POWER RANKINGS: Pearl Jam Singles
What's just as striking to me when looking down the list of officially released Pearl Jam singles is the lack of a lot of their best songs; plenty of phenomenal tracks that stand up today as some of the band's best-known songs never got their due as promotional singles, which gives me a good idea for the next post.
Anyway, the premise is simple: here's my countdown of all of Pearl Jam's singles to date in order of how much I appreciate and enjoy them. Naturally, opinions change, and this ranking may fluctuate wildly depending on the day, but here and now this is where I rank them.
35. Last Kiss (No Boundaires: A Benefit for Kosovar Refugees, 1999)
I know, biggest hit of their career. Still gets played all the time. Doesn't mean it's great; it's fun and all, but it's certainly not what I think of when I think of Pearl Jam. Oh God, there are people who do think of Last Kiss when they think of Pearl Jam. Sigh.
34. Lightning Bolt (Lightning Bolt, 2013)
As the title track to their tenth album, and within the context of the album, there's nothing wrong with a song like Lightning Bolt. It's just that, as fine as it is, fine is as good as this song gets.
33. Dance of the Clairvoyants (Gigaton, 2020)
I talked at length about this song when it was released a couple of months back, and mentioned that it could grow on me. I'm pleased to report that it has, somewhat; that said, I still stand by my opinion that if this song weren't released by Pearl Jam no one would even notice.
32. Amongst the Waves (Backspacer, 2009)
In many ways, Amongst the Waves is your standard Pearl Jam single fare for this time period; easy, breezy, melodic and safe, this one's got a soaring chorus and not a lot else really going for it. It's also weird to me, considering what they chose as singles earlier in their career, just how safe they went for this record.
31. Mind Your Manners (Lightning Bolt, 2013)
When we look at my ranking of Pearl Jam's albums soon (spoiler alert?), I'll have more to say about Lightning Bolt; at the risk of tipping my hand, though, one of the reasons it didn't stick with me is Mind Your Manners; so as to say, a lead single where the band goes as hard as they can to cover up a song that they've already done a much better job of playing in the past.
30. The Fixer (Backspacer, 2009)
Like Amongst the Waves, when I listen to The Fixer I still do a bit of a double take as I consider that Backspacer, as lean and concise as it was, was also a very safe record. Hell, this was the lead single; for a band that notoriously throws fans for a loop with their lead single, a hopeful pop ditty with an accompanying Target commercial (I didn't forget that) is about as far as a fan can be thrown.
29. Superblood Wolfmoon (Gigaton, 2020)
I trust that Gigaton will offer more than its lead-in singles display (though I haven't heard it, pre-release reviews are glowing), because Superblood Wolfmoon is just another one of those safe, middle-of-the-road rockers that Pearl Jam could crank out in their sleep at this point. Don't get me wrong, it's good enough, but I'll be looking for a lot more substance from the album as a whole.
28. Not For You (Vitalogy, 1994)
Vitalogy-era Pearl Jam were very standoffish; they recorded some of their best songs for it, but surrounded them by odd vignettes and noisy tantrums like Not For You. It was all an effort to temper their stardom, of course; songs like Not For You got enough play back in the day, but they were designed for minimum impact so the band could go on to a long career rather than burn out. So for a while, songs with the overall quality of deep album cuts got promoted as singles and fantastic songs were buried on the back half of albums. This is a recurring theme for mid-to-late '90s Pearl Jam, which a peek at a list of the awesome songs from this period to not get the single treatment will tell you.
27. I Am Mine (Riot Act, 2002)
In its time and place, as the first Pearl Jam single post-9/11, I Am Mine had an important message. I can see why it was chosen as lead single, not only for the timeliness of it but also as the gateway to Eddie Vedder's more politically charged, socially aware lyricism that started to really blossom about this time. When you break it down to brass tacks, however, there isn't much of anything that helps I Am Mine stand out.
26. World Wide Suicide (Pearl Jam, 2006)
Another case of the boys going hard for their lead single, World Wide Suicide certainly rocks, and is certainly a fiery little ditty. It's also a little redundant, which is the problem much of their comeback-geared eighth album was weighed down by.
