Wrigley- The Good and the Bad
What was great for you about this unique, epic, memorable, PJ experience?
What totally sucked for you about this delayed, weird, wet, crowded, cluster of a show?
Just to set the tone, in general, for me, this had more negatives than any other PJ show I've ever attended (#19 for me), but.... it also had by far, the most positives. It was just an exhausting, all encompassing trip. Like a roller coaster ride.
Now that a couple of days has passed, I am reflecting a little, and thinking about how I will remember it long term. I think at the end of the day, I will remember simply being there, experiencing Wrigley in a new way (had only been there a couple of times for the Cubs), and most importantly, I think I will remember the songs they played and how they played them more so than any of the negatives. It was simply an amazing set (even if it was cut short), and they were totally on, ripping through everything they played. Really, that's what is what will be most remembered, I believe.
So, to answer my original questions -
GOOD -
Amazing set - After going 17 shows without seeing Release as the opener (which is nuts), this was my 2nd in a row, and the only way to start a show like this. Nothingman/Present Tense/Hold On as songs 2-4 - that's just awesome. Can't explain it another way. Lowlight was the song I had not yet seen live that I wanted the most. Loved the little addition to Corduroy. The segway from the delay with All the Way / Cubs / Ernie Banks was one of the coolest things I've experienced (I felt like part of the Cub family for a few minutes even if I'm not a Cubs fan). Seeing the two new songs debuted was great - and I'm looking forward to this album more now than ever. The encore with Chloe/Crown plus a kick ass Porch and Black - just classic. And they killed em all
Seats I think some people have valid complaints that were given supposedly the best 10C field seats and were stuck so far to the side that they couldn't see shit. For me, though, I was in a nice spot, next to GA, with a decent angle, great view of everything.
Atmosphere & People - Can't even describe what it's like walking into Wrigley and seeing that "Evening with Pearl Jam" on the scoreboard. Walking on the field, touching the ivy (i snuck that in), awesome photos, packed house, etc... Way cool. Almost everybody I met was great, from the packed bars beforehand to the people in the seats around me, to the people stuck next to me during the delay. The whole day was an experience I'll never forget, and the rain and the confusion and the delay only added to it in some weird way.
BAD
The Delay
The delay itself was shitty of course, but it could have been much better for me had a few things be done differently. First, I had no idea we could leave and come back. Would have been nice to announce. In general, would have been nice for the PA to announce anything. Communication is important. I knew to wait just because I trusted the band, and knew that they would absolutely play unless someone told them they couldn't. But there was a lingering doubt that grew nonetheless throughout the wait. My wife and I were stuck in behind the right field wall, nowhere to go, just sitting there chatting with strangers. She was getting restless and was about to pass out. We decided to push our way out after the rain stopped, and then stood another hour while they inexplicably didn't let the field crowd back to their seats. I don't understand why that took so long. The ushers were standing in there for like 40 minutes waiting for someone to ush.
Exhaustion
We had traveled that morning, got up at 7 AM EST, and the show didn't end until 3 AM EST. I was dead. Our feet hurt, I sat for probably 30% of the set once they started up again just because I couldn't stand any more. Then the L going back to the Loop was just nuts. Crowded, shitheads wouldn't let the doors close, just a horrible way to end the night. Would have been able to handle it fine, though, just was so fucking tired. I'm old I guess.
Bottom line for me - I wouldn't trade any of it. Not the rain, not the delay. I'll look back and be happy that I could say that I was there for the reasons, good and bad.
What was good for you?
What was bad for you?
What totally sucked for you about this delayed, weird, wet, crowded, cluster of a show?
Just to set the tone, in general, for me, this had more negatives than any other PJ show I've ever attended (#19 for me), but.... it also had by far, the most positives. It was just an exhausting, all encompassing trip. Like a roller coaster ride.
