December 6, 2013 – Key Arena, Seattle, WA, USA

Show Covered by Podcast

Show Notes:

Ed takes his first swig of wine as Pendulum begins. Following Mind Your Manners, Ed, grabbing the bottle, addresses the crowd for the first time of the evening, commenting: “…it looks like a Seahawks game out there! It’s good to…

Show Notes: 

Ed takes his first swig of wine as Pendulum begins. Following Mind Your Manners, Ed, grabbing the bottle, addresses the crowd for the first time of the evening, commenting:

“…it looks like a Seahawks game out there! It’s good to be back home…we’ve got a lot of friends here which is why I brought the extra big bottle of wine…”

while showing off the oversized bottle. He dedicates the next song, Given to Fly, to Seattle Mariner Raul Ibanez. Afterwards, he tells the crowd that the next song was written by the “intellectual of the group,” Jeff Ament, and Pilate is dedicated to Jeff’s lady friend. Ed, distracted, suddenly dashes to the microphone, getting there just in time to sing the opening line. He then stops the band, asks to “get it right,” and they begin the song again. Prior to Garden, he tells the crowd:

“the thing about playing Seattle is that most of these songs were written here…this one was written in Seward Park.”

This rendition is punctuated by Mike’s dark and soulful solo. He turns it up even more during Even Flow, bashing the head of his guitar in the speaker during the solo. Afterwards, Ed finally tells the origin story of Even Flow, talking about his homeless friend (also named Eddie) who he would see around town, until one day he was gone. Matt Vaughan from Easy Street Records gets a shout out, and City Bank gets a ‘fuck you’ toast for causing the 2nd location of Easy Street Records to shut down, as Let the Records Play features Stone in his element, providing the funky groove that has Ed dancing between verses. Lukin is introduced with:

“when we play this, we usually dedicate it to the guy it’s written about…it’s only on rare occasions that he’s actually here. This is for Lukin.”

The band thrashes through the song as the pit area is jumping. After the break, Ed starts a crowd wave, adding:

“I don’t remember this room sounding as good as it’s sounding tonight…it’d sound really good if we had a basketball team in here too.”

He toasts the first anniversary of the legalization of marijuana and gay marriage, saying “isn’t it great to live in a city and community that is on the right side of history.” Following After Hours, Let Me Sleep appears for the first time since Bridge School 1994! Afterwards, Ed tells the crowd how 7-year-old Ashley Baxter and her father, Keith, rescued him from some big waves in Hawaii about 11 years ago, and Ashley is brought out on stage, leading to Future Days. The Singles soundtrack trilogy of Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns, Breath, and State of Love and Trust is played at the same show for the first time! The historic encore closes with Porch, and Ed swinging and practicing his aerobatics on one of the hanging stage prop lights.

The second encore begins with Mike thanking the crowd for coming out and raising awareness for local radio station KEXP. Ed leads the crowd in shouting “KEXP, KEXP” then offers a toast to the SuperSonics, leading to Supersonic. Mike goes out into the audience and takes a walk through the crowd while soloing on Alive, joining the rest of the band on stage to finish the song’s last few bars. Mark Arm, Steve Turner, and Kim Thayil come out to join the band for Kick Out the Jams. During the song, Matt Lukin (with beer in hand) walks out on stage to embrace Ed, and they fall to the ground and begin to hug. Before getting up, Lukin is able to rescue his beer and quickly guzzle it while keeping it from Ed, who was grabbing for it. The guys get up laughing, and the party on stage continues with Tim DiJulio (Stereo Embers/Flight to Mars) joining in with the group as Mike hands out vinyl copies of the Christmas single (featuring his lead vocal on Turning Mist) to the crowd. Ed asks, “Does anyone here know how to play a rock tune?” Mike switches out his guitar, acting as though he was about to throw it into the crowd, and begins a blistering Eruption solo. Ed jumps down to the rail to give some hugs during Ledbetter, and Mike wraps up the song with Little Wing. Ed thanks the crowd, adding “it’s nice to have the chance to get better and grow old…and not die, be alive,” then wishes the audience a Happy Christmas before exiting the stage.


December 4, 2013 – Rogers Arena, Vancouver, BC, CAN

Show Notes:

Surrounded by water, the Oceans opener is no surprise. Ed has a ukulele for Can’t Keep. A stage light and mood switch occurs with Corduroy. The band teams up with each other to come together for a wild Corduroy outro.…

Show Notes: 

Surrounded by water, the Oceans opener is no surprise. Ed has a ukulele for Can’t Keep. A stage light and mood switch occurs with Corduroy. The band teams up with each other to come together for a wild Corduroy outro. Perfect call and response by the audience on MYM. Ed takes a moment to crack open some wine and offers a quick hello, “we’ll be home soon enough but we’re in Vancouver, we’re not going anywhere. We’ll talk later. Let’s keep going,” keeping the energy up with Gods’ Dice and Lightning Bolt. Stone leads the way into In Hiding and Ed reaches for the wine and gestures to his throat and chest and mouths something about his voice. It looks like Boom is reading the sheet music. Ed tells a joke about meeting someone from Mexico and a couple from Sweden who have come to Vancouver for the “tropical weather.” He reminisces about an early 1991 show at the Town Pump in Vancouver where the audience was the size of the first row and they remember playing this song…cue Even Flow. During the solo, Ed speaks to a tech who fixes something while Ed shares an enormous bottle of wine with the front row. Mike tiptoes out of the solo as do the backing guitars, leaving Matt’s mastery on display. Stone gets pretty bluesy for the Not For You solo and Ed does a yodel call and response with the audience. Lights go out to spotlight Ed on his guitar for After Hours. He asks for the crowd to help with lyrics for Gonna See My Friend, has a mini jam session with Stone at the end and they sneak in a few chords of Porch. Mike is on his knees for the Porch solo, Matt maintains the beat with otherworldly precision during a super extended bridge. Jeff swats at the hanging globes and Ed plays front row bartender and proceeds to climb the lighting, mic in hand.

After the break, he toasts the bartender/guitar tech who brings him the wine and grabs his ukulele to play Soon Forget, last played in 2006! A tech issue follows and he eggs on the audience with some hockey-talk and a shout-out to friend Chris Chelios which the crowd jokingly disapproves of. Each member of the band is highlighted on a beautifully mellow Thumbing My Way. After Mother, Ed says “as a taxpayer, you might contribute to things you don’t necessarily agree with…bombs dropping on children…now we have drones…I’m not getting into it,” and jokes that he will leave the crowd with a tale of a 4.5 hour concert with 3 hours of music and 1.5 hours of politics, leading into an energetic Insignificance. Ed struggles a bit with the lyrics and the chords during Better Man, gets the audience to assist, states “I fucked up, I know,” and continues to take long pauses, playing with the audience. Stone joins Mike and Jeff’s side of the stage and then Ed joins in, creating a little guitar posse. The song continues and Ed asks “Should we stop now?” The “don’t run away” line has a list of tags:

“like my father did…like my brother did…like my sister did…like my uncle did…like all my friends…like my first girlfriend did…”

Ed windmills, rests on Mike before the final guitar push of the outro and we get not one, not two, not three, but four signature jumps.

Ed introduces “Mr. Stone Gossard and Andy Wolf who looks after Stone’s shit and is a total champ tonight,” in reference to the tech issues. Ed thanks Mudhoney for opening for them and again braving a storm to get there. Mike’s Black solo is bluesy, yet wailing towards the speakers and has Ed crying out at the very end. Alive becomes interactive with Mike going right down into the front section and Ed catching gifts being thrown at them and climbing speakers and pointing to people. The lights go on and Mudhoney’s Mark Arm and Steve Turner join in for Kick Out The Jams. Ed teases the audience “they sometimes say leave them wanting more…well fuck that shit,” and acknowledges how they’re “fortunate to have these gatherings based on music” and jokes about a young fan with headphones on who is “probably listening to Katy Perry.” Ed wishes the crowd a “Happy Christmas and Happy New Year….until next time.”


December 2, 2013 – Scotiabank Saddledome, Calgary, AB, CAN

Show Notes:

With blizzard conditions outside, Ed prefaces Lightning Bolt with “let’s melt some fucking snow.” Corduroy has the lyric change “…you froze inside my head…” Ed toasts the Calgary crowd for braving the blizzard, acknowledging how hard it was even for…

Show Notes: 

With blizzard conditions outside, Ed prefaces Lightning Bolt with “let’s melt some fucking snow.” Corduroy has the lyric change “…you froze inside my head…” Ed toasts the Calgary crowd for braving the blizzard, acknowledging how hard it was even for the band and crew to get there – “we were thinking only about 2500 people would make it…” He also thanks opening band Mudhoney, saying they drove 13 hours to play 30 minutes, and introduces Red Mosquito as “a song about bugs.” Crowd chants for Stone, leading Ed to remark “that’s only gonna make Mike play harder.” The crowd then chants for Mike, and Ed asks a fan in the front row what his name is and chants “Scott” for him, going on to salute those who had to clean up after the floods in June and repair the Saddledome. I Am Mine is “about getting to higher ground.” Before I Got Id, Ed says “if you ever wanted to chant anyone’s name it should be this guy,” and mentions how important Neil Young was in “keeping us on track for the good shit,” and that they wrote the song with him, adding a couple of lines of Cinnamon Girl. Before Rats, Ed toasts “here’s to rat-free Alberta.” He throws the microphone down into the crowd during State and a fan sings the ending. Lukin gets the slow fake-out. During Better Man, Ed back-to-back solos with Mike and they fall down on each other.

