Several Articles - Spectrum, PJ Final Shows
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ENTERTAINMENT
55 Hours; Spectacular finish
By RYAN CORMIER
29 October 2009
The News Journal
NJDE
PHILADELPHIA -- Before Pearl Jam takes the stage this weekend for the final two events ever held at the Spectrum, fans will be treated to a video tribute to the concrete jungle that will bring them back in time.
As at Pearl Jam's concerts earlier in the week, iconic images of the Spectrum's 42-year history will flash before the crowd:
There's Julius "Dr. J" Erving dunking as only he could. There's Jerry Garcia singing a spacey tune with the Grateful Dead, which performed at the Spectrum a mind-boggling 55 times, more than any other act. And then there's the bloodied Broad Street Bullies from the Flyers' back-to-back championships in 1974 and 1975.
Just as the montage ends, Pearl Jam will take the stage to the theme of "Rocky," letting Philadelphia know that this Philly-centric goodbye will be fitting for what has been home to some of the city's most memorable moments.
It's those memories that Delawareans will always keep, long after the Spectrum falls to the wrecking ball later this year.
"New York had Madison Square Garden, Los Angeles had the Forum and we had the Spectrum. It's a sacred place for rock 'n' roll," says John Barbieri, of Wilmington, who said he saw at least 125 concerts at the Spectrum since his first there, in 1971 -- Black Sabbath, Humble Pie and Mountain. "It's a special place that will never be replaced. Those memories will never leave."
All good things ...
Gov. Jack Markell remembers the Spectrum for the Flyers and 76ers games he saw there over the years.
"When you've grown up in an area and your childhood memories are around that space, it's always a reminder that, boy, you're getting older," Markell says. "When you go from the Spectrum to the Wachovia Center, you're going from the '60s to the 2000s, there's no question about it.
"All good things must come to an end," Markell says
Markell's spokesman, Brian Selander, has a rock music history with the Spectrum thanks to his mother, who started bringing him to concerts when he was 10.
It was March 8, 1989, when Selander first went to the Spectrum for a show, seeing big-haired Bon Jovi and Skid
Row with his rock-loving mother. He remembers a group of guys behind them reminiscing about other shows they had seen at the Spectrum and his mother jumped right in, telling them about the times she had seen bands like Led Zeppelin, The Doors and the Grateful Dead.
"One of the guys pointed at me, and said, 'Dude. Do you realize how cool your mom is?'" Selander remembers. "For the first time, I realized that she really was."
She was in his thoughts when he attended Springsteen's final Spectrum show last week, which featured Springsteen's "Born to Run" album in its entirety along with The Boss crowd surfing, leaving his welfare in the hands of the Spectrum faithful.
"He had no anxiety or fear. These were his fans and this was his building," Selander says. "It showed the personal relationship he had with his fans and that building."
It's that building that captured the heart of Dover rock fan Steve Knox against all odds.
As a member of a military family, Knox moved to Delaware when he was 16, after growing up in England, where he saw concerts by acts like Humble Pie at the Royal Albert Hall in London, among the most famous concert venues in the world.
In the '70s, he and a group of friends would go to the Spectrum once a month for acts like The Rolling Stones, The Eagles, Alice Cooper and Faces.
"Out of all the places I've been to, I'd call the Spectrum rock 'n' roll heaven," says Knox, 56. "The vibe was great. Everyone walking through those doors was just looking for a good time."
It was a promise of a good time that led Linda Sidowski, of Bear, to the Spectrum on Oct. 12, 1979 to see Michael Jackson during his "Off the Wall" tour.
"I was around 20, and we would love to go to The Alley [in Wilmington] and dance to 'Off the Wall.' We'd run to the dance floor when 'Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough' would come on, dancing our little hearts out," she says. "So when the opportunity came to see him, we had to go. And it was packed."
It's still hard to believe that Jackson's death preceded the fall of the Spectrum by a few months, Sidowski says, remembering her close encounter with Jackson 30 years ago.
"It's a piece of my history," she says. "That was an icon."
'This old sweatshop'
Springsteen's string of shows last week at the arena was an emotional goodbye for the artist most closely tied to the Spectrum.
Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder made mention of Springsteen earlier this week, saying the legendary rocker "blew the roof off" the Spectrum, before promising that Pearl Jam would not be reduced to being a "cleanup crew."
On Springsteen's final night, he paid his own respect to an arena that hosted some of his greatest performances.
"This is our last night in this old sweatshop," Springsteen said at the show, which included him dancing with his mother, Adele, on stage to "Dancing in the Dark." "We're so proud to be in one of the last great rock 'n' roll arenas."
