Pearl Jam released Rearviewmirror (Greatest Hits 1991–2003) in the United States on November 16, 2004, through Epic Records. The 33-track double CD divided the catalog into two programs, “Up Side” and “Down Side,” and revisited the sound of the band’s debut with three newly remixed songs from Ten.
Producer Brendan O’Brien reworked “Once,” “Alive” and “Black” for the compilation. The changes occupied prominent positions: “Once” and “Alive” opened the first disc, while “Black” began the second. Both halves therefore started with recordings from 1991, heard through mixes prepared for the 2004 collection. The set also used the single version of “Even Flow,” making the choice of recordings another distinction between this collection and the original studio albums.
The sequencing gave each disc a different pace. “Up Side” concentrated on the heavier material, placing “Rearviewmirror” from Vs. on the same disc as “Save You” from Riot Act. “Down Side” leaned toward the more reflective songs, including “Daughter” and “Better Man.” Within those divisions, the tracks largely followed release order. The conspicuous exception was “Yellow Ledbetter,” which closed the second disc, taking the set back to an earlier recording after “Man of the Hour.”
That arrangement also separated songs that had originally shared a release. “State of Love and Trust” landed on the first disc, while “Breath” appeared on the second. Both had featured on the 1992 Singles soundtrack. Bringing them into this collection put two recordings from outside Pearl Jam’s regular studio albums alongside the material that had defined those albums. Their placement also showed how the compilation’s organizing principle could pull apart an established pairing.
At the later end of the retrospective, “Man of the Hour” supplied another connection to film. Pearl Jam had recorded it for the closing credits of the 2003 movie Big Fish. Its inclusion extended the selection beyond the songs on Riot Act, their 2002 studio release. Soundtrack contributions were part of the catalog being gathered, alongside album tracks and standalone releases such as “I Got ID.”
Rearviewmirror also completed Pearl Jam’s contractual agreement with Epic. O’Brien’s work on the debut recordings, however, continued beyond those three remixes.
In 2009, he remixed the whole of Ten for an expanded reissue. Discussing that project in an announcement on Pearl Jam’s website, O’Brien explained that the band loved the original mix but had repeatedly encouraged him to explore another version. He had initially been reluctant to alter recordings that so many listeners already knew. Treating his work as a companion to the original allowed him to pursue what he called “a more direct sound.”
The resulting reissue paired O’Brien’s complete remix with a remastered version of the original album. Listeners could hear both treatments of the entire debut together, extending the revisiting of Ten that had appeared on Rearviewmirror.
