Stone Carpenter Gossard (born July 20, 1966) is an American musician and songwriter who is the rhythm guitarist for the rock band Pearl Jam. He helped start the band with Jeff Ament, Mike McCready, and Eddie Vedder.
Before joining Pearl Jam, Gossard played in the Seattle-based grunge bands Green River and Mother Love Bone. He also played in the bands Temple of the Dog and Brad. In addition to performing, he has worked as a music producer and owns a record label and recording studio. He released his first solo album, Bayleaf, in 2001. His second solo album, Moonlander, was released in 2013.
In 2017, Gossard was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Pearl Jam.
Biography
Gossard was born in Seattle to David W. Gossard Jr. and Mary Carolyn Carpenter. His father was a lawyer, and his mother worked for the Seattle city government. He has two sisters, Star Leslie Dirette and Shelly Joan Gossard. Gossard attended the Northwest Boarding School in Seattle. The first band Gossard joined was March of Crimes, a band that included future Soundgarden bassist Ben Shepherd and novelist Jonathan Evison. Although Gossard’s time with the band was short, it helped him connect with Seattle’s growing music scene. Gossard became close friends with Steve Turner, a guitarist who later joined Mudhoney. Turner also attended the Northwest School and played in his band, The Ducky Boys. Turner’s interest in punk rock influenced Gossard and shaped the band’s style.
Turner later formed Green River with vocalist/guitarist Mark Arm, drummer Alex Vincent, and bassist Jeff Ament. Gossard was invited to join Green River so Arm could focus on singing. After recording the band’s first EP, Come on Down, Turner left Green River because he disagreed with Ament and Gossard’s interest in heavy metal. He was replaced by Bruce Fairweather, a former bandmate of Ament.
Green River released Come on Down in 1985 and Dry As a Bone in 1987, which was the first non-compilation release from Sub Pop Records. The band’s only full-length album, Rehab Doll, came out in 1988. Disagreements between Ament and Gossard on one side and Arm on the other led to the band breaking up during the recording of Rehab Doll. Ament and Gossard wanted to sign with a major record label, while Arm preferred to stay independent. Green River became well-known in Seattle and had a big influence on the grunge music genre, with some calling them “arguably the first grunge band.”
After Green River ended, Gossard started Mother Love Bone in 1988 with Ament, Fairweather, Andrew Wood, and Greg Gilmore. The band quickly became one of Seattle’s most promising groups. In 1989, they signed with Mercury Records and released their debut EP, Shine. Later that year, they began recording their first album, Apple, which was planned for release in March 1990. However, Andrew Wood, the band’s lead singer, died from a drug overdose shortly before the album’s release. Apple was released later in 1990.
Gossard reconnected with childhood friend Mike McCready after seeing him perform with a local band. McCready encouraged Gossard to reunite with Ament. The three began forming a new band and were invited to join Chris Cornell’s project, Temple of the Dog, as a tribute to Wood. The band included Matt Cameron, a drummer from Soundgarden. They recorded songs written by Cornell and reworked demos by Gossard and Ament. Eddie Vedder, who later joined Pearl Jam, sang on the album. Temple of the Dog was released in 1991 and included three songs credited to Gossard.
Pearl Jam was formed in 1990 by Ament, Gossard, and McCready, who later recruited Vedder and drummer Dave Krusen. The band originally called itself Mookie Blaylock but changed its name after signing with Epic Records. Krusen left in 1991 and was replaced by Matt Chamberlain, who later joined Saturday Night Live. Chamberlain was replaced by Dave Abbruzzese, who played on the band’s first album, Ten.
Ten became one of the best-selling alternative albums of the 1990s and helped Pearl Jam gain mainstream popularity. The song “Jeremy” earned Grammy nominations in 1993. Pearl Jam won four MTV Video Music Awards for its video of the same song. Ten was ranked number 207 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, and “Jeremy” was listed as number 11 on VH1’s list of the 100 greatest songs of the 1990s.
In 1993, Pearl Jam released its second album, Vs., which set a record for the most copies sold in a week and spent five weeks at number one on the Billboard 200. Vs. was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Album. Songs like “Daughter” and “Go” also received Grammy nominations.
Feeling the pressure of success, Pearl Jam reduced its promotion efforts and refused to release music videos. In 1994, the band started a three-year boycott of Ticketmaster, which limited their ability to tour in the United States. Gossard and Ament testified before a congressional committee about Ticketmaster’s practices.
In 1994, Pearl Jam released its third album, Vitalogy, which reached multi-platinum status. Vitalogy was nominated for Album of the Year and Best Rock Album at the Grammys. The lead single, “Spin the Black Circle,” won a Grammy for Best Hard Rock Performance. Abbruzzese left the band in 1994 due to political differences with the other members.
Other musical projects
In 1992, Gossard worked with members of the Seattle band Satchel to form Brad. Brad released its first album, Shame, in 1993. The band later released Interiors (1997), Welcome to Discovery Park (2002), and a compilation album called Brad vs Satchel (2005). Brad’s fourth studio album, Best Friends?, came out in August 2010. The fifth album, United We Stand, was released on April 24, 2012.
Gossard performed with other members of Pearl Jam on Neil Young’s 1995 album, Mirror Ball. He later joined Young’s backing band for an 11-date tour in Europe. This tour was successful, and Young’s manager, Elliot Roberts, called it “one of the greatest tours we ever had in our whole lives.”
