Long Road: Pearl Jam and the Soundtrack of a Generation

by Steven Hyden Narrated by Ron Hippe

Overview

A leading music journalist's riveting chronicle of how beloved band Pearl Jam shaped the times, and how their legacy and longevity have transcended generations.

Ever since Pearl Jam first blasted onto the Seattle grunge scene three decades ago with their debut album, Ten, they have sold 85M+ albums, performed for hundreds of thousands of fans around the world, and have even been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In Long Road: Pearl Jam and the Soundtrack Of A Generation, music critic and journalist Steven Hyden celebrates the life, career, and music of this legendary group, widely considered to be one of the greatest American rock bands of all time. Long Road is structured like a mix tape, using 18 different Pearl Jam classics as starting points for telling a mix of personal and universal stories. Each chapter tells the tale of this great band - how they got to where they are, what drove them to greatness, and why it matters now.
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Much like the generation it emerged from, Pearl Jam is a mass of contradictions. They were an enormously successful mainstream rock band who felt deeply uncomfortable with the pursuit of capitalistic spoils. They were progressive activists who spoke in favor of abortion rights and against the Ticketmaster monopoly, and yet they epitomized the sound of traditional, male-dominated rock `n' roll. They were looked at as spokesmen for their generation, even though they ultimately projected profound confusion and alienation. They triumphed, and failed, in equal doses - the quintessential Gen-X tale.
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Impressive as their stats, accolades, and longevity may be, Hyden also argues that Pearl Jam's most definitive accomplishment lies in the impact their music had on Generation X as a whole. Pearl Jam's music helped an entire generation of listeners connect with the glory of bygone rock mythology, and made it relevant during a period in which tremendous American economic prosperity belied a darkness at the heart of American youth. More than just a chronicle of the band's career, this book is also a story about Gen- X itself, who like Pearl Jam came from angsty, outspoken roots and then evolved into an establishment institution, without ever fully shaking off their uncertain, outsider past. For so many Gen-Xers growing up at the time, Pearl Jam's music was a beacon that offered both solace and guidance. They taught an entire generation how to grow up without losing the purest and most essential parts of themselves.
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Written with his celebrated blend of personal memoir, criticism, and journalism, Hyden explores Pearl Jam's path from Ten to now. It's a chance for new fans and old fans alike to geek out over Pearl Jam minutia-the B-sides, the beloved deep cuts, the concert bootlegs-and explore the multitude of reasons why Pearl Jam's music resonated with so many people. As Hyden explains, “Most songs pass through our lives and are swiftly forgotten. But Pearl Jam is forever.”

Editorial Reviews

NOVEMBER 2022 - AudioFile

Emerging in the 1990s and still relevant today, Pearl Jam’s music resonates with hipsters and discerning fans of grunge, alternative, and message-oriented rock music. Their story, told here by an insightful music journalist, is given enormous appeal by narrator Ron Hippe. Pearl Jam’s success has been full of dramatic fluctuations and contradictions. Hippe captures every nuance with his wide vocal range and audible connection with these musicians and their music. The dynamics among band members, the media, fans, and commercial interests offer a fascinating study of how pop bands navigate the spoils and pitfalls of professional music. Ron Hippe’s vocal enthusiasm and engagement with this story are exceptional, making this a must-hear for Pearl Jam fans and others. T.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine

From the Publisher

**Rolling Stone, "Best Music Books of 2022"**

**Corbin Reiff at SPIN, "Best Rock Biography of the Year (2022)"**

Aquarian, "Holiday Guide for the Rock & Roll Literate*

“Steven Hyden is a brilliant rock chronicler, whether he’s writing about great bands or terrible ones. But with LONG ROAD, as Eddie Vedder would say, he’s unleashed a lion.”—Rolling Stone

"[The] best rock biography [of 2022]... Steven Hyden has all the answers [to Pearl Jam] and delivers them with the kind of wittily insightful analysis you only get from an obsessed fan and expert critic.”—Corbin Reiff, SPIN

“A comprehensive look from the perspective of a devoted (if not sometimes concerned) fan, this book is organized like Hyden’s favorite Pearl Jam mixtape, into chapters corresponding to a specific song and then elaborating from there, taking the reader to many fascinating, surprising places that aren’t well-known about the Seattle icons."—SPIN

"[Long Road is]... clear-eyed about Pearl Jam’s strengths and weaknesses, but also quite personal, the author infusing his own memories of coming of age at a time when Vs. and Vitalogy provided the soundtrack. The book wrestles with the question of why Pearl Jam mattered — and why, to some, they still very much do.”—Inside Hook

