*** Chicago 2 Fanviews Here 8/24/09 ***

Sea

August 24, 2009 Chicago, Illinois, United Center

Set List: Hard To Imagine, Corduroy, In My Tree, Last Exit, All Night, Nothingman, The Fixer, Even Flow, Present Tense, Whipping, Not For You/(Modern Girl-Sleater Kinney), Daughter/(Another Brick In The Wall part 2-Waters), Brother, Gone, Got Some, Do The Evolution, Alive

1st encore: No More, Comatose, Grievance, Black, The Real Me (Townshend), Porch

2nd encore: Wasted Reprise, Better Man/(Save It For Later-Charlery, Cox, Morton, Steele, Wakeling), Crazy Mary (Williams), State Of Love And Trust, Fuckin' Up (Young), Yellow Ledbetter/(Star Spangled Banner)

Please share your experiences of the show here...the Fanview threads are preserved on the board.
Please try to keep the thread for Fanviews....

nomar

Simply amazing.

happykev

12 song encore!!!! Wow!

Kev

pj.uw.laura

Tonight was way different than last night, in my opinion. The energy from the crowd started off a bit low, but with a lot of engagement between us and Ed, that changed fairly quickly. He seemed to be in a pretty good mood tonight. At the end, he even put on a wig that he got from someone in the crowd and was dancing around in it! Too funny.

Songwise... holy shit, Hard to Imagine opener, Nothingman, Present Tense. Nothingman sounded really great- he is hitting the high notes and sounds spot on to me. Black was awesome, too, although I don't know that I've ever heard a bad version of that song. Audience participation was really cool there, especially at the end with the "do do do do" part- Eddie seemed to enjoy that as well. In My Tree sounded great too.

Tomas Young's family was there (mom and 2 brothers), so that was pretty special. His brother requested "No More," so Ed played it solo. Brought a tear to my eye, as my husband is a veteran, and these were his first 2 PJ shows ever.

I had awesome seats tonight - Section 101, row 9 (Stone's side, about 1/2 way back from the stage, and 9 rows up. I'm comparing these to my seats in 318 last night.

A few random highlights... during Fucking Up (I think- my mind's a little foggy at the moment), Jeff and Mike traded instruments. Also, at one point, Ed was on his back with his body straight up in the air, like a yoga pose. Mike was all over the place- he did laps around the whole stage. That's all for now- I'm exhausted. Maybe in the morning I'll be able to decide which night was better. These setlists were fantastic!

BK185920

Just got back. What a show. Opening w/ Hard to Imagine was great though you could tell not many people in crowd knew the tune. Like previous poster said, started out slow crowd-wise

Present Tense was the highlight for me. Also hearing Brother for the first time live since i had the cassette was aweseome (yes cassete) bootleg of the instrumental version over 15 year ago)

Leash-Me

Wow. What a way to cap off my trip to Chicago. Two amazing shows, with night 2 slightly edging out night 1. Seats were also much better (thanks to 10c) for night two. Ed wearing the wig at the end of the show was also very funny. Great energy from the band. You can really tell they like playing in Chicago. Alive during the main set was a nice change. You knew they were going to blow your socks off for the encores. Lots of sing-alongs tonight. Over the last two nights they referenced the 1995 Soldier Field Show several times (which was my 1st show), and it looks like they made some song choices based on that show like the Daughter/Brick in the wall tag which they also did at Soldier Field. Now I have to wait until Philly for 4 more legendary shows. Thanks PJ!

badu2fan

Membership has it Privleges, Thanks 10 club and Pearl Jam. 12 row dead center, Except for a 6'6" mop head in front of us who was so tall u couldn't see eddie some times,
The band was amazing and the crowd was tremendous. If night one crowd was better I can't imagine, When I saw the bottle of wine come out early I knew Crazy Mary was coming our way but the Fucking up was a great way to finish the show!!! Ledbetter doesnt count,.
Matt was amazing on drums tonight. He had the place vibrating like a bass would normally due.
Sound and eddies voice were on and I look forward to the recording.

Will be interesting for folks who went both nights to compare, Monday crowd was A+

mattcoz

pj.uw.laura wrote:

Mike was all over the place- he did laps around the whole stage.

Yup, and as he went by Ed stuck his leg out trying to trip him.

cokelogic

The sound was better than night 1 and the set list is amazing. This was 11th PJ show and might be my personal favorite as far as songs played.

I think it was a 2 1/2 hour show (to yesterday's 2 hour show) and I was amazed on how PJ just kept playing. They wouldn't leave the stage. Every time you though, "well that must be it" they played another song. Crazy Mary could have been a great ending, but they continued. Fucking Up could have been a great ending, but they continued. I was out of my mind.

And every single song was incredibly tight and strong.

