Album · 35 years old this year
Ten
Ten is Pearl Jam's debut album, released on 27 August 1991 through Epic. It grew out of the aftermath of Mother Love Bone, when bassist Jeff Ament and guitarist Stone Gossard teamed up with guitarist Mike McCready. A five-song instrumental demo reached Eddie Vedder, who wrote new melodies and lyrics for jams and unused ideas, and the songs took shape from there.
Though it is filed under grunge, Ten leans harder on classic rock than most of its Seattle peers, with echoes of Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin in its big, anthemic sound. The lyrics tackle depression, suicide and loneliness, most starkly in "Jeremy". It was a slow burn at first, but "Alive", "Even Flow" and "Jeremy" carried it to number 2 in the US and 13× platinum status. It remains the band's biggest seller.
Ten on Riffology
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Ten: tracklist, credits and charts
11 tracks · 53:22Tracklist
- 1OnceAment, Parashar, Vedder, Gossard3:52
- 2Even FlowStone Gossard and Eddie Vedder4:54
- 3AliveStone Gossard and Eddie Vedder5:41
- 4Why GoJeff Ament and Eddie Vedder3:20
- 5BlackStone Gossard and Eddie Vedder5:44
- 6JeremyJeff Ament and Eddie Vedder5:19
- 7OceansAment, Gossard, Vedder2:42
- 8PorchEddie Vedder3:31
- 9GardenAment, Gossard, Vedder4:59
- 10DeepAment, Gossard, Vedder4:18
- 11ReleaseAment, Gossard, Krusen, McCready, Vedder9:03
- Produced by
- Rick Parashar, Pearl Jam
- Recorded at
- London Bridge (Seattle, Washington)
- Recorded
- March and April 1991
- Mixed by
- Tim Palmer
- Mixed at
- Ridge Farm Studios
- Engineered by
- Don Gilmore, Dave Hillis, Adrian Moore
- Label
- Epic
- Length
- 53:22
Line-up
- Jeff Ament · bass guitar
- Stone Gossard · guitar
- Dave Krusen · drums (drum set)
- Mike McCready · guitar
- Eddie Vedder · lead vocals
Singles
- “Alive” · 7 July 1991
- “Even Flow” · 30 March 1992
- “Jeremy” · 17 August 1992
- “Oceans” · 7 December 1992
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 · 1991–1996 | 2 |
| UK Albums Chart · 1991–1996 | 18 |
| Polish Albums (OLiS) · 2014–2025 | 1 |
| US Top Internet Albums (Billboard) · 2009 | 1 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1991–1996 | 2 |
| Portuguese Albums · 2009 | 2 |
| US Heatseekers · 1991–1996 | 2 |
| New Zealand Albums · 1991–1996 | 3 |
| US Top Rock Albums · 2020–2026 | 7 |
| Norwegian Albums · 1991–1996 | 8 |
All 23 charts
| Swedish Albums · 1991–1996 | 9 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 2009 | 11 |
| Dutch Albums · 1991–1996 | 14 |
| Finnish Albums The Official Finnish Charts · 1991–1996 | 14 |
| German Albums · 1991–1996 | 15 |
| Belgian Albums (Flanders) · 2020–2026 | 17 |
| Italian Albums · 2009 | 20 |
| Croatian Albums Chart · 2009 | 24 |
| Hungarian Physical Albums (MAHASZ) · 2014–2025 | 29 |
| Austrian Albums · 1991–1996 | 31 |
| Irish Albums (IRMA) · 2009 | 38 |
| Swiss Albums · 2009 | 67 |
| Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 2020–2026 | 101 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Argentina | Gold |
| Australia · 2021 | 8× Platinum |
| Belgium · 2000 | Platinum |
| Brazil · 1993 | Gold |
| Canada · 2025 | 7× Platinum |
| Denmark · 2019 | 3× Platinum |
| Germany · 1994 | Gold |
| Italy · 2025 | 2× Platinum |
| Netherlands · 1992 | Platinum |
| New Zealand | 6× Platinum |
| Norway · 1993 | Gold |
| Poland · 2024 | 2× Platinum |
| Portugal · 2022 | Gold |
| Sweden · 1993 | Gold |
| Switzerland · 2000 | Gold |
| United Kingdom · 2018 | 2× Platinum |
| United States · 2009 | 13× Platinum |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
91.3
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
17k
ListenBrainz listeners
319k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
181k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Also released on 27 August
Every year →More from Pearl Jam
Full discography →
Vs.
