Pearl Jam Podcast Episodes

Let’s kill two birds with one stone here as May’s Vault series continues and we start to get prepping for the upcoming Vegas show! We’re going back to 1993 on the Vs. tour to talk about one of the most recognizable shows that year from the Aladdin Theater on 11/30. This show is know for being the reunion for Stone and Jeff’s former pioneering Seattle grunge band, Green River. Along with former Green River members Mark Arm and Steve Turner from Mudhoney, the reunion is much more than getting a band back together and more so a group of friends being reunited after six years. We’ll also get a crooning Eddie with a very special Vegas-related guest. We’ll hear some stories from two different parties in this show. First, Patrick and Brian from Hallucinogenic Recipe stop by to go over the history of why this was such a highly circulated boot before becoming a Vault show. Then we’ll play a byte from Given To Live’s Tom Pugh who sat with young Reece Jones to chat about his experience at the Oakland show, a story you do not want to miss! That and plenty of Vs. tracks including a phenomenal version of Go, and most importantly, the live debut of Tremor Christ.

**Warning** This episode touches up on the topic of depression and suicide. If you are experiencing suicidal thoughts, don’t be afraid to call for help. For immediate assistance, dial 1800-273-8255, or dial 988 to reach the suicide prevention hotline. Please, take care of yourselves.

It’s been five years since we’ve lost Chris Cornell, a death that has shook up this community and a life that is dearly missed to this day. To celebrate his memory, we’ll be talking about one of the most memorable moments where he and Pearl Jam linked up at a show, the Lollapalooza tour closer in 1992. It came at a time where Temple of the Dog was discovered a year after the release of the album due to the collaboration between Pearl Jam and Soundgarden members. Performances of Hunger Strike at that time almost never happened, so looking back on it now and what we know, the moment is that much more special.

We talk a lot about Cornell’s life, his talent and the impact he made. This episode pays tribute to everything he provided for music, art, and the fans who cherish it.

We’re opening up the Vault again for the second of four times in this series! This episode focuses on Vault release #4 that took place in the intimate Mt. Baker Theatre up in Bellingham, Washington. Coming two days before the record came out, this show that amassed no more than 1,500 fans was meant as a preview for the Binaural record with seven songs being played live for the first time. We’ll gets to talk about all of the song debuts – Of The Girl, Breakerfall, Light Years, God’s Dice, Evacuation, Insignificance and even a few from the record that had already been played in some capacity on television or a Bridge School show. How did these songs sound on first listen? Did we get a sense for what they’d become right away, or did they need time to figure out the right comfort zone for playing these songs? All that, and a story about how Binaural may have been considered a dirty word to some fans back in the early 2000s, specifically someone who may host a Pearl Jam podcast you’re currently listening to!

Lots of things happening in this episode! Not only is it the beginning of tour week, our entire month of May we’ll be tackling a new series focusing on Pearl Jam’s Vault show releases. This happened to fall into our laps perfectly as one of the Vaults happens to be the Great Western Forum show from 1998, which is exactly where Pearl Jam will be playing shortly after this episode airs. We’ll get everybody prepped and hyped for tour time and go over some of the great features that will be available to follow along with on liveon4legs.com and Patreon. This show was a fantastic choice for the Vault collection. It can be considered one of the best shows of the first US leg in 1998 and there are many reasons to back that up. For one, The Forum is a massive, historic venue in Los Angeles where hundreds of legendary music acts have performed as well as many Lakers championships won. Ed and the guys are juiced to be playing there and right off the bat it shows. The bulk of these performances could be considered some of the very best renditions. The Yield songs especially. Brain Of J, In Hiding and Live On 2 Legs compilation addition Do The Evolution are major highlights along with excellent versions of Given To Fly, Present Tense, Rearviewmirror and Corduroy.

We’re another week closer to the start of the tour, which means that we’re continuing to build up the hype to highlight some of the cities they’ll be dropping in. This week features the Sacramento show from 1995, a show sandwiched between a fan favorite (Red Rocks) and an infamous (Polo Fields) show, inadvertently making this one overlooked. As far as 1995 shows go, this one is right in that wheelhouse where the Vitalogy era shows thrived in. Ed’s voice is at its peak, Jack is a madman at the kit, and the crowd as rowdy as you can imagine. We have not one, but two guests joining us for this episode. We welcome in our Patron Dylan Sumpter to tell his story about being at his first show, and we get to hear from Branden Palomo of the Better Band Podcast who talks about his experience at the show. There’s three historically notable moments that happen at this show – we get the second performance of the alternate version of Jeremy dubbed “No Jeremy” which was debuted two nights earlier in Red Rocks, we get a performance of Lukin over a year from the release of No Code as well as Habit being played for only the second time. You get to see the evolution of the band throughout the duration of this show. Considering what would happen two days later, this show could be seen as the end of an era. Things wouldn’t quite be the same afterward.

Continuing our preparation for the upcoming May tour dates, we’re looking back at a show from Phoenix during the Binaural era. The show is placed during a very strong stretch for the band as the following night would become an all-time classic – their 10th anniversary in Las Vegas. But Phoenix has been a rather quiet stop for Pearl Jam over the years. A lot of people remember the Open Road improv that they did back in 1995, but there were shows that happened there during every album tour from 1998 til 2003, although they’d wait 10 years before they showed up again during Lightning Bolt. Is Phoenix an undervalued Pearl Jam city? Should the shows from there be discussed more often. We do our best to answer those questions with the hope that this year’s show can change the impression of the city. A lot of great performances here including a few that were extremely rare during the Binaural era. Timeless Melody shows up in the middle of the main set, a song by the La’s that was covered thanks to Matt Cameron’s suggestion. We will also get the rarely heard Romanza intro heading into Better Man. Get ready for great versions of Grievance, State Of Love And Trust, Given To Fly, Insignificance, Do The Evolution and I Got Shit scattered throughout the episode!