Read his [RYAN CORMIER] pop culture blog at http://www.delawareonline.com/pulpculture.
Digging deep for the Spectrum's send-off, Pearl Jam serves up an ambitious setlist
If you have tickets to see Pearl Jam at the Spectrum tonight or Saturday, brace yourself.
Eddie Vedder promised that his band is determined to make the Spectrum's final events as special as possible.
"It's an honor this band takes very seriously," Vedder said mid-show Tuesday, the first of Pearl Jam's four-night run at the vaunted arena, slated for demolition at the end of the year. "We plan on playing every song we know."
To meet the goal of performing every song off Pearl Jam's nine studio albums, Vedder and the band dug deep Tuesday for a 2-1/2 hour concert, which included a tribute to The Who's 1973 "Quadrophenia" concert at the Spectrum with "Love, Reign o'er Me" and a raucous closer in Neil Young's "Rockin' in the Free World."
The show was split in two by an acoustic set in the middle, with Vedder performing with various members of the band, in addition to a string quartet for "Just Breath" and "The End."
Dressed in a flannel shirt over a black Social Distortion T-shirt (a nod to the night's solid opening act), Vedder was in terrific spirits.
He smiled throughout, heaped praise on his host city and took swig after swig from his ever present bottle of wine.
"We've been thinking about these gigs for a long time now," Vedder said of their goodbye to the arena, which has plenty in common with the Seattle rock band: grit, longevity and a strong sense of history.
The career-spanning set of hits, B-sides and covers touched on all nine Pearl Jam albums, with songs from the band's early days like "Black" and "Daughter" alongside several songs from this year's "Backspacer."
B-side "Bee Girl" got the acoustic treatment, silencing the Spectrum, setting a tone more like the one found at the Tower Theater in June, when Vedder was last in our area for a solo gig. But giddy fans could hardly contain themselves when rarely played tunes like "Mankind," with guitarist Stone Gossard on lead vocals, and "All Those Yesterdays," from 1998's "Yield," found their way onto the bulging 31-song setlist.
Sounding like a man with an adopted hometown, Vedder ended the night giving out tambourines to fans in the crowd, leaving with these final words: "Spectrum, we love you."
After the Spectrum's 42 years of hosting most of the biggest names in rock history, Vedder seems determined to honor their ghosts this week.
And that's the way it should be.
Ryan Cormier
55 Hours; Spectacular finish
By RYAN CORMIER
29 October 2009
The News Journal
NJDE
PHILADELPHIA -- Before Pearl Jam takes the stage this weekend for the final two events ever held at the Spectrum, fans will be treated to a video tribute to the concrete jungle that will bring them back in time.
As at Pearl Jam's concerts earlier in the week, iconic images of the Spectrum's 42-year history will flash before the crowd:
There's Julius "Dr. J" Erving dunking as only he could. There's Jerry Garcia singing a spacey tune with the Grateful Dead, which performed at the Spectrum a mind-boggling 55 times, more than any other act. And then there's the bloodied Broad Street Bullies from the Flyers' back-to-back championships in 1974 and 1975.
Just as the montage ends, Pearl Jam will take the stage to the theme of "Rocky," letting Philadelphia know that this Philly-centric goodbye will be fitting for what has been home to some of the city's most memorable moments.
It's those memories that Delawareans will always keep, long after the Spectrum falls to the wrecking ball later this year.
"New York had Madison Square Garden, Los Angeles had the Forum and we had the Spectrum. It's a sacred place for rock 'n' roll," says John Barbieri, of Wilmington, who said he saw at least 125 concerts at the Spectrum since his first there, in 1971 -- Black Sabbath, Humble Pie and Mountain. "It's a special place that will never be replaced. Those memories will never leave."
All good things ...
Gov. Jack Markell remembers the Spectrum for the Flyers and 76ers games he saw there over the years.
"When you've grown up in an area and your childhood memories are around that space, it's always a reminder that, boy, you're getting older," Markell says. "When you go from the Spectrum to the Wachovia Center, you're going from the '60s to the 2000s, there's no question about it.
"All good things must come to an end," Markell says
Markell's spokesman, Brian Selander, has a rock music history with the Spectrum thanks to his mother, who started bringing him to concerts when he was 10.
It was March 8, 1989, when Selander first went to the Spectrum for a show, seeing big-haired Bon Jovi and Skid
Row with his rock-loving mother. He remembers a group of guys behind them reminiscing about other shows they had seen at the Spectrum and his mother jumped right in, telling them about the times she had seen bands like Led Zeppelin, The Doors and the Grateful Dead.