1993
Dissident (Live in Atlanta)
1994
Vitalogy
1994
No Code
1996
Yield
1998
Live on Two Legs
1998
Binaural
2000
2000-05-30: Wembley Arena, London, UK (#5)
2000
2000-06-08: Bercy, Paris, France (#10)
2000
2000-08-29: Boston, MA, USA (#43)
2001
2000-08-25: Jones Beach, NY, USA (#41)
2001
2000-10-22: Las Vegas, NV, USA (#62)
2001
Riot Act
2002
2003-07-08: New York, NY, USA
2003
Lost Dogs
2003
2003-10-22: Benaroya Hall, Seattle, WA, USA
2004
Rearviewmirror (Greatest Hits 1991–2003)
2004
Pearl Jam
2006
Live at Easy Street
2006
Live at the Gorge 05/06
2007
2007-08-05: Lollapalooza, Grant Park, Chicago, IL, USA
2007
Backspacer
2009
Live on Ten Legs
2011
Pearl Jam Twenty
2011
Lightning Bolt
2013
Vault #6: 1998-07-13: Great Western Forum, Inglewood, CA, USA
2016
Let’s Play Two: Live at Wrigley Field
2017
MTV Unplugged
2019
Gigaton
2020
Give Way
2023
Dark Matter
2024
The Last of Us
2025
The best of 1991
All of 1991 →
Nevermind
Nirvana · 1991
Metallica
Metallica · 1991
Use Your Illusion I
Guns N’ Roses · 1991
Use Your Illusion II
Guns N’ Roses · 1991
No More Tears
Ozzy Osbourne · 1991
On Tour Now!
Guns N’ Roses · 1991
Innuendo
Queen · 1991
Kerplunk!
Green Day · 1991
Badmotorfinger
Soundgarden · 1991
Gish
The Smashing Pumpkins · 1991
Arise
Sepultura · 1991
1916
Motörhead · 1991
More on Epic
The label →
(What’s the Story) Morning Glory?
Oasis · 1995
Rage Against the Machine
Rage Against the Machine · 1992
Definitely Maybe
Oasis · 1994
Vs.
Pearl Jam · 1993
The Battle of Los Angeles
Rage Against the Machine · 1999
No More Tears
Ozzy Osbourne · 1991
Be Here Now
Oasis · 1997
Renegades
Rage Against the Machine · 2000
Korn
Korn · 1994
Issues
Korn · 1999
Patient Number 9
Ozzy Osbourne · 2022
Ordinary Man
Ozzy Osbourne · 2020
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + musicbrainz + wikidata
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 27 August 1991 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 27 August 1991 | |
| Wikidata | 27 August 1991 | |
| US release | 27 August 1991 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 1991 | earliest UK or European date |
34 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | XE | Epic | 5099746888497 | other |
| — | XE | Epic | 5099746888497 | other |
| 1991 | US | Epic | 07464478571 | other |
| 1991 | GB | Epic | 5099746888428 | other |
| 1991 | AU | Epic | 9399746888425 | other |
| 1991 | CA | Epic Associated | other | |
| 1991 | CA | Epic Associated | 074644785722 | other |
| 1991 | MX | Epic Associated | 7509904785721 | other |
| 27 August 1991 | US | Epic | 074644785722 | original |
| 27 August 1991 | US | Epic | 074644785722 | original |
| 25 October 1991 | JP | Sony Records | 4988009563428 | other |
| 1992 | XE | Epic | 5099746888459 | other |
| 1992 | GB | Epic | 5099746888435 | other |
| 24 February 1992 | XE | Epic | 5099746888411 | other |
| 11 May 1992 | XE | Epic | 5099746888497 | other |
| 22 November 1994 | US | Epic Associated | 07464478571 | other |
| 2004 | DE | Sony Music Media | 5099746888473 | other |
| 2005 | AU | Sony BMG Music Entertainment | 5099746888473 | other |
| 8 October 2007 | GB | Epic | 886971595413 | other |
| 2009 | XE | Epic | 886976356224 | other |
| 2009 | US | Epic | 886973984925 | deluxe |
| 20 March 2009 | DE | Legacy | 886973984925 | deluxe |
| 23 March 2009 | GB | BMG | 886973984925 | other |
| 24 March 2009 | XE | Epic | 886973758724 | deluxe |
| 24 March 2009 | US | Epic | 886974130215 | other |
| 24 March 2009 | IT | Epic | other | |
| 24 March 2009 | US | Epic | 886973984628 | other |
| 2010 | ZA | Epic | 6007124615282 | other |
| 14 November 2011 | NL | Sony Music | 886979957329 | other |
| 18 May 2012 | XW | Epic | 884977724745 | other |
| 2013 | XW | Epic | 886444194181 | other |
| 27 August 2013 | XW | Epic | 886444135559 | other |
| 16 March 2016 | XW | Epic | 886444194150 | other |
| 10 November 2017 | US | Epic | 889853768714 | other |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · native: native 1500x1500
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 1500×1500 | native: native 1500x1500 |
| itunes | 1500×1500 | native |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |