Eddie Vedder thinks Pearl Jam have “one or two” good records left in them.

The ‘Alive’ rockers will release their 12th studio LP, ‘Dark Matter’ next month and the 59-year-old singer’s drive to keep following his “passion” is only strengthened as he gets older, particularly because he appreciates he is still around to enjoy the opportunities that some of his peers aren’t.

He told MOJO magazine: “The older you get the better you are at living in the present.

“The understanding you have less time is the biggest number in the quotient. The goal is to keep making music.

“It’s your passion, your special purpose.

“[At this stage] you lean on the relationships with the people who are still around. It really hits you when you are in a situation where that person would be there. And you’re sad for them that they’re not.

“But it makes you realise you gotta be healthy. You want to be around for your kids. You want to make good records.

“And we might have one or two left.”

A number of the group’s musician friends, including Chris Cornell, Kurt Cobain, Layne Staley of Alice in Chains and Screaming Trees' Van Conner and Mark Lanegan, have passed away over the years and Eddie insisted people’s lifestyles are no way of knowing who will be “the last man standing”.

Referring to Mick Rock’s famous 1972 photo, he said: “Do you remember that picture of David Bowie, Iggy Pop and Lou Reed? Who do you think would have been the last man standing? You would not have bet on Iggy Pop. So you never know.”

And Eddie has always felt “secure” within the “brotherhood” of his own band.

He said: “It’s a brotherhood. That was never in doubt.

“There might have been a few speed bumps in the road.

“But we got through those by looking out for each other. In that way, we felt secure.”