Today In Rock: February 17th, 2013: Pearl Jam’s Debut Album Scores Rare Achievement
On this day… Pearl Jam’s “Ten” was certified for surpassing 13 million U.S. album sales.
“Ten” (named after basketball player Mookie Blaylock’s jersey number) was Pearl Jam’s debut studio album released on August 27th, 1991.
It was not an immediate commercial success, but by late 1992, it had reached #2 on the Billboard 200 on the strength of the hit singles “Alive,” “Even Flow” and “Jeremy.”
“Once people came and saw them (Pearl Jam) live, this lightbulb would go on,” noted the band’s manager Kelly Curtis. “Doing their first tour, you kind of knew it was happening and there was no stopping it.”
“Ten” was only the 22nd album to reach the 13 million mark and in ’21 the album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
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