Pearl Jam Ontario Concert History

List of Pearl Jam Concerts in Ontario

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September 8, 2022 – Scotiabank Arena, Toronto, ONT, CAN

Main Set: Daughter/(Improv), Come Back, Sometimes, Her Majesty, All Those Yesterdays, River Cross, (Interstellar Overdrive)/Corduroy, Hail, Hail, Deep, Quick Escape, Even Flow, Who Ever Said/((I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction), I Got Shit/(Cinnamon Girl), Never Destination, Dissident, Lukin, Rearviewmirror

encore 1: Light Years, Do The Evolution, Last Kiss, Jeremy, (Leash), Alive, Rockin’ In The Free World

Show Notes:

The improv on Daughter is based around the line “it’s in my hands.” After Sometimes, Ed says he’s going to play one he “borrowed” from Paul McCartney, and he plays the Beatles’ “Her Majesty” for the first time, no doubt…

Show Notes: 

The improv on Daughter is based around the line “it’s in my hands.” After Sometimes, Ed says he’s going to play one he “borrowed” from Paul McCartney, and he plays the Beatles’ “Her Majesty” for the first time, no doubt a tribute to the Queen who had died earlier in the day. Prior to Even Flow, he sees a sign that says “I (heart) U Eddy” and he points out the misspelling, referring back to a show in 1993 where there was a sign propositioning him that used the same incorrect spelling. He then mentions the Elton John show taking place in the city that night and sings a tease of Tiny Dancer, saying he always heard the line as “…count the head lice on the highway,” and then jokes about Mike’s mishearing of the line in Kiss’ “Rock And Roll All Night” as “…and part of every day.” Cinnamon Girl returns as a tag on I Got Shit for the first time since 2011! After the break, Ed talks about being in Canada and says that one of his favorite tours was the 2005 run. Someone has a sign for EB and Ed again talks about how the band is committed to helping find a cure and how it’s “a matter of time.” There’s another banner, this one says “Play Light Years for Gord,” Gord Downie being the singer of the Tragically Hip who passed away in 2017, and the request is fulfilled. Last Kiss is played to the back, its first appearance since 2018. Stone starts Leash after Jeremy but breaks a string and the song is aborted in favor of Alive. 

September 6, 2022 – First Ontario Centre, Hamilton, ONT, CAN

Main Set: Oceans, Nothingman, Yellow Moon, Man Of The Hour, Retrograde, Given To Fly, Who Ever Said, Red Mosquito, Dance Of The Clairvoyants, Corduroy, Quick Escape, I Am Mine, Daughter, I'm Open, Sad, Superblood Wolfmoon, Do The Evolution, Black/(Androgynous Mind)(We Belong Together), Porch

encore 1: Inside Job, Once, Wishlist, State Of Love And Trust, Alive, Indifference

Show Notes:

A completely different seated set for the 3rd show in a row. Ed exclaims “you sound good!” during Nothingman, and his voice sounds great again as well. After Yellow Moon, he says they’re going to play one they don’t play…

Show Notes: 

A completely different seated set for the 3rd show in a row. Ed exclaims “you sound good!” during Nothingman, and his voice sounds great again as well. After Yellow Moon, he says they’re going to play one they don’t play very often “for a special member of your community…and of the Pearl Jam community” and Man of the Hour is played for a man named Richard. Retrograde is started seated, but Mike stands up for the solo and the rest of the band follows shortly. The ending is loose and chaotic, very impressive. Ed interjects “Devo, Devo!” into the Satisfaction tag in Who Ever Said to drive the point home of exactly who they’re covering. Following Who Ever Said, he jokes that he told his daughter they were playing Hamilton and her response was “…you’re doing the whole thing?” Corduroy is dedicated to Gordie Howe, Detroit, Justin Trudeau, and Mark Bell, among others, after name-dropping that Paul McCartney told him not to name-drop. Mike goes behind the head for the Quick Escape solo. Ed tells a long, meandering story before I Am Mine. Sad returns for the first time since Wrigley 2016 after being cut from the previous two sets. Ed does a little “hey hey it’s okay” Androgynous Mind tag before going into a short “we didn’t belong together” riff. Mike is a standout on the Porch jam, he’s on the floor by the end of it. After the break, Ed talks about EB and points out a brave young person in the crowd. Wishlist is played for the back of the arena. No covers on the night, just a celebratory Alive and a singalong Indifference with the lights up.

