If anyone has an extra poster please pm me. I would love to have one and don't want to pay the hundreds of dollars that people are asking on eBay. C'mon, someone has one! Pay it forward and spare a PJ brother a dime!
As a UK fan who has gone to Rupp for basketball games many times over the years, I would agree with almost everything in this post. Yum is much better, although I will say the signage and directions for getting around are probably even more confusing there. Everything else is better, though. Luckily, Rupp doesn't get many concerts worth actually attending, though. This was my first since 2003.
It was a complete disaster for this concert in terms of concessions and the crowded concourse. The disaster was only exceeded by the disaster of all the downtown bars and restaurants that were apparently completely unprepared for the concert - and some apparently didn't even know it was going on. Almost everyone I know had horrible service and most gave up and got a slice of pizza on their walk back to the arena. At our place - Parley Social - some of the food we'd ordered almost 2 hours before still hadn't made it to our table when we finally gave up. The manager indicated he didn't realize there was a concert that night.
The show was awesome, though
I will say, things have improved for Louisville's concert calendar since the Yum opened in 2010. Its capacity is nearly the same as Rupp's, and it's been able to compete with all the other regional venues to bring in a lot of big names. The old UofL basketball venue, Freedom Hall, had good capacity, but nothing near Rupp's (it was just over 19,000 for basketball), and was so far from downtown that it wasn't much of a hangout destination for traveling fans--it's on the state fairgrounds property, surrounded by parking lots, and with no pre/post-game activities nearby at all. Having the newer downtown venue (surrounded by hotels and restaurants) has cut down on how often we need to go on the road to Lexington/Cincinnati/Indianapolis for shows. At this point, PJ, the Stones and U2 are the only huge players I can think of not to get booked for the Yum Center yet--it's hosted the Eagles and Springsteen twice each, plus Elton John, Billy Joel, Paul McCartney, Madonna, Garth Brooks, Van Halen, Chili Peppers, and on and on, not to mention all the major current arena pop acts like Bieber/Swift/Cyrus/Perry/Gaga. As somebody who started going to shows in the nineties and was used to a two-hour road trip for most shows, the past six years have been a godsend.
Anyone know or even notice what the deal is/was with McCready's Kiss Alive II album cover on stage in front of his amp all evening? He even picked it up a few times and set it back down in the same spot.
First time being in GA on Mike's side 3 rows bavk from the cage and I must say I was surrounded by awesome energetic people...Mike was on fire and I missed out on some Ed wine but ecstatic a ladies (who had a badass walking boot and crutches with hand painted pearl jam items on them) daughter got a pic with Mike against the rail during a solo, I was fortunate to grab a pic a nice present on my bday ...Mike was in rare form and the band was super revved up and Ed was in an emotional all state
Geez, as I was reading this post, I thought to myself 'wow, this might actually be a post from this guy where he doesn't point out it was his bday'. Then I got to the end and realized that he did in fact mention it for the 50th time, haha.
We get it dude, it was your bday. Everyone has one. How old did you turn? 12?
Glad you enjoyed yourself, but sheesh.
turned 13...glad you kept a tally of how many times I mentioned my bday...don't be a buzzkill this meant a lot to me for many reasons that you obviously don't care about
My bad, man. After I posted that I realized I was being a little harsh. The whole adults over celebrating their bday thing is a pet peeve of mine, but I realize that doesn't mean I should go raining on everyone's parade.
As I said in my original post, I really am glad you enjoyed yourself. I wasn't being sarcastic. And now that you pointed out that the show meant a lot to you for many reasons, I feel like an even bigger jerk. So my apologies.
I actually saw you posting a lot on the Lexington Roll Call thread and knew you were going to be at Hopcat for the pre-party. Since your icon is a pic of you, if I saw you there I was going to come say hello. But when we got there, it was super packed so we went elsewhere.
Sorry your first impression of me was me being a jerk, not us meeting over a beer at the pre-partly. I apologize for being a buzz kill.
Cleveland, OH - 8/26/98
Cleveland, OH - 4/25/03
Cleveland, OH - 5/20/06
Cleveland, OH - 5/9/10
(EV Solo) Detroit, MI - 6/26/11
East Troy, WI - 9/3/11
East Troy, WI - 9/4/11
Chicago, IL - 7/19/13
Shitsburgh, PA - 10/11/13
Los Angeles, CA - 11/23/13
Los Angeles, CA - 11/23/13
Detroit, MI - 10/16/14
Lexington, KY - 4/26/16
Manchester, TN - 6/11/16 Chicago, IL - 8/18/18 Chicago, IL - 8/20/18 (EV Solo) Tempe, AZ - 3/2/19 Los Angeles, CA - 4/15/20 (Canceled) Los Angeles, CA - 4/16/20 (Canceled) Indianapolis, IN - 9/10/23 (Canceled) Indianapolis, IN - 8/26/24
Anyone know or even notice what the deal is/was with McCready's Kiss Alive II album cover on stage in front of his amp all evening? He even picked it up a few times and set it back down in the same spot.
I'm curious about this too. We know he's a huge Kiss fan, but is it anything beyond him just wanting to spread the gospel of Kiss?