To begin the encores, the meteorologist confirms that it’s still “pretty cold” outside, and Ed talks about going to the doctor and being asked about his drinking habits, “and then I realized, well, when I’m working…” After Hours makes another appearance in tribute to Lou Reed. Sleight of Hand is “for the long drive to work.” Ed says that Future Days is for Pete and Jen Lightbody, “you wouldn’t necessarily know…but this song is about a couple whose children have grown up and moved out and it’s all romantic again,” and Boom plays the intro. Ed sings “hush…hush now baby,” during Daughter, possibly playing off Pink Floyd’s Mother. A young boy named Jaxon in the crowd gets a shout-out for drumming in a video of Mind Your Manners, Ed introduces him to Matt and says that the band will be back to open for his band in twenty years. To begin the second encore, Ed toasts snowplow drivers and sings “Mr. Plow” from The Simpsons. Small Town is played for the back. Ed leaves with “…Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, Happy Valentine’s Day…”


November 30, 2013 – Spokane Arena, Spokane, WA, USA

Show Covered by Podcast

Show Notes:

Pearl Jam visits the second most populous city in Washington for the first time since 1993. Helping curate the setlist for this show is Steve Gleason, who also created the setlist for Voodoo Fest in New Orleans earlier this tour.…

Show Notes: 

Pearl Jam visits the second most populous city in Washington for the first time since 1993. Helping curate the setlist for this show is Steve Gleason, who also created the setlist for Voodoo Fest in New Orleans earlier this tour. Mike is sporting a Defend Team Gleason t-shirt. Gleason must like Sirens early, it’s played in an unconventional spot third in the set, and it had opened the Voodoo Fest show. Corduroy and Once are where the crowd really gets to shine, Ed gives them a chance to sing a little of the verse in Once. Ed gives a nod to Jeff, saying he was the one who made this show happen. Holding a normal bottle of wine, Ed comments that this is a “Portland bottle of wine” and needs something more substantial for Spokane. He is handed a novelty-sized wine bottle that he says is “a full glass in every sip” as he and Jeff partake. Soaring version of Lightning Bolt with an emphasis on the “…towards the great northwest” line. Faithfull and Tremor Christ are played next to flawlessly, Tremor Christ especially sounding reminiscent of 1995. Ed gives a nod to Mudhoney, who opened, and notes they should’ve played there together back in 1992. He also addresses a music documentary about the local punk scene called Spokanarchy. Present Tense is a mid-set highlight with great crowd participation and an excellent build, and after the performance the crowd makes their request for Stone to sing. As Ed eggs him on, he promises that it’ll happen tonight, he just needs to “sharpen the sword before slaying the dragon.” Daughter has Ed attempting some vocal call and response droning, but it doesn’t really come off like he planned. Following, Ed references a couple of signs in the crowd. One reads “Jeremy Spokane class today” which was allegedly a joke referenced in their 1993 show. The other sign says “Will Shave Head For Brain Of J,” which Ed reads as:

“…will shave head…for a spanking? You’ll shave your head if we play that song? I can’t see you, do you have any hair? [fan shows their dreadlocks] Oh shit! I have to think that you’ve been thinking about shaving that shit off for some kinda time, and you’re just thinking how can you make it kind of a dramatic way to end this…dedication and test of your friends’ will to hang out with you…alright, let’s keep that in mind…”

Ed references the Velvet Underground and how their records were the first they listened to that made them feel like they were on drugs. He plays a very nice solo rendition of After Hours as a tribute to Lou Reed’s recent passing. Push Me, Pull Me is teed up as a serious collector song, only the 11th performance. A big trio ends the main set with Jeremy, Evolution and Porch. During Porch, Ed reflects the stage light into the crowd off his reflective pickguard before chucking his guitar in the air and catching it. In the encore, Ed is tossed a mega joint that has some words scribbled on it and calls it a one-hitter these days. Gleason and his family are mentioned as being extraordinary people, they are introduced to the crowd to a massive ovation before playing I Won’t Back Down for the first time since 2006. Nothing As It Seems bursts with electricity from Mike right from the start, and Footsteps follows with more of a moody presence. The crowd gets their wish from earlier as Stone, somewhat reluctantly, gets on the mic to sing Don’t Gimme No Lip, also for the first time since 2006! The dreadlocked fan from earlier, Sean, is invited on stage, Jeff has an electric razor and Mike takes some polaroids. Ed says:

“…this is a professional operation up here…this ain’t the first time we’ve given a haircut on stage, if you remember the infamous mullet episode in Detroit, 1993…”

Sean asks Ed if he can headbang just one last time to Brain Of J. The request is fulfilled, and as they get into the bridge, Ed takes the electric razor and begins to shave the dreads off. After the song ends, the band starts playing a bluesy jam as Ed continues to shave the massive locks of hair off his head, with one being nearly impossible for him to get off. They send Sean off stage with parting gifts (pieces of his hair and polaroids) and Go is introduced as the first song he can headbang to “without all of that weight” on his head. A Van Halen tribute section takes place in the 2nd encore as Mike blows the crowd away with Eruption before segueing into the first Ain’t Talkin’ Bout Love outside of Hartford, CT. The night ends with Mike walking off the side of the stage and serenading Gleason with the final notes of Yellow Ledbetter.


November 29, 2013 – Moda Center, Portland, OR, USA

Show Notes:

Pendulum starts off on the wrong note, but it doesn’t sidetrack the song. Low Light is powerful leading into a fast, shouty Sometimes, with Ed asking “…are you laughing here, dear god?” Matt is on fire during Lightning Bolt, driving…

Show Notes: 

Pendulum starts off on the wrong note, but it doesn’t sidetrack the song. Low Light is powerful leading into a fast, shouty Sometimes, with Ed asking “…are you laughing here, dear god?” Matt is on fire during Lightning Bolt, driving and muscular. Mike solos over Stone’s lead as well, to great effect. MYM keeps getting faster, played at a breakneck pace tonight. Ed says that the last time they played Portland was a benefit for “the Pacific Northwest School…am I saying that correctly…the Northwest School?” and then jokes “no, don’t embarrass me in front of all these people, just go with what I’m saying…I don’t know what the FUCK I’m talking about…” Sirens is dedicated to Tomas Young and his wife Claudia, who are in attendance, and it includes a long acoustic reprise at the end with Ed really going for the vocal inflections and the crowd loud, leading Ed to utter “thank you for that” quickly afterwards. He sees a couple of people in the crowd and calls them out:

“…what’s that thing you’re doing there, there’s like two confetti machine people here, nice! I was wondering what you symbolized…it’s like, they’re the military-industrial complex and they’re tearing money and throwing it up in the air…are we paying you money to do that for the whole show? We should…thanks! It’s making it exciting for me, you’re picking really good spots…”

He continues, pointing out the Yankees hat on the fan, causing the crowd to boo, and joking about the rivalry between the Yankees and the (non-existent) Portland baseball team, “it’s a crazy one I know, I just can’t remember…,” and adds “we’re going to play another new one” leading into Even Flow. Matt has a tremendous drum solo on Even Flow, a full minute long, Ed exhorting the crowd immediately after “…come on! He did that for you…” and shouting out “Matt fucking Cameron!” before the very end instead of Mike. He points out after that while everyone yesterday was celebrating the “pilgrims stealing Indians’ food, whatever that thing is,” they were giving thanks for Matt on his birthday, leading to the Cameron-penned You Are, the first performance since 2011. Ed asks for the lights up, pointing out a fan with a hat and a “Luv Co.” shirt, and Jeff interjects “that’s Concert Dave!” Ed says Jeff has the only other Luv Co. shirt and teases Jeff, “do you know ALL these people?” Infallible is “for Earth.” Lukin is started but abandoned before Ed starts singing. He runs through the riff a couple of times and then teases “you know, when you hear the song played and you hear the technicalities involved, it’s very intense…” He continues, talking about how he hates when people from Seattle call Portland “P-town,” adding “but Portlandia, I think that’s great…which is funny because this song came to me while having a bit of chamomile tea at the feminist bookstore,” and Lukin is restarted. Jeff and Matt highlight a frenetic RVM jam. After the break, Ed wants another bottle of wine and jokes “give that one to that little kid, he looks like he’s five years old or something.” He adds that Jeff noted there hasn’t been a Portland crowd this good since 1992 or ‘93, “and you figure that was a while back so most of those people are dead, this is like a new crowd, a new generation.”

To start the encore, The End is played by Ed solo and by request. Just Breathe is dedicated to Jason Baldwin of the West Memphis Three, also in attendance, who’s getting married soon. The crowd makes their feelings known on the “Mother” lines about running for president and trusting the government. Everyone sings Happy Birthday to Matt, with Ed asking Janet Weiss from Sleater-Kinney to count it off and pointing out Matt’s kids Ray and Josie and wife April before starting Better Man. Over the Wasted Reprise chords, Ed talks about all the friends they have there and thanks everyone, adding that Tomas Young had left, having decided that he didn’t want to continue on, moving to Portland, “the end of the Earth for happiness.” He continues, talking about how he mentioned Dick Cheney in Oakland and someone thought he should have moved on, leading Ed to rant passionately about Cheney and getting worked up about Tomas’ condition, closing with:

“…there are some things that even if you forgive you should not forget, just so we don’t let them happen again…we can’t let that happen again…and if Tomas sits there, all of fucking…34 years tomorrow, he’ll be 34 years tomorrow, and now I think he weighs about 65 pounds, look, if he can go through all this, and that makes a difference towards this never happening again he’ll be alright with the whole situation, he will have felt like he died a life…lived, and something that made a difference and it’s all up to us to make his life make a difference, thanks for listening.”