“as long as we’ve been together, there’s been a few disagreements over the years…we have strong opinions, we don’t always agree…but there’s one thing we all agree on, hands down, no doubt, that one of the greatest humans on the planet Earth is Mr. Neil Young…”

Afterwards, Ed tells a quick story about being a kid and his parents not letting him go see the Jackson 5, who were his favorite, joking “I never really forgave them,” and Wishlist is dedicated to Sienna and Cole, 8 and 10-year olds whose dad brought them to the show. Mike takes a long solo on Even Flow, going back to his amp for part of it, stretching the song out to 8 minutes. It’s storytime again, Ed talks about waiting tables in Chicago at 18 years old and having to sing happy birthday to all the various tables and how he hated doing it, but they’ve had a lot of birthday requests on this tour and he’ll make an exception, and then goes on to mention a few birthdays. The call and response on Corduroy has a little extra emphasis behind it from Ed, who leads the crowd up and down. Mike takes over Immortality and Black. Following Jeremy, Ed talks about a woman named Ashley who was in the front in Quebec City and motions for her to come up to the front, playing a short improv about her as she makes her way up to the stage. He says he got a note from her

“and she said in this note that our music has saved her time and time again…but I just want to tell you all this: that it’s YOU who keeps US healthy to keep playing, that keeps us together so we can keep playing…that makes us friends still, so we can still be here to keep playing…all you folks have really kept us alive, so WE thank YOU…it’s the truth…”

He mentions Ashley again and a couple more people, and says this next one is dedicated to them, before kicking right into Porch. After the break, Ed talks about the livestream of the Foo Fighters’ Taylor Hawkins tribute show and the “indelible energy that Taylor had, the infectious energy, the undeniable energy that this guy had,” and also mentions Gord Downie from the Tragically Hip, which gets a nice crowd response. Ed says that Taylor had sent him a video of his son Shane playing drums on a David Bowie song with his side project, and “he was so proud of him, as he should have been” (Shane played drums on the Foo’s song “My Hero” at the tribute show). He continues, sending well wishes to Taylor’s family and the Foo Fighters family before Better Man. Small Town is played to the back. Josh and Boom get a shout out before Crazy Mary, with Mike and Boom dueling and then combining for the finish. Fuckin’ Up makes its first appearance since 2018, and Ed makes sure to thank everyone in the back before Yellow Ledbetter ends the night.

September 3, 2022 – Canadian Tire Centre, Ottawa, ONT, CAN

Main Set: Of The Girl, Garden, Alright, Nothing As It Seems, Low Light, Given To Fly, Do The Evolution, Wishlist/(Waiting On A Friend), Dance Of The Clairvoyants, Even Flow, Seven O'Clock, Corduroy, Immortality, Black/(We Belong Together), Jeremy, Porch

encore 1: Better Man, Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town, Crazy Mary, Alive, Fuckin' Up, Yellow Ledbetter

Show Notes:

Stools are out again for the first 5 songs, looks like this will continue going forward, at least for the rest of this leg. Garden is a surprise for the acoustic set, although Mike is on an electric. Alright has…

Show Notes: 

Stools are out again for the first 5 songs, looks like this will continue going forward, at least for the rest of this leg. Garden is a surprise for the acoustic set, although Mike is on an electric. Alright has a very chilled out, relaxed feel. Ed says they’re going to do a couple like this (seated), “but once we get going…no turning back.” After NAIS, he gives credit to Jeff, saying “those were some compositions by Mr. Jeff Ament. Can we get a little…low light here,” teasing the next song and pointing out a woman in the front doing a “Beyonce dance” that he noticed while singing, and dedicates Low Light to her. The line in Given to Fly is changed to “…made it north of the border…” Stone takes the spotlight with dynamite solos on Evolution and Throw Your Hatred Down. Ed talks about Neil Young before the latter, saying

“as long as we’ve been together, there’s been a few disagreements over the years…we have strong opinions, we don’t always agree…but there’s one thing we all agree on, hands down, no doubt, that one of the greatest humans on the planet Earth is Mr. Neil Young…”

Afterwards, Ed tells a quick story about being a kid and his parents not letting him go see the Jackson 5, who were his favorite, joking “I never really forgave them,” and Wishlist is dedicated to Sienna and Cole, 8 and 10-year olds whose dad brought them to the show. Mike takes a long solo on Even Flow, going back to his amp for part of it, stretching the song out to 8 minutes. It’s storytime again, Ed talks about waiting tables in Chicago at 18 years old and having to sing happy birthday to all the various tables and how he hated doing it, but they’ve had a lot of birthday requests on this tour and he’ll make an exception, and then goes on to mention a few birthdays. The call and response on Corduroy has a little extra emphasis behind it from Ed, who leads the crowd up and down. Mike takes over Immortality and Black. Following Jeremy, Ed talks about a woman named Ashley who was in the front in Quebec City and motions for her to come up to the front, playing a short improv about her as she makes her way up to the stage. He says he got a note from her

  “and she said in this note that our music has saved her time and time again…but I just want to tell you all this: that it’s YOU who keeps US healthy to keep playing, that keeps us together so we can keep playing…that makes us friends still, so we can still be here to keep playing…all you folks have really kept us alive, so WE thank YOU…it’s the truth…”

