Five Against One: The Pearl Jam Story

Rating:
Summary: great book for an indepth analysis of the band, but...
Review: ... i think many pearl jams fans will be disappointed by the constant focus on eddie vedder. i mean, dont get me wrong, he is my biggest idol, but many of us fans are just thirsting for knowledge on the other band members, especially mike. the biggest complaint i had with this book is that it is the non-stop crucification and damnation of eddie vedder, mainly from sources that he has had bad blood with in the past. many admirers of eddie himself will be even more confused on where he stands on his views concerning fame. this book seriuously and repeatedly questions eddies sincerity and credibility. the book is also very slow to start and has a very disappointing ending. on a more positive note, it is very indepth in terms of tours, ticketmaster, and his childhood. however, many diehard fans will not appreciate the majority of the book being centered around TEN, i mean there are 4 more albums and many many great imports. i still reccommend this book to prospective buyers and readers due to the incredible factual info. but my warning to all you eddie fans out there is this: your opinion may change of him drastically. keep in mind he is just one member and its the music that really counts. the sources used in this book can be greatly exagerrating anyway. happy reading.

Rating:
Summary: Loved it.
Review: A great book. Informative and with many "laugh out loud" stories about the band. I could not put it down. I have all the books about Pearl Jam, and this one is definitely the best.

Rating:
Summary: Great book!
Review: After I read this book, I was left wondering if the band had had any fun whatsoever in their entire career. It started off very interestingly with a nice detailed description of how things were in the Seattle area and how the band was formed. However, the book spends a little too much time painting a negative picture of Eddie and seemed to be skeptical of everything he claimed. While it is good for a book to be honest, it is also important for a book to be fair and this book is a little too one sided. It tells many one sided stories from "sources close to the band." I'm sure Eddie Vedder has made some mistakes over the years, as have we all, and I'm sure he'll admit that, but this book makes him look like a real jerk sometimes and he is not deserving of that after all that he's done for music. I also felt that some of the accounts of Vedder's childhood were private and should not have been described in this book. I hope that no one looks up my school record if I ever become successful. It's funny though because this book is well written and yes you should probably read it if you are a Pearl Jam fan because some of the early information is interesting. Just don't believe everything you read. If you believe that Pearl Jam is for real then don't let this book leave you to think otherwise.

Rating:
Summary: entertaining but lacking
Review: After I read this book, I was left wondering if the band had had any fun whatsoever in their entire career. It started off very interestingly with a nice detailed description of how things were in the Seattle area and how the band was formed. However, the book spends a little too much time painting a negative picture of Eddie and seemed to be skeptical of everything he claimed. While it is good for a book to be honest, it is also important for a book to be fair and this book is a little too one sided. It tells many one sided stories from "sources close to the band." I'm sure Eddie Vedder has made some mistakes over the years, as have we all, and I'm sure he'll admit that, but this book makes him look like a real jerk sometimes and he is not deserving of that after all that he's done for music. I also felt that some of the accounts of Vedder's childhood were private and should not have been described in this book. I hope that no one looks up my school record if I ever become successful. It's funny though because this book is well written and yes you should probably read it if you are a Pearl Jam fan because some of the early information is interesting. Just don't believe everything you read. If you believe that Pearl Jam is for real then don't let this book leave you to think otherwise.

Rating:
Summary: An informative read
Review: Although Five Against One is the only Pearl Jam book I have ever read I would still recommend it to any hardened Pearl Jam fan. Written by Kim Neely(a reporter that knows what she's talking about) the book covers Everything from Jeff's upbringing to the release of the 'Given to Fly single. The book devotes two chapters around about mid-book to the complete life story of Eddie Vedder. This basically answers all the questions you have about his past which is shrouded in mystery. The only negative thing about the book I found was that although it covered the release of their first album 'Ten' and the following European tour, it says less and less about each successive album as it progresses, No Code only has about a page written on it! Apart from that it is full of lots of interesting facts like how the noise of drumsticks clattering at the end of 'Rear View Mirror' is really when Dave Abbruzzese chucks a tantrum, and that the band is not really named after Eddie's Grandmother. What really enlightened me about reading the book was how poorly Dave was treated by the rest of the band and how it is perhaps the greatest shame that he was ever dropped. If you want to know all about Pearl Jam's battle's with Ticketmaster, their relationship with Nirvana etc. I suggest you pick up a copy of this fabulous book. Hadleigh Brownie 28/4/99