Stone starts Alive instead of Black and stops, the band going into jazz mode and Ed adding “I’m good either way…Portland jazz alley…come on it’s Matt’s birthday, let’s play some jazz…” Prior to Rockin’, Ed asks for reinforcements, calling on Corin Tucker, Carrie Brownstein, Peter Buck, Scott McCaughey, and Janet Weiss to help “take it home,” an impromptu Sleater-Kinney reunion onstage.


November 26, 2013 – Oracle Arena, Oakland, CA, USA

Show Notes:

The crowd takes the “into the sun” line in Nothingman and then Ed gives it to them one more time at the end. Hail, Hail has the “…I refer to those in front” lyric change. Before Faithfull, Ed explains to…

Show Notes: 

The crowd takes the “into the sun” line in Nothingman and then Ed gives it to them one more time at the end. Hail, Hail has the “…I refer to those in front” lyric change. Before Faithfull, Ed explains to the audience that the song was requested by a fan who was part of a group from Brazil that was following the band from Southern California, and a woman in the group was mugged outside the venue and lost all her money and her passport. The Pearl Jam fans outside the show pitched in to help her out though, and Faithfull is her thank you. Mike has some noticeable tuning issues during the song and he stops playing until the solo, when he rips back in. Before Sirens, Ed says:

“…this next one, it’s a little bit I suppose about the fragility of life…and never take it for granted…there’s nothing better than getting news that you’ve beaten cancer or something….when we started out, none of us were parents, probably none of you were parents, I mean we were barely kids, becoming adults, but when I hear things about Dick Cheney not understanding that his daughter wants to be involved in same-sex marriage and he doesn’t support that, his own daughter, that’s a mystery to me…”

He continues, saying that Cheney should go one more level and be able to marry himself, so that “he can go fuck himself.” Sirens goes off without a hitch, Ed’s guitar perfectly in tune, and Jeff, Mike, and Stone all up at the front doing backup vocals at the end. Ed and Mike do the back-to-back lean and Jeff’s bouncing around on a show-stopping, almost 9-minute Better Man. After the break, Ed comes out, mentions Lou Reed’s recent passing (“Thanks Lou. Thank you Lou. We miss you Lou.”), and plays After Hours. Following Yellow Moon, the band goes over to the side of the stage where a group of Bridge School kids are sitting, and Ed says, with a huge smile:

“…this is my friend Maricor’s favorite song, so I’m going to go over here and hang out with my friends…here’s Maricor, here’s Alan…everybody’s here…” 

Ed, Stone, Jeff, and Mike all go up onto the rail where the Bridge School kids are and sing Last Kiss right in front of them, Ed says something in Maricor’s ear and interacts with the kids while singing, a very touching moment to see. Thin Air returns to the set for the first time since 2008! John Doe from X joins for “The New World,” the first time it’s been played since PJ20 in 2011. Ed runs around the arena floor high-fiving the audience during Porch. Celebratory encore 2 opens with Smile and includes a powerful version of Black. Ed showers praise on the crowd before leaving, adding “…we love you…beautiful faces, every one of you…thanks.”


November 24, 2013 – Sports Arena, Los Angeles, CA, USA

Show Covered by Podcast

Show Notes:

Relaxed opening with Oceans and Low Light before Present Tense ups the tempo. Interstellar Overdrive is the first of 3 Pink Floyd covers/tags on the night. Ed says that he and Mike did some surfing during the day, and that…

Show Notes: 

Relaxed opening with Oceans and Low Light before Present Tense ups the tempo. Interstellar Overdrive is the first of 3 Pink Floyd covers/tags on the night. Ed says that he and Mike did some surfing during the day, and that Sundays “are a little harder to like, knock the roof off…I don’t know…it takes a little more conscious effort to raise the level of this shit…so, if you are up for the challenge we sure the fuck are. So we’ll start this one off, this one’s for all the surfers in the crowd…” leading to a soaring version of Amongst the Waves. My Father’s Son is introduced with “if you’ve ever had a father who ended up in prison, this song is for you.” Mike’s guitar work is hauntingly beautiful during Immortality. Ed talks before Small Town:

“This one is specifically for anybody from Reseda. Or it could be for anybody from San Onofre, anybody from Carpinteria, Fife, anyone from Fife here? West Seattle, here we go…”

“Future Days is dedicated to Judd Apatow and Leslie Mann, who are in attendance. There’s a little hiccup in the beginning, which seems to annoy Ed, but the band picks it back up. A fan up front starts convulsing and faints during the song, Ed comments after:
“…there was some guy that got pulled out of here before and it was…he just had a bit of an emergency but he’s fine, it took me out of the game for a second there I just…it’s hard to see somebody come over like that, we got little history so I, just it took me…he’s fine, alright…”

The fan does indeed receive medical care and returns to the show later. During Sirens, Ed’s guitar is horribly out of tune, he’s visibly frustrated, and when his tech, Richie Ramone, comes out to retrieve it Ed tosses it behind his back instead in anger. After the song, he comments:

“Alright, I am officially going to start drinking right about now. What I was doing before was just amateur bullshit, I am going to get all professional right about now. One thing I will mention as we’re getting ready to start really fucking kicking some ass….I have to say, we were talking to some of the people in the building, in the box office and even though its Los Angeles, a place with many cultures and crazy colors, at the box office when people pick up their tickets they said they’ve never seen even like 10% of the amount of passports being used as identification because of all the people coming from all over the planet to come be a part of these shows and ah, I see Brazil and Argentina, and there we got some Israel right there, Shaka, Italia. So, we have a good friend and this might be his last night here, his name is Rob from Manila, Philippines, and they’ve just been battered and beaten and its brutal, the tragedy that’s just happened there with the typhoon, so we just want to tell him to send everyone our best wishes when you get back and we’ll send you with a little bit of something to help, alright here’s to not stopping making a difference.” 

No Way returns for the first time since the PJ20 shows back in 2011. After Blood, Ed waves off the band and storms off, ending the main set perhaps prematurely. After the break, Ed talks about playing in LA in ‘91 with Nirvana and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, saying “our band owes so much to that band [RHCP].” He continues to wax nostalgic before starting Better Man:

“…and literally I owe so much to Jeff and Stone and Mike for having faith in me in the early days. And Matt for agreeing to be in our band, even though he did know I was in it. And then if you think about that statement…the reason those are great bands is because he is in them…Matt Cameron! This one goes back so far, it was before even I met these guys or even really knew who they were…it was just something that I was sitting on the edge of the bed a long, long, time ago…it was just a bit south of here, about an hour and a half south of here.”

The Another Brick in the Wall tag on Daughter includes “hey, preacher, leave those kids alone.” Ed talks about being in New York City for a time after Roskilde and getting to know Lou Reed, who recently passed, and debuts a cover of the Velvet Underground’s “After Hours,” adding “I just can’t tell you how much I miss the guy right now. There is a lesson, like, miss them while they are still here, and take care of the problem and don’t miss them anymore. That will make sense if you drink about a bottle and a half of wine and listen to it.” “Mother” is the final Floyd cover of the night, played seated, then back to the early years with Breath, Go, and Porch. After the final break, Ed comes out with:

So when does a Pearl Jam concert end? When they kick us out. How many songs does it take for one fuckin’ Pearl Jam concert…the world will never know. Not to be rude, but we gotta play one for the back. We’ll be right back. See back in the day, these are the crowds we were used to.”

Last Kiss is played to the back. Boom is introduced to the crowd as he begins Love Reign O’er Me. Ed is noticeably quite inebriated by the end of the evening, giving the signal to Mike during RITFW to shut it down, swinging the mic stand over his head repeatedly before losing his balance and falling on his back as the song ends, taking one last swig from the wine bottle. Mike is the last one on stage at the end, taking Polaroids of the fans up front.


November 23, 2013 – Sports Arena, Los Angeles, CA, USA

Show Notes:

Pendulum is complemented with heavy guitar effects from Mike while using a bow, which he continues to use through Release. Dennis Rodman gets a subtle nod during Release as well, as Ed changes the lyric to “oh, D-Rod…” Halfway through…

Show Notes: 

Pendulum is complemented with heavy guitar effects from Mike while using a bow, which he continues to use through Release. Dennis Rodman gets a subtle nod during Release as well, as Ed changes the lyric to “oh, D-Rod…” Halfway through Corduroy, Ed appears to be focused on the front of the pit, then during the outro breakdown he says:

“…there’s a little bit of a problem, let’s take care of this problem so we can get on with a fucking rock show. Hey young lady, you’ve got to get the fuck out, just get out now! We’ll talk about it later, just get the fuck out now!” 

After the song he greets the crowd with, “Good evening!” Before asking for the lights and moving to the very front of the stage and addresses the issue again:

 “Hi, I don’t know you, we’ve never met, we need to get you out. Just get out, please, now. Get her out, I’m not fucking around. Just go watch it somewhere else, you had a chance to make friends with these people, you fucked that up, go make some friends over there.” 