He mentions Ashley again and a couple more people, and says this next one is dedicated to them, before kicking right into Porch. After the break, Ed talks about the livestream of the Foo Fighters’ Taylor Hawkins tribute show and the “indelible energy that Taylor had, the infectious energy, the undeniable energy that this guy had,” and also mentions Gord Downie from the Tragically Hip, which gets a nice crowd response. Ed says that Taylor had sent him a video of his son Shane playing drums on a David Bowie song with his side project, and “he was so proud of him, as he should have been” (Shane played drums on the Foo’s song “My Hero” at the tribute show). He continues, sending well wishes to Taylor’s family and the Foo Fighters family before Better Man. Small Town is played to the back. Josh and Boom get a shout out before Crazy Mary, with Mike and Boom dueling and then combining for the finish. Fuckin’ Up makes its first appearance since 2018, and Ed makes sure to thank everyone in the back before Yellow Ledbetter ends the night.

May 12, 2016 – Air Canada Centre, Toronto, ON, CAN

Main Set: Why Go, Corduroy, Mind Your Manners, Brain of J., Animal, Garden, I am Mine, Nothingman, Cropduster, Even Flow, Daughter/(Blitzkrieg Bop/W.M.A.), Green Disease, Unthought Known, Present Tense, Alone, Lightning Bolt, Do the Evolution, Blood

encore 1: Just Breathe, Oceans, Inside Job, Breath, Lukin, Porch

encore 2: Last Kiss, Last Exit, Better Man, Crazy Mary, Black, Alive, Baba O'Riley, Yellow Ledbetter

Show Notes:

Jeff is wearing a t-shirt that reads “WE THE NORTH WEST,” a running theme started at the first Toronto show two nights before. The greeting comes before the callback in Corduroy with “welcome to the last show,” describing it as…

Show Notes: 

Jeff is wearing a t-shirt that reads “WE THE NORTH WEST,” a running theme started at the first Toronto show two nights before. The greeting comes before the callback in Corduroy with “welcome to the last show,” describing it as feeling like the “last day of school, let’s make a night of it.” During Brain of J., Jeff ducks and then laughs as Ed rushes to catch something dropped from above. After Animal, Ed says “good things been happening in this building in the last couple days,” in reference to the first Toronto date and the NBA playoff game the previous night, and toasts to being able to play the last show in Toronto. Following Garden, Ed mentions the victims of the forest fires in Alberta and Manitoba evacuated days earlier and that the band will continue to “send some dough their way” from concert proceeds, and dedicates I Am Mine to “being safe and secure, however temporarily.” Good crowd participation during Nothingman. After Cropduster, Ed explains the origin of the line “let the fluency set it down” as coming from drinking wine with an Italian who didn’t speak perfect English, he figured he was trying to say “‘go with the flow’ or something…but then I thought ‘that’s really kind of amazing,’ so I’ve been letting the fluency set it down for quite some time now.” He goes on to tease about most big cities having their own “monument or erection…of course, you here have the band Rush, that’s a monument…we’ve been playing for 25 years and if we wanted to learn a Rush song we’d probably have to play for 25 more,” to which Mike plays a few chords of “Fly by Night” followed by Jeff and Matt with “Cygnus X-1”. Ed returns to monuments/erections by citing the Space Needle and introducing Even Flow as being written right below it. A drum solo by Matt tops off another impressive solo performance by Mike. Ed switches the lyrics to “white male Canadian” during the W.M.A. tag. Prior to Alone, Ed thanks the crowd for their singing and teases “Right now we’d like to play the whole Binaural record for you.” Ed promotes EB research funding during the break and thanks Dr. Elena Pope at the U of T-Hospital for Sick Children for signing onto the effort. On being shown a French flag, he recalls the terrorist attack at the Eagles of Death Metal concert in Paris the year before and dedicates Just Breathe to a fan and victim, Pierre-Antoine Henry, and his kids. Breath is dedicated to their friend Michele (Anthony), who “specialized in working with difficult artists, and we wouldn’t be here without her.” During the Porch breakdown, he lifts up his guitar under a stage light and uses it to reflect light onto people all throughout the audience. The second encore starts with another compliment, “you make it very difficult to leave,” before trolling the audience with “whatever happened to the Toronto Maple Leafs?” During Better Man, Ed holds the song in a loop and banters for three minutes about looking forward to going home, having just taken a quick shot of tequila backstage, a driver on the first stop of the tour speaking offensively, the contrast between that start to the tour and the end in an exemplary city. Boom is introduced before Crazy Mary, Mike jams alongside him on a fiery solo while Ed enters the crowd to mingle. Toronto native Donna Grantis is again introduced to join the band for Baba O’Riley (after also playing at the previous show), and Ed acknowledges Geddy Lee at the side of the stage, to which the band plays a bit of Cygnus X-1 again. Ed signs off with a personal “see ya, JP” to a fan he sang Thin Air with at the first show, before addressing the entire crowd: “We the northwest, a pleasure being in the north,” and signs off as Geddy Vedder one last time.