182XXX....member....Seats located section 14, row E , seats 11,12... besides the section directly next to the stage,...we were 2 sections over and/or I'd say the 2nd section they normally sell seats for at a typical arena show...5th row... which THANK YOU 10c...loved the seats and will take em' anyday that I'm not in the GA... and tbh... I also like em' better than the seats behind GA...as some of these arena's are so big...them seats tend to be pretty far distance wise... even though they get the nice straight view... 17th show for me.... like 28th or so for my traveling buddy...which we drove the 11 hrs from Omaha for this one... but like every other show... worth every minute of the drive... Love the LB lead off...not to mention I've been saying since it was released,..this song will be there "given to fly" before long...Call me nutz, but I think this song has that potential... got Ten completely covered now like few others on here with DEEP... Have heard WhyGo a lot before but this was clearly a very clean RAW version...the intro guitars and Bass riff's were so powerful and the sound from our seats was amazing...Sure would have loved to hear 2 of my top 10's they played the other night like Light Years and Marker in the Sand... but every pj show to me is heaven... and loved Education, Army Reserve was a HUGE treat and I love Swallowed Hole although the crowd obviously Froze for that one like they'd seen a ghost...RVMirror i'll never get bored of as the last few years...I've really tried to pay attention to the 2nd half jam of this song that really shows the bands creativity/chemistry... Agree with so many others...Just Breath was a very very good version if you're a fan of this one...Ok, i'll take back what I said earlier bout LightYrs/Marker because getting Thumbing my way clearly made up for it and hadn't heard "comf. Numb" yet and was as advertised, not to mention Mike guitar playing...so solid..... Then between the first encore into the first 2 non-crowd songs into the 2nd encore......As always pj reels em' back in and leaves the crowd in absolute awe with the final 5 songs... and even though I've heard these so many times over the past 25 years... I was completely happy with em' and they never sounds so good... Black, BetterMan, Alive, Baba Oriley, Yellow Ledbetter... in that order... It was solid as I'm truely there for the band, the average fan and myself... Thank you Pearl jam for another magical night...been with you since day one...Will be there til the end...
Anyone know or even notice what the deal is/was with McCready's Kiss Alive II album cover on stage in front of his amp all evening? He even picked it up a few times and set it back down in the same spot.
I'm curious about this too. We know he's a huge Kiss fan, but is it anything beyond him just wanting to spread the gospel of Kiss?
It seemed almost like an easter egg or something...very cool, mysterious. Come on, anyone?
Anyone know or even notice what the deal is/was with McCready's Kiss Alive II album cover on stage in front of his amp all evening? He even picked it up a few times and set it back down in the same spot.
I'm curious about this too. We know he's a huge Kiss fan, but is it anything beyond him just wanting to spread the gospel of Kiss?
It seemed almost like an easter egg or something...very cool, mysterious. Come on, anyone?
I think someone in GA passed it up to him towards the end of the show. It was a gift from a fan I think.
Cleveland, OH - 8/26/98
Cleveland, OH - 4/25/03
Cleveland, OH - 5/20/06
Cleveland, OH - 5/9/10
(EV Solo) Detroit, MI - 6/26/11
East Troy, WI - 9/3/11
East Troy, WI - 9/4/11
Chicago, IL - 7/19/13
Shitsburgh, PA - 10/11/13
Los Angeles, CA - 11/23/13
Los Angeles, CA - 11/23/13
Detroit, MI - 10/16/14
Lexington, KY - 4/26/16
Manchester, TN - 6/11/16 Chicago, IL - 8/18/18 Chicago, IL - 8/20/18 (EV Solo) Tempe, AZ - 3/2/19 Los Angeles, CA - 4/15/20 (Canceled) Los Angeles, CA - 4/16/20 (Canceled) Indianapolis, IN - 9/10/23 (Canceled) Indianapolis, IN - 8/26/24
Anyone know or even notice what the deal is/was with McCready's Kiss Alive II album cover on stage in front of his amp all evening? He even picked it up a few times and set it back down in the same spot.
I'm curious about this too. We know he's a huge Kiss fan, but is it anything beyond him just wanting to spread the gospel of Kiss?
It seemed almost like an easter egg or something...very cool, mysterious. Come on, anyone?
I think someone in GA passed it up to him towards the end of the show. It was a gift from a fan I think.
182XXX....member....Seats located section 14, row E , seats 11,12...
Interesting... I am 164XXX and my seats were section 13, row V. Ten Club must allocate to a whole section bottom to top, then start over at the bottom of the next section. I had a blast from where I was seated, I just thought it was worth noting.
My number is 256xxx and I ended up in Section 14 Row U. The seats were fine, but were a little worse than I expected or had experienced in recent shows. I thought we'd be in the first 10 or 15 rows in Section 13.
The only people we should try to get even with...
...are those who've helped us.
Right 'round the corner could be bigger than ourselves.
Anyone know or even notice what the deal is/was with McCready's Kiss Alive II album cover on stage in front of his amp all evening? He even picked it up a few times and set it back down in the same spot.
I'm curious about this too. We know he's a huge Kiss fan, but is it anything beyond him just wanting to spread the gospel of Kiss?
It seemed almost like an easter egg or something...very cool, mysterious. Come on, anyone?
I think someone in GA passed it up to him towards the end of the show. It was a gift from a fan I think.
Nice, thanks! I guess it had to be at beginning of the show though, because it was there pretty much all night. He had it on the ground for awhile, then put it on top of an amp part way through.
Another question, and I may be the only one who doesn't know this, but what is the significance of the number 21 for Ed? It was on his t-shirt and on his acoustic guitar.
