Pearl Jam Song Tier List Series

Well well well, we’re almost done with studio albums. This episode takes us to the album that lasted for the longest time as their “newest” record in Lightning Bolt. This one right now may feel as though it may be falling out of favor with crowds due to a lengthy tour backing the record and a shiny new Gigaton to attach to. But the album has it’s share of moments that can be celebrated off a Pearl Jam record. Within the Swallowed Wholes and My Father’s Sons of the world, there are some underrated ones in here including Yellow Moon and even Pendulum for how much it’s been played. What will make it to Super Tier?

This week I’m doing a Tier List for Pearl Jam’s Backspacer album! I know a lot of people who love Backspacer, I definitely liked it more when it came out than I do now, but that’s not to say that there aren’t good songs to discuss here. Sure, Johnny Guitar won’t have much of my backing, but Amongst The Waves will. I do my best not to shit on this album way too much, but sometimes these songs just don’t age as well as others and that’s what I’m attempting to prove here. Share your opinions, I welcome them. But as I write in every description, no one has any business being angry over any of this. They are just songs.

You may say Self-Titled, I may say Avocado. Regardless of what the album is actually called, it has 13 tracks that are up for discussion in this episode. I’ll be ranking these in what will be a brutal challenge to figure out placements, however, there may be one that stands out above the rest. Is that going to be the super tier song? Gee, maybe watch for that answer, huh? I’ll have opinions in this one as I always do. We’re getting on the dad Ed era now where things get a little interesting in a way that perhaps the 90s albums didn’t. Some people may not agree with my opinions and that is fine. I don’t care if you disagree with me, I care if you’re a whiny baby about it. Constructive conversation is always the key to understanding, so let’s try and understand instead of torching the channel down?

We’re strolling along through Pearl Jam’s discog and taking a stop right here at 2002’s Riot Act. One of the best tours and times to be a Pearl Jam fan, this album was fired up with anger steaming from the Bu$h administration, and sorrow after the Roskilde tragedy. Some tracks are absolute classics and still live on in the pantheon of Pearl Jam’s live material today. Others have barely gotten a sniff of the setlist since 2003. Let’s see how everything breaks down on this week’s edition of the Tier Lists! Opinions are great to have, you should own yours just as I’m owning mine. No one is wrong and no one is lesser than for thinking a certain way. There’s so much toxicity in this world, let’s keep it out of Pearl Jam!

Ahh the sixth installment of the weekly series chronicling Pearl Jam’s studio albums and breaking them down by tier ranks. This one is tricky, but for the songs on Binaural, the cream rises to the top. What will be crowned ‘S’ tier from this record and go on to the final round? Got opinions? Do share, just don’t be a whiny baby about them and we can have a conversation!

We’ve come to our next episode in our tier list series featuring my all-time favorite Pearl Jam album, Yield. Of course, I have a really tough time trying to fit these pieces into the puzzle. It’s very top heavy. But I figure it out and think I did the right thing, however there may be one or two songs that could surprise you! What could they be? This is meant to be fun and hopefully you enjoy the insight that I bring to the table, but there is a potential that you may disagree with me. And guess what? That is FINE. We should all have different tastes. I’m open to hearing why people attach to the songs that they do and learning those stories deepens my connection with the band. Arguing is pointless because your favorite things are your favorite things and shouting about them or complaining that others don’t agree with you gets you where? Absolutely no where. Pearl. Jam. Fans. Are. Better. Than. THAT!

Welcome back to the fourth installment of our weekly episodic Tier List rankings! In this one we’re doing No Code, one of my favorites, but the A-list material may not be able to be beat! Check it out and see where I rank the songs and comment below on whether you agree or not. Hey! You’re allowed to have differing opinions! But guess what’s pointless to have? A hissy fit if someone disagrees with you! It’s not worth the trouble. The wonderful thing about this band is that there’s so much material to sink your teeth into that it’s almost impossible for us to share favorites on anything. I respect what you guys think and that helps me learn a little bit more coming from a different perspective!

A lot of people enjoy lists. Some don’t and they are the most outspoken about it. Know what I say? Screw ’em, let’s do another list! For the third installment of this series, the focus is squarely on Vitalogy. We of course began with two difficult ones, but Vitalogy was the toughest one to configure up until this point (you’ll have to tune into Yield to top it). So the discussion here is between an incredible starting 6 of any album, and then 3 incredible songs near the backend. And then you have your Mops and Prys and Davanitas that need to be discussed by proxy. Tough conversations to have, it’s very clear that some people will not agree, however, the point isn’t exactly for you to agree. It’s for you to potentially get some insight from a perspective of someone who’s been back n forth down their catalog studying live material from every era and understanding what songs have turned into in current day. No opinion is meant to be the same, but if we all respect that we all have one, then the world will be a better place!

We’re back for our second edition of the album song Tier List. If you know your Pearl Jam album chronology, then you know exactly what this is. We’re looking into Vs. to try and find the cream of the crop from their amazing sophomore release. Remember, the game we play is to create one ‘S’ Tier Song at the end so it will go into a final challenge when we come to the end. These lists are based off of three factors – 1. is how I personally attach to a song, 2. is how the fanbase in general attaches themselves and 3. is how the band sees the song 29 years after its release. Opinions are just that. If you agree on me with everything, that’s wonderful, but I would not expect that from the majority of you. Shouting and getting angry over someone’s opinion does not make your opinion better, it just makes it your opinion. I’m not saying this to protect myself from being harassed about it, it’s more about how we all want to see this community be reflected as. There’s no need for there to be infighting, I’ll respect people’s opinions as long as they are civil.