On September 11, 2001, Gossard became the first member of Pearl Jam to release a solo album. His first solo album, Bayleaf, was released through Sony Music Entertainment. The album includes ten songs written over four to five years. Gossard played multiple instruments, including drums, piano, guitar, bass, and sang. The album’s sound was influenced by Frank Black, Rufus Wainwright, and The Rolling Stones. Greg Prato of Allmusic noted, “While not as strong as his work with Brad, Bayleaf still has its moments.”
Gossard later released a follow-up album called Moonlander. Some songs from this album were available for download through Pearl Jam’s website starting in late 2008. These songs were influenced by folk and country music, especially the work of Hank Williams. Tracks like “Both Live,” “Your Flames,” and “Beyond Measure” included musicians from the Pacific Northwest, such as Hans Teuber, Pete Droge, Regan Hagar, and Ari Joshua.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Gossard could not tour with Pearl Jam. Instead, he worked on finishing the debut album of Painted Shield, his side project with singer-songwriter Mason Jennings. The project had started in 2014. The album features Josh Freese and Matt Chamberlain on drums, Brittany Davis on keyboard, and additional guitar by Mike McCready. The album was originally planned for November 27, 2020, but delays pushed the release to March 19, 2021.
In 1994, Gossard and fellow Brad member Regan Hagar created Loosegroove Records as a subsidiary of Sony. The label became independent in 1996. Loosegroove signed many new artists, especially in rock and hip hop. Notably, Gossard signed Queens of the Stone Age and released their debut album, Queens of the Stone Age, in 1998. Loosegroove closed in 2000. In 2020, Gossard and Hagar restarted the label. They released an album by Gossard’s side project, Painted Shield, and an album called 1982 by Duff McKagen and Greg Gilmore’s teenage punk band, The Living.
As a producer, Gossard worked with many artists, including those on his own record label. He is known for producing music for Satchel, Green Apple Quick Step, Weapon of Choice, and Critters Buggin. During his time with Loosegroove Records, Gossard opened his own recording studio, Studio Litho, in Seattle. Most of his production work was done at this studio, which still operates today. Many well-known artists, such as Soundgarden, Screaming Trees, Dave Matthews Band, Deftones, Brad, and Pearl Jam, have recorded at Studio Litho.
Other work
Gossard had a short acting role in the 1992 movie Singles, with Jeff Ament and Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam. He played himself, performing guitar for lead actor Matt Dillon’s supporting band, Citizen Dick.
Gossard has worked on environmental issues and supports Pearl Jam’s policy to be carbon neutral, which helps reduce the band’s negative effect on the environment. He also shares his beliefs about protecting the environment and is a member of the board at the Wild Salmon Center, an organization that works to protect nature, located in Portland, Oregon.
As an artist and painter, Gossard’s artwork appears on many Pearl Jam releases, especially items given out through Pearl Jam’s fan club.
Musical style and influences
Gossard is known for his strong rhythm style and his ability to create a steady beat and groove. He has mentioned that Jimmy Page and Led Zeppelin greatly influenced his way of playing rhythm guitar. Gossard's main instrument is a Gibson Les Paul with a Bigsby vibrato system. He once said, "I enjoy how rhythmic parts can clash in a cool way." Vedder has said that working with Gossard is very difficult because Gossard refuses to create music that is similar to anything he has done before. When the band began, Gossard and McCready were clearly assigned as rhythm and lead guitarists, respectively. This changed during the Vitalogy era when Vedder started playing more rhythm guitar. In 2006, McCready said, "Even with three guitars, there's more space now. Stone will play simple lines, Ed will use power chords, and I fit into all that."
As a songwriter, joining Pearl Jam helped Gossard's music become the foundation for many of the band's early songs. Eight out of the eleven songs on Pearl Jam's first album, Ten, were written or co-written by Gossard, including "Alive," "Even Flow," and "Black." Over time, he contributed less as a solo songwriter and focused more on working with others. However, he was credited for writing the songs "Do the Evolution" and "Life Wasted" from Pearl Jam. His songwriting for the band also included writing lyrics for "All Those Yesterdays" from Yield, "Strangest Tribe" from a 1999 fan club Christmas single, "Thin Air," "Of the Girl," and "Rival" from Binaural, and "Don't Gimme No Lip" and "Fatal" from Lost Dogs. In addition to playing guitar, Gossard has played the mellotron, bass guitar, and resonator guitar. He often provides background vocals and even sang lead on two Pearl Jam songs he wrote: "Mankind" and "Don't Gimme No Lip."
Recognition
In a review of Pearl Jam's 2006 self-titled album, Rolling Stone editor David Fricke noted that Eddie Vedder's bandmate Stone Gossard and lead guitarist Mike McCready were mistakenly left out of the magazine's 2003 list titled "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time." In February 2007, both musicians were added to Rolling Stone's "Top 20 New Guitar Gods" list, where they were described as a "four-armed monster." In 2023, McCready and Gossard were both included in Rolling Stone's "The 250 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" list, ranking at position #124.
Personal life
Gossard enjoys reading and has mentioned Haruki Murakami as his favorite author. He was married to Elizabeth "Liz" Weber from March 6, 2007, to May 25, 2011. Together, they had one daughter, Vivian Sparks Gossard, who was born in 2007. On October 1, 2011, Gossard married Vivien Wang. Gossard and Wang have three daughters named Marlowe, Faye, and Gwinny.