After security deals with the issue, he checks in on the crowd, saying “alright, we good now? Cheers.” Lightning Bolt features the well-received line “…towards the great southwest” and Why Go is introduced with “…live from Los Angeles, it’s Saturday night!” After, Ed asks the camera operator to get a shot of a little girl and teases “were you the one causing all these damn problems up here?” Explaining his actions, he states, “We didn’t have time to have a jury trial down here, Johnnie Cochran was going to come in to defend her, it was going to be a problem.” He continues. telling them “Bruce Springsteen said you can get this place rocking, and so far, you are proving him right”. Following Dissident, he says “speaking of escape…” and the band kicks into Getaway. Garden is dedicated to Tim. Before I Got Id, Ed makes a One Direction joke, teasing “this is called I Got 1D.” He mentions Rob, the fan from the Philippines who came on stage in San Diego, and his wife, and says they are sending them “some of the dough from tonight and San Diego home with Rob to help a few folks out.” Prior to Sirens, he makes a dedication to “David…this one’s for him, everybody he works with, and his son Miles, Mike starts this one, thanks for listening.” Ed tosses the microphone to the front row of the crowd during SOLAT and allows them to sing the “…myself…” section. Afterwards, he says with concern, “it’s a rough crowd out here…you alright?” He continues: “…we thought we’d hire George Zimmerman to be security from Florida,” which is met with boos from the crowd, then explains that he would have a weapon, but he would be watched “24/7 by all the security so he doesn’t do anything terrible…someone’s going to have to stand their ground against guys like that. So, this is a song about guns,” which leads into Jeremy, after which Ed goes on to say:

“Without offending anybody, I think we can have a few more gun laws on the books. It’s also a mental health problem, until people can get help, until we do that maybe we need to make it a little more difficult. I could feel it from the back, they wanted me to say that”

Ed explains Leatherman as “this song has been confused as a song about Rob Halford, about Al Pacino, but it’s actually about a real guy and his name was the Leatherman.” Joking that “this is how Mike McCready woke me up this morning,” Eruption is played as a lead into Spin the Black Circle. After the break, Ed inquires “…everybody still good?” then gives his thanks to the Red Hot Chilli Peppers for their support during the band’s early years. Pointing to the crowd, Ed notes, “There’s a woman with a sign for a song that we haven’t played in a long, long time, shall we do that one, or stick to what we were going to do? If you got the time, we got the wine!” After some deliberation with the band, he says “get a spotlight on this woman so in case you don’t like it you can see her on the way out…I’m just kidding!” All or None is then played for the first time “since the Vic Theater fan club show in 2007! An emotional-looking Ed dedicates Come Back to Johnny Ramone, continuing the tribute with an up-tempo I Believe in Miracles. During the intro of Unthought Known he shouts “Tim remember this one, this is us late at night!” Towards the end “of Black, a fan strolls across the stage from Stone’s side, just as he is about to reach Ed a security guard pulls him away before Ed intervenes. Playfully patting him down, Ed takes his phone out before handing it back and slow dancing with him to cheers from the crowd before the man is led off the stage. Before Alive, he introduces the band, with additional praise for soundwoman Karrie Keyes, who he says deserves a Presidential Medal of Freedom, in her hometown. After a spirited rendition of Baba O’Riley, Ed jokes “I’m glad we’ve got tomorrow “night off” before the band closes with Indifference.


November 21, 2013, Viejas Arena, San Diego, CA, USA

Show Covered by Podcast

Show Notes:

“Ah, kind of like we are home, yeah?”  For the first time since November 1995, there’s a general admission section at a San Diego show, which seemed to give the crowd a heightened sense of community that would show itself…

Show Notes: 

“Ah, kind of like we are home, yeah?” 

For the first time since November 1995, there’s a general admission section at a San Diego show, which seemed to give the crowd a heightened sense of community that would show itself throughout the night. All Night appears for the first time since Wrigley, followed 2 songs later by Tremor Christ, added to the setlist in the moment because “it’s appropriate for here.” Army Reserve is dedicated to the local military heroes before a face-melting version of Even Flow. Ed then mentions that in addition to Matt’s mom, sister, and brother being in attendance, as well as Ed’s three brothers, Mike’s pop was also there and potentially inspired Mike to tone down his solo a little as to not freak out his dad. After Insignificance, another US tour debut, Rob, a fan from Manila, is brought on stage and told he’ll be sent home with a check for relief from typhoon Haiyan which devastated the Philippines only weeks prior. Light Years returns for the first time since 2011. The main set closes out with a very charged version of Porch, complete with Ed coming down to the crowd, who supports him physically and vocally. Sleeping By Myself debuts in the encore, as Ed notes “I’m not sure how to start it!” When the band joins back on stage for the final encore, Ed employs the crowd in a trust exercise, handing a bottle of wine from the stage, through the crowd, and up into the seats to his mom. The crowd succeeds and once his mom has the bottle she takes a giant swig, to which Ed exclaims, “It’s genetic!” and the band crashes into Leaving Here. A gorgeous version of Black follows, with Ed taking a moment to introduce the band after a powerful Mike solo, adding:

“…what a great audience and a great room to play for…we should do this more often,”

He continues the song with a quiet, almost falsetto “We Belong Together” tag. Alive doesn’t disappoint, delivering an energy nearly impossible to cap off with just one closer, so the band, clearly not wanting the night to conclude yet either, pulls out all the stops and does the unprecedented; Baba O’Riley, Yellow Ledbetter into the Star-Spangled Banner, AND Rockin’ In The Free World (with Matt’s son Ray helping out on guitar) to close out the night! Ed’s final words are “…it’s an honor and a privilege to say these four words…thank you San Diego! Thank you very much…save the world, we’ll see you next time.”


November 19, 2013 – Jobing.com Arena, Phoenix, AZ, USA

Show Notes:

For the first time in the band’s history, Long Road and Release open a show back-to-back. Corduroy cranks up the pace with an energetic finish and an extended sequence. Mike shines again on Lightning Bolt, already a mainstay of his…

Show Notes: 

For the first time in the band’s history, Long Road and Release open a show back-to-back. Corduroy cranks up the pace with an energetic finish and an extended sequence. Mike shines again on Lightning Bolt, already a mainstay of his repertoire. The Given to Fly line adaptation for the venue is “made it to the desert…” Afterwards, Ed greets the crowd, toasts to having the band back in Phoenix, just like Oklahoma City at the previous show, for the first time in 10 years, “filling up the place like a full glass of wine.” He predicts a good night and a couple of bottles, and mentions they’d thought about playing the Mason Jar “like old times.” Very tight performance of Getaway, after which Ed mentions that same-sex marriage is legal in Washington state and so is marijuana, adding that it’s going great and recommending trying it. Yellow Moon is introduced as a vision that’s rare in the Northwest but quite familiar to everyone in the Southwest. Stone seems really into his part of the Even Flow breakdown. Wishlist is changed to “all Phoenix’s hands upraised…” After Infallible, Ed tries to remember something “sharp and witty” he was going to say about Chicago: he sees a lot of people from Chicago present, all the young kids, one about his daughter’s age, and finally recalls it was about the recent crazy weather around the world and that hopefully we all agree that climate change is a real thing “because young people, it’s their world and it’s evolution, baby,” introducing the next tune. 1/2 Full is followed by a long bit of banter, talking about Jeff (crowd starts chanting “Jeff! Jeff!”), “we call him the sheriff, I don’t know why, but we call him the sheriff,” saying hello to Jeff’s parents, George and Penny:

“…there’s about a thousand and one reasons to love them…they’ve been together for 52 years. That’s just something you have to admire…Stone’s parents have been together for about 52 years, too. Jeff and Stone have been together about 51…48…a long time!” 

Ed makes a toast to “Jeff and Stone, long relationships.” He then intimates that a person at the show, Danny Long, had also known and been in a band with Ed’s father, and owned recordings of his father singing [these recordings were most likely used on the Earthling track “On My Way”], adding:

“…about 4-5 months ago I got to hear my dad sing for the first time…but the nice thing was, dad was pretty good, he was great!” 

With this, Ed dedicates Better Man to ”George and Penny and Danny and everybody who’s got a dad.” The first encore is full of rare gems and to start, Ed offers Jeff the wine bottle while introducing Bee Girl and as Jeff helps himself to a swig, Ed says “the first time we ever played this, yeah, we were doing that.” Around the Bend is heard for the first time since the 2006 Bridge School show! Ed dedicates Future Days to his two best friends, “Uncle Johnny who lives here in Phoenix, and my wife Jill,” before signaling Boom to start. Ed then play-gauges the crowd’s reaction for the next few with “I’m gonna let you weigh in here, we’ve got…I think one that you’ll like, but we’ve got another one that’s more for the ‘serious collector,’” before starting Hard to Imagine. Some nice touches from Stone at the end, and Ed makes the decision: “let’s do the other one, too” and goes right into Footsteps to the crowd’s delight. Unthought Known is introduced with “…here’s to all the teachers out there, especially the ones teaching music, you know who you are.” After the second break, Ed comments “it’s been 10 years, we’re not going to just leave like that…it could be another 10 years.” This earns some thorough booing and Ed backpedals with “I know what Stone’s thinking…‘how could you even say that, Ed, what kind of frontman are you?’” Small Town is dedicated to Yuma, Scottsdale (which gets a mix of cheers and boos), “Stone thinks there’s an artists’ colony called Martha, Murtha? How ‘bout all you people that hang out at the Grand Canyon?” Black is on the setlist but Spin the Black Circle is played instead. After Alive, Ed thanks the crowd and recognizes how lucky they are to play in front of so many people, introduces the band, and then welcomes Nils Lofgren on stage to play Rockin’ in the Free World. On his way offstage, Lofgren finds a mic and says “Pearl Jam, one of the greatest bands around on the planet.” As Indifference begins to close the night, Ed observes “so, we have friends in Arizona…we gotta hang out more…call me up, or call Mike.”