Four flights in 26 hours, got back yesterday afternoon, and am still processing. What a great show! The band's energy is astounding and the setlist was amazing - Education!!! one of my favorites, plus Satan's Bed, Army Reserve, Swallowed Whole, Sonic Reducer - more than I ever expected to hear at my first PJ show. The audience participation is incredible! Of all the concerts I have seen in my life, this was #1.
We were in section 28, kind of hard to make out details on the stage (old eyes perhaps ) and hard to hear Ed talking (old ears too); the sound seemed a little off, but maybe it was me. Apologies to anyone near me, because I sang loudly and badly the entire time. Great audience, met the nicest people, and all around great experience.
We stayed at the Hyatt, which is overpriced for the quality of the rooms and had only 2 working elevators, but you can't beat the location and the staff was great.
I took my 18 year old (his first concert ever), but he didn't really enjoy it. His favorite music is pop. He may be my son, but definitely not my clone!
so my .02 cents. first off fan club number 68,XXX I was in section 32 Row C seats 3 & 4. I was ok with my seats I've been closer and I've been farther from the stage. I haven't seen them in 10 years! still cant believe that much time had passed. My perspective is different than the last time I had seen them. Busy living life and not following every move and reading about every show so I was really not sure what to expect. I honestly hadn't checked the tour and didn't even know where they had came from the show before. reading 5 horizons in the middle of the night to get the setlist as soon as it was posted and combing over issues of the footsteps 'zine even farther back in my pearl jam fan following days.....So my level of following their every move has taken a back seat to say the least....But as soon as they hit the stage I got that same feeling and a smile on my face that brought it all back. To me they came out fresh and happy to be there. the song intensity had very high energy level. and I agree with the earlier comment that they all seemed in a good mood. McCready's energy was unreal. He must've ran 10 miles. Ed had some very nice comments about Rupp, Lexington, and Kentucky. I agree with comments about the venue concourse not being laid out well for beer sales the door location's not having the street names that they open up towards. That's a great idea for the venue to consider. Traffic is a bitch at Rupp always for basketball or a concert. for me the set list felt fresh and full of possibilities between each song. The songs from 10 and Vs that I've heard so many all still sounded great. I thought the crowd was great and was very involved they did miss the cues on save it for later but Ed regrouped that train. At my last show in 2006 in Cincinnati, I had at the time my 8 year old daughter with me for her first PJ show and thanks to a low fan club number I was dead center 2nd row, and after (I think) betterman, Eddie handed out to my daughter his black ev Guitar pick, and seeing him bring the tambourines right down in front of me to the two boys seeing there first PJ's show with their dads was super special for me. I thought Deep was great! Satan's bed was cool to hear, and SMILE!!!!. that might have been the first time I've heard it in person. Leaving Here! ed's little guitar intro run restarts and then they brought it! Something nobody has mentioned was the guitar at the beginning of Porch it had the scratchy cadence that just draws me in, not as pronounced as I've heard on bootlegs or the easy street performance but nonetheless frickin' cool!I saw the KISS aliveII album below Mike's stacks at the beginning of the show, I wasn't sure if he was just paying homage to Kiss or if maybe ACE had died or something....and I wondered the same thing about Ed's 21 shirt. Seeing them live brings me back to hearing them the first time on a cassette tape in my moms driveway 25 years ago and just being blown away allover again. I go to plenty of shows for other bands and the experience of the crowd is nothing like a PJ show. When I'm at PJ show the fans are like old friends I've grown up with and we are all back home together. It's hard to explain but this is How I feel! ha.
My number is 256xxx and I ended up in Section 14 Row U. The seats were fine, but were a little worse than I expected or had experienced in recent shows. I thought we'd be in the first 10 or 15 rows in Section 13.
This was clearly the closest show for all us traveling from the Midwest...as I met fans from Kansas, Colorado, Minnesota, etc etc...with that being said...this one probably had a lot of 10club members... not to mention the people I met from Chicago, Indy, etc etc., and lets not forget the dieHards from Boston, NY, Baltimore and philly whom many are reaching nearly 100 shows but the dual shows in their citys aren't enough for their fill as they made the trip down to Kentucky... PS.. just throwing in my 2 cents...and/or what I've observed... PSS... for the record, if I lived in New England like some of them gents...I'd have 100 under my belt as well... Peace, Curly
Great show! I'm a high # member (500s) and was in Section 17 row G. If anyone got extra sticker, button and poster I missed out on all three. I do have an extra of all those from Tampa I would trade.
2003 Columbus, 2010 Columbus, 2013 Phoenix, 2014 Cincinnati, 2016 Tampa, 2016 Lexington, 2018 Chicago x 2, 2022 St Louis, 2022 OKC, 2022 Denver
My first show since the last Rupp show in 03. I was on the floor, section 3. Tough to see, but big shit. I smiled uncontrollably all night. 18,000 people singing along is a beautiful noise. Guy next to me (vet) lost his shit when they played Army Reserve. The town was overrun with fans. I talked to more strangers that night than I had in all years prior combined. It's nice when you know you have at least 1 thing in common with everyone you see. I hope they come back soon.
This was my first show. I've been waiting to go since I was 16, and for one reason or another, I was never able to go. 25 years later... They could have played anything and I would have been happy! I was pretty emotionally overcome a few times during the show (including when they first came out), but was so very very happy! I have absolutely no complaints. Loved everything, everyone, everything!