Written by: Eric Stevenson Gonzalez

May 10, 2016 – Air Canada Centre, Toronto, ON, CAN

Main Set: Go, Do the Evolution, Mind Your Manners, Breakerfall, God’s Dice, Evacuation, Light Years, Nothing as it Seems, Thin Air, Insignificance, Of the Girl, Grievance, Rival, Sleight of Hand, Soon Forget, Parting Ways, Corduroy, Once, Rearviewmirror

encore 1: Imagine, Let Me Sleep, Comfortably Numb, Even Flow, Down, Better Man/(Save It For Later), Porch

encore 2: Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town, Given To Fly, State Of Love And Trust, Black/(Time Heals), The Real Me, Alive, Rockin’ in the Free World

Show Notes:

Crowd erupts as the intro of Go is played just like on the album. A thunderous Mind Your Manners precedes the Binaural set, with Ed mentioning that they have the next night off (the second Toronto date was pushed back…

Show Notes: 

Crowd erupts as the intro of Go is played just like on the album. A thunderous Mind Your Manners precedes the Binaural set, with Ed mentioning that they have the next night off (the second Toronto date was pushed back a day by their NBA playoff game). He then talks about how the first time in Toronto they played seven songs, and then auctions how many they’ll play that night, “nine, 10… can I get a 13… 18 in the back.” A longer solo from Mike on Breakerfall helps tear open the album set. Evacuation is introduced with a reflection about fire alarms and expecting to be told it’s a false alarm, remembering the over 88,000 people evacuated days earlier due to wildfires in northern Alberta. Ed introduces Thin Air by explaining that it’s one of his personal favorites of Stone’s: “if we ever had a popular song, this would be the one” and describes how he’d imagined a love song-style video. Near the end, he visits the crowd, takes a fan’s hand, and puts his arm around him while they both sing the last chorus together, essentially recreating his idea for the video. Back onstage, Ed quips “What’s your name? JP? Meet you after the show, handsome.” Ed enters Sleight of Hand too early, Stone stops playing immediately and Ed gestures to the band to start over while pointing to himself to accept the blame, then turns back and tells the crowd “the thing about vinyl records is sometimes they skip…let me clean the needle.” The song is restarted and finishes strong. Soon Forget is prefaced with “it wasn’t written about anybody in particular…now I realize it’s exactly about Donald Trump” before going on to muse about the band moving to Canada and Ed changing his name to Geddy Vedder in honor of Rush. The crowd whistles back at the “we’re all whistling” line and Ed eggs them on, hanging on to that chord. Ed holds out the last note in Parting Ways for several seconds amidst guitar feedback, pick scraping, and resolute drumming. Corduroy has an extra burst at the end, and a breakdown jam on Rearviewmirror featuring a Jeff and Matt standoff. The second set opens with Ed checking on the crowd and counting off all their good memories of Toronto, including all the other bands they’ve seen play, and joking about how good Soundgarden’s drummer was as a prelude to introducing Matt. Here he announces the band will donate money from their Canada shows to help wildfire victims in Alberta and lists the benefitting groups, before asking the audience to light up the room with their phones for the cover of Imagine. Let Me Sleep is played as a nod to the cold. Even Flow picks things back up and sounds like it has an extra groove to it: Mike puts the guitar behind his head and ventures out to the crowd for the first part of an extended, feedback-laden solo that earns Ed’s applause, and Ed tosses the mic into the crowd for fans to sing the last chorus. Down is dedicated to Howard Zinn, “the ultimate ‘positimist,’ that’s not a word, but….” Ed teases the crowd with a long pause and a swig of wine before a sustained “ohhh-oh-oh” to open the second verse of Better Man. Matt, Jeff, and Ed fling, headbutt, and practice boxing with the lamps that have lowered to stage level during Porch, and give the first encore an amped-up finish with Ed mingling in the crowd and sipping a fan’s beer. Ed starts the second encore with the observation “if they got a crowd tomorrow with this much energy tonight they might win it all” and identifies the band and Toronto as both being from the north: “there’s power in north, north points up.” After Given To Fly, Ed calls everyone’s attention to a fan who’s spent the entire show in a bright orange ski mask and references having worn one at a show by Jeff’s band RNDM but “I didn’t last three songs in that fucking thing…I commend you” and jokingly introduces the fan as Matt Damon (who was evidently in attendance in a different part of the arena).. Black winds down with the Todd Rundgren “Time Heals” tag. The Real Me is introduced by Ed saying “We borrowed a couple of great songs tonight, we’re gonna borrow one more.” Toronto native and Prince guitarist Donna Grantis is welcomed onstage to close the show with Rockin’ in the Free World and steals the show, earning a “we’re not worthy” bow from Mike.