November 16, 2013 – Chesapeake Energy Arena, Oklahoma City, OK, USA

Show Notes:

Pearl Jam returns to Oklahoma City for the first time since 2003 and the night opens with Wash, accompanied by a crowd who sounds like they’ve been waiting 10 years for this moment.  Sometimes offers up a prayer with the…

Show Notes: 

Pearl Jam returns to Oklahoma City for the first time since 2003 and the night opens with Wash, accompanied by a crowd who sounds like they’ve been waiting 10 years for this moment.  Sometimes offers up a prayer with the lyric change “…help us repair, dear god,” referencing the recent tornadoes that devastated the area. The band’s absence in the area is acknowledged by Ed on Small Town with another lyric change, “…it’s been 10 years…” “Everybody ready?” introduces Lightning Bolt, to which the resounding answer from the crowd is yes. Following a grooving version of Let the Records Play, Ed offers a quick “we’re just getting going, how’s everybody?” After a loud cheer, Ed tells Jeff:

 “I told you we should come down here and play here more often…I keep telling you. Now when we came here today when there were no people, there was a sign that said ‘Welcome to the home of the Oklahoma City Thunder.’ I asked Jeff, ‘Do you think that’s always up there or are they just rubbing it in?’” 

He goes on to joke about how they all went to therapy to deal with their anger issues and that they’ll talk about that later to clear everything up, but now they have a lot of songs to play, “so here’s a little MFC for OKC,” which not only has great backup vocals from Matt but his drums drive the song. Continuing with Yield, In Hiding is next, with Ed sounding great and some backup vocals from the crowd.  Mike looks like his mind is on another planet during the Even Flow solo. During the solo, the screens show Jeff and Stone giving Mike space and jamming together. After the song, Ed introduces “Mr. Mike McCready” to recognize the experience. He then introduces Stone (“he’s the one who wrote that one”), “and while we’re at it, Mr. Jeff Ament,” and with the crowd’s encouragement, “Mr. Boom Gaspar.” Ed then talks about how it has been 10 years since they played here, and the time before then was 10 years before and so they should play the most songs they can as they might not see them until 2023…he was almost right, they did finally return in 2022, but “seeing as how this is going so far, we may be back next summer.”  He mentions a benefit concert that Kings of Leon helped organize (for the tornado victims) and mentions they were thinking about them and it’s great to see everyone doing good. After a great jam to finish Immortality, Ed talks about the drummer’s seat not being called a stool or a chair, but a throne, which he was confused by until meeting Matt Cameron, “definitely the king.” Wishlist is dedicated to someone “who over the last seven years is a great friend whose title got upgraded, Colonel John McDonough,” with a lyric change “as fortunate as his family…” A blistering 8-minute RVM begins with a bit of noodling by Ed and has an incredible jam.

Out of the break, Ed offers that the room sounds great and that there are kids in the front which means it’s safe. He checks with the parents to make sure it’s cool to keep going, as the kids have to go to school. He continues, adding that Jeff went to college, Mike went to “how-to-make-pizza school,” and Stone went to art school, making him the grooviest, which they all stick in his face. A woman then asks to propose to her boyfriend which they agree to, he says yes, and Just Breathe is added for them. Parting Ways makes its tour debut, the first in over 4 years. Following Jeremy, Jeff dons a Sonics jersey (Kevin Durant #35). Ed tells a story from “a long time ago, in a city very far away, there was a team, a great team,” which seems to get a mixed reaction. Mike is taking polaroids of Jeff with his jersey. Ed asks, “it’s your team, are you booing? It’s all confusion.” Jeff points to the back of the jersey which changes the tone of the crowd. Ed explains:

“See, here’s the deal, it has nothing to do with Oklahoma City, or Tulsa, or the people; it simply is like your long time relationship: you were a great person in the relationship, you wouldn’t like her new husband. If it was Fresno, I’d be pissed off at Fresno. The people that are really fucked and who fucked us over, fuck Sacramento is what I meant to say. If you think about it and you’ve ever been to Sacramento, they’re already kind of fucked. But you know something we will stand by, there’s this guy Howard Schultz [owner of the Supersonics who sold the team] in Seattle, fuck him, I’ll stand by that one. Fuck him.”

They go on to say they were rooting for the Thunder in the playoffs, and maybe they’ll have a team in Seattle by the time they come back so they won’t be mad about it anymore. Fittingly, Supersonic follows, another tour debut, followed by “a song about Sacramento,” Satan’s Bed.  After the second break, Ed offers to write a note for the kids tomorrow at school and says they are going to play this next one to the back, and it’s Last Kiss. Ed mentions crew member “Big Pete” and says that his family is here and he means so much to the band. Following, Ed talks about how on their first tour, their name was Mookie Blaylock, but when they were trying to come up with a real name, they thought about Daron Oshay, Mookie’s real name, which is met with confused silence. After Alive, he comments “so many great faces, after 10 years we don’t deserve it,” and the last words from Ed before exiting the stage are “Go Thunder.”


November 15, 2013 – American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX, USA

Show Notes:

After a two-week break, the band eases into the show with a gentle opening trio of Pendulum, Nothingman and Can’t Keep (making its first appearance since 2008!), perhaps hinting at a lengthy show to follow. Ed greets the crowd with…

Show Notes: 

After a two-week break, the band eases into the show with a gentle opening trio of Pendulum, Nothingman and Can’t Keep (making its first appearance since 2008!), perhaps hinting at a lengthy show to follow. Ed greets the crowd with a “Good evening!” during the intro of Lightning Bolt, which has the lyrical change “flying right towards Texas…” After Got Some, he mentions that the band have a lot of friends in attendance, “not just from Houston, Austin, Richardson, and Dallas but from Pittsburgh, Guatemala,” adding that it is the tenth time the band has played in the city, “not bad for twenty years, once every two years…that’s a fairly consistent relationship,” but it has been ten years since they’ve been back, adding “it doesn’t look like you’ve aged a day…we’ve got a lot to accomplish tonight.” Brain of J. passes with little fanfare, despite the upcoming 50th anniversary of the assassination of President Kennedy, which happened a short distance from the American Airlines Center. Given to Fly is dedicated to “everyone in the top.” Sirens features the extended outro, the audience takes over the vocal harmonies which leads Ed to say “that was good, here’s another quiet singalong…I’d like to dedicate this one to Zonk, he knows who he is…” before the band tears into Lukin. Ed shouts “sing it for him, he was just a kid” during Jeremy, also based on a Texas event. Afterwards he addresses the crowd again: “…thanks for singing along with that one. We weren’t going to say anything about it, but there’s a famous tragedy that’s going to celebrate an anniversary in a week here.” Acknowledging that if he mentions the name it would sound “strange on the tape” if the audience cheered for it, he only says it as the “50th anniversary of a crazy tragedy in American history.” He continues:

 “…that kid we sang about was 23 years ago…that thing of a kid in a classroom with a gun keeps happening. At some point we need to come together and tell those that might be able to help to make some laws to protect us and our kids. We met some of the Newtown dads when we passed through Connecticut, I don’t know, it’s just something that’s on our minds. This song is called Glorified G, and thanks for listening.” 

The speech is met with loud applause from the Dallas crowd. During the intro of Unthought Known, Ed gives a shout out to opening band Midlake. Returning to the stage after the break and thanking the crowd, Ed jokes “if I don’t stop toasting soon, I won’t remember this day,” before toasting the crowd and Midlake once more. After Yellow Moon, Ed tells the audience “I’ve got a sister from Texas…sisters get you in touch with cool things like nephews, so I want to send this one out to nephew Garrett and momma Gina.” Following Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns, Ed states

“that one’s for Andy Wood, he loved Dallas. I think of Dallas and I think of him.” 

An extended Porch sees the crowd sing the first verse, to which Ed replies “oh, I didn’t know that. Do it again!” He begins again by singing the first two lines before letting the crowd take over. During the second encore break Ed teases “I’ll warn you, I’ve got a brand new bottle…it might be another ten years so we might as well keep going!” He then talks about a local club called Trees where the band played twice in 1991, and that they are now “going to play a club five times bigger than Trees…we’ll be right back!” Small Town is then played to those seated behind the stage. Alive has an extended War Pigs outro tag. Ed announces, “We’ve got two beautiful women here tonight, Carrie Brownstein and Annie Clark…” who come onstage to play on Rockin’ in the Free World. Prior to Indifference Ed introduces the band with added praise for Matt Cameron, “a busy man, whatever band he’s in, he makes it the greatest band in the world.” Before exiting, he again praises the crowd, adding “…much love to you Dallas, we’ll be thinking about you…see you soon, I hope.”

 “…that kid we sang about was 23 years ago…that thing of a kid in a classroom with a gun keeps happening. At some point we need to come together and tell those that might be able to help to make some laws to protect us and our kids. We met some of the Newtown dads when we passed through Connecticut, I don’t know, it’s just something that’s on our minds. This song is called Glorified G, and thanks for listening.” 