This was my first show. I've been waiting to go since I was 16, and for one reason or another, I was never able to go. 25 years later... They could have played anything and I would have been happy! I was pretty emotionally overcome a few times during the show (including when they first came out), but was so very very happy! I have absolutely no complaints. Loved everything, everyone, everything! </p>
I bought my first copy of Ten in September of 91. For the first month I couldn't get past the first three songs, it just blew me away. Been a diehard ever since. This was my first show as well as my 17 year old son. I told him before the show don't be surprised if the old man sheds a few tears. Before the show got to meet a lot of good folks. Blown away by how excited they were when they found out it was our first shows. When I heard the first notes of LB I lost my shit. The flood of memories and emotions of 25 yrs. came pouring back. I have seen hundreds of concerts and never experienced the raw energy from a fan base and the power of positive energy a band can have. I feel like my son and I became part of a family that night. To those I say thank you (sec 17 row R the couple from Minnesota and getting in the doors the couple from Oakland) and to PJ I say keep doin' what ur doin'!! See ya at Wrigley!!
I bought my first copy of Ten in September of 91. For the first month I couldn't get past the first three songs, it just blew me away. Been a diehard ever since. This was my first show as well as my 17 year old son. I told him before the show don't be surprised if the old man sheds a few tears. Before the show got to meet a lot of good folks. Blown away by how excited they were when they found out it was our first shows. When I heard the first notes of LB I lost my shit. The flood of memories and emotions of 25 yrs. came pouring back. I have seen hundreds of concerts and never experienced the raw energy from a fan base and the power of positive energy a band can have. I feel like my son and I became part of a family that night. To those I say thank you (sec 17 row R the couple from Minnesota and getting in the doors the couple from Oakland) and to PJ I say keep doin' what ur doin'!! See ya at Wrigley!!
You have been a diehard fan since 1991 and have been to 100s of concerts yet have only seen pj once?
I don't think that meets the definition of diehard.
Remember the Thomas Nine !! (10/02/2018) The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago 2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy 2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE) 2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston 2020: Oakland, Oakland:2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana 2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville 2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana
I think Immortality would have been better than Swallowed whole... Only PJ song that is meh to me..... 2003 they gave us an outstanding Immortality at Rupp, Mike`s guitars screeching off the brick walls will be forever in my brain.... This was probably my favorite show, they were on fire, fans were as good as I have ever seen.
I've waited a few days to write this because life has been crazy and busy, and because I knew I needed time to fully process everything.
Last week was an absolute nightmare. My wife, Faith, and I were booked for a road trip to Columbia to see the greatest band in the world, but everything was derailed on Wednesday. She was behind a semi going about 75 mph and it had a blow out in front of her little Chevy Cruze and next thing you know she's calling me in hysterics because she had no time to react and ran right into the tire. She's 7 weeks pregnant, so it was obviously very frightening for us. She was about 100 miles north of me in Indy on her way home from her sister's in Chicago, so I had to drive up to meet her at the emergency room where we got our first official confirmation of a heartbeat. Not the most fun way to find out your tiny baby is alive and healthy, but we were grateful in a bittersweet way that everything was okay. On top of the accident, fears over the baby's health, and having to cancel the highly anticipated Columbia show, I had to have an emergency root canal due to severe, debilitating pain, plus my car started to make a loud and obnoxious grinding noise. The sky was officially falling.
As you can imagine, I was extremely disappointed to miss the Columbia show while being worried about pretty much everything. I've been chasing Oceans to complete Ten for a long, long time, and it was a tough blow to see it open the show we were supposed to attend. Alas, it was not meant to be. Ten Club did refund our ticket money for the Columbia show and we are extremely grateful for that.
So after an additional ultrasound on Thursday and my root canal on Friday, we took the rest of the weekend to rest and recover from a hellish few days.
On Tuesday, we went in for another ultrasound and received positive news once again. Then came the show that night in Lexington, my 20th. And with it, a small & humble, but beautiful piece of redemption.
The storm and rain on the drive down from Indianapolis and on our way into the building seemed symbolic.
We arrived later than I had hoped, but still had time to make it to our seats and make quick friends with the guys in front of us from Cincy. One called for Why Go, one for Wash. I said Release, and Faith said Of the Girl. Ever since the record dropped 2 1/2 years ago, I've been telling Faith that she is without a doubt my Lightning Bolt. Unexpectedly, they opened with it and released a huge amount of energy immediately into the arena and all was suddenly right in the world. I can't explain it any better than that, but I know you guys understand. As soon as I heard the REM blaring loudly, then watched them walk on stage and begin playing, I knew everything was okay. The choice to walk out with the lights on and turn them off once the full band kicked in halfway through the first verse was genius. Chills rippled through my whole body when those lights went down. Faith and I sang the first chorus in each other's ears and tears streamed down my face.
MYM > Animal > Why Go was a great burst of intensity, followed by some weirder, darker energy with Deep and Satan's Bed, two I wasn't expecting and certainly not so early. Small Town and Corduroy pulled off the magic tricks they always do and more tears came, especially at "I'm not my former!" and "I just wanna scream helloooooo". Education was a hell of a surprise! What a great song. Other highlights were Army Reserve (one of my favorite unsung heroes of the catalog), 1/2 Full, Given to Fly (it always delivers, doesn't it?), the full-speed fun of Lukin, and the sonic attack of the RVM jam. I was listening to Riot Act in my car a few weeks back and just felt in my gut we would get 1/2 Full at one of our shows. That was a great moment - a song that has really grown on me over the years. It did not disappoint.