Written By: Eric Stevenson Gonzalez

May 8, 2016 – Canadian Tires Centre, Ottawa, ON, CAN

Main Set: Lightning Bolt, Mind Your Manners, Do the Evolution, Save You, Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town, Love Boat Captain, Deep, Faithfull, I Am Mine, Even Flow, Setting Forth, Corduroy, Immortality, Given to Fly, Big Wave, Why Go, Jeremy, Porch

encore 1: Bee Girl, Speed of Sound, Parachutes, Sirens, Love, Reign O’er Me, Better Man, Blood

encore 2: All I Want is You, Wasted Reprise, Life Wasted, Black, Alive, Fuckin’ Up

Show Notes:

Lightning Bolt opens for only the second time, and includes the line “…towards the Great White North…” Ed greets the crowd before Small Town, talking about Trump, the fires in Alberta, and “the fact that Canada doesn’t have a team…

Show Notes: 

Lightning Bolt opens for only the second time, and includes the line “…towards the Great White North…” Ed greets the crowd before Small Town, talking about Trump, the fires in Alberta, and “the fact that Canada doesn’t have a team in the NHL playoffs” as signs of the end of the world “so let’s do some singing and try to make the world right tonight!” Love Boat Captain includes the “let the show begin” line. A fan in the front gets to sing on Faithfull. After Even Flow, Ed mentions that Into the Wild author Jon Krakauer is in the crowd tonight and how his books had a profound effect on him, leading into Setting Forth. Big Wave is played for the first time since 2014 for all the surfers in the crowd, Ed saying he knows that there are at least two. 3 songs from Ten close out the set, and during the encore, Ed makes a toast to his brothers Jason and Chris, who are in attendance. A few rare songs are broken out after the break, beginning with Bee Girl, and the tour debuts of Speed of Sound and Parachutes. Not to be outdone, Love, Reign O’er Me is played for the first time since 2013. Encore 2 starts with Ed playing part of the U2 song “All I Want Is You” on the acoustic guitar. Mike and Stone really bring it during Black, blistering solos by both that bring the crowd to a crescendo. Matt goes nuts at the end of Alive, bashing everything in sight. Fuckin’ Up is for their “favorite Canadian” (if you have to ask at this point…) Great energy from the crowd and band all evening on what most would consider Pearl Jam’s 1000th show.

Written by: Ryan Franke

July 16, 2013 – Budweiser Gardens, London, ONT, CAN

Main Set: Present Tense, Nothingman, Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town, (London Calling)/Corduroy, Mind Your Manners, Got Some, Given To Fly, Sad, Alone, Even Flow, I Got Id, In Hiding, Lukin, Not For You/(Modern Girl), Black, Porch

encore 1: Last Exit, Last Kiss, Parachutes, Man Of The Hour, Just Breathe, Daughter, Unthought Known, Do The Evolution

encore 2: Smile, Brain Of J., Better Man, Alive, Rockin’ In The Free World, Indifference

Show Notes:

This pre-Wrigley warm-up gig, at the relatively intimate Budweiser Gardens Arena (formerly the John Labatt Centre) where they first visited during the ’05 Canadian jaunt, ratchets up the energy with the first Present Tense opener since 2005. Things stay relatively…

Show Notes: 

This pre-Wrigley warm-up gig, at the relatively intimate Budweiser Gardens Arena (formerly the John Labatt Centre) where they first visited during the ’05 Canadian jaunt, ratchets up the energy with the first Present Tense opener since 2005. Things stay relatively mellow early, as the band follows up with a heartfelt Nothingman and crowd favorite Elderly Woman. Gears shift with a brief intro tag romp of The Clash’s stomp London Calling into a Corduroy that features an extended jam in the bridge and the first of several excellent Mike solos of the night. The first and only debut of the night is the bottom-driven Mind Your Manners; despite a couple of mic problems for Ed, it gets a solid reception. The remainder of the main set includes back-to-back rarities of Sad and Alone. Mike rides the band’s collective energy with some emotionally rich solos on Even Flow, a passionate Black, and some dueling guitar with Stone on Porch. During Porch, oversized light bulbs in a red and green glow are dropped from the rafters. The first encore kicks hard and fast with Last Exit, and quickly moves into a mellower zone with Parachutes and Man of the Hour.  The second encore features a terrific Smile, backed by a surprise late show Brain of J. The night comes to a close, lights up, with Indifference. A fun and energetic warm up, setting the table for the rest of the year.

