Formed after the demise of Gossard and Ament's previous band, Mother Love Bone, Pearl Jam broke into the mainstream with their debut album, Ten, in 1991. Ten stayed on the Billboard 200 chart for nearly five years, and has gone on to become one of the highest-selling rock records ever, going 13× platinum in the United States. Released in 1993, Pearl Jam's second album, Vs., sold over 950,000 copies in its first week of release, setting the record for most copies of an album sold in its first week of release at the time. Their third album, Vitalogy (1994), became the second-fastest-selling CD in history at the time, with more than 877,000 units sold in its first week.
One of the key bands in the grunge movement of the early 1990s, Pearl Jam's members often shunned popular music industry practices such as making music videos or participating in interviews. The band also sued Ticketmaster, claiming it had monopolized the concert-ticket market. In 2006, Rolling Stone described the band as having "spent much of the past decade deliberately tearing apart their own fame."
Pearl Jam had sold more than 85 million albums worldwide by 2018, including nearly 32 million albums in the United States by 2012, making them one of the best-selling bands of all time. Pearl Jam was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2017 in its first year of eligibility. They were ranked eighth in a readers' poll by Rolling Stone magazine in its "Top Ten Live Acts of All Time" issue. Throughout its career, the band has also promoted wider social and political issues, from pro-abortion rights sentiments to opposition to George W. Bush's presidency. Vedder acts as the band's spokesman on these issues.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl_Jam
Studio albums
Ten (1991)
Vs. (1993)
Vitalogy (1994)
No Code (1996)
Yield (1998)
Binaural (2000)
Riot Act (2002)
Pearl Jam (2006)
Backspacer (2009)
Lightning Bolt (2013)
Gigaton (2020)
206-Tremor Christ
Pearl Jam Lyrics
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Wounded is the organ he left all...bloodied on the shore...
Gorgeous was his savior sees her...drowning in his wake...
Daily taste the salt of her tears but...a chance blamed fate...
Little secrets tremors...turned to quake...
The smallest oceans still get...big big waves...
Ransom paid the Devil...He whispers pleasing words...
Triumphant are the angels if they can...a get there first...
The smallest oceans still get...big, big waves...
I'll decide...take the dive...
Take my time...not my life...
Wait for signs...believe in lies...
To get by...it's divine...whoa...
Oh, you know what it's like...
Turns the bow back, tows and...drops the line...
Puts his faith and love in tremor Christ...
In "206-Tremor Christ," Pearl Jam depicts the struggles of a sailor spinning out of control in the midst of a raging storm. The opening lines, "Winded is the sailor...drifting by the storm...Wounded is the organ he left all...bloodied on the shore," give listeners a clear image of the sailor's predicament. He is exhausted and battered, not only physically but emotionally as well. He's lost control, and the only thing that's steady is the sea beneath him.
The sailor then sees his savior, who turns out to be a stunning woman who is also in trouble. "Gorgeous was his savior sees her...drowning in his wake...Daily taste the salt of her tears but...a chance blamed fate." Despite his own struggles, he realizes that she needs him, and he wants to be her beacon. But the sailor's problems cannot be fixed so easily. "Little secrets tremors...turned to quake...The smallest oceans still get...big, big waves." He's fighting against the elements, and the more he fights them, the worse it gets.
The chorus, "I'll decide...take the dive...Take my time...not my life...Wait for signs...believe in lies...To get by...it's divine," speaks volumes about the sailor's predicament. He's not sure what to do, so he's holding off, trying to buy himself time. But the longer he waits, the more desperate things become. He's lost faith in himself and in the universe, so he's starting to believe that he's never going to make it out alive. However, he is not giving up hope, and he puts his faith in "tremor Christ" as he "Turns the bow back, tows and...drops the line." He believes that somehow, some way, he will make it through the storm, and his faith will be rewarded.
Line by Line Meaning
Winded is the sailor...drifting by the storm...
The sailor is out at sea, caught and pushed around by the strong winds and waves of the storm.
Wounded is the organ he left all...bloodied on the shore...
The sailor left an organ, most likely his heart, behind and it was damaged and hurt by the traumatic experience of being stranded on the shore.
Gorgeous was his savior sees her...drowning in his wake...
The sailor's beautiful savior witnessed his distress and followed him but ultimately, he ended up causing her harm instead.
Daily taste the salt of her tears but...a chance blamed fate...
Despite the sailor's savior being in pain and crying constantly, he blames their misfortune on the unpredictability of fate and accepts it as their reality.
Little secrets tremors...turned to quake...
The small secrets and anxieties between the sailor and his savior escalated into bigger issues and arguments, shaking the foundation of their relationship.
The smallest oceans still get...big big waves...
Even the smallest problems or situations can still have major consequences or outcomes, similar to how even small waves can make big impacts.
Ransom paid the Devil...He whispers pleasing words...
The sailor resorted to making a deal with the Devil to escape his difficult situation, but the Devil was insincere and deceitful.
Triumphant are the angels if they can...a get there first...
If the angels can get to a person before the Devil can, they can prevent the person from making a deal with the Devil and save them from his clutches.
I'll decide...take the dive...
The artist will make their own choices and take risks, regardless of any outside influences or pressures.
Take my time...not my life...
The artist will prioritize taking their time and not rushing into any decisions that could potentially harm themselves or their life.
Wait for signs...believe in lies...
The singer will wait for signs or messages from the universe to guide them, but recognizes that these signs could potentially be misleading or false.
To get by...it's divine...whoa...
To survive or get through difficult situations is not just a human effort, but can also be seen as divine intervention or help.
Oh, you know what it's like...
The singer acknowledges that the person they are talking to understands their experiences or feelings.
Turns the bow back, tows and...drops the line...
The sailor turns their ship around and returns to the sea, letting go of any emotional baggage or ties they had with their savior.
Puts his faith and love in tremor Christ...
The singer puts their trust and devotion in a powerful and mysterious figure named tremor Christ, potentially as a source of guidance or protection in uncertain times.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DAVID ABBRUZZESE, EDDIE VEDDER, JEFF AMENT, MIKE MCCREADY, STONE GOSSARD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind