Article - TNJ - Forgotten lyrics matter little to EV's fans
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Concert Review; Forgotten lyrics matter little to Vedder's fans
By RYAN CORMIER
Staff
13 June 2009
The News Journal
Final
B5, B7
UPPER DARBY, Pa. -- Eddie Vedder might have been on stage at the Tower Theater alone, but the show's sonic guests for the evening were impressive: The Beatles, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, The Who and Daniel Johnston.
The 44-year-old Pearl Jam frontman gave his fans a big, sloppy kiss Thursday night -- a rare opportunity to see Vedder perform a small, stripped-down solo show.
And, yes, considering how popular Pearl Jam remains, performing at a 3,100-seat theater is actually a big step down for Vedder.
"I'm getting used to your beautiful little theater," Vedder said during an early break in between songs.
Vedder unfurled a nearly two-hour, 22-song set that covered his songs from the "Into the Wild" soundtrack, Pearl Jam's catalog and cover tunes, all the while wrestling with a loud and restless crowd. (Imagine the fans from the lawn at the Susquehanna Bank Center, in Camden, N.J., and plop them into the Tower.) Nearly a third of the relaxed show was dedicated to performing the songs of others, including Johnston's "Walking the Cow," which transformed Johnson's ramshackle lo-fi vision into a meditative, slick show opener.
The Beatles' "Hide Your Love Away" was the night's biggest sing-a-long and Vedder dedicated Dylan's "Forever Young," which he performed on electric guitar, to his daughter Olivia, whose fifth birthday he was missing.
Aside from Pearl Jam's "Porch," which closed out the main set, the biggest crowd reaction came when Vedder surprised the audience by doing a request: Springsteen's "Atlantic City," with its instantly recognizable opening line, "Well, they blew up the chicken man in Philly last night." It wasn't the only time Vedder played to the hometown crowd as he alternated between sips of red wine and beer, while also spitting on stage more times than one would like to recall.
A possibly tipsy Vedder dedicated "Rise" to Julius "Dr. J" Erving, even though he flubbed the ending, the first of many missteps, including forgotten lyrics to several songs. But it didn't matter. Hardcore Pearl Jam fans were just happy to be in the building with their hero.
At one point In between songs, a fan yelled out the news that the Philadelphia Phillies had beaten the New York Mets in extra innings. Vedder repeated the news, "Six to three Phillies, if you didn't hear."
He then congratulated fans for the Phillies' World Series win, before launching into an improvised song with the lyrics, "Let's go Phillies, we can do it again."
It was just the third night of a 14-date solo trek for Vedder that covers plenty of ground, beginning earlier this week in Albany, N.Y., and ending in Hawaii. The tour is the third Vedder solo tour in support of "Into the Wild," the 2007 Sean Penn film that earned Vedder a Golden Globe award for "Guaranteed," a song whose lyrics also escaped him Thursday.
On Thursday, Vedder was in fine form musically switching from acoustic to electric guitar throughout the night, accentuating some songs with a stomp box, making him a one man band. He had an especially impassioned delivery during "I Am Mine" and his always gorgeous take on Wayne Cochran's "Last Kiss" sparked it's own sing-a-long from the adoring crowd when he forgot the lyrics once again.
Even though there were plenty of younger fans who managed to pay the $78 ticket price, it was hard not to notice Vedder's fans have aged right along with him. Mid-show, Vedder changed the lyrics at the end of his gentle rendition of The Who's "The Kids are Alright" to "You kids are alright," possibly a wink and a nod to his aging fans.
It was one of many funny moments from a musician known more for his intense stage presence than his chummy display at the Tower -- chatting with the crowd, shaking hands and cracking jokes.
An hour into the show, Vedder took a break for a cigarette and curled up into a large chair designed to look like two feet. The bizarre sight felt right when Vedder announced it was time for "Uncle Ed's story time."
He spoke of going to a bar in Chicago with Jack Nicholson and Sean Penn after seeing the Los Angeles Lakers play in the NBA Finals in the early '90s.
A woman who looked like a "human Jessica Rabbit" walked up to Nicholson and asked him, "Would you like to dance?" Vedder said one of Nicholson's eyebrows raised from behind his trademark sunglasses.
Slipping into a surprisingly good Nicholson impression, Vedder repeated what the actor told the woman: "Sweetheart, you picked the wrong verb."
