Five against One by Kim Neely
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Book Reviews of Five against One
Book Review: Well-balanced, overall
Summary: 4 Stars
The author attempts, as much as possible, to relate the history of Pearl Jam objectively. Wherever possible, she sympathizes with the band and especially the lead singer but, perhaps curiously, doesn't defend him or the band when they apparently were in the wrong, such as in their treatment of their second drummer, Dave Abbruzzeze. Apparently, Vedder desired Jack Irons for his band and apparently treated Abbruzzeze with a cold shoulder and berated him for appreciating the success the band experienced; perhaps he hoped he would take the hint and quit. The others toed the line, one might assume, and subjected him to similar treatment, so the overall impression was that Dave had a miserable three years in the band and one wonders just why he didn't quit early and instead got fired under BS circumstances. I can't imagine that every waking second was crap for the drummer, but, overall, the evidence seems pretty damning and there is no effort by either the author or the band to redeem themselves on this count. ...Anyway, don't mean to give the impression that this book is just about that. There's much more, including the origin of the band, EV's childhood and the band's ordeal with Ticketmaster. It covers pretty much all up until the release of YIELD.
Book Review: Borrow from a friend
Summary: 4 Stars
First to of all I just want to say this book is imformative and I will recommend it to any Pearl Jam fan. The book however starts off on a very confusing path through the many bands they went through before forming Pearl Jam. Then, finally you come out of the mess of the first 3 or 4 chapters to the band's release of Ten. These chapters display great amount of description on the band's first years and unfornately this does not continue on through the rest of the book. The next chapters tell the life of Eddie Vedder and the turbulent years that have greatly influenced his music. The rest of the book is about the band's following albums but it lacks the description that was used for the section of the book focused on Ten. The second half of the book is when the author gets a little anti-PJ saying that there anti-fame and battle against ticket master were just publicity stunts.However she shows some evidnce that they were at fault as thier inability to mount a tour or cancel them at the final minute left many fans to distrust them.A good read but a little too anti-pearl Jam.Book Review: Borrow from a friend
Summary: 4 Stars
First to of all I just want to say this book is imformative and I will recommend it to any Pearl Jam fan. The book however starts off on a very confusing path through the many bands they went through before forming Pearl Jam. Then, finally you come out of the mess of the first 3 or 4 chapters to the band's release of Ten. These chapters display great amount of description on the band's first years and unfornately this does not continue on through the rest of the book. The next chapters tell the life of Eddie Vedder and the turbulent years that have greatly influenced his music. The rest of the book is about the band's following albums but it lacks the description that was used for the section of the book focused on Ten. The second half of the book is when the author gets a little anti-PJ saying that there anti-fame and battle against ticket master were just publicity stunts.However she shows some evidnce that they were at fault as thier inability to mount a tour or cancel them at the final minute left many fans to distrust them.A good read but a little too anti-pearl Jam.Book Review: a great story about the best band currently making music
Summary: 4 Stars
I thought that this was a very well written account of the history of Pearl Jam. It went into details of not only the birth of Pearl Jam it also gave a great summary of the whole alternative explosion that came out of Seattle in the early 90's. I don't think that you have to be a Pearl Jam fan at all to appreciate this book and the way Pearl Jam is where they are today. It hits hard onthe reality of drugs and the heart felt loss of a dear friend. It gave a good recalection of Pearl Jam's fight with the big franchise Ticketmaster. And how the band did not react well to the new found fame they all were hit with. It also gives a good recount of the struggle the band went through when they were first starting out and how they are currently closer than they've ever been.I think that this book shows a good fun loving side of all the band members that people usually can't see dew to the corporate battles they are constantly fighting to protect the "little people" I think if you are music fan and you are partial to alternative, this book is a must.Book Review: Great Book for any hard-core Pearl Jam fan
Summary: 4 Stars
As a long time Pearl Jam fan I found this book to be very interesting. It covers the Seattle "music scene" of the late 80's and early 90's and goes into depth about how the band got together. It also covers (in great detail) the touring and other events surrounding the first three albums. The book only briefly mentions "No Code" and "Yield". The description on the back cover states that the book discusses Eddie and his background, youth, etc. so some of that is obviously expected, however, 90% seems to be related from interviews with his step-father and seems biased in his direction. Also, it gets tedious. Having never read that much about the band, I would have preferred the book discuss all the band members and their backgrounds briefly, not just Eddie's so exhaustively. And if it had to be just about Eddie's background, get some more input and observation from others, not just dear old step-dad. All in all, this is a very good book, and if you are a Pearl Jam fan it is a must read.