Barbara

In Japan, cats are a symbol of good luck. As the myth goes, if you are kind to them, they'll one day return the favor. And if you are kind to the right cat, you might just find yourself invited to a mysterious coffee shop under a glittering Kyoto moon. This particular coffee shop is like no other. It has no fixed location, no fixed hours, and seemingly appears at random to adrift young people at crucial junctions in their lives. It's also run by talking cats.

In the summer of 1990, Eddie Vedder left the surf and sun in San Diego to join a group of friends working to put a new band together in the Seattle underground. Within months, they were anything but underground; they’d found their lead singer, and Vedder went on to lead Pearl Jam on a global takeover of ‘90s culture. In this latest edition of Audible’s Words + Music series, Vedder dives deep, reflecting on a life at the intersection of art, sensitivity, and masculinity.