“In LONG ROAD, [Steven] Hyden gives almost an autobiographical history of Pearl Jam from the fan's perspective, from the early albums, to their shying away from the spotlight, through their embrace of playing unforgettable live shows in front of their increasingly fanatical fanbase.” 
 —AllMusic

“Must-read… There is no one writing about music with more passion and intellect than Steven Hyden." 
 —The Film Stage

“Through smart but accessible writing full of stories, asides, opinions and analysis, Hyden makes a compelling case for why Pearl Jam’s music matters….A joyous, thought-provoking and humane series of essays.”—Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

"A personal approach and valuable critical companion that does a great job of contextualizing the band's various life cycles."—Wisconsin Public Radio

“One of the most entertaining summations of what a rock band can do to one’s soul whether we like to admit it or not.” 

  

—Aquarian

“Reading Long Road feels as if you’re in an endlessly engrossing conversation about Pearl Jam with a fellow admirer.”—Toronto Star

"[Hyden has] penned a thoroughly compelling book about Pearl Jam.”—Q101

"A critical consideration of one of rock’s most durable and inscrutable acts... A music biography well suited to fans of both the band and 1990s pop culture."

—Kirkus

"Steven Hyden’s Long Road takes us well beyond the Pearl Jam story that has been rehashed for decades. He argues that the most commercially successful band of the alt-rock era is fundamentally misunderstood, and then he backs up that assertion with chapter after chapter packed with insights and fresh context. In this rock bio-as-mixtape configuration, the prose is as much impressionistic as linear, a format that suits a band that has figured out how to reinvent and improvise its way to hard-earned longevity."—Greg Kot, Sound Opinions co-host

“As a die-hard and nearly life-long Pearl Jam fan, I cannot recommend Long Road enough.  It is an essential perspective on one of the world’s greatest bands with incredibly heartfelt insight from Steven Hyden.”—Brian Fallon of The Gaslight Anthem

NOVEMBER 2022 - AudioFile

Emerging in the 1990s and still relevant today, Pearl Jam’s music resonates with hipsters and discerning fans of grunge, alternative, and message-oriented rock music. Their story, told here by an insightful music journalist, is given enormous appeal by narrator Ron Hippe. Pearl Jam’s success has been full of dramatic fluctuations and contradictions. Hippe captures every nuance with his wide vocal range and audible connection with these musicians and their music. The dynamics among band members, the media, fans, and commercial interests offer a fascinating study of how pop bands navigate the spoils and pitfalls of professional music. Ron Hippe’s vocal enthusiasm and engagement with this story are exceptional, making this a must-hear for Pearl Jam fans and others. T.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

2022-08-10
A critical consideration of one of rock’s most durable and inscrutable acts.

For young casual music listeners, Pearl Jam may seem like an oldies band, best known for early-1990s hits like “Alive” and “Jeremy.” Yet they’re not a nostalgia act; they still release records and deliver high-energy live shows. Though they’re not a jam band, they attract a rabid, bootleg-hungry fan base that rivals those of the Grateful Dead or Phish. Veteran music critic Hyden, whose last book, This Isn’t Happening, focused on Radiohead’s Kid A, explores these cultural disconnects. As he points out, there are plenty of reasons why Pearl Jam could have collapsed during their heyday—they cycled through multiple drummers and addiction issues—but Hyden credits their endurance to frontman Eddie Vedder’s emotional candor and the support he sought from veteran rock stars like Neil Young and Pete Townshend. (In contrast, Hyden argues, other grunge-era frontmen fell victim to their own isolation, most notably Kurt Cobain.) Pearl Jam’s effort to preserve a measure of integrity amid their stardom was often mocked—especially during a quixotic mid-’90s battle with Ticketmaster—but Hyden argues that dedication and focus allowed them to weather crises like a 2000 concert in Denmark during which nine people were trampled and died. The author is a hardcore fan—he’s listened to all 72 CDs the band released of its 2000 tour—but a thoughtful one, noting the feebleness of their recent albums while pinpointing their top-tier performances. Hyden offers little original reporting—he didn’t interview the band for the book—but he’s an informed, engaging interpreter of the band’s music and their place in rock history. If they seem like odd survivors, perhaps it’s because they’ve avoided chasing trends. “They are a middle-aged rock band that looks and acts like a middle-aged rock band,” writes the author.

A music biography well suited to fans of both the band and 1990s pop culture.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940178723272
Publisher:	Hachette Audio
Publication date:	09/27/2022
Edition description:	Unabridged

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