Now that a couple of days has passed, I am reflecting a little, and thinking about how I will remember it long term. I think at the end of the day, I will remember simply being there, experiencing Wrigley in a new way (had only been there a couple of times for the Cubs), and most importantly, I think I will remember the songs they played and how they played them more so than any of the negatives. It was simply an amazing set (even if it was cut short), and they were totally on, ripping through everything they played. Really, that's what is what will be most remembered, I believe.
So, to answer my original questions -
GOOD -
Amazing set - After going 17 shows without seeing Release as the opener (which is nuts), this was my 2nd in a row, and the only way to start a show like this. Nothingman/Present Tense/Hold On as songs 2-4 - that's just awesome. Can't explain it another way. Lowlight was the song I had not yet seen live that I wanted the most. Loved the little addition to Corduroy. The segway from the delay with All the Way / Cubs / Ernie Banks was one of the coolest things I've experienced (I felt like part of the Cub family for a few minutes even if I'm not a Cubs fan). Seeing the two new songs debuted was great - and I'm looking forward to this album more now than ever. The encore with Chloe/Crown plus a kick ass Porch and Black - just classic. And they killed em all
Seats I think some people have valid complaints that were given supposedly the best 10C field seats and were stuck so far to the side that they couldn't see shit. For me, though, I was in a nice spot, next to GA, with a decent angle, great view of everything.
Atmosphere & People - Can't even describe what it's like walking into Wrigley and seeing that "Evening with Pearl Jam" on the scoreboard. Walking on the field, touching the ivy (i snuck that in), awesome photos, packed house, etc... Way cool. Almost everybody I met was great, from the packed bars beforehand to the people in the seats around me, to the people stuck next to me during the delay. The whole day was an experience I'll never forget, and the rain and the confusion and the delay only added to it in some weird way.
BAD
The Delay
The delay itself was shitty of course, but it could have been much better for me had a few things be done differently. First, I had no idea we could leave and come back. Would have been nice to announce. In general, would have been nice for the PA to announce anything. Communication is important. I knew to wait just because I trusted the band, and knew that they would absolutely play unless someone told them they couldn't. But there was a lingering doubt that grew nonetheless throughout the wait. My wife and I were stuck in behind the right field wall, nowhere to go, just sitting there chatting with strangers. She was getting restless and was about to pass out. We decided to push our way out after the rain stopped, and then stood another hour while they inexplicably didn't let the field crowd back to their seats. I don't understand why that took so long. The ushers were standing in there for like 40 minutes waiting for someone to ush.
Exhaustion
We had traveled that morning, got up at 7 AM EST, and the show didn't end until 3 AM EST. I was dead. Our feet hurt, I sat for probably 30% of the set once they started up again just because I couldn't stand any more. Then the L going back to the Loop was just nuts. Crowded, shitheads wouldn't let the doors close, just a horrible way to end the night. Would have been able to handle it fine, though, just was so fucking tired. I'm old I guess.
Bottom line for me - I wouldn't trade any of it. Not the rain, not the delay. I'll look back and be happy that I could say that I was there for the reasons, good and bad.
What was good for you?
What was bad for you?
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Seats
Setlist
Weather after the storm
Getting into captain Morgan's for the break
Hanging out in Chicago thurs and fri
Pearl jam sticking it out and playing a show!
Bad:
Merch lines
Heat
Weather break
Beer selection inside wrigley
Train back downtown after the show
Tickets and seats- My wife and I went without tickets and got 2 field seat in sec J when they released more tix around 5pm. Awesome. Sucked that the people around us paid a ridiculous amount for what we paid face for.
People-We met lots of great people. I thought we were old but a great 20yr old kid named Aaron from Indiana hang out with us most of the day. He was able to get some tix from some other 10 clubbers. The look on his face was priceless and it was cool to see him call his dad with so much joy.
Ernie Banks-Being a Cubs fan. Seeing him on stage with Eddie was awesome.
Setlist-Nothing more to say. It was perfect for me.
Wrigley Field-It is a very special place to me. Being on the field. touching the ivy, the pictures everything about it.
