November 28, 2015 – Foro Sol, Mexico City, MEX

Show Notes:

The 2015 tour ends in Mexico City with a proper send off. The crowd is ready to explode from the outset, and a back-to-back Pendulum and Release opener only builds the tension. Small Town feels more like a large city…

Show Notes: 

The 2015 tour ends in Mexico City with a proper send off. The crowd is ready to explode from the outset, and a back-to-back Pendulum and Release opener only builds the tension. Small Town feels more like a large city singing along, and the pot finally boils over during Why Go and Do The Evolution, prompting Ed to scream “Hola, Mexico!!!!” Speaking in broken Spanish, he says “We are well and this is the last night of the tour.” After Even Flow, he intimates “…this is a great crowd…it’s like surfing…great waves.” Daughter is next, and the It’s O.K. tag is sung in both Spanish and English. The band then breaks into a cover of I Want You So Hard by Eagles of Death Metal for the 3rd and final time to date, a tribute to those impacted by the Paris attacks. Lightning Bolt features a nice little jam at the end. Matt is on fire during the RVM jam, pounding and bashing throughout. After the break, Ed introduces Throw Your Arms Around Me as “a request for newlyweds.” The ukelele is brought out, Ed stating  “[it’s] shy and small and doesn’t want to come out in front of a lot of people.” Imagine is played to honor both John Lennon and the victims of the Paris attack once again. The stadium is once again ready to boil over with energy after a soaring Comfortably Numb, and the pop happens this time with Animal in an unusual encore spot. Ed follows by saying “We got a nice letter from a little 12-year-old girl from Atlanta…where we made many records. She wrote that she has the best dad. That is her favorite song, and she said her dad was at this show and she wanted to dedicate that song to him. That was Rebecca writing for her dad, Michael. She is a pretty cool kid with a pretty good dad.” Faithfull is played for a young woman in the front who has a flag requesting the song, Ed adding “We’re going to change the program for the woman right there.” Ed drops out during the Porch intro to acknowledge the crowd, who’s singing every note, a powerful moment. After Jeremy, Ed wishes Matt a happy birthday and leads the crowd in singing to him. More palpable energy from the crowd as they almost drown Ed out during the Better Man intro. Ed leaves by saying “this is the end…gracias…we’ll go home with this in our hearts, and our suitcases, and in our minds. Thank you everyone for tonight. It’s really hard to leave. Thank you so much,” before Yellow Ledbetter closes the show and the year.

Written by: Justin Goulet


November 25, 2015 – Simon Bolivar Park, Bogota, COL

Show Notes:

The band’s first ever appearance in Colombia opens with Ed adding some intensity to Pendulum. Mike and Jeff are energized from the start, and do the traditional communion pick swap during the hallelujah chorus of Do The Evolution. On Ed’s…

Show Notes: 

The band’s first ever appearance in Colombia opens with Ed adding some intensity to Pendulum. Mike and Jeff are energized from the start, and do the traditional communion pick swap during the hallelujah chorus of Do The Evolution. On Ed’s first attempt at speaking Spanish, before Corduroy, he claims the rest of the band had no idea what he was saying. Corduroy opens with a different, almost harmonic tease intro, and the crowd delivers later with an enormous call and response section in the bridge. I Am Mine has a faster pace to it, followed by Ghost, played for Dimi the Greek, after not taking the request in Rio. After a boisterous Even Flow, Ed makes sure it’s safe for the women in the crowd and makes mention that the stage was bouncing, and since there is nothing connecting the crowd and the stage, he claims that they were moving the Earth! Ed changes the lyrics to White Male Colombian during the Daughter tag. Instead of Untitled leading into MFC, Ed busts out the U2 song “A Sort Of Homecoming,” which has never been played at a PJ show. Ole chants abound when they come back out for the encore, and Ed mentions a man in front, calls him “muy guapo,” and says the way he was smiling he knows it. Around The Bend begins the encore, played for only the 12th time. Later, Ed brings up eliminating violence against women and during Porch, he and Boom leave the stage and return wearing orange t-shirts that read “por una Colombia de libre de violencia contra las muertes” which loosely translates to “for a Colombia free of violence against death.” The entire band returns to the stage wearing the orange shirts in the second encore, and kicks it off with an incredibly emotional Black, Ed telling the crowd to sing towards the sky as he repeats “…esta bien…” During Alive, Ed is thrown a Colombian flag and wraps it around his mic stand. The solo in Rockin’ in the Free World gives Ed another chance to mention violence against women, and the night ends with one last moment for Mike to shine during Yellow Ledbetter, as the crowd continuously chants “ole ole ole” to end the evening.


