When Did Pearl Jam Fans Get so Old?

badbrains

Last-12-Exit said:

Pearl jam has always been there for me. Pearl jam has been what I've turned to when times were tough and when times were good. Pearl jam was there when I graduated high school and college. Pearl jam was there on my wedding day. Pearl jam was there on the way home from the hospital after all three of my kids were born.

Pearl jam was there when I spent 6 days in the hospital after crushing my left hand. They were there in the following 8 months of surgeries and physical therapy. They were there when my grandpa died and when my high school friend and Indiana Highway Patrolman Scott Patrick was killed.

When did we become old? When I realized they have been there for 24 of my 36 years of life. I hope it continues for a long time to come.

You forgot to add that they were there for you when your wife broke the news to you about being a lesbian. ) but as hedonist has said, very eloquent post my friend.

Last-12-Exit

That's because oddly enough, Melissa Ethridge was playing on the radio!

badbrains

Last-12-Exit said:

That's because oddly enough, Melissa Ethridge was playing on the radio!

) ) ) you're another one that cracks me up Last12

hedonist

Last-12-Exit said:

That's because oddly enough, Melissa Ethridge was playing on the radio!

I dig Melissa, but must confess to a full-blown crush on KD Lang.

She, and her voice, entrance me.

steeler4life

I will take it upon myself to bring PJ to young people. If anyone is younger than me on these boards, I would be shocked. I think I was born in the wrong decade...

iimagine

florence151 said:

Great, well written, post Demetrios!

I started listening to PJ in 1997. My first show was Oakland where they opened for the Rolling Stones. I was 47! I was old when I started but started to get younger as I listened.

My last show was in Trieste. That's 73 shows later. Still having fun. Still dancing, but to Infallible now. Yes, good wine.

Here's to 73 more!!! Keep Rockin!!

RD101189

I'm same age as Mike and Stone and have been into PJ since 1991 when were 25. I glad to say this is the band that I've really grown up with over the past 23 years, through love, marriage, children, job changes, loss of family and friends, changes in our country, etc. I hope they keep releasing new music and performing live for another 24 more years. I hope to be there right with them.

cydonia

It dosnt matter how old you are, my mum and dad went with me to the three shows at Manchester uk and I wasn't embarrassed to be with them, they love pearl jam . I'm in my mid thirties and have followed pearl jam right from the start and its inevitable , we grow old and after Milton Keynes can say the band are still the best IMO in the world. They've worked hard to create a loyal fan base and now the fans are part of the band. Fans range from 15. Yr olds to like my parents in there 60's it shows no generation owns the music it's for everyone. After Manchester on 21st June 2014 my mum sat down and cried she died a year later of cancer, the band meant the world to her , age is insignificant.

PJ_Soul

Well anyone in their 30s who feels embarrassed to be with their parents is an idiot.

Mawky1103

I'm 25 and I love Pearl Jam..the youngns are out there.

PJ_Soul

And I hope younger fans keep on coming and increasing. The best crowds by far are a good mix of all ages (over 14 or so anyway... I certainly don't want rock concerts to be stuffed with young kids).

ldent42

PJ_Soul said:

Well anyone in their 30s who feels embarrassed to be with their parents is an idiot.

OR incredibly sheltered. Sometimes when people have kids young their kids don't always understand that life is short and they take their parents for granted, cuz they don't understand that their parents won't always be around. A friend of mine is like this, I've had to smack him a few times cuz of stupid shit spoken out of that ignorance.

hedonist

PJ_Soul said:

Well anyone in their 30s who feels embarrassed to be with their parents is an idiot.

Made me smile with this. Earlier I wrote something very close (scarily-similar!) and draft-saved.

I think when we come to appreciate our parents, embarrassment vanishes.

cydonia, it is so fucking cool and precious to share music - any genre of it - with our parents.

It all stays, always.

BALLBOY

The best thing about being a PJ fan & growing old we have done it with dignity & grace just like the band

Tonyewald76

Do not regret growing older. It is a privilege denied to many.

~Author Unknown

Get_Right

Keep it down and get off my lawn!

BettrMan21

I started to appreciate my parents when I became their age. I am 36. I was 16 when my parents were 36. I know my parents at my age - so I relate - and I appreciate them more now that I am them. I mean, my son is 6 vs. 16 but the sentiment is the same.
And I got into Pearl Jam at 13. At 36, I do see the crowd being my age. And it's humbling to know I've loved the band that long. And that they're still this good. I hope I'm still feeling old with my other fellow old fans at 46.

rr165892

I love PJ,but the edge this band had in our youth is not resonating with or have the same relevance with today's youth.Sure there are some who"get it" but I'm inclined to think that PJ def appeals more to us Gen xers.As we mature,the band matures and both of our tastes become more refined.The super wild hanging from the rafters,Rebellious Eddie has calmed a bit and is the same age as a few of the younger fans grandparents.Its only natural to think the demographic divide will continue.Same can be said for DMB,Petty,Aerosmith,Van Halen,Etc.
I believe bands like Foo Fighters and Linkin Park are the exception where there is still a huge younger fan base and new singles are met with not just fan excitement but full blown radio/SiriusXM saturation on and across Multi formatted stations.just my 2 cents.

ham_on_rye

Lucky for me I have a 19 year old daughter to let me know how old/embarrassing I am L-)
When I tell her anything about PJ I get no eye rolls and I caught her telling her friends about my love for the band. She isn't horrified so either I'm not old or it is cool to love PJ at my age. Dancing in public with her around... that's another story :-q

PJ_Soul

I actually saw a lot of younger people at the Vancouver 2013 show. It was a pretty solid mix of ages. Same with Missoula 2012, since that show was on a university campus.