Chole Dancer/Crown of Thorns-Been waiting for ever to hear that. Awesome. Thank you
Much more but that is some of it.
Bad:
The delay. We were fine because the gates were open but it still sucked.
Not being able to find a cab after: We knew the trains wouldn't be running to our hotel because we were going north but didn't think it would be so hard to find a cab. Found one at 4:30...finally.
That is it.
Thank you Pearl Jam
That opener of Release had me crying - that song was already the most emotional PJ song for me, and then the look on Ed's face and when he looked up at his dad and asked"can yyou see this now?".... I could have gone home right then and it would have been worth it.
Come Back, for the reason everyone already knows.
Seeing everyone at the preparty.
Bugs. I was so happy to hear such a rare song, and it cracked me right up too. Really enjoyed it, and by far the best Ed's done with the song live.
Faithfull. Was so appropriate.
Our seats. Great view, and not a single idiot anywhere near us.
Seeing all the baseball and especially cubs fans when Ernie came out on stage. A lot of happy people around me at that moment! Also when Ed said thing about seeing Wrigley in colour for the first time.y ticket buddy said that he had the exact same experience at his first game, and the vibe was just all good.
Ed crowd surfing. And Porch all around. I loved that they slowed it down a bit compared to the usual and the solo was killer. Also Even Flow. Amazing version. Everyone who ran to the can is silly.
Leather man. Love the song, never really expected to hear it.
RVM and Black and CD/cot. Thought of dimitrispearljam during that last one and was happy for him too.
My time in the concourse during the delay for all the awesome people I met. Alsothe actual lightning storm. Indon't get that shit at home and itnwas really cool!
When Ed asked if we trusted him. I did.
Hearing the 2 songs never heard before live for the first time (beside those stupid outro keyboards, lol).
The hilarious cheerful guys on the stuffed train who kept it something to laugh about.
The bad:
The food lineup during the delay. So hot and long (that's what she said).
The hot temps and being soaked with sweat for 15 hours straight.
The whiners in the train station, and the poor woman who collapsed in there.
Add these to my list also! I caught that moment that Ed had during Release, too. It was perfect. Just felt like it was going to be a special night right then. Turned out it was definitely special, for a whole bunch of reasons.
I immediately caught the reference on Come Back. What an awesome thing to do. There's no other band that would do that on that type of stage.
The Ed talk at the end of Faithfull - perfect.
"First, I had no idea we could leave and come back. Would have been nice to announce. In general, would have been nice for the PA to announce anything. Communication is important."
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Mikes solo on Black
The WORST-
Watching someone puke on someone
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Bad- weather delay kinda sucked cause we did miss out on another 6-7 songs, Waiting in line for almost 6 hours for merch. (don't think i'll be doing that again) and getting dehydrated afterwards kinda sucked
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Letting people back on the field-- Dare I say it almost turned into a mini Roskilde. People were being trampled and squished. I saw a woman get stepped on several times and people were bent over the railings trying to catch their breath after the rush back in. The security guy who could barely speak english just said "Easy" and let all the drunk frat boys shove us all around. I've never felt my safety threatened at a concert until this moment.
The band coming on 45 minutes late and waiting an extra half hour until the storm was done.
-Christopher Walken
you're=you are
your=showing ownership
The truth has a well known liberal bias.
-Stephen Colbert
Seeing PJ. This is never bad
The way the band sounded. Amazing.
Hearing new and rare songs.
Meeting great fans
Bad
Left at 8am EDT and was exhausted by the time they restarted.
Had to leave a little early because I had only reserved parking thru 2am (figured this was more than enough)
and was afraid I would get towed. (Security and cops at Wrigley said there was a good chance).
Lack of communication during the delay.
Bad: Zero communication about what was going on. They (not necessarily the band) have the power/knowledge to let us know.
