Was there ever a music style more unsuited to conflicts than grunge? Granted, every band in Seattle had a beef with the gaudy hair metal emanating from California. But with everyone in the scene so laid back, there was never a good reason to be upset about one guy not playing your sort of music. Despite a small argument between Nirvana and Pearl Jam, Eddie Vedder wished he handled things better in hindsight.
Vedder stood out in the music scene even before grunge became a popular genre. He had been a little gas station attendant in San Diego until, one day, he happened to obtain a cassette from Stone Gossard. Along with Chris Cornell and Kurt Cobain, he unexpectedly shot to fame as one of Seattle’s top vocalists.
Even though the whole Seattle scene threw Nirvana and Pearl Jam under one roof, Cobain saw no similarities between them. If anything, Vedder’s approach—which was far more punk rock than Vedder’s classic rock pastiche—stood in contrast. Mike McCready’s ripping blues leads seemed to represent everything Nirvana was against.
Even though Cobain just took a few shots in passing, the press took it very seriously. Soon, they started to push the bands against each other whenever they had the chance. Up until the press insisted on featuring Vedder’s face on the cover of Time magazine while discussing the Seattle sound. Vedder insisted on not making a big deal out of it.
Although Eddie Vedder would have preferred to end the whole thing, he told Howard Stern, “The only thing that bothered me about that [alleged rivalry] was because it was public, and people were reacting to it: it wasn’t like between us.” The quarrel undoubtedly helped both bands sell a few more records. One writer included a quote from Jeff Ament and another from Kurt, which generated some fascinating media coverage.
When they finally got down to talk things out, Cobain acknowledged that their problems had been resolved. He finally recalled in a video from Pearl Jam’s Twenty, “[Vedder] is still someone I genuinely like,” After our several phone conversations, I believe he’s a truly kind guy.
But, once Cobain passed away, the meaning of that feud changed drastically. Even though Vedder criticized Pearl Jam for being too mainstream for his tastes, he never wavered. He remained committed to the necessity of staying true to himself throughout his career. It almost seemed as though the band was attempting to distance themselves from any commercial content. If you look at where they went later on Vitalogy or No Code, it’s evident.
In addition, Gossard acknowledged that Cobain most likely had the most influence on them all, stating, “If we’re still any good now, it’s partly because of him.” The media desired a conflict. Vedder realized that Cornell was willing to teach him a valuable lesson about celebrity, which he considered more significant than any number-one hit.