Concert Review; Forgotten lyrics matter little to Vedder's fans
By RYAN CORMIER
Staff
13 June 2009
The News Journal
Final
B5, B7
UPPER DARBY, Pa. -- Eddie Vedder might have been on stage at the Tower Theater alone, but the show's sonic guests for the evening were impressive: The Beatles, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, The Who and Daniel Johnston.
The 44-year-old Pearl Jam frontman gave his fans a big, sloppy kiss Thursday night -- a rare opportunity to see Vedder perform a small, stripped-down solo show.
And, yes, considering how popular Pearl Jam remains, performing at a 3,100-seat theater is actually a big step down for Vedder.
"I'm getting used to your beautiful little theater," Vedder said during an early break in between songs.
Vedder unfurled a nearly two-hour, 22-song set that covered his songs from the "Into the Wild" soundtrack, Pearl Jam's catalog and cover tunes, all the while wrestling with a loud and restless crowd. (Imagine the fans from the lawn at the Susquehanna Bank Center, in Camden, N.J., and plop them into the Tower.) Nearly a third of the relaxed show was dedicated to performing the songs of others, including Johnston's "Walking the Cow," which transformed Johnson's ramshackle lo-fi vision into a meditative, slick show opener.
The Beatles' "Hide Your Love Away" was the night's biggest sing-a-long and Vedder dedicated Dylan's "Forever Young," which he performed on electric guitar, to his daughter Olivia, whose fifth birthday he was missing.
Aside from Pearl Jam's "Porch," which closed out the main set, the biggest crowd reaction came when Vedder surprised the audience by doing a request: Springsteen's "Atlantic City," with its instantly recognizable opening line, "Well, they blew up the chicken man in Philly last night." It wasn't the only time Vedder played to the hometown crowd as he alternated between sips of red wine and beer, while also spitting on stage more times than one would like to recall.
A possibly tipsy Vedder dedicated "Rise" to Julius "Dr. J" Erving, even though he flubbed the ending, the first of many missteps, including forgotten lyrics to several songs. But it didn't matter. Hardcore Pearl Jam fans were just happy to be in the building with their hero.
At one point In between songs, a fan yelled out the news that the Philadelphia Phillies had beaten the New York Mets in extra innings. Vedder repeated the news, "Six to three Phillies, if you didn't hear."
He then congratulated fans for the Phillies' World Series win, before launching into an improvised song with the lyrics, "Let's go Phillies, we can do it again."
It was just the third night of a 14-date solo trek for Vedder that covers plenty of ground, beginning earlier this week in Albany, N.Y., and ending in Hawaii. The tour is the third Vedder solo tour in support of "Into the Wild," the 2007 Sean Penn film that earned Vedder a Golden Globe award for "Guaranteed," a song whose lyrics also escaped him Thursday.
On Thursday, Vedder was in fine form musically switching from acoustic to electric guitar throughout the night, accentuating some songs with a stomp box, making him a one man band. He had an especially impassioned delivery during "I Am Mine" and his always gorgeous take on Wayne Cochran's "Last Kiss" sparked it's own sing-a-long from the adoring crowd when he forgot the lyrics once again.
Even though there were plenty of younger fans who managed to pay the $78 ticket price, it was hard not to notice Vedder's fans have aged right along with him. Mid-show, Vedder changed the lyrics at the end of his gentle rendition of The Who's "The Kids are Alright" to "You kids are alright," possibly a wink and a nod to his aging fans.
It was one of many funny moments from a musician known more for his intense stage presence than his chummy display at the Tower -- chatting with the crowd, shaking hands and cracking jokes.
An hour into the show, Vedder took a break for a cigarette and curled up into a large chair designed to look like two feet. The bizarre sight felt right when Vedder announced it was time for "Uncle Ed's story time."
He spoke of going to a bar in Chicago with Jack Nicholson and Sean Penn after seeing the Los Angeles Lakers play in the NBA Finals in the early '90s.
A woman who looked like a "human Jessica Rabbit" walked up to Nicholson and asked him, "Would you like to dance?" Vedder said one of Nicholson's eyebrows raised from behind his trademark sunglasses.
Slipping into a surprisingly good Nicholson impression, Vedder repeated what the actor told the woman: "Sweetheart, you picked the wrong verb."
Up here so high I start to shake, Up here so high the sky I scrape, I've no fear but for falling down, So look out below I am falling now, Falling down,...not staying down, Could’ve held me up, rather tear me down, Drown in the river
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