Now let's get these bootlegs rolling. I must own Chicago night 2.

troubledsoulsuniteblog

Simply the best I've ever seen. No questions asked

BlackCorduroy

Holy shit.. still trying to comprehend this evening. My 13th PJ show and the best I've ever seen

cokelogic

badu2fan wrote:

Membership has it Privleges, Thanks 10 club and Pearl Jam. 12 row dead center, Except for a 6'6" mop head in front of us who was so tall u couldn't see eddie some times,
The band was amazing and the crowd was tremendous. If night one crowd was better I can't imagine, When I saw the bottle of wine come out early I knew Crazy Mary was coming our way but the Fucking up was a great way to finish the show!!! Ledbetter doesnt count,.
Matt was amazing on drums tonight. He had the place vibrating like a bass would normally due.
Sound and eddies voice were on and I look forward to the recording.

Will be interesting for folks who went both nights to compare, Monday crowd was A+

I went to both nights. Normally I can't compare night 1 & 2 because they compliment each other, BUT night 2 blew the hell out of night 1. No comparison. Chicago night 2 was one of their best shows I've ever seen.

hrd2imgn

no complaints at all energy tonight was 100 times better than last night

Mike's fingers were on fucking fire

Matt's bass drum was vibrating my spinal column

Ed's voice is in as good of shape as I can remember

Stone is some energetic guy I never saw before

Jeff playing the bass at his knees...just love it

Boom is still ugly

a great pair of nights

johns224

I agree, Night 2 was a bit better with a more interesting (to me) setlist, but similarly great amounts of energy.

My main observation: The Fixer is about 100 times better live than in studio. I was very meh on it until I heard it these two nights. Now I can't get enough.

cokelogic

And what people must know, In My Tree was not the new version. It was the old school, 1998, big tom drums version. And it ruled as much as you think.

suckeredyou

I have never been the biggest fan of No More, but it was especially wonderful tonight. As someone mentioned, Tomas Young's mother and two brothers were side stage. Eddie mentioned that the older brother just got back from doing two tours. He specifically asked Eddie to play it. Eddie said something to the effect of "if a soldier asks you to play this song, you fucking play it." He said that hopefully his younger brother (he looked to be about 10) would never have to go to war like his brothers. Especially touching tribute. The younger brother was singing along to all the words, it was really great.

Other than that, not much to add to what everyone else has been saying. Really high energy, great song selection, etc. I had the best seats I've ever had (first section to the left of stage, a lot better than the floor seats i've gotten).

Overall, I liked the vibe a lot more tonight than last night. It was a party and the crowd was getting into after Eddie called them out for acting like a "Sunday Crowd."

A few notes:

Jeff's bass on The Real Me is INSANE
Long boom solo on Crazy Mary with Stone rocking with him. No Mike solo.
Mike ran at least 5 laps during the Real Me.
Eddie traded a tambourine for a blonde wig which he wore at the very end of the show.
Loved the Vitalogy heavy vibe, definitely brought back memories of Soldier Field.

cokelogic

johns224 wrote:

My main observation: The Fixer is about 100 times better live than in studio. I was very meh on it until I heard it these two nights. Now I can't get enough.

Amen!

Kinda like Thin Air, I think I'll always prefer the live version to the studio version.

Evacuation Rules

cokelogic wrote:

And what people must know, In My Tree was not the new version. It was the old school, 1998, big tom drums version. And it ruled as much as you think.

YES!!!! They finally ditched the shitty remake!

oona left

Amen!

I am so jazzed for the newly converted. I know at least 4 people for whom this was the first time they saw PJ live. I could only imagine this being my first show - I'd have died right then and there.

Tonight was bloody amazing. If I may quote my friend, "Fuck me. That was magnificent."

The version of "Alive" may be one of the best performances of all time (of any group, any song, any moment). It was stellar.

"Last Exit!" "Whipping!" "State Of Love and Trust!" "Present Tense"

Fuck me indeed.

troubledsoulsuniteblog

Just to write again after I've showered and settled a bit.

Section 110 (row 2, seats 7 and 8) with a 10C # in the 400,000s made me quite happy.

The sound was so much better down there.

And the setlist...wow! Best I've ever heard.

My first time for Last Exit, In My Tree, and Nothingman... 5 songs of Vitalogy... amazing crowd sound.

I'm still on a high here, and don't wanna come down.

mattcoz

49 different songs over 2 nights... fucking fantastic!

emarut

Just another PJ show for the ages. I thought the energy was good both nights, and as someone mentioned it took a little while to get the crowd going tonite, but once they did it was on. The Hard to Imagine opener was amazing and to get In My tree as well was unreal.
After last night I was wondering if they could top it and they did it. Both nights were amazing I prefer the song selection on night 1 becuase I got to knock some songs off the list I hadn't seen live.
I have the same feeling after Soldier Field show, emotionally drained. Pj could not have played any harder, and great to see Matt Cameron get his due with a nice long drum solo. The guy is one of the best.
Another show for the ages, thanks boys.
PJ just gets better with age and each show, and my only advice is see this band as often as possible

Jaymac

cokelogic wrote:

And what people must know, In My Tree was not the new version. It was the old school, 1998, big tom drums version. And it ruled as much as you think.