"One of the guys pointed at me, and said, 'Dude. Do you realize how cool your mom is?'" Selander remembers. "For the first time, I realized that she really was."
She was in his thoughts when he attended Springsteen's final Spectrum show last week, which featured Springsteen's "Born to Run" album in its entirety along with The Boss crowd surfing, leaving his welfare in the hands of the Spectrum faithful.
"He had no anxiety or fear. These were his fans and this was his building," Selander says. "It showed the personal relationship he had with his fans and that building."
It's that building that captured the heart of Dover rock fan Steve Knox against all odds.
As a member of a military family, Knox moved to Delaware when he was 16, after growing up in England, where he saw concerts by acts like Humble Pie at the Royal Albert Hall in London, among the most famous concert venues in the world.
In the '70s, he and a group of friends would go to the Spectrum once a month for acts like The Rolling Stones, The Eagles, Alice Cooper and Faces.
"Out of all the places I've been to, I'd call the Spectrum rock 'n' roll heaven," says Knox, 56. "The vibe was great. Everyone walking through those doors was just looking for a good time."
It was a promise of a good time that led Linda Sidowski, of Bear, to the Spectrum on Oct. 12, 1979 to see Michael Jackson during his "Off the Wall" tour.
"I was around 20, and we would love to go to The Alley [in Wilmington] and dance to 'Off the Wall.' We'd run to the dance floor when 'Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough' would come on, dancing our little hearts out," she says. "So when the opportunity came to see him, we had to go. And it was packed."
It's still hard to believe that Jackson's death preceded the fall of the Spectrum by a few months, Sidowski says, remembering her close encounter with Jackson 30 years ago.
"It's a piece of my history," she says. "That was an icon."
'This old sweatshop'
Springsteen's string of shows last week at the arena was an emotional goodbye for the artist most closely tied to the Spectrum.
Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder made mention of Springsteen earlier this week, saying the legendary rocker "blew the roof off" the Spectrum, before promising that Pearl Jam would not be reduced to being a "cleanup crew."
On Springsteen's final night, he paid his own respect to an arena that hosted some of his greatest performances.
"This is our last night in this old sweatshop," Springsteen said at the show, which included him dancing with his mother, Adele, on stage to "Dancing in the Dark." "We're so proud to be in one of the last great rock 'n' roll arenas."
Read his [RYAN CORMIER] pop culture blog at http://www.delawareonline.com/pulpculture.
Digging deep for the Spectrum's send-off, Pearl Jam serves up an ambitious setlist
If you have tickets to see Pearl Jam at the Spectrum tonight or Saturday, brace yourself.
Eddie Vedder promised that his band is determined to make the Spectrum's final events as special as possible.
"It's an honor this band takes very seriously," Vedder said mid-show Tuesday, the first of Pearl Jam's four-night run at the vaunted arena, slated for demolition at the end of the year. "We plan on playing every song we know."
To meet the goal of performing every song off Pearl Jam's nine studio albums, Vedder and the band dug deep Tuesday for a 2-1/2 hour concert, which included a tribute to The Who's 1973 "Quadrophenia" concert at the Spectrum with "Love, Reign o'er Me" and a raucous closer in Neil Young's "Rockin' in the Free World."
The show was split in two by an acoustic set in the middle, with Vedder performing with various members of the band, in addition to a string quartet for "Just Breath" and "The End."
Dressed in a flannel shirt over a black Social Distortion T-shirt (a nod to the night's solid opening act), Vedder was in terrific spirits.
He smiled throughout, heaped praise on his host city and took swig after swig from his ever present bottle of wine.
"We've been thinking about these gigs for a long time now," Vedder said of their goodbye to the arena, which has plenty in common with the Seattle rock band: grit, longevity and a strong sense of history.
The career-spanning set of hits, B-sides and covers touched on all nine Pearl Jam albums, with songs from the band's early days like "Black" and "Daughter" alongside several songs from this year's "Backspacer."
B-side "Bee Girl" got the acoustic treatment, silencing the Spectrum, setting a tone more like the one found at the Tower Theater in June, when Vedder was last in our area for a solo gig. But giddy fans could hardly contain themselves when rarely played tunes like "Mankind," with guitarist Stone Gossard on lead vocals, and "All Those Yesterdays," from 1998's "Yield," found their way onto the bulging 31-song setlist.
Sounding like a man with an adopted hometown, Vedder ended the night giving out tambourines to fans in the crowd, leaving with these final words: "Spectrum, we love you."
After the Spectrum's 42 years of hosting most of the biggest names in rock history, Vedder seems determined to honor their ghosts this week.
