Introduction: A Personal Preface
1 The Cast
2 A Dozen Moments in the Prehistory of Pearl Jam
3 The Bacchanal, San Diego (November 21, 1989)
4 The Off Ramp, Seattle (October 22, 1990)
5 “Jeremy,” “Garden,” “Yellow Ledbetter” (1991)
6 J.C. Dobbs, Philadelphia (July 12, 1991)
7 The Palladium, Hollywood (October 6, 1991)
8 Cow Palace, San Francisco (December 31, 1991)
9 MTV Unplugged (March 16, 1992)
10 Pinkpop Festival, Holland (June 8, 1992)
11 The Singles Soundtrack (1992)
12 Stadio Flaminio, Rome (July 6, 1993)
13 Lakefront Arena, New Orleans (November 16, 1993)
14 Hints, Allegations, and Things Left Unsaid (1993)
15 Civic Center, Pensacola (March 9, 1994)
16 Bayfront Amphitheater, Miami (March 28, 1994)
17 Patriot Center, Fairfax (April 8, 1994)
18 Rayburn House Office Building, Washington DC (June 30, 1994)
19 Dave (1994)
20 Self-Pollution Radio (January 8, 1995)
21 Soldier Field, Chicago (July 11, 1995)
22 38th Annual Grammy Awards (February 28, 1996)
23 Cox Arena, San Diego (July 10, 1998)
24 Binaural and the Battle of Seattle (1999)
25 Roskilde Festival, Denmark (June 30, 2000)
26 Madison Square Garden (October 15, 2000)
27 Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, Uniondale (April 30,
2003)
28 Thin Air (2006—2013)
29 Tomas Young and Body of War (2005—2014)
30 Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia (April 29, 2016)
31 Altice Arena, Lisbon (June 20, 2019)
Afterword (For Chris Cornell)
In Memoriam
Acknowledgments
Bibliography
Index
About the Author
The first critical and comprehensive overview of Pearl Jam from 1990 to the present.
Ronen Givony is the author of 24 Hour Revenge Therapy (or, The Strange Death of Selling Out), part of Bloomsbury's 33 1/3 series. He is the founder of New York’s Wordless Music series and orchestra (wordlessmusic.org) – which the Village Voice named the city’s “Best Moderately Snooty Concert Series" – and a contributor of liner notes for Nonesuch, Constellation, Thrill Jockey, and Temporary Residence. A native of South Florida, he has worked as a producer for concert venues and music festivals in the US and abroad.
[A] hefty and impressive work, digging into its subject with the
kind of relentlessness any fan will appreciate… A thoughtful
celebration of a band who’s still going strong, and should even be
of interest to non-PJ fans, especially if they have an interest in
alt rock of the ‘90s.
*Record Collector News*
Near perfect Pearl Jam prose… 'Not For You: Pearl Jam and the
Present Tense' is a book every Pearl Jam fan needs to read. Not
only is it an excellent biography it is also the definitive
unofficial Pearl Jam book for fans of the Last Grunge Band
Standing.™
*Guerrilla Candy*
Brilliantly contextualises the early ’90s socio-political climate
from which the grunge icons emerged. It paints a vivid portrait …
Not For You is a compelling examination of one of modern rock’s
most enduring and compelling groups.
*Hot Press*
An enjoyable book and, as a non-fan, I found myself coming around
to their music and what they were trying to achieve. Whether you
love them or not, it is clear they were trying to be genuine and
reach out to their fans.
*Irish Tech News*
Ronen Givony's Not for You does what Givony would like Pearl Jam to
do: it rises above its immediate purpose. It is a critical
annotation to a body of work which lifts off the ground and becomes
an extravagant performance about time, rebellion, fame,
disenchantment, civil discourse, the idea of the mainstream, the
desire of a fan, and what a band can do to answer it.
*Ben Ratliff, author of Every Song Ever*
[A]n insightful work for many reasons, not least its temperate
analysis of fandom. Author Ronen Givony never forgets the whys and
wherefores of the Seattle outfit and of how from their early days
in the 1990s, despite their status as one of the mostpopular US
acts, they sidelined traditional commercial channels in favour of
servicing their fans … Givony incisively reflects on th[is] and
more, but the primary selling point is what the band have meant to
their fans across the years and the often-profound bonds that can
be made.
*The Irish Times*
The strength of Givony’s book lies in his readiness to make the
tough call. His book is unreservedly opinionated, as so few these
days are … Givony proves himself a master of the bon mot, the
memorable soundbite, demonstrating ample literary chops throughout.
If I had room, I’d quote a hundred worthy passages.
*Rhythm Magazine*
Givony trenchantly argues that Pearl Jam haven’t made a great album
since 1998. Yet his sometimes contentious analysis is always
delivered with a wry snap and bolstered by diligent sociocultural
contextualisation, pinpointing one aspect of the band’s appeal;
they’re more ‘for you’ than might initially appear to be the
case.
*MOJO*
CHOICE Magazine’s “New Year Reads” 2021
*CHOICE*
CBC’s “18 Books for the Holiday Season”
*CBC*
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