in music, riffs work better". Reviewing ''Ten'' in retrospect,
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...
staff writer Steve Huey called it a "flawlessly crafted hard rock masterpiece" and felt that Vedder's "impressionistic lyrics" are more effective through his passionate vocal delivery rather than their "concrete meaning." Charles R. Cross wrote in ''
The Rolling Stone Album Guide ''The Rolling Stone Album Guide'', previously known as ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'', is a book that contains professional music reviews written and edited by staff members from ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Its first edition was published in 1 ...
'' (2004) that ''Ten'' sounded less original and more self-important than Nirvana's ''
Nevermind ''Nevermind'' is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana (band), Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991, by DGC Records. It was Nirvana's first release on a Record label#Major versus independent record labels, major label an ...
'', but it also showcases the band's intricate guitar style and Vedder's distinctive singing.


Legacy

Defined by ''
Kerrang! ''Kerrang!'' is a British music webzine and quarterly magazine that primarily covers rock, punk and heavy metal music. Since 2017, the magazine has been published by Wasted Talent Ltd (the same company that owns electronic music publication ...
'''s George Garner as "arguably the greatest rock debut record of all time", ''Ten,'' in 2003, was ranked number 207 on ''Rolling Stone''s list of
the 500 greatest albums of all time "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a recurring opinion survey and music ranking of the finest albums in history, compiled by the American magazine ''Rolling Stone''. It is based on weighted votes from selected musicians, critics, and indu ...
, and 209 in a 2012 revised list. In 2020 it was raised to the 160th position on the list, which was carried over for the 2023 edition. Readers of ''Q'' voted ''Ten'' as the 42nd greatest album ever;"''Q'' readers 100 Greatest Albums Ever". '' Q''. January 2003. however, three years later the album was listed lower at 59th."''Q'' Readers 100 Greatest Albums Ever". '' Q''. February 2006. In 2003,
VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...
placed it at number 83 on their list of the 100 greatest albums of rock and roll.100 greatest albums of rock & roll (100 - 81)
. VH1.com. Retrieved on April 29, 2007.
In 2006, ''
British Hit Singles & Albums ''British Hit Singles & Albums'' (originally known as ''The Guinness Book of British Hit Singles'' and ''The Guinness Book of British Hit Albums'') was a music reference work, reference book originally published in the United Kingdom by the p ...
'' and ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...
'' organised a poll of which, 40,000 people worldwide voted for the 100 best albums ever and ''Ten'' was placed at number 66 on the list. It was also ranked number 15 in the October 2006 issue of ''
Guitar World ''Guitar World'' is a monthly music magazine for guitarists and fans of guitar-based music and trends. The magazine has been published since July 1980. ''Guitar World'', the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original a ...
'' on the magazine's list of the 100 greatest guitar albums of all time.100 Greatest Guitar Albums of All Time
". ''
Guitar World ''Guitar World'' is a monthly music magazine for guitarists and fans of guitar-based music and trends. The magazine has been published since July 1980. ''Guitar World'', the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original a ...
''. October 2006.
In 2007, the album was included at number 11 on the list of the "Definitive 200" albums of all time developed by the
National Association of Recording Merchandisers The Music Business Association (Music Biz), formerly known as the National Association of Recording Merchandisers (NARM), is a not-for-profit trade association based in Nashville, Tennessee. It hosts in-person and virtual events related to music ...
."Definitive 200"
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), also simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and the ...
. 2007.
The album was also included in the book ''
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music criti ...
''. In December 2020, the album was announced as one of many inducted into the
Grammy Hall of Fame The Grammy Hall of Fame is a hall of fame to honor musical recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of ...
as part of the 2021 class.


Commercial performance

''Ten'' initially sold slowly upon its release, but by the second half of 1992 it became a breakthrough success, attaining an
RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
gold certification. Almost a year after its release, the album finally broke into the top ten of the ''Billboard'' 200 album chart on May 30, 1992, reaching number eight. ''Ten'' would eventually peak at number two for four weeks. It was held off the top spot by the
Billy Ray Cyrus William Ray Cyrus ( ; born August 25, 1961) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. Having released 16 studio albums and 53 singles since 1992, he is known for his hit single "Achy Breaky Heart", which topped the U.S. Hot Country Songs cha ...
album, '' Some Gave All''.Scaggs, Austin
"Eddie Vedder: Addicted to Rock"
''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
''. April 21, 2006. Retrieved on June 30, 2008.
The album spent a total of 264 weeks on the ''Billboard'' charts, making it one of the top 15 charting albums ever. By February 1993, American sales of ''Ten'' surpassed those of ''
Nevermind ''Nevermind'' is the second studio album by the American rock band Nirvana (band), Nirvana, released on September 24, 1991, by DGC Records. It was Nirvana's first release on a Record label#Major versus independent record labels, major label an ...
'', the breakthrough album by fellow grunge band
Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...
. ''Ten'' continued to sell well two years after its release; in 1993 it was the eighth best-selling album in the United States, outselling Pearl Jam's second album, '' Vs.'' As of February 2013, ''Ten'' has sold 13 million copies in the United States according to
Nielsen SoundScan Luminate Data, LLC (formerly MRC Data and P-MRC Data) is a provider of music and entertainment data. Established as a joint-venture in 2020, it brought together Nielsen Music, Alpha Data (formerly BuzzAngle Music) and Variety Business Intellige ...
, and has been certified 13× platinum by the
RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
. ''Ten'' produced three hit singles, " Alive", " Even Flow", and " Jeremy", all of which had accompanying
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
s (The "
Oceans The ocean is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of Earth. The ocean is conventionally divided into large bodies of water, which are also referred to as ''oceans'' (the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Antarctic/Southern, and ...
" video was released only outside of the U.S.). The singles all placed on the
Mainstream Rock Mainstream rock (also known as heritage rock) is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada. Format background Mainstream rock stations represent a cross between classic rock, active rock and alternativ ...
and
Modern Rock Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college and commercial rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960s–1980s rock music. ...
charts. The song "
Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...
" reached number three on the Mainstream Rock chart, despite never being released as a single. The video for "Alive" was nominated for the MTV Video Music Award for Best Alternative Video in 1992. "Jeremy" became one of Pearl Jam's best-known songs, and received nominations for Best Rock Song and Best Hard Rock Performance at the 1993 Grammy awards. The video for "Jeremy", directed by
Mark Pellington Mark Pellington (born March 17, 1962) is an American film director, writer, and producer. Life and career Pellington was born in Baltimore, Maryland, the son of Bill Pellington, an All-Pro linebacker who played American Football, football with t ...
, was put into heavy rotation by MTV and became a huge hit, receiving five nominations at the 1993
MTV Video Music Awards The MTV Video Music Awards (commonly abbreviated as the VMAs) is an award show presented by the cable channel MTV to honor the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards (in the video category ...
, of which it won four, including Video of the Year and Best Group Video.


