Steve Gleason's music thoughts

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I think Pearl Jam stands in the top five most significant American rock bands of the past 50 years.

Others I would include, in no particular order, are: The Doors, Van Halen, R.E.M and The Grateful Dead. If we consider individuals like Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix and Bruce Springsteen, the list gets mangled. I would replace R.E.M and the Doors with Dylan and Hendrix.

I will be interviewing Pearl Jam to discuss their forthcoming album, which is their 10th. The band chose four people they were excited about talking to -- and being interviewed by -- for a series of recorded and filmed discussions focused on the creative process. Somehow I ended up being one of them. Which meant I got to hear some music off the new album. It's sweet, by the way. How did I end up as one of the interviewers? Ten years ago this April, I met one of the band's guitarists, Mike McCready through a fellow Washington State Cougar athlete, Erica Perkins. Mike and Erica were family friends. I was playing for the Saints and Erica was the head coach of the women's tennis team at Georgia Southern. Mike provided backstage passes for a show in Atlanta, so we hung out with him briefly before and after the show. Mike and I stayed acquaintances over the years, and I attended a few more shows. After my ALS diagnosis, Mike and his wife, Ashley, rallied to support me and my journey. Our families have become quite close, and I met the rest of the band last October for Music Midtown in, coincidentally, Atlanta. Not exactly sure why or how they they chose me, but I am not complaining. thanks Erica for the introduction ... Go Cougs.

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