As others have said, it was a very long day as we had flown from NY on Friday morning. Got back to the hotel at 3.30am tired but very satisfied
Bad: We were standing there and all of a sudden this guy jumps up and starts yelling at this other guy for peeing on his wife. I was couple away from this showdown. I could not believe it. It was an unreal situation.
Lines. Ugh so many lines. Worse than Disney!
Hot. Very hot. Lines hotter.
Merch. WTF! STOCK YOUR SHIT!!!! The merch tents/vans open and they have 3 of the prints and the stickers? Are you kidding me? Wait in line for 3/4 hours and get up there to find this out. Then they slowly start rolling in an item every 1/2 hour? Got the email that they would open early. And that shit would be fully stocked.
I HAVE NO COMPLAINTS!!!! I'll take it all again and again if I could. Great night. Never forget.
2) Why would Wrigley Field have kept you up to date on what's going on with the weather? Anyone was able to figure out that they weren't to go back out there till every single cell was gone from that area.
Great concert. Stop whining about every single little thing that you didn't like or enjoy.
you're the only one who can forgive yourself oh yeah...
makes much more sense to live in the present tense...
1995: 7/11 (Chicago) 2009: 8/23, 8/24 (Chicago) 2010: 5/9 (Cleveland) 2013 7/19 (Chicago) 2016: 4/9 (Miami), 5/1 (NYC), 8/20 & 8/22 (Chicago)
2018: 8/18 (Chicago) & 8/20 (Chicago) 2022: 9/11 (NYC), 9/18 (STL) 2023: 9/5 (Chicago), 9/7 (Chicago) 2024: 8/29 (Chicago), 8/31 (Chicago)
Who is "they"? Pearl Jam absolutely made the decision not to continue to play during the rainstorm for very obvious reasons. "They" - I'm assuming you mean Wrigley - has zero obligation to notify fans of a concert when the band/tenant for that evening actually plans on getting back up on stage.
you're the only one who can forgive yourself oh yeah...
makes much more sense to live in the present tense...
1995: 7/11 (Chicago) 2009: 8/23, 8/24 (Chicago) 2010: 5/9 (Cleveland) 2013 7/19 (Chicago) 2016: 4/9 (Miami), 5/1 (NYC), 8/20 & 8/22 (Chicago)
2018: 8/18 (Chicago) & 8/20 (Chicago) 2022: 9/11 (NYC), 9/18 (STL) 2023: 9/5 (Chicago), 9/7 (Chicago) 2024: 8/29 (Chicago), 8/31 (Chicago)
Nope--those megaphones are there for every Wrigley event!
you're the only one who can forgive yourself oh yeah...
makes much more sense to live in the present tense...
1995: 7/11 (Chicago) 2009: 8/23, 8/24 (Chicago) 2010: 5/9 (Cleveland) 2013 7/19 (Chicago) 2016: 4/9 (Miami), 5/1 (NYC), 8/20 & 8/22 (Chicago)
2018: 8/18 (Chicago) & 8/20 (Chicago) 2022: 9/11 (NYC), 9/18 (STL) 2023: 9/5 (Chicago), 9/7 (Chicago) 2024: 8/29 (Chicago), 8/31 (Chicago)
I thought Ed had mentioned something about a half-hour rain delay and another half-hour to get things rolling again. When the delay approached double that amount of time it would have been considerate to let everyone know what the current status was. Shortly after 11PM, we found out from a nice cop out on the street that a decision was to be made by 11:30. It was helpful to know that instead of being in limbo. I imagine a lot of people left during that period in frustration -- had they known a decision was imminent they would have stuck it out.
And sorry Wrigley-lovers, but it really demonstrated what an archaic facility Wrigley is by modern standards. Most any other ballpark has video walls and/or television monitors that could have clearly communicated information, weather radar, updates and such. Something to keep the fans informed/occupied during the extended wait, rather than stewing in some hellish purgatory.
