AboutSarah Knowlton Expertise I know a lot of Pearl Jam`s history, some meanings of songs and all lyrics, and a good deal about Eddie Vedder. I have access to up-to-date Pearl Jam news and Info!
Experience My friends get sick of me talking about/listening to Pearl Jam all the time!
Question I love Pearl Jam very much, but I don't know what does their name mean? I've heard once that Eddie Vedder had a grandmother named Pearl who used to make a great jam. Is that how they got their name, or is it something else? English is not my language and I don't know any other meaning of the "pearl" but: small, round, valuable object...But I don't think that jewellery has somthing to do with the name of this band! Thanks!
Answer Hi Maja,
The story about Eddie's grandmother is believed to be fake, and just something silly that Ed told during an interview.
The following quote is from a different interview with Eddie. It's a long quote, but I think this is the real explanation for how they came up with the band name:
"I remember throwing words and meanings around for band names,..... I was writing songs daily and they seemed more important than the name of the band,.... I didn't grasp at the time how representative it may become,....not to mention we were just making a little record that few people would ever hear,...... so the words came, 2,... one of which was Pearl. The name of my great grandmother,..... married to a contortionist...... He used to fit himself into a suitcase.... One in a long line of peculiar individuals. Pearl is also a surfing term when you go headfirst and eat it on the face of a wave.... Janis Joplin's greatest record was called Pearl,..... And of course, Earl the Pearl Monroe who shared the court with Phil Jackson, I believe,.... (I often tell people that it was Phil's initials that led us to our name..... ) I thought that was much better than the rumor that Pearl Jam was some sort of slang for "ejaculated liquid"..... harsh,.....No,..... I feel that the best justification for the name is in reference to the pearl itself,... and the natural process from which a pearl comes from,...... Basically, taking excrement or waste and turning it into something beautiful,...... This is how our band began,..... taking emotions that we wrestled with personally and letting them evolve into songs,..... In this way the songs became vehicles in which to deal with it all,..... Add the volume of loud instruments, amplified vocals,..... moving chord changes,.... And it wasn't just shit anymore,.... It was kind of beautiful,.... powerful,,...... UNCULTURED! As Johnny Rotten would say later, Anger is an Energy...... And Shit can be Beautiful. the proof is in the pearl."