Rating:
Summary: Very adept airing of grievances.....
Review: Although, for the most part I enjoyed this book, I felt that it was difficult to obtain a fair view of the band whilst all of the information was gathered from people who had a problem with Pearl Jam, and in particular, Eddie. He seemed to be portrayed as a control freak, careerist obsessed with his public persona. The intimation was there that most of it was an act. I find it difficult to believe that a man could keep up a charade such as this for eight years, with never a slip in his convictions from then to now with his involvement in pro-choice, the Tibetan problem to the Kosovo crisis today. Even his detractors have always said he's never been short of commitment and passion. As for the other members of Pearl Jam, professionally they were there for the ride, but personally we learned absolutely nothing new. Mike's severe alcohol problem was skimmed over as if it was a mild addiction to paracetamol and not the life threatening, soul destroying problem it actually was. As fascinating a character as Eddie Vedder is, the others deserved better treatment. Still, being a devoted Pearl Jam fan I couldn't resist this book, even though at times I felt I was a peeping tom peering through a window into Eddie's turbulent private life and the ramblings of his contemptuous step-father were nothing short of shameful and embarassing. I think the book could have done without these musings. All in all if you love Pearl Jam, you'll read it anyway. Just go in with an open mind and read a positive account of the band afterwards to give you a balanced view. Somewhere in the middle is the truth. I wonder if Miss Neely still receives gifts from Eddie. I severely doubt it!

Rating:
Summary: What A peice of crap!
Review: Any body who knows anything about this band and claims to be A fan of them should know that this book is really bias.No one from the band was interviewd for it,in fact no one from the band wanted this book to be made,also for all the peole giving it good reviews dont you realize that the authour used mostly people who have A reason to dislike pearl jam and Eddie Vedder in paticular? I mean Duh!!!!,talk about a bunch of slow witted people. Any way if you really want to read it for your self try and find the book in the library,but dont order it.

Rating:
Summary: an unfair and poor depiction of the band
Review: Any loyal Pearl Jam fan who picks up "Five Against One" will be extremely dissapointed. The entire book is an opinion flooded unilateral depiction of the band. "The Pearl Jam Story" line in the title is not warrented-- Ms. Neely is highly unfoucused and concentrates most of the book on Eddie and his past. She even had the audacity to interview and quote Mr. Vedder's step father without presenting any comment from Eddie himself. I am very dissaponted and advise you to wait till this book gets a bargain sticker slapped on it until you buy it.

Rating:
Summary: Great Book for any hard-core Pearl Jam fan
Review: As a long time Pearl Jam fan I found this book to be very interesting. It covers the Seattle "music scene" of the late 80's and early 90's and goes into depth about how the band got together. It also covers (in great detail) the touring and other events surrounding the first three albums. The book only briefly mentions "No Code" and "Yield". The description on the back cover states that the book discusses Eddie and his background, youth, etc. so some of that is obviously expected, however, 90% seems to be related from interviews with his step-father and seems biased in his direction. Also, it gets tedious. Having never read that much about the band, I would have preferred the book discuss all the band members and their backgrounds briefly, not just Eddie's so exhaustively. And if it had to be just about Eddie's background, get some more input and observation from others, not just dear old step-dad. All in all, this is a very good book, and if you are a Pearl Jam fan it is a must read.

Rating:
Summary: GOOD
Review: Best Pearl Jam book I've ever read.