How can you even flow remember that

I was in my bedroom, lying on the bed, doing math homework. I bought Ten without knowing any songs because I heard Pearl Jam was like Nirvna. Once washed over me a bit, but when Even Flow started I was like 'holy shit, could this be the best band ever?' Sometimes you just know.

One song that did absolutely blow my mind the first time I heard it was listening to the bootleg of the ‘99 Bridge School Benefit and hearing Nothing As It Seems for the first time. That was an awakening.

Footsteps

Last Exit

Remember a fellow student bringing in 'Ten' for share-an-album day and had heard the singles but nothing really stuck. 'Vs' I really got nothin' as far as what I heard on the radio. I saw a copy of 'Vitalogy' at work and bought it off an engineer, still have it and adore it.

doing this would not make you a better person

With the odd exception pretty much me too.

Quick Escape blew my mind the first time I heard it, and still does every time I hear it. I think Pendulum may have been the same way.

I had a tape of vitalogy from the radio I copied from a friend before the release. It picked up right before the bridge on Last Exit, so my first impression was half a song.

I loved the live versions of Betterman, Whipping, and Satan's Bed from Atlanta at first listen

Songs I really liked immediately on first impression before they wore out their welcome:

Mind Your Manners
Swallowed Whole
Unthought Known
I Am Mine
Soon Forget
Present Tense
Leash
Brother
Footsteps

Even Flow
Alive
Oceans
Dissident
Not For You
Betterman
Red Mosquito
Faithfull
You Are
Amongst the Waves
Lightning Bolt
Quick Escape

Yeah I think this is a more interesting approach. Man did I love Mind Your Manners when it first came out. That did not last long!

Might try and do a list of songs with the opposite logic: songs I actively disliked on first listen and they became songs I really enjoy

For me that's basically half of Binaural and nearly all of Riot Act.

Yeah probably at least half of Riot Act for me.

What about songs you really disliked on first listen and they’ve stayed there ever since

No, you don’t have to of kept liking them. A few on my list went from “really like” to middle of the pack or worse overtime. Many of them have remained favorites though. I absolutely loved You Are and Yellow Moon on first listen and those are still 2 of my top 3 pj songs.

This is the kind of story I wanted to hear from the person inducting Pearl Jam into the R&R HoF. Instead we got David Letterman listing songs that exist.

I don’t remember Dave mentioning any song titles

I think most of my pearl jam first impressions have held up -positive ones at least. There are negative first impressions I came around on.