September 15, 2011 – Copps Coliseum, Hamilton, ON, CAN

Main Set: Given To Fly, The Fixer, Severed Hand, Corduroy, Hail, Hail, U, Immortality, Setting Forth, Not For You, Ole, Even Flow, Cropduster, Daughter/(Blitzkrieg Bop), Habit, Push Me, Pull Me, Just Breathe, Jeremy, Why Go

encore 1: Nothingman, I Remember You, Better Man/(I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend), Black, State Of Love And Trust, Porch

encore 2: Brain Of J., Unthought Known, Crazy Mary, Search And Destroy, Alive, Yellow Ledbetter

Show Notes:

The city was buzzing in the build up with being the fourth and final Ontario show. Eddie speaks often throughout the show about how great the crowd is that evening. The date also marked the 7th anniversary of the passing…

Show Notes: 

The city was buzzing in the build up with being the fourth and final Ontario show. Eddie speaks often throughout the show about how great the crowd is that evening. The date also marked the 7th anniversary of the passing of Johnny Ramone, which will become an overarching theme in the set. The crowd roared as the band took to the stage and opened with Given to Fly. Lyrics are changed to ‘made it to the hammer, had a smoke in a tree’, which is the affectionate nickname for city Hamilton. Severed Hand was roaring, and Mike’s solo got the crowd fired up for Corduroy. After Hail, Hail, Ed compares the crowd to a wave and the band as a surfer and says they are continuing to paddle and catch waves tonight. He then mentions that he was talking to Uncle Neil back in Toronto who said ‘just so you know what people are saying behind your back, you will have fun in Ottawa but Hamilton is going to go off!’ After Immortality, Ed introduces Matt Cameron and declares he picked the next song, Setting Forth. This transitions excellently into Not For You. During the bridge, a snippet of Bang the Gong by T-Rex was blended in. Daughter has a Blitzkrieg Bop tag that begins the nod to Johnny Ramone. Ed’s voice was strong during a rocking version and rare appearance of Habit. There is a bit of a false start during Push Me, Pull Me as Ed states he always gets nervous before it. The main set ends with a strong Why Go.

Ed again compliments the crowd’s excitement to start the encore. After, Nothingman Ed speaks about the anniversary of Johnny Ramone’s passing. He tells heartfelt story of being with Johnny at the end of his life:

“I’m grateful I got to be there with a few other friends and his wife, at one point later in the night he took his last breaths sitting in this chair that kinda reclined, and by the end of the night he was just lying in the chair. He looked like he was sleeping. My little daughter, my first daughter, was only 3 months old and she was bundled up in her little chair and she was sleeping. It was like you look up at the sky and saw John and saw my daughter on the other side of me and said like ok, I fucking get it, ok. Like the circle of life, the cycle of life. I get it. I mean… does it have to be so painful? But that’s the thing with John and friends and relatives, people close to you, still live on inside of you. And in Johnny’s case, inside the great music of the Ramones.”

This leads into an OTOTO cover of The Ramones I Remember You. Better Man features another Ramone tag, I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend, into a strong Black with a We Belong Together tag, once again referencing the Ramones.

Encore 2 begins with a fan request via a large sign for Brain of J. After Crazy Mary, Ed conducts band introductions and speaks to the 20th anniversary. Mark Arm and Steve Turner of Mudhoney are brought out to cover Search and Destroy for the first time this tour. The show is wrapped up with Alive into Ledbetter providing a perfect ending to their run in Ontario.

September 14, 2011 – Scotiabank Place, Ottawa, ON, CAN

Main Set: Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town, Last Exit, Do The Evolution, MFC, Unthought Known, Low Light, Given To Fly, Setting Forth, Whipping, Corduroy, Even Flow, Grievance, Lukin, Breath, Wishlist, Ole, 1/2 Full, Better Man/(Save It For Later)

encore 1: The End, Inside Job, Just Breathe, Off He Goes, Why Go, The Fixer, Rearviewmirror

encore 2: Come Back, The Real Me, Alive, Yellow Ledbetter

Show Notes:

After a couple shows in Toronto, the boys traveled northeast to pay a visit to the nation’s capital. It was their first performance in Ottawa since 2005. Eddie made note of that during the opening song, Elderly Woman, by changing…

Show Notes: 

After a couple shows in Toronto, the boys traveled northeast to pay a visit to the nation’s capital. It was their first performance in Ottawa since 2005. Eddie made note of that during the opening song, Elderly Woman, by changing the lyrics to “my God it’s been six years…” before letting the crowd take over part of the chorus. After the sing-a-long start, they ramped up the energy with Last Exit and then went on to play four from Yield within the next five songs, with Unthought Known was thrown in as well. For the 4th show in a row, the band played Setting Forth off of Eddie’s Into the Wild solo record. A couple fast paced Vitalogy tracks and Even Flow followed. Eddie then points out two flags in the audience and directs the next song to one of them and pledges his Grievance. A typically quick Lukin leads into Breath, where Jeff’s bass work is very noticeable for good reasons. Ed talks about wildest dreams and gives a shout out to the Wishlist Foundation as it was the 5th anniversary of the organization, and thanks the founder. Wishlist is played and dedicated to the founder. An improvised tag is added to the end with these lyrics:

“I wish for nothing cuz we got
so much more than we ever thought
my one desire is no desire
giving gifts gets you so much higher
and actions speak so much louder than words
we hereby thank Laura for hers
we thank you too cuz as good as its been
it’s beyond our wildest dreams”

New song, Ole, is played for just the third time before closing out the main set with 1/2 Full and Better Man. Eddie comes out by himself for the first encore and says that because of the sadness he hopes no one can relate to the next song and plays The End. The band joins him as they go through Inside Job and Just Breathe. Ed asks the crowd if they want another campfire song or if they should get to the rockers? He teases Off He Goes and the cheers lead them to play the full song. As promised, the rest of the encore set is full of rockers capped off with a seven and a half minute version of Rearviewmirror. Returning for the second encore, Ed says that he hopes it doesn’t take six more years for them to visit again, and mentions that the next song was a fan request as Come Back is performed. The band finishes off the night with The Real Me, Alive and Yellow Ledbetter.

September 12, 2011 – Air Canada Centre, Toronto, ON, CAN

Main Set: Go, Animal, Ole, Hail, Hail, In My Tree, Sad, Dissident, Setting Forth, Corudroy, God's Dice, Deep, Garden, Wishlist, Even Flow, Present Tense, Rats, State Of Love And Trust, The Fixer, Porch

encore 1: Last Kiss, Just Breathe, I Got Id/(Cinnamon Girl), Light Years, Jeremy, Why Go

encore 2: Do The Evolution, Alive, Kick Out The Jams, Baba O'Riley, Yellow Ledbetter

Show Notes:

Fresh off of an incredible show the night before where Uncle Neil came out for a 11 minute version of RITFW, the band came out, and with no words spoken, launched straight into Go followed by Animal. At this point,…

Show Notes: 

Fresh off of an incredible show the night before where Uncle Neil came out for a 11 minute version of RITFW, the band came out, and with no words spoken, launched straight into Go followed by Animal. At this point, it would be reasonable for most of the crowd to be thinking they were about to get Vs. in full, but then Eddie introduces the next song as a new one before playing Ole. After Hail, Hail, Ed addresses the crowd:

“Good evening, it’s our last night here in Toronto, Ontario. The first time we ever played here was October 29, 1991. That night we played seven songs. Tonight we’re gonna play at least eight, maybe nine, maybe sixty, or somewhere in between. But either way, we’re going to pace ourselves. Thanks again for filling up the room like you did, we don’t take it for granted.”

Continuing with No Code, the next song is In My Tree followed by Sad and a great version of Dissident that showcases the guitar interplay between Mike and Stone. Ed talks about the Toronto International Film Festival where the PJ20 documentary was shown along with films about U2 and Neil Young. He recalls that the first time he attended was when he provided the soundtrack to Into The Wild, leading into a performance of Setting Forth. Before God’s Dice, Ed mentions that Jeff wrote it while high on something. It’s a particularly special version of this song because of the confusion that takes place after the second verse where Eddie expects to go into the chorus when the rest of the band is going into the bridge. It results in a low key jam that allows them to get on the same page and resume. They admit they fucked it up and joke that it was only their third or fourth mistake in twenty years. Ed suggests they may fuck up Deep as well since they don’t play it often. There is some great interplay between Stone and Mike throughout the song, particularly on the intro. Another mix up happens in Garden before the first chorus, once again leading to an extended jam. Wishlist is dedicated to a local fellow, Toronto Maple Leafs legend and recently inducted Hockey Hall Of Famer Doug Gilmour. Ed changes up some lyrics during the tag:

“I wish I was the President. Make friends with the world again. Find out what diplomacy is for. Keep our country out of needless war. Love thy neighbors and those I don’t understand. Love thy neighbors as much as I can. Run the country like a rock ‘n’ roll band. Love my country like a rock ‘n’ roll band”

After Mike destroys an Even Flow solo, Ed says they are gonna play one that he wrote because his dad is in the audience, and he thanks his dad for Mike changing their lives as a friend and bandmate before digging into Present Tense. Ed does a kooky looking dance with his hands before Rats, and in the time since, it has been turned into a popular internet meme and GIF. After State Of Love and Trust, Ed addresses the recent news about the West Memphis Three being exonerated and released from prison:

“They were in for 18 years, a lot of people didn’t hear about it for a couple of years but some of us were on it for about 15 years. It was an incredibly long 15 years but a lot of people didn’t lose faith and they had a lot of supporters, up here across the border and it actually made a difference. And 26 days ago when I was so grateful to have been able to be there and be part of the experience because it was one of the best experiences of my life, about 26 days ago they were freed. But again, all of the support from Canada and this part of Canada. It was good news and even great news, so there’s faith.”