Track listing


Original release

Note


''MTV Unplugged'' DVD


''Momma-Son'' cassette


''Drop in the Park'' LP


Personnel

Pearl Jam * Dave Krusen – drums,
timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion instrument, percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a Membranophone, membrane called a drumhead, ...
on "Oceans" *
Jeff Ament Jeffrey Allen Ament (born March 10, 1963) is an American musician best known as the bassist of rock band Pearl Jam, which he co-founded alongside Stone Gossard, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder. Ament wrote or co-wrote many of Pearl Jam's hits, ...
 – bass guitars,
art direction Art director is a title for a variety of similar job functions in theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, live-action and animated film and television, the Internet, and video games. It is the charge of a sole art director to super ...
/concept *
Eddie Vedder Eddie Jerome Vedder (born Edward Louis Severson III; December 23, 1964) is an American singer, musician, and songwriter. He is the lead vocalist, primary lyricist, and one of three guitarists for the rock band Pearl Jam. He was previously a gues ...
 – vocals, additional art *
Mike McCready Michael David McCready (born April 5, 1966) is an American musician known for being a founding member and lead guitarist of Pearl Jam. McCready was also a member of the side project bands Flight to Mars, Temple of the Dog, Mad Season (band), Ma ...
 – lead guitar, acoustic-electric guitar on "Alive" *
Stone Gossard Stone Carpenter Gossard (born July 20, 1966) is an American musician and songwriter who serves as the rhythm guitarist for the rock band Pearl Jam. Along with Jeff Ament, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder, he is one of the founding members of the ...
 – rhythm guitar,
slide guitar Slide guitar is a technique for playing the guitar that is often used in blues music. It involves playing a guitar while holding a hard object (a slide) against the strings, creating the opportunity for glissando effects and deep vibratos that ...
on "Deep" Additional musicians *
Rick Parashar Rakesh "Rick" Parashar (December 13, 1963 – August 14, 2014) was an American record producer, recording engineer and musician. Along with his brother Raj, he founded London Bridge Studio in Seattle, Washington, in 1985. During his career he wo ...
 – piano, organ, percussion *Walter Gray – cello * Tim Palmer – fire extinguisher and pepper shaker on "Oceans" Production *Dave Hillis –
engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...
*Don Gilmore, Adrian Moore – additional engineering *
Bob Ludwig Robert Carl Ludwig (born December 11, 1944), is a retired American mastering engineer. He mastered recordings on all the major recording formats for all the major record labels, and on projects by more than 1,300 artists, including Led Zeppeli ...
 – mastering *Lance Mercer – photos *Tim Palmer – mixing *Rick Parashar – production *Pearl Jam – production *Steve Pitstick – additional art *Lisa Sparagano, Risa Zaitschek – design


Charts


Original release


Year-end charts


Decade-end charts


Certifications


See also

* List of 1991 albums *
List of 1990s albums considered the best This is a list of 1990s music albums that multiple music journalists, magazines, and professional music review websites have considered to be among the best of the 1990s and of all time, separated into the years of each album's release. The albums ...
*
List of best-selling albums in the United States The following is a list of the best-selling albums in the United States based on RIAA certification and Nielsen SoundScan sales tracking. The criteria are that the album must have been published (including self-publishing by the artist), and the ...


References


External links

* *
Ten
' at
Discogs Discogs ( ; short for " discographies") is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. Database contents are user-generated, and described in ''T ...
(list of releases) {{DEFAULTSORT:Ten (Pearl Jam Album) 1991 debut albums Albums produced by Eddie Vedder Albums produced by Jeff Ament Albums produced by Mike McCready Albums produced by Dave Krusen Albums produced by Rick Parashar Albums produced by Stone Gossard Epic Records albums Pearl Jam albums Hard rock albums by American artists Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients