May 22, 2024 – KIA Forum, Los Angeles, CA, USA

Pearl Jam Show Notes 5/22/2024:

Midway through Long Road, Ed starts to talk as the band continues to play, getting more emotional as he goes on:

“Um, my….[takes a deep breath]…I was going to tell you about my…sorry. There’s a guy in my life called Uncle John…John Vedder…he took me to some of my first concerts, he taught me how to play baseball, he took me to early Cubs games. He…he kinda shaped me from an early age and, um, it’s been ten years since he passed away…today. So, um, and it’s been a long ten years, because the days got longer, because I appreciated every day. I appreciated every day and I wanted to live every day in his name. And, the days got longer, and then, because I missed him, the days got longer. So anyways, before I felt, um, I just had to get it out of my system before we played tonight. So, with your help…”

He continues the song, a powerful version, Matt pounding out an almost funereal march beat. The crowd steps up on Nothingman, with the lights up. Jeff is prominent on Present Tense, lots of fluid bass runs. Afterwards, Ed talks about the previous night, saying “it was quite a crowd, but you think you can beat it? Convince me!” Go is played with a noticeably slower tempo, and with the silhouettes on the screen. Before Wreckage, Ed says “this love song…it’s got a happy ending. If it was another 30 seconds long you’d hear it…” and dedicates it to “Benmont [Tench, of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers] and Alice” and their daughter. The line in Untitled is changed to “…34 minutes or so” (Ed’s wearing a #34 Walter Payton jersey). All Those Yesterdays is a superb version, led by Stone. Afterwards, Ed asks Mike “Whatcha got tonight?” and they tear into Even Flow. Following, Ed says “Can we talk drummers for a second?” He mentions that Chad Smith and Jack Irons are in attendance, and that he saw a picture of Taylor Hawkins backstage. Prior to Won’t Tell, he asks Jeff “Who’s #33? Kareem? Sweet Lew?” Mike is inspired during Black, almost knocking over his amps during the solo, a roadie has to come stabilize them. Ed sings a little of Petty’s “The Waiting” during the outro. There’s no projector action during the encore break tonight, Ed comes out and talks about taking requests, adding that “I feel like I’m a waitress at Denny’s and I need to check your ID before you get your free meal.” He sees a sign that it’s Rich’s 250th show, joking “I feel like I’ve only been to 250…” There’s another sign for someone named Jasmine who’s turning 40, adding “I hope all your dreams come true…except if you want Trump to be President,” and then says that since she’s been to so many shows he doesn’t have to worry about that. He continues, telling the story of picking his guitars for the tour and how Petty’s guitar stood out, leading into I Won’t Back Down. He asks for the last chorus one more time and the crowd obliges. Stone shines on Do the Evolution. After Alive, Ed says his mom is in the crowd tonight. Andrew Watt again joins for Rockin’, along with Chad Smith and the members of Deep Sea Diver. Ed prefaces Setting Sun with “…we wouldn’t be here without you…”