The speech is met with loud applause from the Dallas crowd. During the intro of Unthought Known, Ed gives a shout out to opening band Midlake. Returning to the stage after the break and thanking the crowd, Ed jokes “if I don’t stop toasting soon, I won’t remember this day,” before toasting the crowd and Midlake once more. After Yellow Moon, Ed tells the audience “I’ve got a sister from Texas…sisters get you in touch with cool things like nephews, so I want to send this one out to nephew Garrett and momma Gina.” Following Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns, Ed states 

“that one’s for Andy Wood, he loved Dallas. I think of Dallas and I think of him.” 

An extended Porch sees the crowd sing the first verse, to which Ed replies “oh, I didn’t know that. Do it again!” He begins again by singing the first two lines before letting the crowd take over. During the second encore break Ed teases “I’ll warn you, I’ve got a brand new bottle…it might be another ten years so we might as well keep going!” He then talks about a local club called Trees where the band played twice in 1991, and that they are now “going to play a club five times bigger than Trees…we’ll be right back!” Small Town is then played to those seated behind the stage. Alive has an extended War Pigs outro tag. Ed announces, “We’ve got two beautiful women here tonight, Carrie Brownstein and Annie Clark…” who come onstage to play on Rockin’ in the Free World. Prior to Indifference Ed introduces the band with added praise for Matt Cameron, “a busy man, whatever band he’s in, he makes it the greatest band in the world.” Before exiting, he again praises the crowd, adding “…much love to you Dallas, we’ll be thinking about you…see you soon, I hope.”


November 1, 2013 – Voodoo Festival, New Orleans, LA, USA

Show Covered by Podcast

Show Notes:

Tonight’s setlist is curated by New Orleans Saints legend Steve Gleason, whose public battle with ALS has been an inspiration to many, including the members of Pearl Jam. He addresses the crowd to introduce the band: “New Orleans has become…

Show Notes: 

Tonight’s setlist is curated by New Orleans Saints legend Steve Gleason, whose public battle with ALS has been an inspiration to many, including the members of Pearl Jam. He addresses the crowd to introduce the band:

“New Orleans has become my hometown, but this is my hometown band. Ladies and gentlemen of Voodoo, please welcome to the stage one of the greatest American rock bands ever, Pearl Jam.” 

Sirens begins the show, a song which has a direct connection to Gleason. It was used in an ESPN feature that October chronicling Gleason’s battle with ALS and the friendship that he developed with Ed and Mike. Midway through the song, when Mike usually swaps out his 12-string acoustic, instead here he hands the guitar to Ed. The entire band finishes the ending refrain of the song singing the background vocals, a rare occurrence. After a five-song stretch of rockers, Ed addresses the crowd, making a snide remark towards people hanging out in the jacuzzi section. He asks the crowd to raise their hand if they’ve been arrested and to keep it up if they’ve been arrested in New Orleans, reminiscing about the time he and MLB pitcher Jack McDowell were arrested there, and tells the crowd that if they plan to get arrested tonight, they could call Macklemore to bail them out, giving out Macklemore’s number. Getaway, played for only the second time, is introduced as being a song about being intolerant to intolerance. Present Tense has a great moment in the bridge with Ed exclaiming “That’s the way! That’s the way!” as the band grooves together on a great finish to the song. Ed jokes that Severed Hand is about all of the marijuana overdoses once it became legal in the state of Washington. Gleason and his family are brought up on stage prior to Inside Job and the song is dedicated to them, and Mike’s solo is especially inspired in this version. The main set ends with an explosive Rearviewmirror that has Ed belting out the “I will forgive, but I won’t forget” line. After the break, Ed toasts Trent Reznor, who will be headlining the next night of the festival. He also brings up the gulf oil spill and recognizes the Gulf Restoration Network who have tirelessly worked to clean it up. After Do The Evolution, Ed notices some audience members dressed up in furry costumes. He comments

“I read about something like this on a Sonic Youth record…something about how people can’t get sexually aroused unless they are dressed up like that. Is that you? I knew I would never see anything like this until I got to New Orleans. Okay, I am in room 518 at the Hudson Arms, I’ll bring my teddy bear…” 

The furries join the band on stage to dance during Rockin’ in the Free World. The night ends with Gleason being wheeled back on stage and McCready serenades him with his guitar for the ending of Yellow Ledbetter.


October 30, 2013 – Time Warner Cable Arena, Charlotte, NC, USA

Show Covered by Podcast

Show Notes:

Ed sounds fantastic on Low Light early. Stone plays around with the melody during the second verse in Present Tense, very cool. Ed exhorts the crowd during the jam with “Here we go! Here we go!” Lightning Bolt has a…

Show Notes: 

Ed sounds fantastic on Low Light early. Stone plays around with the melody during the second verse in Present Tense, very cool. Ed exhorts the crowd during the jam with “Here we go! Here we go!” Lightning Bolt has a little extended jam at the end. Mike takes a long solo on Even Flow, showing off all his range, from flashy to emotional. Afterwards, Ed talks about how they haven’t been back to Charlotte in 10 years, teasing that it’s because they have a basketball team and Seattle doesn’t, adding that it’s really Oklahoma City’s fault, calling them “thunder-fuckers.” After Daughter, he talks about how Lightning Bolt has been #1 on the charts for 2 weeks:

“…it seems like…this kind of stuff, it never really mattered to us and it still doesn’t, really, but it is kinda nice. I’m a little embarrassed to say, but I just want to say it because we’re grateful, we were fortunate enough, the record that we made has now been the #1 record for 2 weeks, so we just want to say thanks…it’s nice to be #1 because sometimes you feel like #2…the other thing is we didn’t have to show our tits to do it…”

At this point, Stone is coerced by the crowd up front to lift his shirt up, getting a loud reaction from the crowd and causing Ed to let out a “whoa!” then teasing “…it just plummeted.” He continues, “…going for the #1 spot for the 3rd week in a row, based on the tits of Stone Gossard…” The debut of Getaway is next, it’s a little rough in spots but by the ending they’ve got it figured out. Not For You stretches out past 6 minutes. Matt leads the way on the RVM jam. After the break, Ed and Jeff come out and Bee Girl is introduced as “…a cautionary tale.” Better Man approaches 8 minutes with a long Save it for Later tag. Lynyrd Skynyrd drummer Artimus Pyle is in attendance and Ed gives him a shoutout during Porch, exclaiming “Artimus on the drums!” During Small Town, Ed changes the lyric to:

“…I seem to recognize your breast…”

while giving Stone a side-eyed look. The Real Me appears on a PJ setlist for the first time since 2011, and Jeff hits the bass line perfectly. Ed does an improv based on “We Belong Together” at the end of Black. All Along the Watchtower hasn’t been played since 2010, and Mike adds a tag of Skynyrd’s “Simple Man” at the end.


October 29, 2013 – John Paul Jones Arena, Charlottesville, VA, USA

Show Notes:

Release slots in at #2 for only the second time. In My Tree is played for the first time of the tour before launching into a set of high-energy rockers. After Mind Your Manners, Ed addresses the audience, commenting on…

Show Notes: 

Release slots in at #2 for only the second time. In My Tree is played for the first time of the tour before launching into a set of high-energy rockers. After Mind Your Manners, Ed addresses the audience, commenting on how the set list was “geared for a more intelligent crowd,” with Charlottesville being home to the University of Virginia. He points out a 13-year-old and a 10-year-old on the rail and says that they “look smarter than me.” Go transitions seamlessly into Why Go. After Mind Your Manners, he mentions that he wrote the next song “about 12 years ago in a small hotel room in Virginia Beach,” and starts a rousing I Am Mine. Grievance, Glorified G, and The Fixer also make their tour debuts. Down is stopped quickly to deal with a crowd situation, then restarted. Harmonic intro to RVM, with a standout performance by Jeff during the jam, and Ed including the “forgive/forget” lines. Ed is the first one to return from the break and takes a seat, thanks everyone, and talks to the kids up front. He finds out that one of them is 12 and says:

“if I was dyslexic he’d be twenty-one. It would be cool if his first sip of wine was at a Pearl Jam concert,”

leading to an explosive cheer from the rest of the crowd. The 11-song (!) encore 1 starts with a great version of The End, introduced as one not played often, “mostly because it’s really fucking depressing,” but Ed sings it in an almost hopeful way. Thumbing My Way is played for the first time since 2006, over 150 shows! After Footsteps, Ed thanks Stone and Jeff for writing such a beautiful piece of music and mentions how Chris Cornell and Andy Wood also wrote lyrics to the song. He then decides to “take care of some business” and pours some wine into a cup for the father of the young boys, telling the dad that he can do whatever he wants with it. Future Days is dedicated to Kelly Slater’s friend Rick and his wife of 30 years. Ed forgets how it starts, then acknowledges Boom. Mike wails on Big Wave, the first performance since 2011. During the extended jam on Porch, every band member is featured, the globe lights are lowered and Jeff and Mike sway them around, while Ed passes out some wine and sings the last verse while swinging from one of them. Ed brings up the kids from the front row during the second encore and tells them “if you grow up and still listen to the band, we’ll have at least 2 fans until we are 90 years old.” He mentions that they are playing in the “Led Zeppelin Arena” (actually the John Paul Jones Arena) and Mike plays a little bit of “Over The Hills And Far Away.” They finish with two covers (neither of which are Zeppelin), including a full “Little Wing” for only the 4th time ever, which closes the show.