And that's the way it should be.
Ryan Cormier
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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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1pvUOrxAlbg
*NYC 9/28/96 *NYC 9/29/96 *NJ 9/8/98 (front row "may i play drums with you")
*MSG 9/10/98 (backstage) *MSG 9/11/98 (backstage)
*Jones Beach 8/23/00 *Jones Beach 8/24/00 *Jones Beach 8/25/00
*Mansfield 8/29/00 *Mansfield 8/30/00 *Nassau 4/30/03 *Nissan VA 7/1/03
*Borgata 10/1/05 *Camden 5/27/06 *Camden 5/28/06 *DC 5/30/06
*VA Beach 6/17/08 *DC 6/22/08 *MSG 6/24/08 (backstage) *MSG 6/25/08
*EV DC 8/17/08 *EV Baltimore 6/15/09 *Philly 10/31/09
*Bristow VA 5/13/10 *MSG 5/20/10 *MSG 5/21/10
Pearl Jam plays tonight at finale for Spectrum
By BILL IVORY LARSON
31 October 2009
Courier-Post
Think of how many special memories are associated with sound.
A child laughing, cheers from winning a championship (or maybe even two), a favorite band singing a favorite song. All not just heard with our ears but recorded in our minds and within our hearts.
Since 1967, the Spectrum has played host to concerts, sporting events and fights (including Rocky's fictitious ones), family entertainment, circuses and more. But the Spectrum didn't just play host to these events. For almost 43 years it was filled with the kinds of sounds and energy that breathe life into a place to help millions of people create their own special memories, from one generation to the next.
"It breaks my heart they are knocking this place down," said Eddie Jaslow from Burlington Township. "I've seen concerts like Quiet Riot and Black Sabbath, and many Flyers games here. Hands down, the Spectrum is the best and nothing compares to it. Not the Vet and not JFK."
"It's sad and bittersweet," said Maida Cameron from Cherry Hill as she recalled her Spectrum experiences. "My first concert here was 25 years ago. I came with my husband to see Rush. This place is far better than Citizens Bank Park for concerts. I saw The Police there and it sounded terrible. I will miss the sound of this place."
Even out-of-towners appreciate the Spectrum and its history.
Renee Seguin from Fort Myers, Fla., treated her husband, Glenn, for his 40th birthday to tickets to Tuesday's Pearl Jam concert, in part because of the Spectrum's closing.
"This is his 40th show for his 40th birthday. After seeing the Spectrum was closing on the Pearl Jam Web site, I thought it would be a cool place to see them. Kind of like we're helping close the place down."
Gary Clark from Pitman took a nostalgic view on tonight's closing.
"I grew up with the Spectrum. I used to come here to see Flyers games. It's a room that's truly alive. Seeing hockey here, it seemed like the crowd was on the ice with them. The atmosphere was incredible."
Yet Clark was more practical about the future.
"I do have nostalgia for the Spectrum, but it had its time and place. It's a great building, but it's always better to look forward than to look behind."
When asked about the hoopla over the Spectrum closing, compared to The Vet or JFK stadium, Ike Richman, vice president of public relations, Comcast-Spectacor said, "In addition to the sports, the Spectrum is where you came to see the stars like Elvis Presley, Barbra Streisand, Frank Sinatra, the Rolling Stones, Tina Turner and even Pearl Jam. You could see family entertainment like a "Disney on Ice' show, or the circus or hockey. This was the place to go,and everyone in this area came here at one time or another in their lifetime. Knowing that we've touched so many lives and knowing so many memories were created here, that's the ultimate compliment to Ed Snider who built the Spectrum."
Walking with Richman through the venue, you can see (and almost hear) the Spectrum's history through its gallery of photos, posters and billboards on the walls of its business office area.
A poster touting a Muhammad Ali fight hangs across from a gigantic photo of "Beauty and the Beast" on ice. The picture of Bernie Parent and Bobby Clarke lifting the Stanley Cup to their shoulders hangs alongside photos of past performers such as Bruce Springsteen, Bon Jovi, Tina Turner and Billy Joel.
Before Tuesday's Pearl Jam show the Spectrum's video monitors showed a montage of events that have taken place, a perfect segue for the band since they'll be the last ones to sign the guest book of this mighty hall.
Even Eddie Vedder took time out Tuesday to salute the Spectrum. Sitting alone center stage he clutched his signature bottle of red wine and said "here's a toast to you, and here's a toast to the building.
"There's a reason bands like to play here," Vedder continued. "The sound is really (expletive) incredible compared to most places. We take this very seriously. It's an honor to play the last shows at this historic venue."