1) They had no clue what time they were going to be able to get back on - there were multiple storm cells that were coming/going in the Chicago area; including an additional storm cell that popped up that Pearl Jam/Ed had no clue was coming. That's why you didn't "hear" anything. THEY - Pearl Jam - had any obligation to let fans know what time they thought they would be back on stage.. not Wrigley Field. They (Wrigley Field) weren't making the determination on when Pearl Jam would be back up on stage.
2) Wrigley has a PA system and there were microphones all over the stage. You (as every other fan) wasn't notified, again, because they were unsure. I had friends that were in the South Loop - a 15 minute drive from where Wrigley is. They didn't get rain at all that evening.
3) If Wrigley had a radar system up and operational on the scoreboard for you to see - you have a meteorological degree and could determine exactly when Pearl Jam was going to go back on stage?
4) Pearl Jam posted on their Twitter feed that, indeed, they were still going to be playing that evening.
Pearl Jam @PearlJam 19 Jul
We have been advised to wait until a second weather cell passes. We intend to provide you w/ a full show tonight. #PJWrigley
Expand
Pearl Jam @PearlJam 19 Jul
As an effort to keep everyone safe, show delay due to weather advisory. The show will resume once weather permits! #PJWrigley
This had nothing to do with Wrigley Field. It had everything to do with a bad storm hitting during a sold out concert, in oppressive heat/humidity and the band taking extreme precaution to make sure everyone was safe.
you're the only one who can forgive yourself oh yeah...
makes much more sense to live in the present tense...
1995: 7/11 (Chicago) 2009: 8/23, 8/24 (Chicago) 2010: 5/9 (Cleveland) 2013 7/19 (Chicago) 2016: 4/9 (Miami), 5/1 (NYC), 8/20 & 8/22 (Chicago)
2018: 8/18 (Chicago) & 8/20 (Chicago) 2022: 9/11 (NYC), 9/18 (STL) 2023: 9/5 (Chicago), 9/7 (Chicago) 2024: 8/29 (Chicago), 8/31 (Chicago)
The good - the band was spot on as usual and the setlist was good. They were also smart in delaying it. My seats in the reserved section were good, especially during the rain delay when I didn't have to get up.
The bad - The distance between bathrooms is a bit daunting and the lack of selections at the concession stands is not good and not a PA announcement about what was going on. The line at the red line was bad, but I remembered from going to the Cub game that the trick is to walk one stop south and get the train from there.
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"I play good, hard-nosed basketball.
Things happen in the game. Nothing you
can do. I don't go and say,
"I'm gonna beat this guy up."
I mean take a look at this photo they posted on the home page:
What the hell are the chances that lighting would strike on a somewhat kickoff concert to the new album "Lightning Bolt". Fucking epic!
The man upstairs is definitely a PJ fan!!
I was there and it was so appropriate that their new album is titled Lightning Bolt!!! I had a great time, rolled with the punches and felt like everything that I went through to get there, the rain delay, trying to get back to the hotel after the concert all was part of the journey/experience. I have only been to four other PJ concerts, but I heard many of the songs that I wanted to hear. I kept telling my husband if I die tomorrow, I will die as a happy Pearl Jam fan
I saw AC/DC play in Edmonton 3 or 4 years ago. A big Supercell blew over for the show and it was pissing rain with lighting coming the west and the north. The whole crowd got soaked, but what a fucking fantasic show. The band never quit. They had people comeout with broom/squegee hybrids to shove the water off the stage/walkway after each song. They never took a rain delay. They played 2 hours+ in the heart of the storm. Watching thunderstruck with lightning around the stadium was epic!
I still can't believe they kept playing through it..
The Bad: The coward who punched the guy when asked to not smoke, and ran away
The Ugly: The nasty fucker who peed on the lady's leg in GA
Bad: I'm kinda ticked off at these stories about people walking in off the street for free after the rain delay, or getting face value field tickets at the box office at the very last minute. Sucks for the people who didn't come because they couldn't get tickets, or people who paid out the nose just to get inside. Plus the merch lines were a joke.