October 27, 2013 – Baltimore Arena, Baltimore, MD, USA

Show Notes:

The first show in Baltimore in the band’s history doesn’t disappoint! Pendulum, Hard to Imagine, and Small Town serve as a perfect soothing trio to open the show. Ed addresses the crowd, saying “Twenty-three years. Twenty-three years. We have been…

Show Notes: 

The first show in Baltimore in the band’s history doesn’t disappoint! Pendulum, Hard to Imagine, and Small Town serve as a perfect soothing trio to open the show. Ed addresses the crowd, saying

“Twenty-three years. Twenty-three years. We have been a band for 23 years and this is the first time we have had the opportunity to say these three words: ‘Good evening, Baltimore!”

Lukin just howls and massive versions of Corduroy and Given to Fly work the crowd into a frenzy. A fan in a yellow shirt up in the rafters is noticed by Ed, who asks for the house lights and says “you made quite an impression…” Lou Reed passed away earlier in the day, and Ed pays tribute, the first of many, with the Daughter tag, “Walk on the Wild Side.” After soothing the crowd with Wishlist and bringing them back up with a cathartic Present Tense, the band breaks out the vinyl combo, Spin the Black Circle (dedicated to Dischord Records, with Fugazi’s Ian MacKaye in attendance) into Let the Records Play, and they sound perfect. Setting Forth, Unthought Known, and a frantic RVM close the first set. Before Yellow Moon starts the encore, Ed pours a drink of wine for a fan’s 21st birthday and continues, referring to Reed’s passing:

“…in some ways it’s been a hard day, we’ll talk more about that later, but so far music has been kind of healing, so let’s continue with that…

Following, the band plays 4 straight “man” songs (the ‘Man’ Quadrilogy?), including the first and only performance of the Velvet Underground’s “I’m Waiting for the Man.” Man of the Hour is dedicated to Reed and his wife Laurie Anderson. Do the Evolution, Blood, and Porch cap an absolutely raucous end of the first encore. The Who’s Love Reign O’er Me is a highlight of the second encore – the crowd is fully engaged and Ed delivers the goods on vocals. Black, Alive, and Rockin’ in the Free World end the show on a huge high note. Stone totally kills the Rockin’ solo, and the band is joined on stage by the fan from earlier in the yellow shirt.


October 25, 2013 – XL Center, Hartford, CT, USA

Show Notes:

An especially lively crowd, loud and boisterous to start a powerful and soaring Long Road. When Ed tries to speak after Last Exit, he is drowned out by a rousing cheer, leading him to comment “…wow, we’re going to have…

Show Notes: 

An especially lively crowd, loud and boisterous to start a powerful and soaring Long Road. When Ed tries to speak after Last Exit, he is drowned out by a rousing cheer, leading him to comment

“…wow, we’re going to have to work hard to deserve that, so let’s keep going.” 

He comments later “…even a great surfer can’t surf well if the waves are shit, and these waves that you’re putting out are the best we’ve had all tour.” The stage lights go dark for the end of Alone as Ed sings the outro. He is very animated during a frenetic Save You, gesturing and jumping around. After the first encore, he comments how the band was saying how incredible the crowd has been. Come Back isn’t on the list but is dedicated to “…a beautiful person named Avielle,” one of the victims of the Newtown shooting. Ed tells the story behind Future Days, it’s about being a parent, then someone in the crowd suggests World Wide Suicide, which is toasted for it’s humor. Ed continues, saying Future Days is about wanting time to “fuck your partner…or wanting time to at least have the chance to fuck your partner…” He apologizes for saying fuck if parents brought their kids, and that they can explain that later. Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns is played as a request, and afterwards Jeff and Stone are toasted for writing all the great songs over the years. Ed mentions how they played a certain song in 2010 in Hartford and that they wouldn’t ever again, leading into  “Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love.” Before Wasted Reprise, Ed’s got something on his mind:

“I’d like to just take a minute to tell you what an intensely profound day this has been…when you read about something like what happened last December here in Newtown, we feel like we know those people that it happened to, people that we knew, so we were thinking about you then…tonight I got to meet 3 great men, incredible fathers of children who were lost. It was such a very powerful moment to have this chance to communicate with somebody we’ve been thinking about so deeply…to know that it’s okay, not just okay but necessary that we continue a discussion to figure out how to unravel a situation where something like that can happen and to make sure the odds of that happening again are very slim. You know as well as I that you have to be very careful when talking about something like this, because they want to defame your character or take away your right to speak while they’re protecting the Second Amendment…they also think you don’t have the right to speak as an American, as a taxpayer, as a father, as a parent. We’ve got a right to speak on this issue when the safety of our children is directly affected…we’ve done some research and I’ve talked to much smarter people than myself (there’s a lot of them), but the myth that the gun lobby is the most powerful lobby in our country is a myth. The money is not the most money.  The amount of people, it’s just in the millions. It’s just because they’re louder and they are very tenacious and if you speak up against them they will jump on you and tear you apart and make it so if anyone else wants to say anything…or they want you to be fearful…I’m going to stop. You know what we’re talking about. You have to not just react, but prevent and go into prevention mode. If the majority of people agree there should be more legislation just to make it a little harder, we’re not taking away the right, just safety, it’s a safety issue…the same as a driver’s license to drive a car. It can’t be as easy as buying a pair of shoes. Anyways, all I implore you, I don’t mean to be preaching to the converted, but sometimes the choir has to sing louder. That’s one of these issues.  If we’re louder, it can happen, we just have to be louder and we have to let the politicians know they will be reelected if they do what we ask and we are asking them to do it now. Because what we don’t want is for any of those children’s lives to be wasted.  Thanks for listening.”

Happy Birthday is sung to Matt Cameron’s 15-year-old son Raymond leading into a playful Crazy Mary, with Mike and Boom dueling before combining for an epic finish. Ed dedicates Fuckin’ Up to Neil and Pegi Young, who are having their Bridge School Benefit that weekend, and that the band fucked up in scheduling their tour and not being able to attend. Following Indifference, Ed answers his own question in the song, saying “…a big difference.”


October 22, 2013 – Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA

Show Notes:

Ed screams the last lines of Wash, and the crowd is warmed up and ready on this, the 23rd anniversary of the band’s first show. Bruce Springsteen is spotted on the side of the stage. Following Lightning Bolt Ed says…

Show Notes: 

Ed screams the last lines of Wash, and the crowd is warmed up and ready on this, the 23rd anniversary of the band’s first show. Bruce Springsteen is spotted on the side of the stage. Following Lightning Bolt Ed says hello and says that they had some big waves last night, but tonight may be bigger than last night, so “surf’s up.” Corduroy jam is driven by Matt’s drumming and accompanied with rhythmic clapping from the crowd. The backup vocals from the crowd continue on Mind Your Manners. Satan’s Bed appears for the first time since PJ20 in 2011 as Ed says:

 “What’s a show without one rock and roll song about Satan?”  

Considering its scarcity, it is played rather well with some of the timing only slightly off, and there also is an extended solo in the bridge which is a nice treat. Ed has a bit of a false start as he seems to start MFC before Untitled, laughing “the devil got me on that one, he got me back.” The Even Flow solo is prefaced with “you know what time it is” from Ed before Mike melts some faces, and Matt gets his chance to show off as well. After Got Some, Ed says that the last two buildings they’ve played in they’ve seen a big flag with all the special people with his name in the rafters (Barclays in Brooklyn with the Nets’ number 32, and tonight in Philadelphia for the 76ers number 6) and Given To Fly is dedicated to none other than Dr. J. Ed then asks ,“is there a doctor in the house?” Following Infallible, Ed talks about a letter they received from an Afghanistan War vet named PJ who made the trip and is recognized with a spotlight leading to an ovation from the crowd. Ed gives cheers to PJ and thanks him for the gift and the nice letter, offering that he’s back healthy and going to school in Virginia and drove up for the show. He goes on to say that PJ had expressed gratitude for the band in his letter, but that the band is thankful he’s back healthy, which gives them a little hope, as it’s not all bad news which leads to the US tour debut of World Wide Suicide. Do the Evolution has a bit of a lyrical flub in the first verse, which takes nothing away from the energy, and the floor can be heard chanting along to Stone’s solos as well as the “hallelujahs” as the church choir. A 10-minute epic Better Man closes out the first set, featuring a fantastic outro jam with Mike sporting a rose on his guitar’s neck and Ed improving off the lyric “I need you.” Out of the break, a bit of “Happy Birthday” can be heard singing from the floor which was a bit of a grassroots-organized event for the band’s anniversary, and Ed asks if it is time to break out the champagne. He offers that they might want to wait, as it caused memory loss before. He also tells of a show in Seattle where someone threw up an enormous joint on stage which he lit up prior to the encore, but doesn’t remember anything after that but that it was a great encore. He sees a woman in the crowd in what he thinks is a Halloween costume, then realizes she’s updated her makeup to mirror an image from the new album (the Future Days’ artwork) and comments “that’s fucking genius,” and dedicates:

“this next song and the rest of the show and the next 20 years to you for doing that and being so brave…we should send that to the artist.” 

Future Days is played later in the encore. Immediately following, Ed states that “a long long time ago when the setlist was 13 songs, sometimes 11, this next one was number 10,” leading into a lively Breath. Ed finishes Porch swinging on an orb before climbing down and smashing the mic stand at the close. After the break, Ed talks to the crowd and says that it might be awhile before they are back, and calls for one more bottle of wine and that out of respect for their fellow man they are going to play one for the people in the back which leads into Last Kiss, dedicated to Nick, Matt and Pierre at WMMR who he believes were the first to play the song. He continues talking about radio, adding:

“…you can call up and a real human will answer the phone and maybe even play a request for you, if you haven’t tried it, it’s a great way to get laid…the birthday present for us turning 23 today, with the help of radio, the little record we made went into number 1…the best part is that we used to not give a fuck, and we still kind of don’t, but it feels good.”  

They have trouble starting Leaving Here and Ed jokes that this is what a number one band sounds like, then quotes Neil Young from The Last Waltz, “I got it now Robbie,” and tonight’s version features Jeff’s bass on the first solo followed by Matt on drums for the rest. After Blood, Ed says, “fuck it, we played the show but I feel like it’s your birthday,” and leads the crowd in a singing of “Happy Birthday,” and takes a swig from a giant bottle of champagne which is shared with the audience. Before Ledbetter, Ed expresses his gratitude:

“Thanks for everything…tonight, yesterday, two years ago, four years ago, ten years ago, twenty years ago, thanks for everything. Take care of one another and thanks for taking care of us. Thanks for listening.” 

Before leaving, Ed introduces the band and adds a “Bruce Springsteen…inspiration,” before ending a magical night with “you can call me Ed and call us and we’ll be back anytime. Thank you very much. Love…goodnight…goodbye.”


October 21, 2013 – Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia, PA, USA

Show Notes:

Ed is wearing his “Rocky” shirt, which was also seen during the historic 2009 run at the Spectrum. Low Light returns with the line “…all I feel is fucking calm,” as well as the extended vocal outro.  The audience is…

Show Notes: 

Ed is wearing his “Rocky” shirt, which was also seen during the historic 2009 run at the Spectrum. Low Light returns with the line “…all I feel is fucking calm,” as well as the extended vocal outro.  The audience is ready on the first chorus of Small Town to take over and keep it going throughout the entirety of the song, Ed’s “this is going to be a good one tonight, keep going” are all the encouragement they need. Released just 10 days prior, the title track off the new album Lightning Bolt already feels like a classic and is not out of place following a song that is 23 years its senior. Following Animal, Ed has the lights come up to see everyone. He continues:

“…for about the 20th time in a similar situation we get to say these words, ‘Hello Philadelphia’…nice place you got here. You were probably there when we tore down the Spectrum…fuck it, let’s tear this one down too. Slowly, piece by piece. Up amongst the flags and championships there’s a whole lot of speakers and we got a lot of speakers up here. We got Matt Cameron on the drum kit, I say we pace ourselves and have a nice long evening of it.” 

After Even Flow, Ed points out “Michael motherfucking McCready on guitar.” The layers of guitar sounds shine on the next Lightning Bolt track, Infallible. Ed has a bit of a lyrical flub but catches himself and rights the ship. Without skipping a beat, they complete Merkinball with I Got Id, which will always sound like Neil Young on guitar and tonight is no exception. The familiar chords of Wishlist are next, with a lyrical change to “…I wish I was the city of brotherly love’s hands upraised to the sky,” and “…as fortunate as Philly.” The song finishes with Ed’s E-bow and a return of the improved lyrical ending:

“I wish to wish for nothing…my only desire, desirelessness. My only wish is to wish for nothing. ‘Cause who could ask for more than this?“ 

He continues once the song finishes and tells of a flashback he had while putting powder on his nails before the show to a time when he was 15, taking speed called “Black Beauties” and how he named that guitar “Black Beauty.” He goes on to say:

“I’m not sure about the successful-musician-doing-drugs thing. What more could you ask for than what you give us here tonight? To be up here playing loud, loud music with some of your best friends for a bunch of friends you don’t really know but you feel like you do. We are just so grateful, thank you. Thanks for keeping me off the drugs.”  

This leads into a fantastic Sirens. Lukin is introduced as a “quiet singalong” and right off the last beat Matt continues right into Not For You. Ed jokes that the next two songs “are about the same goddamn thing,” with Let the Records Play followed by Spin the Black Circle, Mike’s running around in circles the entire song. A punishing 8 minute Rearviewmirror closes out a fantastic first set. Out of the break, the band is seated and Ed offers a quick “…cheers to you, Philadelphia.”  He then turns around and asks how the back is doing, commenting:

“Now even that is 20-30 times more people who came to see us the first time at JC Dobbs…we could only dream of a crowd like that. I like the Ramones fan with the ‘Gabba Gabba Hey’ sign…can we get him a better seat? I’d like to see that sign right next to Stone. You can’t like, solve all the world’s problems, but that would be a good one right there…start small. Last time we were here we had 99 problems, we’d only have 98.”  

He then talks about a friend of his, a train conductor who lost a good friend by suicide, pointing out that the friend was a veteran, and that they should be taken care of and that if anyone knows one to check in, given the epidemic rate of suicide for veterans, and dedicates Man of the Hour to the friend. Ed can be heard cracking a bit at the end, an emotional performance. Ed remains seated while the rest of the band stands for a stellar rendition of Pink Floyd’s “Mother,” with the crowd answering the “should we trust the government” question as one might expect, and Ed gives a quick “thanks, Roger, for letting us borrow your song.” Mike plays the ½ Full solo behind his head, Ed using his guitar to reflect a spotlight around the arena during the “won’t someone save the world” portion. He then introduces Andy and Jordan, who had the ‘Gabba Gabba Hey’ sign, noting that this is Jordan’s first rock concert. Ed assures him that they are all like this and they dedicate I Believe in Miracles to them and “everyone else in the back.” Coming out of the final break, Ed says:

“If you’re not leaving we’re not leaving. When you can stand here and see everyone in the back moving as much as everyone in the front and the sides you’re on to something good. Goddamnit, thanks a lot Philadelphia once again.”

He continues, introducing the band, including Boom, whose brother Keith flew in for the show on his birthday. Then, a fan up front says it’s his 18th birthday today, to which Ed teases:

“…you’re going to be drinking some of this right now…don’t film him for litigation purposes. All cameras are off…no fucking cell phones, don’t fucking tweet that shit of him getting his first drink, getting me in trouble…[I’ll] fucking find you…happy birthday Keith, happy birthday Jake, happy birthday Crazy Mary.” 

Crazy Mary features the audience taking over the “…quite a crowd…” line and singing throughout. Following the song the crowd serenades Boom and Ed gives him another shout out.  The last chorus of Alive is changed to “Philadelphia, we’re all still alive,” and the crowd immediately begins the outro chant. Before leaving, Ed closes out the show with:

“Alright, thanks very much…thank you in the back, thank you in the topside, middle, front back, the whole thing…we should just spend the night…much love, we’ll see you soon. Thanks, love you. Take care of each other. Beautiful. Good night.”


October 19, 2013 – Barclays Center, Brookyln, NY, USA

Show Covered by Podcast

Show Notes:

Saturday night in Brooklyn starts with the band flying out of the gate, playing the first NINE songs in a row without a break. Ed howls and screams through Wash, an early indicator that absolutely anything is on the table.…

Show Notes: 

Saturday night in Brooklyn starts with the band flying out of the gate, playing the first NINE songs in a row without a break. Ed howls and screams through Wash, an early indicator that absolutely anything is on the table. Lightning Bolt is introduced with “…live from Brooklyn, it’s Saturday night!” After Down, he tells the crowd

“…if I was a surfer, which I am, and you were the ocean, which in a way you are, this would be good surfing…right here…”

He continues, adding that the prior night they tied a record for amount of fist fights at a show with one, and pleads to not to come close to that record tonight. Even Flow features a showstopping Matt Cameron solo reminiscent of the ones he’d consistently bang out on the Avocado tour. Rats is dedicated to the nice people from the financial district, and with NBA Hall of Famer Dennis Rodman in attendance, Ed changes the line to “Dennis, the two of us need look no more.” Unthought Known and Immortality transition flawlessly into one another with the latter featuring a screeching McCready solo. Ed makes this poignant speech prior to Better Man:

“You know, a lot of us have maybe something in common. I know the thing that bonds my friends and us together usually is the fact that at one point we were probably pretty broken. Sometimes people steer away from broken people, and those are the people that usually have never been broken. There’s nothing wrong with being broken. You can get fixed! You fix yourself. Things break and then they get fixed. Usually with the help of other people. I just want to say that this part of the country, all of the northeast, NJ, NY, Brooklyn…you’ve always been really really good to this group and have been there when we needed you, and I hope, fully, we’ve been able to return the favor. In China, if a vase breaks, they repair it and they draw a gold leaf where the crack was. They celebrate the cracks. We should celebrate what we’ve been through. It’s the people without the scars, those are the ones you have to worry about.”

After a whopping 20-song main set, they jump back into the encore with a powerful, soaring rendition of Footsteps. All Those Yesterdays appears for only the 14th time in the 15 years since Yield. During Porch, Ed channels his early 90’s antics and hops on a green orb hanging from the top of the stage and goes swinging back and forth over the crowd. Ed starts the second encore by saying

“you look fuckin’ great…we have some friends here tonight, people that we’ve known for many many many many years, from all over…you make us look really good in front of our friends…you guys make us look so good that if we had enemies they couldn’t be enemies anymore because they’d want to be our friends because they’d want to be your friends…”

He jokes that Whipping is called “Bad Boys Get Spanked.” Following Blood, he sees a shirt in the crowd for a non-profit called Every Mother Counts and makes a setlist change on the fly to play Leaving Here in honor of all the women in the crowd. The night ends with the classic ‘bread ‘n’ butter’ tracks, including the Hendrix-style Star-Spangled Banner tag off of Yellow Ledbetter. Ed finishes off the night with “New York, Brooklyn, you’ve been very very very good to us” in a thick New York accent.