Episodes Covering Pearl Jam Concerts in 2010

Who out there loves a show featuring a ton of back catalog? Well, if you’re someone who does then you’re gonna really like this show. Newark from 2010 on the Backspacer Tour was sandwiched in between shows in two major cities, so the band was able to play around with the setlist to bring in some of the more obscurer tracks in their history. It all starts with the opener to set the mood for the night and Of The Girl into Brain of J accomplishes that right away. This show takes from all eras of the band’s deep legacy, but one of the most profound from this show are the Ten era songs that almost never get played. Alone and Brother are a part of that grouping and this night being the last they have played Brother to date, and even Footsteps makes an appearance to fit in with the 91 era rarities that didn’t make the album. They also go back to Yield and Binaural quite a few times in favor for some of their all-time hits like Better Man, Black and Porch. We also get to make fun of people from New Jersey a wee bit and how when the band played Jersey Girl, the crowd chanted for hometown boy Bruce Springsteen instead of the original writer of the song Tom Waits. It’ll probably be a cold day in hell before Tom Waits gets any arena chanting his name, but as the incredible song writer that he is he certainly deserves that credit.

When you start a conversation with a Pearl Jam fanatic asking them what the best show of all time is, there are a few answers that immediately come to mind. Pinkpop 92, Soldier Field, Randall’s Island are all shows that people speak of with the fondest of memories, but in this episode we’re covering a show that hangs among the pantheon of the best shows ever. MSG Night 2 2010 was an instant classic with too many incredible moments to count. Randy and Buckley host the show this week and both of them were there that night. The recap and love for this show tells the story. Coming from two different perspectives, this was the first show Buckley attended with very little knowledge of the band prior. He’ll talk about how the crowd and the passion from the stage that night turned him into a lifetime fan. Right from the bat with Corduroy, you could tell that something special was in the air. The set list is an array of rarities mixed with strong versions of the big hits. For anyone that’s listened to this podcast before and enjoys the song bytes added in, there will be no lack of clips on this episode! From Evolution to Nothingman, Push Me Pull Me and the W.M.A. Tag on Daughter to all of the juicy encore moments such as Lukin II, Black Red Yellow, Sweet Lew, Better Man, Hunger Strike and Kick Out The Jams. Holy bleep, there’s a lot of bleepin’ good shit on this show!

We are back to our 2019 long MSG series taking a look at every show the band performed at the World’s Most Famous Arena. This episode we cover Night 1 of 2010 – a show that gets overshadowed by the magic of the following night, but in its own right has its memorable moments. Randy was in attendance on this night, and although it was over nine years ago and the memories have faded a bit, there are big moments that still stick out to him as some of his favorite live moments to this day. Most of the moments were courtesy of the red hot crowd that poured their heart and soul into this show. Renditions of Elderly Woman, Once, Crazy Mary and Indifference as the closer have incredible crowd participation, so much so that you can hear the crowd better on the boot than you can Ed. But with all of this show’s ups there were also some downs from this night. While the crowd and overall performance of the band was a huge strength, the meaty part of the first set left a little to be desired. They got off to a hot start, but after Even Flow the set lacked a powerful punch and defining moment. As John mentions in the episode, it felt like they randomly chose tracks from different albums and blindly placed them in the set. Lots of topics to cover here for all you set list nerds!

If I were to wager a bet, I’d take a guess that not every American citizen, or American Pearl Jam fan, would be able to locate Hartford, Connecticut on a map or be able to give one distinction about the city that sets it apart from others. Hartford? Well, if you know your US capitals you may certainly know it. Remember the Hartford Whalers? Breakfasts come and go but The Whale only beats Vancouver once, maybe twice in a lifetime. Outside of that, there’s really not much else that distinguishes this random New England city from its counterparts. So why would we cover a Hartford show before we cover cities enriched in music history including the band’s hometown of Seattle or London, England? It’s this simple – when the band comes to town, it feels like the biggest city in the world. There’s a very special reason for that that I can’t reveal in writing, you’re just gonna have to listen and find out. Sure, I lived in Hartford County for nine years but when the band came to town back in 2010, I thought they’d treat this like any other random city without a professional sports franchise. Maybe no rare songs, no special crowd moments. Basically play the hits and peace out. But boy was I wrong. I was so wrong that the band on multiple occasions talked about how much they loved the XL Center and how much they were feeling the crowd. The crowd on this night was so special that they’d get to hear a song that would be played one time, one time only (until their return 3 years later) just because they had a good feeling about it. Their cover of Van Halen’s “Ain’t Talkin’ Bout Love” on that night is living proof that if a crowd is gonna give the band all they got, the band is going to give you that much more in return. So I guess Hartford doesn’t seem so random anymore, does it?

Top o’ the mornin’ to ya! This is our first episode covering a show on the Emerald Isle. However, this is Northern Ireland, and apparently that’s completely different from Ireland? We’re yanks, we don’t know better. Anyway, if you can believe it, nine years ago was the last time they made a stop in Ireland, at this very show in Belfast, and to date this has been their only performance in Northern Ireland. It’s kind of surprising, as you’ll hear us talk all throughout the episode the crowd was on fire all night. Why wouldn’t they go back when they’ve frequented Europe multiple times since Backspacer? This episode has some fun moments including where we get to cover a Pearl Jam wedding. Yes, an actual wedding took place at this show. I repeat – PEARL JAM WAS SOMEONE’S WEDDING BAND. Just let that sink in. Eddie plays a first dance for the happy couple, a lovely rendition of Amongst The Waves. We also get a few uncommon performances at this show such as No Way and Tremor Christ.

We’re on a road movie to Berlin! In this episode, we add our 5th and 6th legs to the podcast – Stephen Maytan! He talks about his experience traveling from New York to Germany and what it was like to be in the crowd on a very emotional night. This night in Germany was the 10th anniversary since Roskilde Festival tragedy. They poured all of their emotions into renditions of Black and Come Back as the crowd responded with a heartfelt appreciation for the band. We talk about how a beautiful summer night in Germany banded a crowd of strangers together bonded as family.