November 22, 2015 – Estadio Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro, BRA

Show Notes:

After an hour delay, Oceans begins but abruptly stops. Ed points to Stone, they converse for a moment, then the song begins again. Matt’s bass drum skin has a picture of the Eiffel Tower in homage to Paris and the…

Show Notes: 

After an hour delay, Oceans begins but abruptly stops. Ed points to Stone, they converse for a moment, then the song begins again. Matt’s bass drum skin has a picture of the Eiffel Tower in homage to Paris and the victims of the mass terrorist attacks that took place a week earlier. The crowd embraces Corduroy and sings the bridge back to the band. The crowd offers some assistance to Ed with pronunciation as he speaks after Amongst the Waves. Even Flow wraps up and Ed introduces Mike, Matt and Stone, noting that “Stone wrote that part you are singing along to.” I Want You So Hard by Eagles of Death Metal is played for the 2nd time. Comatose kicks in with a rough start, prompting the band to stop playing, Ed telling the crowd “and then that just happened,” and the song is restarted. Small Town ends with a joyous crowd singalong. Ed notices a man in the crowd holding a sign stating, “It’s my birthday, let me sing a song with you,” and he responds “I saw you three days ago and you had that sign…and four days before that! I wish I was you and everyday was my birthday.” The crowd laughs and cheers as Ed tells the man he will buy him a drink and “discuss this whole singing thing.” Ed then addresses the crowd again in Portuguese, naming couples having anniversaries, and gives a special nod to Jeff and Stone, who have been together longer than anyone. Ed speaks to the crowd about the attacks in Paris and how music can bring joy and help you deal with anger, saying “the fact that this happened during a concert with a great band and great Parisian fans, it hurts us and breaks our hearts to the core.” Ed tells the audience about a long time Pearl Jam fan, Pierre-Antonie Henry, who lost his life during the attack on the Bataclan Theater, “and it broke our hearts even more deeply when we heard someone, a really good man, father of two, great husband, brother, a great son, was always in the front row when we played in Europe,” and dedicates Imagine to him. Ed brings up the birthday guy from earlier to sing the opening of Porch and share his bottle of wine. Better Man ends with Ed tossing his white Gibson guitar into the air and then proceeding to smash it several times on the stage. As the show wraps up with Yellow Ledbetter, a fan tosses a pair of red speedos to the stage. Ed asks if they are for him and places them on his head, then pulls them over his shorts to finish out the performance. 


November 20, 2015 – Estádio Mineirão, Belo Horizonte, BRA

Show Notes:

After a long day of rain, most concertgoers were soaked, or at least prepared to be, while donning rain gear. Rumors of the stage being struck by lightning earlier in the evening,but as Pearl Jam enters the stage, the rain…

Show Notes: 

After a long day of rain, most concertgoers were soaked, or at least prepared to be, while donning rain gear. Rumors of the stage being struck by lightning earlier in the evening,but as Pearl Jam enters the stage, the rain stops. As an acknowledgment (or maybe an offering, considering), a cover of the Beatles’ Rain opens. Ed seems playful tonight and begins the set playing his vintage Martin 000-15. They transition seamlessly into Sometimes, with impassioned vocals. Playing off the crowd energy after Small Town, Ed rips off his overshirt, and the band throws it down literally and figuratively with a bass-heavy Go. Matt’s drum kit is lit up with an image of the Eiffel Tower as a tribute to the Paris terrorist attacks that took place a week prior. Ed’s voice cracks on Once, but makes up for it by belting out the rest and throwing his mic into the crowd for help on the final chorus. Unusual early Rearviewmirror, with a very short jam and some fumbled lyrics by Ed and impeccable drumming. Stone gets a spotlight and the volume turned up for his groove in Even Flow, Ed making shadow puppets on the side-stage wall, then after the song, grabs a piece of paper and attempts a longer speech in Portuguese bringing attention to the local dam/mining tragedy near Bento Rodrigues, stating “It’s tough when these large companies use and abuse the land just for profit, with no respect for the environment. Accidents that take lives and destroy rivers so they can still profit. We hope and expect them to be punished harshly and never forget the sad disasters they caused.” Before I’m Open, Ed grabs a custom green sparkly guitar and tells the crowd it was a gift “made by one of your countrymen in Brazil…one of my favorite things”. The guitar is inspired by Ed’s black holoflake Telecaster, and made with local wood and hardware by a man dubbed “Sergio Vedder.” Satan’s Bed is “about somebody that I don’t believe in, but it makes for a good song…one thing Satan’s been good for is music like Black Sabbath, Jimmy Page, and Robert Johnson.” Sirens” has some echoing notes at the end and inspires a vow from Eddie to get a fund going for the toxic mine/dam disaster (PJ donates $100,000 to the cause shortly after the show). The mood is lifted from somber to scathing with Do The Evolution, Stone getting the literal spotlight on this and Ed accenting the vocals with guttural bits, high notes and screams. A cover of “I Want You So Hard” by Eagles of Death Metal is debuted as a tribute to the Paris attacks, one of which was during the Eagles of Death Metal performance days prior. Comfortably Numb appears again, having debuted in Porto Alegre. Mike’s solo is tight and Ed salutes the heavens. Ed ties up Black with an eerie, repeated whisper of “hey, hey, it’s okay, it’s okay.” Mike throws in a short tease of Little Wing into the Yellow Ledbetter ending, and the crowd serenades the band with the Ole chant as they exit the stage. Pendulum and Wishlist are on the setlist but not played. 


November 17, 2015 – Estadio Nacional Mane Garrincha, Brasilia, BRA

Show Notes:

The third of five shows in Brazil begins with the combination of Release and Wash, incredibly played back-to-back to open a show for the first time since THIS DAY in 1991! Mike’s lyrical solo on the new, extended Corduroy kicks…

Show Notes: 

The third of five shows in Brazil begins with the combination of Release and Wash, incredibly played back-to-back to open a show for the first time since THIS DAY in 1991! Mike’s lyrical solo on the new, extended Corduroy kicks the show into high gear. After a couple of Lightning Bolt selections, it’s back to the 90’s for a rare triplet of Brain of J., Tremor Christ, and a soaring In My Tree. Matt shows out near the end of the Even Flow solo, thrashing and pounding away. Some bad weather early in the day means that the Beatles’ Rain makes an appearance, and for only the 6th time. Habit is a standout, Ed growls “speaking as a child of the 90’s…,” fitting for a show heavy on their 90’s output, and the frenetic outro leads Mike to manhandle his guitar to the ground and wrench some otherworldly sounds from it. Ed emerges after the break to comment on the prevalence of mosquitos swarming the stage and audience, saying “I’ve never eaten so many bugs in my life while I have been singing tonight…fuckers!” Interestingly enough, neither Red Mosquito nor Bugs are played. He does proceed to play Bob Marley’s Redemption Song, accompanied by Boom. The Eagles of Death Metal song “ I Want You So Hard” is on the setlist, but scratched, and instead Ed opens the floor to requests, and the band responds with a driving Why Go. Leash follows, also by request, and Ed prefaces it with “you might not know it…WE might not know it…” An expansive Porch closes the encore before they quickly return with Last Exit, Ed exclaiming “Don’t go to bed yet!” over the iconic drum intro. South American favorite Do The Evolution is saved for late, following the crowd-friendly Small Town and Better Man. Boom takes over Crazy Mary, he and Mike trading off playfully until they meet up for a few riffs of Paint It Black, leading to an epic showdown before the song crashes out past the 8-minute mark. 24 of the 35 songs are from the 90’s, with only 6 from the 2000’s.


