Friday, February 18 at 10 p.m.

Watch Pearl Jam ^[1] on PBS. See more from Austin City Limits. ^[2]

From the ACL Taping Program on October 13, 2009:

One of the most popular and influential rock bands of the past two decades, Pearl Jam makes their AUSTIN CITY LIMITS debut in celebration of their self-released new CD, Backspacer.

With its best-selling debut Ten and its many hits, the Seattle quintet rose from the ashes of 80s Pacific Northwest combos Green River and Mother Love Bone. Songs from their debut, including "Jeremy," "Alive," and "Evenflow," have become modern classics.

Challenging itself and its audience, the band has remained a major force in rock and roll, as much for its aggressive loyalty to its social and political principles and restless experimentation as for its rock radio staples and bestselling albums. Tracks like "Better Man," "Yellow Ledbetter," "Given to Fly," "World Wide Suicide," and the charity single "Last Kiss" continue to be heard on radios everywhere.

Throughout their years together, the band’s independent spirit has set them apart from other bands, leaving the record studios behind to produce the music they want. Backspacer, the band’s first self-released album, "has a pleasurable mix of lean, mean rock’n'roll and pensive ballads that reflect both the state of the world and the band’s place in it (Billboard)." The band’s ninth studio release "backspaces to that boyish spirit, with the shortest, tightest, punkiest tunes they’ve ever banged out (Rolling Stone)." Blender wrote, "It’s as if Pearl Jam is channeling Ernest Hemingway, with not a wasted breath or note anywhere to be found."

• –> Watch the full episode on SOPTV Video. ^[1]
• –> Get the Latest New Releases at ShopPBS.org ^[3]

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