The first encore was special, even though EV characteristically fucked up Hide Your Love. Just Breathe created an even deeper, stronger connection to my wife, then I just completely broke down during my only first-timers of the night, Thumbing My Way and Comfortably Numb. They were worth everything by themselves. I'm still astounded at Mike's ability to capture David Gilmour's beautiful tone. Quite a feat. DTE, Sonic Reducer, and Porch were all badass and so much fun.
Leaving Here and Smile were both terrific and unexpected, but it was really the staples that made up the rest of the second encore that capped it all for me. I've heard those songs so many times and never directly anticipate or hope for them or get excited to see them on a setlist, but when you get Black, Better Man, Alive, and Baba all in a row live and in person, it is truly special. I was overjoyed with the full Save it for Later tag on Better Man, and Black is still the most gorgeous song in the entire library. Faith was super emotional during Alive, and we both wept. She called Baba in advance and is a huge Who/classic rock fan (as am I) and we were ecstatic when it started. Yellow Ledbetter, even though I've caught it as a closer more than I'd prefer, was the perfect sendoff for the night. It managed to capture all that I was feeling and put a final period of the end of the journey we endured.
We drove down and arrived in Lexington at about 7:30 and had to head directly back home after, so my head hit the pillow in Indy at about 3:30 AM and work was extremely rough the next day. But each of these shows I've attended walks with me every day I travel through this thing called life, and I'm a better person because of it. This band and the energy they create instills me with a more positive force, and provides a perspective on the things that truly matter: family, love, life. The light they shed and joy they offer up are unparalleled in a world and life that can often be frightening, ugly, and overwhelming. It was my 20th show and felt like the first time all over again. I was grateful for every single song, moment, word Eddie spoke, etc. Watching him give the kids the tambourines (we were across from them) was another life-affirming moment, and reminded us of how lucky we are to have one on the way. We already endured a hell of a journey (an ectopic pregnancy last year + a failed first attempt at IVF, and more) to get to this point, and this was the reminder I needed that I am extremely lucky and blessed to walk this earth and have the fortune I have had. I walked through my entire youth troubled, isolated, depressed, and resentful at everyone. I made it out of it all - the drugs, the suicide attempts, etc. - and I'm still here. I am able to be a person of service and value to my family, friends, and other people around me. I can make it through anything and come out stronger and of more value to those around me for having endured some tough circumstances and pain. I can wake up grateful to breathe another day and have my wife, and our baby on the way. I am going to be a father and I am filled with gratitude and love beyond words.
I'm still alive.
I am lost, I'm no guide, but I'm by your side. I am right by your side.
Seen them several times, band and crowd energy for this show among best I've witnessed, which was a win because Rupp, although dated, is my hometown arena so I'm a bit partial. And while Kiss Alive II remains somewhat a mystery...in my opinion, one cool addition to the set would have been "Off He Goes" as a 'tongue in cheek' ode to UK basketball...
I've waited a few days to write this because life has been crazy and busy, and because I knew I needed time to fully process everything.
Last week was an absolute nightmare. My wife, Faith, and I were booked for a road trip to Columbia to see the greatest band in the world, but everything was derailed on Wednesday. She was behind a semi going about 75 mph and it had a blow out in front of her little Chevy Cruze and next thing you know she's calling me in hysterics because she had no time to react and ran right into the tire. She's 7 weeks pregnant, so it was obviously very frightening for us. She was about 100 miles north of me in Indy on her way home from her sister's in Chicago, so I had to drive up to meet her at the emergency room where we got our first official confirmation of a heartbeat. Not the most fun way to find out your tiny baby is alive and healthy, but we were grateful in a bittersweet way that everything was okay. On top of the accident, fears over the baby's health, and having to cancel the highly anticipated Columbia show, I had to have an emergency root canal due to severe, debilitating pain, plus my car started to make a loud and obnoxious grinding noise. The sky was officially falling.
As you can imagine, I was extremely disappointed to miss the Columbia show while being worried about pretty much everything. I've been chasing Oceans to complete Ten for a long, long time, and it was a tough blow to see it open the show we were supposed to attend. Alas, it was not meant to be. Ten Club did refund our ticket money for the Columbia show and we are extremely grateful for that.
So after an additional ultrasound on Thursday and my root canal on Friday, we took the rest of the weekend to rest and recover from a hellish few days.
On Tuesday, we went in for another ultrasound and received positive news once again. Then came the show that night in Lexington, my 20th. And with it, a small & humble, but beautiful piece of redemption.
The storm and rain on the drive down from Indianapolis and on our way into the building seemed symbolic.
We arrived later than I had hoped, but still had time to make it to our seats and make quick friends with the guys in front of us from Cincy. One called for Why Go, one for Wash. I said Release, and Faith said Of the Girl. Ever since the record dropped 2 1/2 years ago, I've been telling Faith that she is without a doubt my Lightning Bolt. Unexpectedly, they opened with it and released a huge amount of energy immediately into the arena and all was suddenly right in the world. I can't explain it any better than that, but I know you guys understand. As soon as I heard the REM blaring loudly, then watched them walk on stage and begin playing, I knew everything was okay. The choice to walk out with the lights on and turn them off once the full band kicked in halfway through the first verse was genius. Chills rippled through my whole body when those lights went down. Faith and I sang the first chorus in each other's ears and tears streamed down my face.