November 14, 2015 – Estádio do Morumbi, São Paulo, BRA

Show Notes:

The band takes the stage less than 24 hours after the terrorist attacks that took place in Paris during an Eagles of Death Metal concert where 89 were killed. Ed is wearing his traditional peace sign shirt, Jeff’s shirt reads…

Show Notes: 

The band takes the stage less than 24 hours after the terrorist attacks that took place in Paris during an Eagles of Death Metal concert where 89 were killed. Ed is wearing his traditional peace sign shirt, Jeff’s shirt reads “Unfuck the World” and there’s a picture of the Eiffel Tower drawn with a sharpie on Matt’s bass drum. They open with a soaring version of Long Road that sets the tone for an emotionally charged evening. Following Of the Girl, Ed addresses the crowd in Portuguese. Although later claiming his Portuguese sounds like “pieces of shit,” his words loosely translate to “love goes out to the people in Paris right now, there is healing we need to do together.” A powerful Love Boat Captain follows, with the lyrics being changed to “lost many friends we’ll never know, just only yesterday.” At the end of the song, the crowd sings along with Ed, repeating “love” back and forth. The crowd does a tremendous job of singing the lead guitar parts on Do the Evolution. Ed remarks on the incredible crowd size, saying if the entire band went into the crowd to shake their hands, it would take a few years to complete the job. During Lightning Bolt, the harsh wind and rain and wind forces the GA area to be evacuated. With the conditions being so poor, the crew gets the band to briefly exit the stage so they can lay tarps over the equipment. Ed makes sure the crowd is okay and blames himself for the incident. Without the rest of the band on stage, Ed calls an audible, picking up an acoustic guitar and playing a version of Elderly Woman with a beautiful intro. As the crowd sings along with every word, the rain dies down enough for the band to come back on stage, with Ed saying “come on Mikey, fix this shit!” before a blistering Even Flow. Come Back is another emotional dedication to the Paris attacks. The rain pours down again during Better Man, but the crowd and band play through it with a strong performance. The RVM jam is short but stellar, Matt leading the way. After the break, Imagine, Sirens and I Am Mine continue the theme of healing. During the intro to Porch, Ed plays a bright green guitar that depicts the Brazilian flag, and then later makes his way into the crowd. The crowd sings the guitar melody at the end of Black, and it’s “We didn’t belong together” tonight, Ed adding in the “hey hey, it’s ok” lyrics from Sonic Youth’s Androgynous Mind. Alive, Rockin’ In The Free World and Yellow Ledbetter seemingly end the night, but after the band leaves the stage, Ed calls them back out for one more song, and they treat the crowd to All Along The Watchtower in a 3rd encore to officially close this emotionally charged evening.


November 11, 2015 – Arena do Grêmio, Porto Alegre, BRA

Show Notes:

Release is powerful in the 2 spot tonight, as another loud and boisterous South American crowd is involved right from the beginning. An early Do the Evolution keeps the energy going, and there’s plenty of chanting throughout Corduroy. After a…

Show Notes: 

Release is powerful in the 2 spot tonight, as another loud and boisterous South American crowd is involved right from the beginning. An early Do the Evolution keeps the energy going, and there’s plenty of chanting throughout Corduroy. After a very on-point Even Flow, Ed salutes Mike, saying “when he was born from his mother, you know where, he immediately threw his first guitar pick…and when Matt was born, he had his first pair of drumsticks, which must have been very uncomfortable for his mother, Helen…” A very fast Lukin has Ed grasping to keep up the pace. Sirens ends with a speech about records being the very first love of everyone on stage, leading to the duo of Let the Records Play and Spin the Black Circle. Matt outdoes himself during the RVM jam, just an incredible display of prowess. Rearviewmirror ends the blistering first set and gives the energetic crowd a little respite. Hard to Imagine starts a little rocky, but blazes after the first verse. Wishlist starts with the crowd singing in sync with the song. After Glorified G, played for the first time since 2013, Ed speaks in Portuguese to the crowd about how it has been exactly four years since the last time they played there. The crowd also sings happy birthday to Jill Vedder in Portuguese. Ed is handed a phone and the crowd starts chanting “Jill, Jill, Jill!” Pink Floyd’s Comfortably Numb is debuted after the second break, and it’s tailor-made for Mike to solo into the stratosphere, which he does. Given to Fly is dedicated to Matt, Jeff, and Diane, wherever they are at. Alive includes a “Go Cubs” in the middle from Ed. To cap off the evening, Ed elicits one last “Ole” chant from this fantastic crowd and quotes Smile, saying “…miss you already…love love love.”


November 7, 2015 – Estadio Unico La Plata, Buenos Aires, ARG

Show Notes:

Ed flubs the lyrics of Low Light a bit at the end, but makes up for it with a very extended hold on the last line. The crowd is in full swing with the “Ole” chants following the song and…

Show Notes: 

Ed flubs the lyrics of Low Light a bit at the end, but makes up for it with a very extended hold on the last line. The crowd is in full swing with the “Ole” chants following the song and are full-throated during Small Town. The crowd continues, belting out the opening notes to almost every song. This can be heard even during the rather short intro to Mind Your Manners, and Ed joins in. Prior to Stone’s solo in Do the Evolution, Ed tells the crowd, “…you got it, I think you wrote this,” and has the crowd singing back his “yeah, yeah,” pitching his voice high and low to test the crowd’s quality. Following Dissident, the crowd sings “Olé, olé, olé, hola San Diego” prompting Ed to respond “wow, thank you, gracias, gracias.” Even Flow is introduced as “one we played at our first show, which was 25 years ago and one month, and we are here to prove we play it better now than we used to,” with Mike nodding in agreement. Mass chanting along to the beat throughout, and even after the song finishes, causing Ed to offer “I think this crowd is our favorite band.” Grievance is introduced as “this one’s for Seattle.” Throughout the encore break, the crowd continues their own show, chanting and singing. When the band returns, Ed addresses the crowd during the intro of Footsteps: 

May I share something with you? For some of us on the stage and probably some of you out there, it’s just part of life, but for some of us it’s been an incredibly difficult year. With all the many things we are blessed with, each other and the crew, and all the people we know and work with, we lost some people very dear to us this year. There have been times this year when some of us had a very difficult time figuring out even how to live and how to keep living in the absence of these people we cared about so much. I just can’t tell you that to come here you bring such great energy, strength and support…I just can’t tell you how much we appreciate it and never more than now.

Jeff emerges at the end of the show wearing a Fabricio Oberto Argentine National (basketball) team jersey. Before Leaving Here, Ed has the camera show a sign which reads “Ni Una Menos,” which translates to “Not One Less,” a grassroots feminist movement to end gender-based violence which began in Argentina. Ed continues, ”…obviously it’s not a problem here, but if you take this message to other people it is sure something that we support…I mean we support the end of gender-based violence…we call on you to stand up for the women in your lives and everywhere.  Not one less.” To no one’s surprise, the crowd takes over Better Man from Ed. Red Mosquito is introduced as ”Mosquito Roja.” Black is spectacular, an emotional singalong, Ed clapping and bowing to the audience for their effort, they take over the outro of the song, Matt drives Baba O’Riley home before the Indifference finale, with rhythmic clapping as well as the crowd singing the “I will scream my lungs out” line. Before exiting, Ed intimates “It’s changed our lives to get to play for you people.” One of the loudest and best crowds the band has ever played for, a night filled with energy.


November 4, 2015 – Estadio Nacional, Santiago, CHL

Show Notes:

The band returns to South America to a vociferous welcome, as the crowd screams and chants through Pendulum, Release, and Nothingman. Ed briefly stops after Corduroy to ask the band’s head of security, Pete, if everyone in the crowd is…

Show Notes: 

