Recording Vs. nearly tore Pearl Jam apart. Eddie Vedder, the reluctant public face of the band, championed a proletarian approach; drummer Dave Abbruzzese embraced rock-star excess; Mike McCready, Stone Gossard, and Jeff Ament anxiously navigated the minefield between. Instead of quitting, Vedder vented lyrically. His bandmates attacked their instruments. The resulting record roiled with fury at fame, injustice, expectations. Vs. was thrashing testament to discomfort with celebrity, and wielded civil criticism that's equally valid today. The album's very name, and the defiant sheep on its cover, were not-so-subtle provocations.
Thanks to both its "grunge"-explosion timing and undeniable quality, Vs. smashed sales records and made Pearl Jam a global household name. But the band's calculated response proved they would neither burn out nor fade away. This book weaves research, song lyrics, little-known details, and thoughts from band members into a definitive report on how Vs. came to fruition and how the album, and its creators' strive for integrity, solidified rather than destroyed Pearl Jam.
