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Green River | |
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.jpg) Green River in the 1980s. | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Years active |
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| Labels | Homestead,Sub Pop |
| Spinoffs | Mother Love Bone,Mudhoney |
| Past members | Jeff Ament Mark Arm Stone Gossard Steve Turner Alex Vincent Bruce Fairweather |
Green River was an Americanrock band formed inSeattle, Washington, in 1984. Considered one of the firstgrunge bands, Green River is best known for being the precursor to multiple key early 1990s rock bands, most notablyPearl Jam,Mudhoney,Mother Love Bone,Temple of the Dog, andLove Battery.[4] Green River reunited for several live shows in 2008 and 2009.
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In its first practice sessions in early 1984, Green River's members were vocalistMark Arm, guitaristSteve Turner, drummerAlex Vincent (also known as Alex Shumway) and bassistJeff Ament. Prior to joining Green River, they had played for a variety of rock, punk, and hardcore groups, often with overlapping lineups. Arm and Turner had played together in Mr. Epp and the Calculations and theLimp Richerds.[5] Determined to start a new band together, they first recruited Vincent, whom Turner had briefly played with inSpluii Numa, as drummer, and then set about convincing Ament to join.[5] He and Turner worked at the same Seattle coffeeshop, and Arm had befriended him after a DJ set by Ament at Metropolis, a local club.[6] Ament had a low opinion of Mr. Epp, but agreed to join the new band due to Turner's persistence and Ament's frustration with Deranged Diction, his band at the time.[5] The first Green River rehearsal was at the Turner home on Mercer Island.[5]Stone Gossard, a high school friend of Turner and Vincent, joined as a second guitarist shortly thereafter.[6]
The idea for the name "Green River" came to both Arm and Turner independently.[6] Arm has cited several possible inspirations —a local community college,the 1969 Creedence Clearwater song — but the most resonant association was with theGreen River Killer, an infamous Washington state serial killer who was prominent in headlines at the time.[6] To Alice Wheeler, a band photographer, the name reflected undercurrents of depression and danger that would come to characterize grunge;[6] Turner later came to see it as "a dumb joke."[5]
On June 23, 1984, Green River recorded their first demos atReciprocal Recording. They were released on vinyl in 2016. By late 1984, the band was playing shows in and around Seattle. The band began production in December 1984 on its first record,Come on Down.[7] By the time the band finished the record in mid-1985, Turner had left the group, citing his distaste with the rest of the band's heavy metal leanings.[1] He was replaced by former Deranged Diction guitaristBruce Fairweather.
In late 1985, the band embarked on its first nationwide tour to promoteCome on Down. Release of the record was delayed, however, thus negating the purpose of the tour. From all accounts the experience was less than positive, though it helped cement alliances with other emerging Americanindie rock bands. Among them wasSonic Youth, who later quoted the song "Come on Down" on its own composition "Nevermind (What Was It Anyway)". After the tour,Come on Down was finally released by the New York-basedHomestead Records. The record was released to little fanfare, and did not sell well. However it is often considered the first record to be released by a "grunge" band, as it predated both theMelvins debut EP and theDeep Six compilation album.
In 1986, the band continued to play in and around thePacific Northwest to steadily larger crowds (especially in the band's hometown of Seattle). Early in the year, the now legendaryDeep Six compilation album was released on the localC/Z Records label. Alongside two Green River songs, the compilation features the music of fellow Washington bandsMalfunkshun,Melvins,Skin Yard,Soundgarden, andThe U-Men. Kathleen C. Fennessy ofAllMusic stated that the compilation "documents a formative period in Northwest rock history".[8]
In June 1986, the band began production on its second EP,Dry as a Bone, with local producerJack Endino. Green River chose to recordDry as a Bone forBruce Pavitt's new label,Sub Pop. However, Pavitt couldn't afford to release it until the following year, and, as had happened withCome on Down, the record was delayed. In the meantime the band issued the one-off "Together We'll Never" single on the local Tasque Force Records label.Dry as a Bone was finally released through Sub Pop in July 1987, a full year after it was recorded. It was the new label's first non-compilation release.Dry as a Bone was promoted by Sub Pop as "ultra-loose GRUNGE that destroyed the morals of a generation".[9] Steve Huey of AllMusic called it Green River's "strongest individual release...perfecting their sleazy, raucous fusion of '70s hard rock and post-hardcore punk".[10]
Almost immediately following the release ofDry as a Bone, the group re-entered the studio to begin production on its first full-length album,Rehab Doll. Band in-fighting, though, took center stage over the music. A stylistic division developed between Ament and Gossard on one side, and Arm on the other.[9] Ament and Gossard wanted to pursue a major-label deal, while Arm wanted to remainindependent, viewing the duo as being too careerist.[1] The in-fighting came to a head following an October 1987 show inLos Angeles,California. Apparently, without informing the group, Ament had filled the show's guest list with major label representatives, instead of the band's friends; nonetheless only two of the representatives appeared.[1] On October 31, 1987, Ament, Gossard and Fairweather stated their desire to quit the band. Although the band members agreed to complete production ofRehab Doll during the next three months, Green River had by late October 1987 ceased as a band.Rehab Doll was released in June 1988. Ned Raggett of AllMusic called it "a record that sounded caught somewhere between grunge mania andmetal/corprock folly".[11]
A Green River reunion occurred on November 30, 1993 during aPearl Jam concert inLas Vegas,Nevada. Participating in the reunion were Arm, Turner, Gossard, Ament andChuck Treece, who filled in on drums for Vincent, who at that time was living in Japan. The band performed the songs "Swallow My Pride" and "Ain't Nothing to Do." Green River reunited for four shows in 2008, featuring all six of its members from the 1980s. The first show was a warm-up show on July 10, 2008 at the Sunset Tavern in Seattle. The band next played on July 13, 2008 atMarymoor Park near Seattle to honor Sub Pop's 20th anniversary.[12]
| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 1988 | Rehab Doll |
| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 2019 | Live at the Tropicana
|
| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 1984 Demos
|
| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 1990 | Dry as a Bone/Rehab Doll
|
| Year | Album details |
|---|---|
| 1985 | Come On Down |
| 1987 | Dry as a Bone
|
| Year | Single | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | "Together We'll Never"/"Ain't Nothing to Do"
| Non-album single |
| Year | Song | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | "10,000 Things" | Deep Six | C/Z |
| 1988 | "Searchin' (Good Things Come)" | Motor City Madness | Glitterhouse |
"Hangin' Tree" | Sub Pop 200 | Sub Pop | |
| 1989 | "Bazaar" | Another Pyrrhic Victory: The Only Compilation of Dead Seattle God Bands | C/Z |
| 1990 | "Ain't Nothing to Do" | Endangered Species | Glitterhouse |
| 1996 | "Swallow My Pride" (1987 demo) | Hype!: The Motion Picture Soundtrack | Sub Pop |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Artists | |
