Five against One by Kim Neely Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Five against One
Book Review: Balanced read that allows readers to draw their own conclusions
Summary: 4 Stars
The best elements of this book is the musical history of the band and its music. The author does an excellent job of placing the formation of the band in the context of the tension between "punk" and "rock". The tension between punk and rock music and culture is an important tool to explore the dynamics within the band (Eddie vs Dave A.), within the individuals (Eddie's self-image) and with the musical subculture (Eddie vs Cobain and Pearl Jam vs Mudhoney).
A significant portion of the text is committed to the re-creation of Eddie's family life. The text is fair and does not draw conclusions as to who was "right" or "wrong" in the various family conflicts described. Given the tremendous effort in recounting this history I was disappointed that the author could not better relate these details to psychology of the band or to Eddie's modern day image.
Book Review: Band vs Rolling Stone
Summary: 4 Stars
Some say they Kim Neely's attack on the band is in part to do with her connections to ROLLING STONE mangazine who have also attacked Pearl Jam in their magazine. But what she does in the book is to show the other side of the story that you get from Pearl Jam's press. Fans may not like what it reports but you have to see both sides of the story even if it puts Eddie Vedder in bad light. While some say the interviews are slanted against the band on some topics the band's view would be slanted the other way. Read this and then read Pearl Jams side of the story and then pick the middle ground cause both sides have some truth to their views.Book Review: Black
Summary: 4 Stars
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. After I was through, my vision of Eddie has changed. Not to say I think he is the most sociable soul when it comes to interviews (evasive is a good word). Eddie comes across as a contradicting, manipulative control freak who influenced the band to release Dave because he was the only one who didn't click with him. I would of given this book five stars if there were more interviews with the rest of the band, and their decision regarding Dave's forced departure. Maybe Eddie has a tightrope on them from speaking out. If you are a Pearl Jam fan, or a fan of rock history, then I highly recommend this book. It offers a lot of detailed information that you usually do not see in music publications such as Rolling Stone and SPIN.Book Review: Borrow from a friend
Summary: 4 Stars
First to of all I just want to say this book is imformative and I will recommend it to any Pearl Jam fan. The book however starts off on a very confusing path through the many bands they went through before forming Pearl Jam. Then, finally you come out of the mess of the first 3 or 4 chapters to the band's release of Ten. These chapters display great amount of description on the band's first years and unfornately this does not continue on through the rest of the book. The next chapters tell the life of Eddie Vedder and the turbulent years that have greatly influenced his music. The rest of the book is about the band's following albums but it lacks the description that was used for the section of the book focused on Ten. The second half of the book is when the author gets a little anti-PJ saying that there anti-fame and battle against ticket master were just publicity stunts.However she shows some evidnce that they were at fault as thier inability to mount a tour or cancel them at the final minute left many fans to distrust them.A good read but a little too anti-pearl Jam.Book Review: Borrow from a friend
Summary: 4 Stars
First to of all I just want to say this book is imformative and I will recommend it to any Pearl Jam fan. The book however starts off on a very confusing path through the many bands they went through before forming Pearl Jam. Then, finally you come out of the mess of the first 3 or 4 chapters to the band's release of Ten. These chapters display great amount of description on the band's first years and unfornately this does not continue on through the rest of the book. The next chapters tell the life of Eddie Vedder and the turbulent years that have greatly influenced his music. The rest of the book is about the band's following albums but it lacks the description that was used for the section of the book focused on Ten. The second half of the book is when the author gets a little anti-PJ saying that there anti-fame and battle against ticket master were just publicity stunts.However she shows some evidnce that they were at fault as thier inability to mount a tour or cancel them at the final minute left many fans to distrust them.A good read but a little too anti-pearl Jam.