In 1991, Pearl Jam – consisting of Eddie Vedder, Stone Gossard, Jeff Ament, Mike McCready, and Dave Krusen – headed into the studio to record their debut album ‘Ten’. Back then, the band had no idea they were about to record one of the best-selling rock albums of the 1990s. More than 30 years later, ‘Ten’ has sold over 13 million copies in the US and ranks as one of the greatest debut albums ever made.
To celebrate the greatness of Pearl Jam’s ‘Ten’, Song Stories Matter ranked every song on the album from worst to best.
11. Deep
Ten doesn’t have bad songs, but if I had to rank one song as the album’s ‘worst’, I’d go with “Deep”. Nevertheless, the song’s guitar work, power, and Eddie Vedder’s raw vocals are great. I just believe there are ‘ten’ better songs on the record.
10. Why Go
It’s pretty hard to shine as a song when you’re placed after “Even Flow” and “Alive”, and before “Black” and “Jeremy”. It became the unfortunate fate of Ten’s fourth track “Why Go”. And frankly, the song does get outshined by the album’s classics. Still, “Why Go” has an amazing intro and McCready’s guitar solo is one of his finest moments on the record.
9. Oceans
For number 9 I picked “Oceans”. The love song is the calmest track on Ten and provides a welcomed change from the dark themes that dominate the album. Stone Gossard and Jeff Ament picked “Oceans” among their favorites from Ten, but I wouldn’t rank it that high personally.
8. Porch
“Porch” is an all-time Pearl Jam classic. However, the song is more renowned for its outrageous live performances than its album version. Blame Pearl Jam for being an amazing live act, because the album version of “Porch” doesn’t reach the energy of the many live renditions, hence the relatively low ranking.
7. Once
Ten opens strong with the heavy “Once”. The opening riff instantly pulls you in and the drive of the song is incredible. Compared to other heavy songs like “Deep” and “Why Go”, I think “Once” is the strongest song.
6. Garden
For number 6 I picked “Garden”. The song starts atmospheric and builds up in intensity as it progresses, leading up to the grand final chorus. “Garden” would’ve been a hit single on any album, but on Ten it ‘only’ ranks somewhere in the middle.
5. Jeremy
“Jeremy” was arguably Pearl Jam’s most famous song during the early to mid-90s, partially because of the popularity of the song’s music video. The video received heavy rotation on MTV and earned the band an MTV Video Music Award for Best Video of the Year in 1993. “Jeremy” ranks as a Ten classic and is an incredible song, I just believe there are four other songs on the album that are better.
4. Release
“Release” offers one of the most poignant moments of Ten. In the song, Eddie Vedder tries to seek a connection with his father, who passed away before they could ever meet. “Release” is arguably Eddie Vedder’s greatest vocal performance on Ten – if not ever. I think the song is relatively underrated and one of the best on the album.
3. Even Flow
There aren’t a lot of surprises in my top 3. But in my opinion, the strength of “Even Flow”, “Alive”, and “Black” are undeniable. I start with “Even Flow”. Despite Pearl Jam’s dissatisfaction with the sound of the song, which prompted the band to record over 50 takes of the song, “Even Flow” easily ranks as a rock classic.
Eddie Vedder wrote the lyrics of the song about homelessness and belts – sometimes incomprehensibly – over one of Stone Gossard’s finest riffs. “Even Flow” is also a staple in Pearl Jam’s setlists, and is the band’s most-played live song.
2. Alive
“Alive” is an essential Pearl Jam song. After all, it’s the very song that formed Pearl Jam. A Stone Gossard demo tape – which he distributed in search of a lead singer – found its way to Eddie Vedder. Vedder wrote lyrics over several instrumental songs, including “Alive” (then titled “Dollar Short”). He recorded vocals over the instrumentals and sent the tape back to Stone Gossard. Blown away by Vedder’s vocals, the band invited him over to Seattle to join what would become Pearl Jam.
Besides the great story, “Alive” is also just an amazing song. It has a great riff, moving lyrics (partially inspired by Vedder’s traumatic childhood), and an amazing guitar solo.
Read more: 6 Reasons Why “Alive” by Pearl Jam is Such An Amazing Song
1. Black
My number 1 on this list is the heart-wrenching “Black”. The song is often cited as Pearl Jam’s masterpiece and I’d struggle to disagree. Despite pressure from Pearl Jam’s label Epic Records, the band refused to release “Black” as a single, citing it as ‘too fragile’. Nevertheless, the song became one of Pearl Jam’s most celebrated songs and is, in my opinion, the greatest song on Ten.
Do you agree with the ranking? What would you change? What would your personal ranking look like? Feel free to let us know in the comments below!
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