MYM > Animal > Why Go was a great burst of intensity, followed by some weirder, darker energy with Deep and Satan's Bed, two I wasn't expecting and certainly not so early. Small Town and Corduroy pulled off the magic tricks they always do and more tears came, especially at "I'm not my former!" and "I just wanna scream helloooooo". Education was a hell of a surprise! What a great song. Other highlights were Army Reserve (one of my favorite unsung heroes of the catalog), 1/2 Full, Given to Fly (it always delivers, doesn't it?), the full-speed fun of Lukin, and the sonic attack of the RVM jam. I was listening to Riot Act in my car a few weeks back and just felt in my gut we would get 1/2 Full at one of our shows. That was a great moment - a song that has really grown on me over the years. It did not disappoint.
The first encore was special, even though EV characteristically fucked up Hide Your Love. Just Breathe created an even deeper, stronger connection to my wife, then I just completely broke down during my only first-timers of the night, Thumbing My Way and Comfortably Numb. They were worth everything by themselves. I'm still astounded at Mike's ability to capture David Gilmour's beautiful tone. Quite a feat. DTE, Sonic Reducer, and Porch were all badass and so much fun.
Leaving Here and Smile were both terrific and unexpected, but it was really the staples that made up the rest of the second encore that capped it all for me. I've heard those songs so many times and never directly anticipate or hope for them or get excited to see them on a setlist, but when you get Black, Better Man, Alive, and Baba all in a row live and in person, it is truly special. I was overjoyed with the full Save it for Later tag on Better Man, and Black is still the most gorgeous song in the entire library. Faith was super emotional during Alive, and we both wept. She called Baba in advance and is a huge Who/classic rock fan (as am I) and we were ecstatic when it started. Yellow Ledbetter, even though I've caught it as a closer more than I'd prefer, was the perfect sendoff for the night. It managed to capture all that I was feeling and put a final period of the end of the journey we endured.
We drove down and arrived in Lexington at about 7:30 and had to head directly back home after, so my head hit the pillow in Indy at about 3:30 AM and work was extremely rough the next day. But each of these shows I've attended walks with me every day I travel through this thing called life, and I'm a better person because of it. This band and the energy they create instills me with a more positive force, and provides a perspective on the things that truly matter: family, love, life. The light they shed and joy they offer up are unparalleled in a world and life that can often be frightening, ugly, and overwhelming. It was my 20th show and felt like the first time all over again. I was grateful for every single song, moment, word Eddie spoke, etc. Watching him give the kids the tambourines (we were across from them) was another life-affirming moment, and reminded us of how lucky we are to have one on the way. We already endured a hell of a journey (an ectopic pregnancy last year + a failed first attempt at IVF, and more) to get to this point, and this was the reminder I needed that I am extremely lucky and blessed to walk this earth and have the fortune I have had. I walked through my entire youth troubled, isolated, depressed, and resentful at everyone. I made it out of it all - the drugs, the suicide attempts, etc. - and I'm still here. I am able to be a person of service and value to my family, friends, and other people around me. I can make it through anything and come out stronger and of more value to those around me for having endured some tough circumstances and pain. I can wake up grateful to breathe another day and have my wife, and our baby on the way. I am going to be a father and I am filled with gratitude and love beyond words.
I'm still alive.
one of the best things I have ever read on this forum!
keep the journey going my friend and remain strong, you can endure and overcome anything! Sounds like you had quit the experience at the show.
Pearl Jam shows for me are 3 hours of my life where I can escape all those things you listed and become healed by the music and meet others who share that one common bond
Comments
2003-Chicago, East Troy
2006-Chicago, Cleveland
2009-Chicago
2011-PJ20 1, PJ20 2
2013-Wrigley
2014-Moline, Milwaukee
2016-Lexington, Wrigley 1, Wrigley 2
2018-Wrigley 1, Wrigley 2
As I said in my original post, I really am glad you enjoyed yourself. I wasn't being sarcastic. And now that you pointed out that the show meant a lot to you for many reasons, I feel like an even bigger jerk. So my apologies.
I actually saw you posting a lot on the Lexington Roll Call thread and knew you were going to be at Hopcat for the pre-party. Since your icon is a pic of you, if I saw you there I was going to come say hello. But when we got there, it was super packed so we went elsewhere.
Sorry your first impression of me was me being a jerk, not us meeting over a beer at the pre-partly. I apologize for being a buzz kill.
Cleveland, OH - 4/25/03
Cleveland, OH - 5/20/06
Cleveland, OH - 5/9/10
(EV Solo) Detroit, MI - 6/26/11
East Troy, WI - 9/3/11
East Troy, WI - 9/4/11
Chicago, IL - 7/19/13
Shitsburgh, PA - 10/11/13
Los Angeles, CA - 11/23/13
Los Angeles, CA - 11/23/13
Detroit, MI - 10/16/14
Lexington, KY - 4/26/16
Manchester, TN - 6/11/16
Chicago, IL - 8/18/18
Chicago, IL - 8/20/18
(EV Solo) Tempe, AZ - 3/2/19
Los Angeles, CA - 4/15/20 (Canceled)
Los Angeles, CA - 4/16/20 (Canceled)
Indianapolis, IN - 9/10/23 (Canceled)
Indianapolis, IN - 8/26/24
besides the section directly next to the stage,...we were 2 sections over and/or I'd say the 2nd section they normally sell seats for at a typical arena show...5th row... which THANK YOU 10c...loved the seats and will take em' anyday that I'm not in the GA... and tbh... I also like em' better than the seats behind GA...as some of these arena's are so big...them seats tend to be pretty far distance wise... even though they get the nice straight view...
