In an era when pop nihilism fulfilled its dark promise all too regularly, Pearl Jam not only survived, but thrived to become one of rock's greatest bands. This 33-track double-disc career retrospective documents the arc of a career that went from arena and radio triumphs in the early 90's (while Nirvana's promise imploded in the wake of hype, Pearl Jam's crowd-pleasing fame only burgeoned) to the uncompromising, core audience-focused tack that carried the band into the 21st century. Shrewdly compiled by the band into an "Up" disc that chronicles the band's driving, Stone Gossard-Mike McCready fueled hard rock dramatics (including such early career landmarks as "Jeremy," "Alive" and "Even Flow" alongside more aggressive fare like "Go" and "Spin the Black Circle") and a "Down" side that focuses more on Eddie Vedder's brooding, often dark ballads ("Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town," "Yellow Ledbetter," their unlikely hit cover of the oldie "Last Kiss"), it's a collection that underscores both the band's range and musical integrity. Though centered largely on the band's pre-Vitalogy studio era and containing no new material, longtime producer/collaborator Brendan O'Brien contributes remixes of "Once," "Alive" and "Black" that offer new insights on the familiar, while non-album tracks like "Man of the Hour" and "State of Love and Trust" considerably enhance the overall listening perspective here. --Jerry McCulley

2008-08-23 -- 4/5:: Very Evenflow
What Pearl Jam did, maybe even unwittingly, was to weld the thick sludgey minor-chord sound (and general angst) of grunge to arena size rock choruses and guitar power. In doing so, they managed to quickly outshine their nearest peers (Nirvana) commercially and ultimately become the vanguard for rock through the 90's. Along with Red Hot Chili Peppers and maybe Soundgarden, they shaped the sound of a decade and thrived to see their success sustained creatively.

"Rearviewmirror" reflects (har har) that 12 years between Ten and Binaural in solid fashion, even if does lean heavily on the first three albums. It also offers a dozen later track to show that, even while the band's spotlight had faded somewhat, albums like No Code were better even while the band purposely was making music that antagonized fans expecting more of "Jeremy." Treats like "Do The Evolution" and "Man Of The Hour" sound just as powerful as any of the pre-Vs. material.

And for those who argue that Eddie Vedder is a big old sourpuss, they miss out on fun stuff like the tribute to old 45's "Spin The Black Circle" or the totally unironic cover of "Last Kiss" (that actually hit the top ten in 1999). Guitarist Stone Gossard rips some particularly innovative riffs through the proceedings here, and it's worth noting that Goassard (as well as the rest of the band) usually co-wrote the band's songs. On "Rearviewmirror," they are divided into two CD's, with an "Up" disc of rockers and the "Down" side of more pensive or acoustic material.

It is the second disc where more of the interesting material lies for me. I've always personally felt "Better man" to be the best song Pearl Jam ever wrote, and the closer, "Yellow Ledbetter" is a damn good blues number with Mike McCready hitting a terrific facsimile of Jimi Hendrix. There is plenty of meat spread between the two discs, and for the casual radio fan of Pearl Jam, this is a great sampler at a fine price.

2008-08-20 -- 5/5:: 5 Stars- Perfect greatest hits album by a classic rock band.
I'm going to take a different approach to reviewing albums on Amazon. Instead of going in depth on each album and describe each album in detail, i'm going to simply rate each album with how many stars I feel each album is worth based on the below criteria. I hope this helps you make a better decision on purchasing this album with a simple individual rating. If it doesn't help read another review.
5 stars- Classic, Album goes beyond description, Perfect in every way, Could remind you of a certain time or place, Lifetime replay value.
4.5 stars- Near Classic, Incredible album, Maybe only one song that is skippable or just overall doesn't quite deserve classic status. High replay value.
4.0 stars- Awesome album. Very solid album from start to finish. Met every expectation and more. Maybe only one song or two that is skippable. High replay value.
3.5 stars- Above average album. Solid from start to finish but there are a few songs worth skipping. Met expectations, minimal replay value.
3.0 stars- Average album. Nothing bad but nothing great either. After the initial appeal will collect dust.
2.5 stars- Major disappointment. You had high expectations that were ruined as this album is not good at all. There might be only one or two songs worth listening to. No replay value.
2.0 stars- Below average album. This album doesnt bother you to hear as background music but you would rather not listen to it if you didnt have to. No songs really appeal. No replay value.
1.5 stars- Terrible album. Makes one sick to hear it. Would rather throw in garbage than even waste space in your collection.
1.0 stars- Makes one cringe and the ears bleed!
*keep in mind, each album review might not be based on opinion of the band but the album itself in the bands discography.

2008-08-12 -- 5/5:: "rearviewmirror" .... A Great View from Here
What "Nirvana" was to some Pearl Jam was to me There is a lot of "mystery" in Ed Veds voice He doesnt wear it all on his sleeve like cobain did. I can appreciate that, as well as the lyrics.From Yellow Ledbetter to Once its an "Evenflow" from front to back on this CD.

2008-07-18 -- 5/5:: Greatest Hits
Somehow I slept through the grunge rock movement in the 90s and missed this. I vaguely remember hearing PJ back then wondering how people could listen to this and call it music. Years later, I was exposed to the alternative rock music genre and "got it."

If you missed the boat, this is a great way to get into PJ's music and get a sampling of their hits from different albums. Some of these hits are lovely acoustic songs or blistering electric songs you can really rock to. To improve things, you get some remastered hits and get a much better listening experience than you would ever get from the original recordings.

If I really could get what I wanted, I would want a remastered PJ "Ten" album, which I think is the best PJ album. Until then this may be the best I can get. But this collection of the faster Up Side hits and slower ballad Down Side gives me a nice way to learn about the PJ albums I missed.

This collection fits together well with Nirvana, Soundgarden, Stone Temple Pilots, Alice in Chains, and Bush grunge hits.

2008-06-24 -- 1/5:: Are you kidding me
Pearl Jam was a big disapointment to this listener. Do you think they could have sung a song where you could actually understood the words. What a waste of money when I bought this music.