The Fixer and Porch finish out the main set with the extended jam on the latter featuring Boom in a prominent role. At the start of the encore, Ed says they’d like to flip to the back because it reminds them of a club show, and they play Last Kiss. Ed talks about Neil Young before I Got Id and claims there is a connection between NYC and Toronto… NYC meaning Neil Young Country. As Neil surprised the audience the night prior on Rockin’ In The Free World, Ed says he wasn’t able to make it tonight, but the band tags Cinnamon Girl onto the end of I Got Id. Light Years is played for all of the people they had been thinking about who lost people in significant ways, and Jeremy is immediately transitioned to at the song’s end. Why Go finishes out the first encore.

Do The Evolution is played after the break where Ed jokes about the ‘2010 watch it go to fire’ line being just last year. Instead of saying goodbye after Alive, it is time for Mark Arm and Steve Turner from Mudhoney to join for a rendition of MC5’s Kick Out The Jams. Before they head off, Ed thanks Toronto and says we’ll remember this one.

September 11, 2011 – Air Canada Centre, Toronto, ON, CAN

Main Set: Long Road, Do The Evolution, Once, Got Some, Faithfull, Nothing As It Seems, Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town, Setting Forth, Not For You, Given To Fly, Just Breathe, Off He Goes, Daughter/(It's OK), Grievance, Down, Unthought Known, The Fixer, Porch

encore 1: Nothingman, Better Man/(Save It For Later), Leatherman, Black, Rearviewmirror

encore 2: Chloe Dancer, Crown Of Thorns, Alive, Rockin' In The Free World

Show Notes:

Long Road is perfectly placed as the opener on the 10th anniversary of 9/11, and you can feel the energy just exploding in the room. An intense Do The Evolution makes a rare appearance in the 2nd slot, followed by…

Show Notes: 

Long Road is perfectly placed as the opener on the 10th anniversary of 9/11, and you can feel the energy just exploding in the room. An intense Do The Evolution makes a rare appearance in the 2nd slot, followed by Once kicking the show into high gear. After Got Some, Eddie addresses the crowd saying the band was surprised to learn they hadn’t played Toronto in five years. The ending lyrics of Faithfull are changed to “What’s a man to do?”. Eddie precedes an ethereal Nothing As It Seems by telling the crowd, “Not to give away the plot, but Mike McCready does some crazy shit on this next one.” Small Town is a full crowd sing along which Eddie acknowledges by telling the crowd “That’s good singing Toronto!”. Eddie talks about how they had been working with Cameron Crowe, who is in attendance, for the upcoming PJ20 release. He says it’s kind of like looking back at Side A of their career and that he can’t help wondering what the last song on side B will look like. He then acknowledges that if you go back to the first record Neil Young was on, they would be calling it NY51 and that “he’s been making records for 51 years and he still seems younger than us.” Not For You features a great solo by Stone and a Modern Girl tag. The heart of the main set features a beautiful string of slower songs such as Just Breathe, Of He Goes and Daughter with a full It’s OK tag. The main set ends with a very interesting string of songs without much banter from Ed – Grievance, Down, Unthought Known, The Fixer and ends with Porch, which features dueling solos between Mike and Stone and a call and response singalong heading back into the final chorus.

Eddie addresses the crowd before the first encore by comparing Toronto to Seattle and that both cities “have large concrete erections” and notes that “yours is bigger, but in our defense ours has kind of a nice shape.” He then notes that all of the bands’ wives and girlfriends are in attendance and thanks them all. The first encore starts with the Man Trilogy. Nothingman, with great crowd participation, starts by Ed telling the crowd “If you got a good woman, don’t fuck it up!” A rocking Better Man features some great pyrotechnics by Mike and a lengthy Save It For Later tag. Black is gorgeous with Mike wailing and Matt hammering away during the jam, and the outro is simply beautiful. A nicely jammed out Rearviewmirror ends the first encore.

The final encore begins with the combo of Chloe Dancer/Crown Of Thorns, showcasing Stone and Jeff locking in the groove perfectly and Mike taking the solos to new heights. This would mark the first instance that Chloe Dancer was played at a show in full. The whole band absolutely crushes Alive, but that’s almost nothing compared to what comes next. The band launches into Rockin’ In The Free World and is joined right before the final verse by Mr. Neil Young himself, unannounced, for an over-the-top ending jam. Rumor has it that only Mike knew this was going down, and the band appears visibly surprised and overwhelmed when Neil takes the stage. Mike hands over his guitar to Neil, and as the band begins to jam, it’s Eddie to the rescue as he flags down one of the roadies to get Mike a guitar so he can join in. They proceed to duel back and forth for what seems like an eternity, and RITFW finally comes to an end after 11+ minutes. It’s a fantastic ending to an absolute piledriver of a show!