17th show for me.... like 28th or so for my traveling buddy...which we drove the 11 hrs from Omaha for this one... but like every other show... worth every minute of the drive...
Love the LB lead off...not to mention I've been saying since it was released,..this song will be there "given to fly" before long...Call me nutz, but I think this song has that potential... got Ten completely covered now like few others on here with DEEP... Have heard WhyGo a lot before but this was clearly a very clean RAW version...the intro guitars and Bass riff's were so powerful and the sound from our seats was amazing...Sure would have loved to hear 2 of my top 10's they played the other night like Light Years and Marker in the Sand... but every pj show to me is heaven... and loved Education, Army Reserve was a HUGE treat and I love Swallowed Hole although the crowd obviously Froze for that one like they'd seen a ghost...RVMirror i'll never get bored of as the last few years...I've really tried to pay attention to the 2nd half jam of this song that really shows the bands creativity/chemistry...
Agree with so many others...Just Breath was a very very good version if you're a fan of this one...Ok, i'll take back what I said earlier bout LightYrs/Marker because getting Thumbing my way clearly made up for it and hadn't heard "comf. Numb" yet and was as advertised, not to mention Mike guitar playing...so solid.....
Then between the first encore into the first 2 non-crowd songs into the 2nd encore......As always pj reels em' back in and leaves the crowd in absolute awe with the final 5 songs... and even though I've heard these so many times over the past 25 years... I was completely happy with em' and they never sounds so good... Black, BetterMan, Alive, Baba Oriley, Yellow Ledbetter... in that order... It was solid as I'm truely there for the band, the average fan and myself...
Thank you Pearl jam for another magical night...been with you since day one...Will be there til the end...
Cleveland, OH - 4/25/03
Cleveland, OH - 5/20/06
Cleveland, OH - 5/9/10
(EV Solo) Detroit, MI - 6/26/11
East Troy, WI - 9/3/11
East Troy, WI - 9/4/11
Chicago, IL - 7/19/13
Shitsburgh, PA - 10/11/13
Los Angeles, CA - 11/23/13
Los Angeles, CA - 11/23/13
Detroit, MI - 10/16/14
Lexington, KY - 4/26/16
Manchester, TN - 6/11/16
Chicago, IL - 8/18/18
Chicago, IL - 8/20/18
(EV Solo) Tempe, AZ - 3/2/19
Los Angeles, CA - 4/15/20 (Canceled)
Los Angeles, CA - 4/16/20 (Canceled)
Indianapolis, IN - 9/10/23 (Canceled)
Indianapolis, IN - 8/26/24
...are those who've helped us.
Right 'round the corner could be bigger than ourselves.
Another question, and I may be the only one who doesn't know this, but what is the significance of the number 21 for Ed? It was on his t-shirt and on his acoustic guitar.
We were in section 28, kind of hard to make out details on the stage (old eyes perhaps
We stayed at the Hyatt, which is overpriced for the quality of the rooms and had only 2 working elevators, but you can't beat the location and the staff was great.
I took my 18 year old (his first concert ever), but he didn't really enjoy it. His favorite music is pop. He may be my son, but definitely not my clone!
If anyone got extra sticker, button and poster I missed out on all three. I do have an extra of all those from Tampa I would trade.
They could have played anything and I would have been happy!
I was pretty emotionally overcome a few times during the show (including when they first came out), but was so very very happy!
I have absolutely no complaints. Loved everything, everyone, everything!
2016: Lexington and Wrigley 1
New Orleans, LA - 9-17-1995
New Orleans, LA - 8-14-2000
Lexington, KY - 4-26-2016
Nashville, TN - 6-9-2016 (TMR)
Bonnaroo - 6-11-2016
Chicago, IL - 8-18-2018 & 8-20-2018
Asbury Park, NJ - 9-18-2021
Ohana Fest - 9-26-2021
Ohana Fest Encore - 10-1-2021 & 10-2-2021
I don't think that meets the definition of diehard.
The Golden Age is 2 months away. And guess what….. you’re gonna love it! (teskeinc 11.19.24)
1998: Noblesville; 2003: Noblesville; 2009: EV Nashville, Chicago, Chicago
2010: St Louis, Columbus, Noblesville; 2011: EV Chicago, East Troy, East Troy
2013: London ON, Wrigley; 2014: Cincy, St Louis, Moline (NO CODE)
2016: Lexington, Wrigley #1; 2018: Wrigley, Wrigley, Boston, Boston
2020: Oakland, Oakland: 2021: EV Ohana, Ohana, Ohana, Ohana
2022: Oakland, Oakland, Nashville, Louisville; 2023: Chicago, Chicago, Noblesville
2024: Noblesville, Wrigley, Wrigley, Ohana, Ohana
I've waited a few days to write this because life has been crazy and busy, and because I knew I needed time to fully process everything.