25. Nothing As It Seems (Binaural, 2000)
What better way to whip up a fervor for a new album than with a darkly lit dirge? This was certainly an interesting choice for a lead single, but that's something us fans were used to by this point. The thing is, this time it did its job too well; the mainstream had already tuned out by the time the second single (which we'll get to later) dropped, and there was no third. This makes Binaural arguably the band's biggest commercial disappointment, which no doubt suited the band just fine.
24. Who You Are (No Code, 1996)
I think I might have unknowingly developed a grudge against this band's lead singles; we've still got two dozen songs to go through, and I'm already at the seventh lead. That said, Who You Are was a fine introduction to Jack Irons' tom-heavy drum rhythms, and it's undoubtedly one of their most unique singles. However, as we'll discover later, this album had much more to offer.
23. Dissident (Vs., 1993)
Compared to everything else on Pearl Jam's second album, Dissident is perhaps the most Ten-like, which is probably why it was released as that record's final single. I can understand why they'd want to move away from the mid-tempo soaring ballads, because by 1994 fans had had their fill of Ten, and so had the band. Still, in a bubble, Dissident is a really good mid-tempo soaring ballad.
22. Man of the Hour (Big Fish soundtrack, 2003)
I covered this song earlier this month when looking at the best Pearl Jam non-album tracks, so there's not much more to be said here, other than stating my belief that this is one of Pearl Jam's finest songs of the decade it's from, so of course it's not even on their albums.
21. Gone (Pearl Jam, 2006)
Look, Pearl Jam has always been good at the soaring chorus and the big, emotional delivery; if anything is the band's calling card, it's that. So, when they basically stopped doing that for the most part, it took a little adjustment on our part. Then, one fine day, we got Gone and that massive payoff; that makes this song beloved by fans and earns it a place as one of the band's most criminally overlooked singles.
20. I Got Shit (Merkin Ball, 1995)
Another one I mentioned among their best non-album tracks, I Got Shit (also known by its more radio-friendly title I Got Id) got lost in the cracks during the band's heyday. It's got all the hallmarks of a great Pearl Jam song, though, with the added bonus of an appearance by Neil Young. Yet another standout track that didn't get the love it deserves.
19. Oceans (Ten, 1991)
A virtual afterthought that was released in the wake of Jeremy and the band's big breakout, Oceans was released as Ten's final single over the song everybody but the band wanted to release as a single, which we'll talk about in the next post. A quiet storm of a song on the album, I actually prefer the full-band version with drums that ended up as a B-side to the Even Flow single.
18. Off He Goes (No Code, 1996)
A precursor of sorts to the acoustic ballads that would become more prevalent later in their career, Off He Goes closed the No Code promotional cycle on a somber, contemplative note. This was the sound of a band learning new ways to tug at heart strings.
17. Just Breathe (Backspacer, 2009)
During the band's peak, no one could have predicted they'd dare record a lightly picked, orchestral ballad, let alone release it as a single. It works, though; its tasteful arrangement and heartfelt delivery make it one of Pearl Jam's best love songs (of which casual observers may not notice there are a lot of now).
16. Save You (Riot Act, 2002)
The song that single-handedly puts the riot into Riot Act, and one that proved Pearl Jam still had plenty of fire in their bellies over a decade into their career. Throw in some especially searing guitar work and a couple of fistfuls of F-bombs, and you've got prime single material right here. Of course it didn't get much play, but that doesn't mean it's not a stunner in its own right.
15. Wishlist (Yield, 1998)
The Yield era was especially exciting for fans like me; after weeding out fair weather fans for a few album cycles, Pearl Jam were ready to put their best work to tape. Yield was thrillingly straightforward compared to what came before, and they even did a video for Do the Evolution. That song, however, wasn't a single; while the visuals for Do the Evolution were gaining traction on MTV, they sneakily released one of their most simplistic and low key pleasant songs to radio.
14. Go (Vs., 1993)
How to respond to the tsunami of success that Ten wrought? By promoting your second album with its visceral opening track, of course; a raging slab of swift hard rock, Go was almost (I said almost, Blood and Leash) as far from radio-friendly as Vs. got. It didn't slow their momentum in the least, as Vs. went on to sell a then-record million copies in its first week.
13. Jeremy (Ten, 1992)
The thing about big breakout songs is that, as the years go by and the song refuses to go away, it becomes so saturated and overplayed that it can't help but have its impact dulled. So as to say, as massive and important as Jeremy was (and most of these songs couldn't have even happened without it), I've been kind of over it for the better part of their career. Still, I can't deny the power this song carries, which is why it's placed as high as it is.