The band returns to South America to a vociferous welcome, as the crowd screams and chants through Pendulum, Release, and Nothingman. Ed briefly stops after Corduroy to ask the band’s head of security, Pete, if everyone in the crowd is okay before continuing into Lightning Bolt. Following the song, Ed addresses the crowd in Spanish, explaining that it is the fifth time they have been to Santiago and talks about the crowds singing outside the band’s hotel. He also mentions a local radio station and gives his best impression of their call sign, to much laughter from both the audience and band. More hilarity after Even Flow, as Ed comments that Mike doesn’t speak Spanish, but can play guitar, before Mike makes a small gesture with his hand, to say he knows some Spanish. Upon seeing the hand gesture, Ed says, “I don’t want to know about the size of your penis. Oh, you speak a little Spanish?” Mike then says “Un poquito [a bit]…it covers both things,” which is met by cheering from the crowd, and Ed replies “un poquito is muy bueno” [a bit is very good]. Ed then takes a serious turn by stating many people in Chile have had a difficult year and that “it’s nice to have so many people together so we can try to heal a bit together.” Light Years is dedicated to a couple who had tickets to the show but sadly passed away after a road accident, and to “anyone else who needs it.” Daughter is tagged with an improvisation, with Ed singing “She said no” several times. RVM stretches out to almost 8 minutes. During the break, Ed addresses the crowd in Spanish, thanking the crowd for the invitation to play in Santiago. Returning to English, he dedicates the next song to a couple who met at a show and have now had a baby, offering “…apparently after the show there was a little bit of fucking…enough to have a baby,” and that the band will now play their wedding song, Just Breathe. The audience illuminates the stadium with the lights on their phones for Imagine. U2 deep cut “40” (from 1983’s War) makes its PJ tag debut during Black, Ed repeating “how long…how long to sing this song…” It’s all fan favorites to close out the night, the crowd spurring the band on with “Olé” chants. Before the band leaves the stage, Ed shouts “Viva Chile!” and once again thanks the crowd: “We’ll see you again, thank you so much for coming…thank you.”

 


September 26, 2015 – Central Park, New York City, NY, USA

Show Notes:

Ed greets the crowd with a “Good evening…I think a toast is in order, here’s to New York City, here’s to Central Park, here’s to you,” before hitting the ground running with Mind Your Manners and Do The Evolution. Before…

Show Notes: 

Ed greets the crowd with a “Good evening…I think a toast is in order, here’s to New York City, here’s to Central Park, here’s to you,” before hitting the ground running with Mind Your Manners and Do The Evolution. Before launching into Given to Fly, Ed says, “Hey, this one’s for Malala” (referencing Malala Yousafzai who had been on stage just prior to Pearl Jam). Before a beautiful Unthought Known, Ed tells the story of how the song was written:

Just so happens that four or five years back, between about 4 or 5 in the morning, overlooking Central Park right over there in that corner…I was still awake at four in the morning and I saw the most beautiful evening sky over Central Park, the streets were empty, the stars were out which was very rare, I’d never seen it. and then, and then, I should have been gettin’ some sleep but I started scribbling lyrics and it felt like you couldn’t walk out of there, I couldn’t go to sleep because there was magic happening in front of me…and um…and then I got to see the sun rise over this beautiful part of this great city. And when I woke up in the morning, I thought it was just going to be a bunch of scribble and uh, which it was, but I was actually able to record a bit of it and and it was kind of nice to play it back and it wasn’t the worst thing I’d ever done…it could never capture what I saw that night but to have the opportunity to play it in the middle of the thing that inspired it is something I would have never anticipated.  

Stone starts to play the opening lick to Alive, and then Ed promptly stops him, saying I just wanted to say something before he played that song. You know this is really an incredible experience, because you’re surrounded by all these incredible activists on stage, in the back, world leaders, heads of business, people who have chosen to become resolved and decide to make change, but never before have we played for an audience full, 100% full of activists, and it’s an incredible feeling and we just want to thank you for making this wave of hope that can ride and it can grow and I hope it smashes on the shore of cynicism and apathy and we make global poverty…that in the near future, we make global poverty a thing of the past…so, uh, thanks for having us here, it’s been a blast…

Ed unsuccessfully tries to lead the crowd in the “yeah” (fist pumping) chant during what was an incredible solo by Mike, perhaps due to their inexperience (by PJ standards). After a short break, Ed comes out with an acoustic guitar and gives a very heartfelt tribute to John Lennon before playing Imagine. Beyoncé is introduced as the crowd erupts, and they play Redemption Song, its first appearance at a PJ show since 1995! During the bridge, Ed continues strumming while Beyoncé does some improvisational scatting and a video of Nelson Mandela’s famous “Make Poverty History” speech plays in the background. Ed thanks Hugh Evans, the organizer of the festival, and invites “everybody that wants to come play, come play, good night, this is it!” and as the band launches into Rockin’ in the Free World, the stage fills up with people, including Sir Richard Branson, Kerry Washington, Olivia Wilde and so many more, with Stone getting a real kick out of one-time Seattle resident Bill Nye fanning his fingers during the solo.