Last week was an absolute nightmare. My wife, Faith, and I were booked for a road trip to Columbia to see the greatest band in the world, but everything was derailed on Wednesday. She was behind a semi going about 75 mph and it had a blow out in front of her little Chevy Cruze and next thing you know she's calling me in hysterics because she had no time to react and ran right into the tire. She's 7 weeks pregnant, so it was obviously very frightening for us. She was about 100 miles north of me in Indy on her way home from her sister's in Chicago, so I had to drive up to meet her at the emergency room where we got our first official confirmation of a heartbeat. Not the most fun way to find out your tiny baby is alive and healthy, but we were grateful in a bittersweet way that everything was okay. On top of the accident, fears over the baby's health, and having to cancel the highly anticipated Columbia show, I had to have an emergency root canal due to severe, debilitating pain, plus my car started to make a loud and obnoxious grinding noise. The sky was officially falling.
As you can imagine, I was extremely disappointed to miss the Columbia show while being worried about pretty much everything. I've been chasing Oceans to complete Ten for a long, long time, and it was a tough blow to see it open the show we were supposed to attend. Alas, it was not meant to be. Ten Club did refund our ticket money for the Columbia show and we are extremely grateful for that.
So after an additional ultrasound on Thursday and my root canal on Friday, we took the rest of the weekend to rest and recover from a hellish few days.
On Tuesday, we went in for another ultrasound and received positive news once again. Then came the show that night in Lexington, my 20th. And with it, a small & humble, but beautiful piece of redemption.
The storm and rain on the drive down from Indianapolis and on our way into the building seemed symbolic.
We arrived later than I had hoped, but still had time to make it to our seats and make quick friends with the guys in front of us from Cincy. One called for Why Go, one for Wash. I said Release, and Faith said Of the Girl. Ever since the record dropped 2 1/2 years ago, I've been telling Faith that she is without a doubt my Lightning Bolt. Unexpectedly, they opened with it and released a huge amount of energy immediately into the arena and all was suddenly right in the world. I can't explain it any better than that, but I know you guys understand. As soon as I heard the REM blaring loudly, then watched them walk on stage and begin playing, I knew everything was okay. The choice to walk out with the lights on and turn them off once the full band kicked in halfway through the first verse was genius. Chills rippled through my whole body when those lights went down. Faith and I sang the first chorus in each other's ears and tears streamed down my face.
MYM > Animal > Why Go was a great burst of intensity, followed by some weirder, darker energy with Deep and Satan's Bed, two I wasn't expecting and certainly not so early. Small Town and Corduroy pulled off the magic tricks they always do and more tears came, especially at "I'm not my former!" and "I just wanna scream helloooooo". Education was a hell of a surprise! What a great song. Other highlights were Army Reserve (one of my favorite unsung heroes of the catalog), 1/2 Full, Given to Fly (it always delivers, doesn't it?), the full-speed fun of Lukin, and the sonic attack of the RVM jam. I was listening to Riot Act in my car a few weeks back and just felt in my gut we would get 1/2 Full at one of our shows. That was a great moment - a song that has really grown on me over the years. It did not disappoint.
The first encore was special, even though EV characteristically fucked up Hide Your Love.
Leaving Here and Smile were both terrific and unexpected, but it was really the staples that made up the rest of the second encore that capped it all for me. I've heard those songs so many times and never directly anticipate or hope for them or get excited to see them on a setlist, but when you get Black, Better Man, Alive, and Baba all in a row live and in person, it is truly special. I was overjoyed with the full Save it for Later tag on Better Man, and Black is still the most gorgeous song in the entire library. Faith was super emotional during Alive, and we both wept. She called Baba in advance and is a huge Who/classic rock fan (as am I) and we were ecstatic when it started. Yellow Ledbetter, even though I've caught it as a closer more than I'd prefer, was the perfect sendoff for the night. It managed to capture all that I was feeling and put a final period of the end of the journey we endured.
We drove down and arrived in Lexington at about 7:30 and had to head directly back home after, so my head hit the pillow in Indy at about 3:30 AM and work was extremely rough the next day. But each of these shows I've attended walks with me every day I travel through this thing called life, and I'm a better person because of it. This band and the energy they create instills me with a more positive force, and provides a perspective on the things that truly matter: family, love, life. The light they shed and joy they offer up are unparalleled in a world and life that can often be frightening, ugly, and overwhelming. It was my 20th show and felt like the first time all over again. I was grateful for every single song, moment, word Eddie spoke, etc. Watching him give the kids the tambourines (we were across from them) was another life-affirming moment, and reminded us of how lucky we are to have one on the way. We already endured a hell of a journey (an ectopic pregnancy last year + a failed first attempt at IVF, and more) to get to this point, and this was the reminder I needed that I am extremely lucky and blessed to walk this earth and have the fortune I have had. I walked through my entire youth troubled, isolated, depressed, and resentful at everyone. I made it out of it all - the drugs, the suicide attempts, etc. - and I'm still here. I am able to be a person of service and value to my family, friends, and other people around me. I can make it through anything and come out stronger and of more value to those around me for having endured some tough circumstances and pain. I can wake up grateful to breathe another day and have my wife, and our baby on the way. I am going to be a father and I am filled with gratitude and love beyond words.
I'm still alive.
I am right by your side.
one of the best things I have ever read on this forum!
keep the journey going my friend and remain strong, you can endure and overcome anything! Sounds like you had quit the experience at the show.
Pearl Jam shows for me are 3 hours of my life where I can escape all those things you listed and become healed by the music and meet others who share that one common bond