12. Spin the Black Circle (Vitalogy, 1994)
Getting ahead of the vinyl revival by about twenty years or so, Spin the Black Circle is the incendiary brain child of a band who couldn't slow down the freight train of stardom no matter how hard they tried, so why not just say "fuck it" and go as hard and fast as possible? Naturally, Spin the Black Circle won a Grammy.
11. Life Wasted (Pearl Jam, 2006)
A massive album opener, Life Wasted is probably also the best song on Pearl Jam's eighth record. Using each member to his full potential, from Mike McCready's scorched earth soloing to Matt Cameron's Soundgarden-inspired drumming, this album had the bar set so high that it couldn't possibly live up to the potential of Life Wasted.
10. Animal (Vs., 1993)
Like Go but a little less confrontational, Animal caught the perfect balance of the band's melodic and muscular sides. Pearl Jam is firing on all cylinders here, and the results absolutely lay waste.
9. Love Boat Captain (Riot Act, 2002)
A beacon of hope in troubling times, Love Boat Captain is the kind of life-affirming massive tune that Vedder would have run screaming from not long before. In it, he acknowledges loss and despair, but concludes that love trumps everything. It makes Love Boat Captain perhaps the Pearl Jam song best suited not just for its time, but indeed any time. It's a classic Pearl Jam song in my mind, and I'm 100% serious when I say that.
8. Sirens (Lightning Bolt, 2013)
What can I say? I'm still a sucker for those soaring mid-tempo ballads. A heart wrenching, full-blown epic, Sirens speaks to the dizzying heights I believe this band is still capable of, and is a shining example of what drew legions of fans to them in the first place.
7. Even Flow (Ten, 1991)
A quintessential Pearl Jam song like few others, Even Flow tackles the issue of homelessness while wrapping the message up in those warm funk and classic rock vibes that immediately come to mind when we think about Pearl Jam; but seriously, can we talk about the guitar god that is Mike McCready?
6. Immortality (Vitalogy, 1994)
Lop the aural insanity that is Stupid Mop off the end of Vitalogy and you've got Immortality, the spiritual closer of the band's third album. Chosen as that record's final single after the dual middle fingers Spin the Black Circle and Not For You, Immortality hits with the emotional weight that's more indicative of the album as whole than its difficult previous singles.
5. Given to Fly (Yield, 1998)
People gave Mike McCready some hell over this song sounding like Going to California by Led Zeppelin; well, it kind of does, but is any band greater poster boys of plagiarism than Led Zeppelin (maybe Greta Van Fleet)? Besides, Given to Fly holds a clear advantage by virtue of its building ferocity and booming chorus.
4. Light Years (Binaural, 2000)
Having the misfortune of being released at one of the band's most commercially low points, Light Years has everything you want in a Pearl Jam single, and I firmly believe it should have been a smash hit. It's underappreciated in a way that very few Pearl Jam songs are, and it's the clear highlight of arguably the band's most underappreciated album.
3. Alive (Ten, 1991)
If any songs properly illustrates just how good Pearl Jam was from the jump, it's Alive. The band's first ever single ticks all the boxes for what would make them one of the world's biggest bands, and it is one of the high points of their live show to this day. Also, again, Mike McCready.
2. Daughter (Vs., 1993)
Tucked in among the harder rocking and more exploratory fare on Vs. is Daughter, one of the album's pair of plaintive, enduring acoustic numbers. A massive song that doesn't suffer from overplay or aging poorly, this is simply one of Pearl Jam's best songs. What more needs to be said?
1. Hail, Hail (No Code, 1996)
Probably an unpopular choice for Pearl Jam's best single, and one that perhaps paints me as a bit of a contrarian hipster when it comes to the band. At the end of the day, though, no song for me combines the band's melodic and harder rocking tendencies in such an effective fashion as Hail, Hail. Nearly 24 years after its release and I still can't say no to this song when it comes on, such is its staying power in my heart and head.
If it feels like I've left something out, that's possible; or, as stated earlier, maybe the band didn't release the awesome song you're thinking of as a single at all. Which is why tomorrow, I'll be going through all of Pearl Jam's records (except Gigaton) and picking a song from each that, by rights, should have been released as a single. Until then, let the records play!
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