Argh!!!!! So jealous! That would be worth the price of the ticket on its own for me!

badu2fan

As the show settles in I have to say it will be in my top 3 with my first show charleston Oct 05, 1996
Set 1
Sometimes
Last Exit
Animal
Go
Hail Hail
Dissident
In My Tree
Corduroy
Better Man
Not For You
Jeremy
Black
State Of Love And Trust
Habit
Rearviewmirror
Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town
Alive
Blood(Fame)
Encore 1
Present Tense
Even Flow
Daughter
My Friend
Off He Goes
Mankind
Whipping
Footsteps
Yellow Ledbetter
and Greensboro 2000
Aug 06,
Set 1
Of The Girl
Corduroy
Insignificance
Brain Of J.
Evacuation
Nothing As it Seems
Jeremy(Androgynous Mind)
Daughter(It's Ok)
MFC
Whipping
Wishlist
Better Man
Leatherman
Grievance
Even Flow
In My Tree
Black
Spin The Black Circle
Rearviewmirror
Encore 1
Light Years
Crazy Mary
Do The Evolution
State Of Love And Trust
Last Kiss
Breakerfall
Encore 2
Soon Forget
Smile
as my other 2 in the 15 shows I have seen. All on east coast and must say Chicago crowd blew us southern men out of the game.....

hrd2imgn

only had one lowlight of the night- some chicks were smoking pot, that is fine whatever, but the fact that a 10 -12 year old girl was right in front of them and they were blowing their smoke right in her face NOT COOL

the rest was fucking great. Shit anytime I hear Hard To imagine it can't get better! I totally was urging Long Road, In My Tree, Brother, Not For You, and Real me... man

I just love this band more every time I see them

Prioronfire22

both of these shows were awesome i was in 300 for both, but idc i didnt let that ruin that for me. I cant decide which one i liked better both were so different. What kind of shirt did that guy have on tonight that eddy made a comment about? I missed what he said. That was so funny though after even flow when Eddie said that "We have to play this everynight for mike or he'll fucking kill somebody" omg ive never laughed harder at a show

troubledsoulsuniteblog

Prioronfire22 wrote:

both of these shows were awesome i was in 300 for both, but idc i didnt let that ruin that for me. I cant decide which one i liked better both were so different. What kind of shirt did that guy have on tonight that eddy made a comment about? I missed what he said. That was so funny though after even flow when Eddie said that "We have to play this everynight for mike or he'll fucking kill somebody" omg ive never laughed harder at a show

The shirt said "No Evenflow"
Eddie said to him: "We respond better to requests than to demands."

HeavyHands

If you haven't had the pleasure of hearing/seeing the band play "Got Some" live and in person yet you should really make a point to do it. They will destroy you with this song. I'm jealous of everyone that gets to hear this on the rest of the tour because my nights of fun have ended for now. Now I'm just waiting for the boots to be made available.

Have fun everyone! This is going to be a legendary tour!

**EDIT** Because I haven't heard anyone else mention this yet...**

Having trouble remembering for sure but... During "F'n Up" (I'm pretty sure it was this song and not an earlier one) Jeff and Mike switched instruments. Then at the end of the song Jeff goes over to the amps and milks the feedback like Mike during a killer solo. Mike, who was towards the front of the stage turned to look at someone on his side of the stage and noticed Jeff working the guitar like a seasoned pro. He (Mike) got this huge smile on his face upon seeing this and looked to whoever was on the side of the stage with a shrug and a look that said "Whaaaaaa?!" Priceless.

mytincture

Both nights were amazing. So few repeats it made both nights really special. I have to give the edge to night2, because the sound was quite a bit better. I'm not sure if that was due to my seats (only 3 rows closer, but more towards the side) or because the sound guys made adjustments having been in the building a few nights in a row.

emarut

Prioronfire22 wrote:

both of these shows were awesome i was in 300 for both, but idc i didnt let that ruin that for me. I cant decide which one i liked better both were so different. What kind of shirt did that guy have on tonight that eddy made a comment about? I missed what he said. That was so funny though after even flow when Eddie said that "We have to play this everynight for mike or he'll fucking kill somebody" omg ive never laughed harder at a show

It is tough to decide which night was better, both were amazing. I just think night 1 song selection was a little better for me personally. Night 2 did have some gems with Hard To Imagine, and In My Tree but most of the others you will hear if you go a number of PJ shows. Night 1 with Long Road, In hiding, SBC, Dice, sad and smile, rare to get all of those gems on 1 night. Either way they played thier assess off both nights, might have some PJ withdrawl in the days to come.

bhersholt

Lucky (show) #13. Amazing energy (especially the last hour).... Chicago needs to bring its A game next time, but Ed talked them into having fun. All in all, one for the ages.

Holds true.... night 2 is ALWAYS better. Next up: Outside Lands.