August 10, 2018 – Safeco Field, Seattle, WA, USA

Show Notes:

Night 2 of The Home Shows, a two-night fundraiser supporting the homeless in Seattle. Many references to Seattle and ‘home’ through the night, starting with an “I’ll be home once more” lyric change in Oceans. Ed speaks after Corduroy: “Hello…

Show Notes: 

Night 2 of The Home Shows, a two-night fundraiser supporting the homeless in Seattle. Many references to Seattle and ‘home’ through the night, starting with an “I’ll be home once more” lyric change in Oceans. Ed speaks after Corduroy: “Hello family, hello friends, hello neighbors, hello visitors, hello Seattle.” Rats is dedicated to any “old Seattle residents that still might be residing.” After Whipping, Ed predicts that the world will be altered if people don’t show up in the elections. He then predicts that Mike will play out of his fucking mind, like always, but especially when he’s pissed off – he’s pissed off they are trying to tear down the Showbox, an iconic Seattle music venue. Later, during Even Flow, Ed starts a ‘Save our Showbox’ chant. Missing, a song from Chris Cornell’s Poncier tape, is debuted with no acknowledgement of Chris before or after. After Immortality, Ed introduces Matt and allows him to take a bow. He then tells a story about being excited about being in Rolling Stone for Temple of the Dog for the first time, even though Madonna was on the cover, and then intimates that Madonna even slapped his ass in front of his wife, and then tried to slap her ass as well, “but it didn’t work out.” He then shows Stone on the cover of Real Change magazine, saying “I’d take him over Madonna, he’s my kind of guy.” Ed is out solo after the break for I Won’t Back Down, saying he  wants to play the song to get Tom’s attention, so he can tell Tom that he misses him. Kim Thayil joins onstage prior to Kick Out the Jams. Kim shows his Chris Cornell t-shirt to the crowd and gets a huge crowd reaction. Spin the Black Circle is dedicated to Sub Pop Records. Rearviewmirror starts immediately after, and is aborted. Ed admits fault, saying he’s played the song “at least a couple times,” and drinks two huge pulls of the wine bottle, then continues: “I think I was playing the correct notes, but all I could hear is,” going into a few bars of Fernando by Abba. This seems to really amuse the rest of the band, all of them are seen smiling and laughing, as is most of the crowd. Before Search and Destroy, Kim Thayil is invited back, along with Mudhoney’s Steve Turner and Mark Arm. Lots of interaction between the guys during these two songs, the band all playing next to the guests, laughing and playing grab-ass. Lots of hugs as Ed acknowledges them again after Sonic Reducer. Before Yellow Ledbetter, Ed speaks again about local businesses contributing to the cause and giving portions of their sales, and again mentions homelessness, saying ”We want to be part of the solution…just don’t give up…this is not the time to give up, this is the time to rise up.”

Written by: Curtis Hames


August 8, 2018 – Safeco Field, Seattle, WA, USA

Show Notes:

First hometown show in almost 5 years. Huge cheer following Corduroy is met by Ed commenting, “We are Pearl Jam. We are from Seattle, Washington. I guess that must mean we’re home.” Ed later jokes that Safeco is beautiful, unlike…

Show Notes: 

First hometown show in almost 5 years. Huge cheer following Corduroy is met by Ed commenting, “We are Pearl Jam. We are from Seattle, Washington. I guess that must mean we’re home.” Ed later jokes that Safeco is beautiful, unlike the old Kingdome, quipping “The old concrete gray lady…she was kind of a bitch.” Former Mariner Randy Johnson is in attendance, and Ed jokes that Randy’s favorite band is actually Soundgarden (at which point Mike busts into a Superunknown riff). Before Even Flow, Ed tells a story about the song’s origin: a homeless man Ed used to see in town way back in the early days named Eddie, a Black Vietnam vet who used to walk around in a strange blue tarp and a shopping cart. Ed used to talk to him while he was out getting lunch and coffee, and eventually, he couldn’t find Eddie anymore. Later he found out that the man passed away and never got to hear the song written about their conversations. After a stirring Black, Ed talks about how Jeff moved from Montana to Seattle in the early ‘80s and met a guy working at the local coffee joint by the name of Andy Wood. A slowed-down, Ed-only, vocals and guitar rendition of Help! serves as an intro to Help, Help. Patriot is full band, very energetic. Ed brings two of his daughter’s teachers on stage after the break and dedicates We’re Going To Be Friends to them. Let Me Sleep is introduced as “a song we wrote a long time ago, and it was one of those things about where you wrote about what you know.” Brandi Carlile joins for Again Today, exclaiming “This is a dream come true!” Before the second encore kicks off, Ed talks about the $11M raised by the 2 shows to fight homelessness, and encourages the crowd to keep the momentum going and get out and vote, and that we can do it together. He mutters “It could have been me” before Wasted Reprise. Betterman has the cool, extended Save It For Later tag. I’ve Got A Feeling is played in Seattle for the first time in 25 years.

Written by: Brian Horwitz


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.


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.