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)
Rearview Mirror
Pearl Jam Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Time to emancipate
I guess it was the beatings made me wise
But I'm not about to give thanks, or apologize
I couldn't breathe, holdin' me down
Hand on my face
Pushed to the ground
Forced to endure
What I could not forgive
I seem to look away
Wounds in the mirror waved
It wasn't my surface most defiled
Head at your feet, fool to your crown
Pissed on my plate, swallowed it down
Enmity gauged, united by fear
Tried to endure
What I could not forgive
Saw things
Saw things
Saw things
Saw things
Clearer
Clearer once you, were in my rearviewmirror
I gather speed from you fucking with me
Once and for all
I'm far away
I hardly believe
Finally the shades, are raised, hey yeah
Saw things so much clearer
Once you, once you (rearviewmirror)
Saw things so much clearer
Once you, once you (rearviewmirror)
Saw things so much clearer
Once you, once you (rearviewmirror)
Saw things so much clearer
Once you, oh yeah
The lyrics of Pearl Jam’s song Rearview Mirror describe the singer driving away to “emancipate” himself from a painful past. He references the “beatings” he endured and suggests that they made him “wise.” However, the singer is not seeking forgiveness nor offering any either. The haunting chorus is repeated throughout the song, “Saw things clearer, once you were in my rearview mirror.” The singer is reflecting on the past and realizing that when he removed himself from the situation, he was able to see it more objectively. Metaphorical “wounds in the mirror wave” indicating that the pain suffered in the past is still present, but he understands it better now that he has gained some distance from it.
The verses describe in brief the pain the singer endured. He was physically held down and forced to endure something he could not forgive. The lyrics use the words “enmity gauged, united by fear” to suggest that the people holding him down were also victims of their own fear. He also mentions someone else “pissing on his plate” which is a metaphor for someone else belittling him or disrespecting him.
There are many interpretations of this song overall, but it is clear that the singer feels relief at having liberated himself from a past that was holding him down. It's a song about moving on and letting go of the past to be able to see things more clearly.
Line by Line Meaning
I took a drive today
I went for a drive
Time to emancipate
Time to free myself
I guess it was the beatings made me wise
The physical abuse taught me a lesson
But I'm not about to give thanks, or apologize
I'm not grateful, nor do I regret anything
I couldn't breathe, holdin' me down
I was suffocating while being held down
Hand on my face
Someone put their hand on my face
Pushed to the ground
I was forcefully brought to the ground
Enmity gaged, united by fear
Hatred measured, unified by terror
Forced to endure
Compelled to bear
What I could not forgive
What I could not pardon
I seem to look away
I appear to look in another direction
Wounds in the mirror waved
Scars in the reflection appeared
It wasn't my surface most defiled
It wasn't my exterior most ruined
Head at your feet, fool to your crown
I bowed to you, a fool to your power
Pissed on my plate, swallowed it down
You insulted me, and I took it
Saw things
Realized things
Clearer
More vivid
Clearer once you, were in my rearviewmirror
More vivid when you were behind me
I gather speed from you fucking with me
You made me stronger by messing with me
Once and for all
Finally, permanently
I'm far away
I'm gone
I hardly believe
I can scarcely believe it
Finally the shades, are raised, hey yeah
Finally, I've lifted the blinds
Once you, once you (rearviewmirror)
When you were behind me
Once you, oh yeah
When you were behind me, oh yeah
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: DAVID ABBRUZZESE, EDDIE VEDDER, JEFF AMENT, MIKE MCCREADY, STONE GOSSARD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
ChandraShekher Mishra
I took a drive today
Time to emancipate
I guess it was the beatings made me wise
But I'm not about to give thanks, or apologize
I couldn't breathe, holdin' me down
Hand on my face
Pushed to the ground
Enmity gaged, united by fear
Forced to endure
What I could not forgive
I seem to look away
Wounds in the mirror waved
It wasn't my surface most defiled
Head at your feet, fool to your crown
Pissed on my plate, swallowed it down
Enmity gauged, united by fear
Tried to endure
What I could not forgive
Saw things
Saw things
Saw things
Saw things
Clearer
Clearer once you, were in my rearviewmirror
I gather speed from you fucking with me
Once and for all
I'm far away
I hardly believe
Finally the shades, are raised, hey yeah
Saw things so much clearer
Once you, once you (rearviewmirror)
Saw things so much clearer
Once you, once you (rearviewmirror)
Saw things so much clearer
Once you, once you (rearviewmirror)
Saw things so much clearer
Once you, oh yeah
Antoine Tremblay
Somebody build a freakin fortress around this band. God just listen to this, it can saves lives. I'm so freakin glad I was a teenager in the 90s. They just turned my world upside down in 1992, I was 12. For the next decade, nothing could compare to these guys for me. Still today, with 2 kids, the mere fact that they are still around put a smile on my face everyday.
pinkcloudturnstogrey
You give the people who were the age of the guys in PJ and for me I was captured by not just their unmatchable catered sound but the facial and eye expressions by Eddie Vedder just add this FU layer and it felt so unbelievably amazing, Like being a teenager again, the really cool times as a teenager. 👍💯
Weapon Plays
You're not alone on that one. You and I are about the same age and that era of music was exactly what we needed.
Figure Drawing
Amazing. Uplifting comment. Thank you. ✌
Kelly Babillis
same!!!
Michael Greene
They dont hit the same for me but I know what you mean.
Audio Adventurer
First rule of Grunge Club: There's always a better live version.
iggles73
Facts
Lethal Steve
@Leinoni Bishop Both great, but I prefer the original. The latter is the best live version though.
Leinoni Bishop
@Lethal Steve mtv unplugged version of jeremy and the mtv music awards live version in '92