recorded vocals. Vedder mailed the tape back to Seattle. Upon hearing the tape, the band invited Vedder to come to Seattle and he was asked to join the band. The band, then called Mookie Blaylock, recorded "Alive" during a demo session at London Bridge studio in January 1991. The version recorded during this session would later appear on the group's debut album, Ten, and on the promotional "Alive" EP. During album mixing sessions in England in June 1991, mixer Tim Palmer had McCready add to the song's outro solo. McCready recorded a number of attempts at the solo, and Palmer edited them into a composite version. The guitarist was unsatisfied with the result, so he made another attempt at the solo, this time using a Uni-Vibe while recording. "He had another go at it", Palmer recalled, "and got it right away. There was no piecing together to do; it was one take." Composition "Alive" is in the key of A major and features an extended guitar solo after its third chorus (3:38). The solo for "Alive", performed by McCready, was ranked number 44 on Guitar World's list of the "100 Greatest Guitar Solos", and number 26 on Total Guitar's list of the "100 Hottest Guitar Solos". When interviewed about his famous solo, McCready was quick to disclaim creative credit for it, saying he basically "copied Ace Frehley's solo from 'She', which was copied from Robby Krieger's solo in The Doors' 'Five to One'." Aside from that influence, it strongly highlights the influences of Jimi Hendrix on McCready's playing, including extensive wah pedal use, frequent whammy bar dips and vibrato, as well as the use of a battered Stratocaster guitar. During many live shows he has been known to break into the outro lead solo for Black Sabbath's "War Pigs". Lyrics The song is the first piece in a trilogy of songs in what Vedder later described as a "mini-opera" entitled Mamasan, which is composed of the songs "Alive", "Once", and "Footsteps". "Alive" tells the story of a young man discovering that the man he thought was his father is actually his stepfather, while his mother's grief leads to an incestuous relationship with the son, who strongly resembles the biological father. This leads to "Once" in which the man descends into madness and goes on a killing spree, and "Footsteps" in which the man is eventually looking back from a prison