This is a story involving mysticism and hallucinogenic rites, with a familiar touch. Pearl Jam, the grunge band that lived under Nirvana’s shadow, and drew inspiration from a teenager’s suicide to create one of their most popular pieces of music, continues to have more than it’s share of more secrets to tell. In order to understand the true meaning of the band’s name, we must make a journey in time and go back to those days when the Cherokee roamed the barren lands of the United States seeking hallucinogenic mushrooms and peyote to gather.
Thanks to scholars of history and ancient indigenous culture, we know that those two psychotropics were used during rituals to explore alternate realities and obtain age-old knowledge. What does anything of this has to do with one of the best grunge bands out there? In 1991, Eddie Vedder gave an interview to Rolling Stone magazine, where he disclosed the following:
“Great-grandpa was an Indian and totally into hallucinogenics and peyote. Great-grandma Pearl used to make this hallucinogenic preserve that there’s total stories about. We don’t have the recipe, though.”
“Pearl” comes from Eddie’s great- grandmother and “Jam” from the hallucinogenic marmalade she prepared for his great-grandfather.
The story amazed hundreds of thousands of fans due to its mysticism, but also for its emotional value. However, in 2006, Rolling Stone inquired once again into the story of the name’s origins, and this time, Eddie clarified the peyote story. He admitted that his great-grandmother was indeed called Pearl, but the rest of the story had been a lie.
Then, where did the name of the band come from? Well, it turns out that, during the same interview, Jeff Ament told the story of how the band met in a Seattle restaurant, dead set on coming up with a good name for their project. They finally thought about the word Pearl: “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.”
So, you might be asking, what about the Jam? That’s a reference to musical improvisation. Eddie thought of that word when he attended a Neil Young concert as well as listened to a series of new songs that lasted up to nine hours. For Eddie, each song was like a jam.
There is also a theory about Pearl Jam being an euphemism for man marmalade, which is also an euphemism for semen. But this assumption goes too far, don’t you think?
If you would like to know more secrets about the rock world, you may like reading the following articles:
The Song Bob Dylan Wrote To Mock John Lennon
The Destructive And Burning Love Story Of Jim Morrison
Translated by Andrea Valle Gracia
