Hartford: another show added to the list of epic/legandary shows?

12345AGNST1

Now that the tour is over, I noticed a large amount of people who are ranking Hartford as the best show of the tour. Some of have even said that "out of the ___# of shows i've been to, hartford was number one/my top 5". So for those who were there (myself as well) would you consider it yet another epic/legandary show for pearl jam? I was there, but i have only been to 2 pearl jam shows, so im still quite new. Personally I dont see why not, might as well add one show from 08 to that "epic legendary" list of PJ shows.

Zoso

12345AGNST1 wrote:

Now that the tour is over, I noticed a large amount of people who are ranking Hartford as the best show of the tour. Some of have even said that "out of the ___# of shows i've been to, hartford was number one/my top 5". So for those who were there (myself as well) would you consider it yet another epic/legandary show for pearl jam? I was there, but i have only been to 2 pearl jam shows, so im still quite new. Personally I dont see why not, might as well add one show from 08 to that "epic legendary" list of PJ shows.

I don't believe the crowd intensity was as good as DC or Camden but the setlist and energy of the band was fantastic. I rate it deep in my top actually 3rd overall. What a show we witnessed.

InHiding19

That show was amazing, but the most amazing show of the tour (out of the 7 I saw) was Bonnaroo.

fucken holy fuck moment in the second encore when they busted out release

SVRDhand13

Crowd means nothing to me- if the band is on fire and the setlist is great I know I'm having a great time.

This show's set was incredible and the before/after show dealings will be remembered for a long time. Maybe not "epic", but definitely one of the more memorable ones.

Zoso

BeerBaron wrote:

I think there must have been two DC shows

I thought the crowd intensity was TERRIBLE and by far the worst of the DC-Mansifled trek that I just did.

Hartford was definitely no Boston or NYC in terms of the crowd, but the set list was unreal. It is definitely in my top 5 shows.

I loved DC I thought the set was kinda average but the crowd was that intense it ranks as one of my better shows.

LONGRD

Zoso wrote:

I don't believe the crowd intensity was as good as DC or Camden but the setlist and energy of the band was fantastic. I rate it deep in my top actually 3rd overall. What a show we witnessed.

I think the crowd didn't expect the setlist to go like that- perhaps there were a lot of "casual" fans there. Once I heard Breakerfall, I knew something special was about to come and I was correct!

What an awesome show!

Get_Right

great show, but nowhere near legendary status

legendary 3+ hours
only a handful of those

9/29/96 is mine

NOCODE#1

Zoso wrote:

I loved DC I thought the set was kinda average but the crowd was that intense it ranks as one of my better shows.

dc setlist 3rd or 4th best of tour

totally makes up for the shit they called dc 06

if only they didnt give up evacuation.

why the fuck do they do that?

quitters

angryyoungman

it was a great setlist but i dont think the energy of the show was as good as msg II or camden I

Androgynous Mind

LongRd. wrote:

I think the crowd didn't expect the setlist to go like that- perhaps there were a lot of "casual" fans there. Once I heard Breakerfall, I knew something special was about to come and I was correct!

What an awesome show!

I think that your onto something there. I saw a lot of people that looked and acted casual in terms of fan intensity at Hartford. That was the most amazing setlist I have ever witnessed. In my opinion the band and the setlist, it blew both Mansfield I + II away. The opening set was amazing and both encores blew me away. Open with Garden for the first encore, followed by Betterman, Evenflow, Comatose, Leash, and then Blood. The band's intensity was fuckin' indescribable. The second encore opening with Smile, absolutely beautiful. Then more band intensity with Evolution, Alive, Fuckin' Up and Yellow Led. The crowd at Mansfield I was spectacular, especially during Betterman. That was definately a moment that will be described as legendary for years to come.

GratefulJam

BeerBaron wrote:

I think there must have been two DC shows

I thought the crowd intensity was TERRIBLE and by far the worst of the DC-Mansifled trek that I just did.

Hartford was definitely no Boston or NYC in terms of the crowd, but the set list was unreal. It is definitely in my top 5 shows.

DC crowd was bunk...then again nothing compares to MSG...Hartford on paper has gotta be up there!

In2Deep

Hartford, setlist wise, was probably my favorite. Energy wise, the crowd at New York night 1, was insane! Boston was probably my least with shorter sets both nights. Curfew was bull there. DC was pretty impressive as well.

pjl44

28 shows and I think I'd rank Hartford '08 amongst the best. The crowd was excellent where we were (9 back in Section 2) and that definitely contributed to it. I firmly believe the crowd around you can help set the tone for any show.

Aether

BeerBaron wrote:

Really? DC was the worst setlist of the 9 shows I went to. By far.

Agree 100% about Evacuation. I love that song and have never heard it live. Would have been nice if they worked out whatever the kink was and played the song.

They played Evacuation at VA Beach and it sounded okay. But it seems to put a real strain on Eddie's voice, especially the repeated shouting of the title at a fairly high pitch. I remember reading somewhere that it's one of Ed's least favorite songs to sing...

HermanBloom

SVRDhand13 wrote:

Crowd means nothing to me- if the band is on fire and the setlist is great I know I'm having a great time.

This show's set was incredible and the before/after show dealings will be remembered for a long time. Maybe not "epic", but definitely one of the more memorable ones.

Great write up. I loved every second of the show; in my top 2; setlist was amazing and band was on fire.

jimc3

I've been to 14 shows, Hartford is easily in my top 3. Not sure if it's "legendary" but it's damn close.

let's see how it translates to the boot

JaneNY

My top shows (I started going in 03)

State College 03
Ottawa 05
Albany 06
Hartford 08
Mansfield I 08 (being second row made it extra amazing!)