"I always wanted the building to be the place in Philadelphia where people could gather for entertainment -- whether it was sports, concerts, family shows, or other attractions," said Comcast-Spectacor Chairman Ed Snider.
"As I reflect on the past 43 years, I often think of how many lives were touched and how many lasting memories were created. It's fitting that the entertainment that we presented during the final days of the Spectrum only added to these wonderful memories that we'll forever hold in our hearts."
At the end of tonight the sounds that brought the Spectrum to life will be gone and its halls will go quiet.
It's not without a sense of irony Joan Forrest of Tuckerton paraphrases a line from one of Pearl Jam's hit songs to perfectly sum up how she and those attending tonight feel about seeing Pearl Jam close the Spectrum.
"You can't find a better band."
Pearl Jam rocks the Spectrum to the end with 41 songs in 31/2 hours
By John J. Moser OF THE MORNING CALL
2 November 2009
The Allentown Morning Call
FIRST
D2
If Halloween was the appropriate night for the final concert at the Spectrum in Philadelphia – All Hallows Eve on hallowed ground – then rock band Pearl Jam provided a fitting end to 42 years of concerts there: A long, exciting night of mostly treats, with a few tricks.
No, the band didn't, as rumored, play until 2 a.m. or later – although its 3 ½-hour show came pretty close; the band finally left the stage for good at 12:30 a.m. Sunday.
Nor did rumored appearances by Bruce Springsteen or Billy Joel or Neil Young materialize -- although Pearl Jam's last pre-encore song was a scorching version of Young's "Rockin' in the Free World."
But, as Pearl Jam singer Eddie Vedder said from the stage, "You can't be disappointed. We're up here working our [expletive] off. We don't need these [expletive] guys, "cause you got me!"
And work Pearl Jam did, through an amazing 41 songs, making the concert 10 songs and 15 minutes longer than Bruce Springsteen's finale show 11 days earlier.
The band even joined the many costumed members of the sold-out -- and supremely stoked -- audience by, just before midnight, putting on the yellow hazard suits and red flower-pot hats of Devo and playing a ragged but fun cover of that band's classic "Whip It."
The evening had the feel of a tribute from the start. After a film montage of Spectrum highlights, Pearl Jam took the stage to the trumpeted introduction to "Rocky," Vedder hopping around in red boxing gloves. He said, "This is it!" and the band kicked into an appropriate "Why Go."
It was the first of many seeming references to the end of the Spectrum.
Four songs in, after an incendiary "Severed Hand," with Pearl Jam burning hot and the audience delirious, Vedder said, "This is how we do it if they're going to tear the place down."
"I don't want this place to go," he said. "I don't even want to think about it. Let's just keep playing [expletive] rock "n' roll, man."
An hour into the show, during "Don't Call Me Daughter," Vedder said, "The Greeks, the Romans, they kept their coliseums. Why can't we keep this one? … Elvis played here!" And the band segued into a segment of Pink Floyd's "The Wall," which Vedder ended with the lyric: "Leave this building alone!"
The show wasn't just about memories. The music was pretty great, too.
The songs ranged from the touching "Just Breathe," with Vedder on acoustic guitar backed by a string quartet to "Even Flow," during which Vedder donned devil horns and guitarist Mike McCready -- who was smokin' all night-- played a long solo, even dropping to his knees.
As it did during its entire four-night stand, which began Tuesday, the band dug deep into its catalog for rarities such as "Out of My Mind," which Vedder said an anonymous donor had pledged "a large amount of money" to charity if they played. "Tell that guy to get out his check!" Vedder said.
And Pearl Jam played the requisite hits, including "Jeremy" during a seven-song set with the string quartet; an anthemic "Better Man"; and "Alive" as the second-last song in the main set.
The main set closed with "Rockin' in the Free World," the house lights up; red, white and blue confetti and balloons raining down on the crowd and the card girl dancing onstage with the band.
"We ain't playing shows this long ever again," Vedder said.
But as if the show couldn't end, the band returned for "Yellow Ledbetter."
Then, McCready stood alone on stage, bare-chested, and played Jimi Hendrix's version of "The Star Spangled Banner." The crowd, at this point berserk, screamed through it.
It was a fitting ending: America's song for America's showplace – probably the only way this long, wonderful run of the Spectrum could end.
"Goodbye to the Spectrum," Vedder said. "We love you, goodnight. Peace."
And then that's all there was in the hallowed hall.
Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam performs at the final concert at the Wachovia Spectrum in Philadelphia on Saturday. Photo By BRIAN HINELINE / SPECIAL TO THE MORNING CALL - Freelance