Hartford is definitely a standout show and I will be getting the boot. Shows can be standout due to a variety of things - setlist, crowd, position in the crowd, band extra into it. Any one of those things can increase the effect of the show.

McCreadyIsKing

The setlists and the band's energy was AWESOME !
Camden 1 was just as intense .
However the ferry ride after the show sucked.

dontloseyourheat

I was on the lawn at Hartford and the crowd was pretty rocking. I would say the energy on that lawn was almost as good as from my 10c seats at Mansfield II.

There was one song (Better man?) where the entire lawn was holding up lighters. I felt like I was at a Poison concert in 1988, but it looked pretty cool.

I was on the lawn again for Mansfield I and it was absolutely horrible. Want to know why the place erupted when they played Better Man? Because it was the only song that all the drunk meatheads knew.

jimc3

JaneNY wrote:

My top shows (I started going in 03)

State College 03
Ottawa 05
Albany 06
Hartford 08
Mansfield I 08 (being second row made it extra amazing!)

Hartford is definitely a standout show and I will be getting the boot. Shows can be standout due to a variety of things - setlist, crowd, position in the crowd, band extra into it. Any one of those things can increase the effect of the show.

wow, you put Albany '06 ahead of Hartford '08? wow. Albany '06 had a great setlist, but I didn't get antwhere near the energy from the band at that show as I did at Hartford '08. to each his own.

JaneNY

jimc3 wrote:

wow, you put Albany '06 ahead of Hartford '08? wow. Albany '06 had a great setlist, but I didn't get antwhere near the energy from the band at that show as I did at Hartford '08. to each his own.

Well they were almost equal, but I have such good memories of Albany 06, and that tour they were breaking out songs they hadn't played in ages, and we got Rats, and Satan's Bed, and I had a really cool neighbor. As I said, different things affect how we feel about a show. Probably Hartford 08 and Albany 06 are more like equal. Ranking them can get like splitting hairs because to me all PJ shows that I have seen rank at least 95% on a scale of 1 to 100.

jimc3

Cool

smokenatree

This may be a stupid question, but why is everyone concerned with the crowd. When I go to Pearl Jam I pay Eddie and the band to perform for me and I hope I get an AWESOME SETLIST I don't go into a show hoping and praying that the crowd screams loud during Betterman..WHO CARES!!!! A show should be rated by the quality of the setlist..I am paying 80 bucks to hear the band play and not to hear idiots scream can't find a betterman. How about then we pack 30000 loud intense fans into msg and listen to pearl jam cds and then tell me if the bands setlist matters!

mookieblalock

smokenatree wrote:

This may be a stupid question, but why is everyone concerned with the crowd. When I go to Pearl Jam I pay Eddie and the band to perform for me and I hope I get an AWESOME SETLIST I don't go into a show hoping and praying that the crowd screams loud during Betterman..WHO CARES!!!! A show should be rated by the quality of the setlist..I am paying 80 bucks to hear the band play and not to hear idiots scream can't find a betterman. How about then we pack 30000 loud intense fans into msg and listen to pearl jam cds and then tell me if the bands setlist matters!

I care about the crowd. For me, it ranks slightly ahead of the setlist. I think you are in the minority if you don't care the slightest bit about how the crowd is. Just my $ .02

SVRDhand13

mookieblalock wrote:

I care about the crowd. For me, it ranks slightly ahead of the setlist. I think you are in the minority if you don't care the slightest bit about how the crowd is. Just my $ .02

Crowd more than setlist? I'd take a great set full of rarities in a crowd of all Limp Bizkit and Vanilla Ice fans.

wpost211

Overall I'd rather hear the band play great than have a great crowd. BUT, if you have been to a show with a totally insane crowd like MSG1 03 or 08, well, it's an amazing experience.

cutz

I'm taking the band EVERYTIME. I think thats a no-brainer. I saw Clapton and Winwood at MSG, and the crowd was very weak. They played songs that they haven't played together, since they were in Blind Faith, and that was around 40 years ago. I know i was JAMMING and i could care less what the crowd was doing. Like my friend said after the show, "It felt like this was a WINE and CHEESE crowd." Thats how bad they were. Would it help if the crowd was more into it? sure, but if ther not, and the band is jamming, then i'm happy.

HEY!! If i can get a GREAT crowd with a GREAT band, like at PJ's MSG-1 show, then great.

LONGRD

This show alone made me a big of Avocado!!!

I despised this album and said I actually wasted money on a PJ album...
Two years later...I'm dead wrong!!! What an awesome album- all because of this show...

long road walker

top 5 for me out of 24 & thats with Wachovia, Irving Plaza, Lolla, and a handful of MSG's included

kick ass show, so happy we just made it in time

Immortality-Jeremy was fuckin amazing, porch one of best I ever seen

Sad, In Hiding

SMILE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! fuck, what a show

Super_Fan

Top 10 PJ shows I've seen.

1. Vic Theatre
2. Merriweather Post 1996
3. Wachovia Center 2005
4. MSG July 8th 2003
5. Boston 2004 show 2
6. Borgata 1 September 30
7. Hartford June 27, 2008
8. Beacon Theatre July 1st 2008
9. Bill Graham Civic Auditorium July 15, 2006
10. PNC Bank Arts Center July 14 2003

smartass1235

If I didn't go to mansfield 3 '03 then hartford would be my favorite show. though boston 1 04 and new jersey 2 06 rank up there as well.