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Want do you think is the best and worst decision the band has made over their career?

evenflow82evenflow82 Posts: 3,892
edited December 2021 in The Porch
Just thinking about what has helped the band and not helped the band over the course of their career. Looking back, what do you think was the best and worst decision(s) the band has made?

Best: varied setlists to keep the material and their chops fresh.

Worst: their stand against ticketmaster. When I look at the headaches it created  from 94-97 and now they have no problem doing business with them now it seems like it didn't amount to much imo.

What are your thoughts?

I've got a fever, and the only prescription is more cowbell.
-Christopher Walken

you're=you are
your=showing ownership

The truth has a well known liberal bias.
-Stephen Colbert
Post edited by evenflow82 on
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Comments

  • DM282158DM282158 Beverly, MA Posts: 578
    Best: Not breaking up after Vitalogy. (Thank you, Stone.)

    Worst: That 2016 Raleigh show cancellation was a rough one. 
    Boston '06
    Mansfield '08
    Hartford '10
    Worcester, Hartford '13
    Global Citizen, NY '15
  • mcgruff10mcgruff10 New Jersey Posts: 28,717
    Best: pulling back during the no code era
    worst: opening sea hear now with dotc
    ;)
    I'll ride the wave where it takes me......
  • ed243421ed243421 Posts: 7,684
    Boom & arms aloft at alpine
    The whole world will be different soon... - EV
    RED ROCKS 6-19-95
    AUGUSTA 9-26-96
    MANSFIELD 9-15-98
    BOSTON 9-29-04
    BOSTON 5-25-06
    MANSFIELD 6-30-08
    EV SOLO BOSTON 8-01-08
    BOSTON 5-17-10
    EV SOLO BOSTON 6-16-11
    PJ20 9-3-11
    PJ20 9-4-11
    WRIGLEY 7-19-13
    WORCESTER 10-15-13
    WORCESTER 10-16-13
    HARTFORD 10-25-13









  • DukeSpiritDukeSpirit Posts: 278
    Worst.

    Not putting fatal, sad and in the moonlight on binaural 
  • demetriosdemetrios Posts: 93,981
    DukeSpirit said:
    Worst.

    Not putting fatal, sad and in the moonlight on binaural 

    Yeah they should of just added those 3 songs as bonus tracks on their Euro or Japan Binaural CD releases. 
  • Of The AggieOf The Aggie The ATX Posts: 1,541
    Best: Ten, Vs., Vitalogy
    Worst: Backspacer, Lightning Bolt, Gigaton
  • CopperTomCopperTom Posts: 3,079
    Best: Official Bootlegs

    Worst: Years of poor communication with its fanbase.
    http://www.livefootsteps.org/user/?usr=28
  • CantKeepmedownCantKeepmedown Portland, Maine Posts: 3,057
    Best: not breaking up after Roskilde, hiring Matt Cameron, releasing bootlegs in 2000
    Worst: Arms Aloft in the 4 spot at Fenway 2 in 2018  :)

    JK, hard for me to come up with some of the worst things they've done. Probably leaving off specific songs from albums, as others have said. And there are probably other unreleased gems that will probably never see the light of day. But overall, they've gone 30 years without too many mishaps. I'd say they are in good shape. 
  • 2-feign-reluctance2-feign-reluctance TigerTown, USA Posts: 23,345
    Of The Aggie said:
    Best: Ten, Vs., Vitalogy
    Worst: Backspacer, Lightning Bolt, Gigaton
    Ouch! 
    www.cluthelee.com
  • drakeheuer14drakeheuer14 Posts: 4,513
    CopperTom said:
    Best: Official Bootlegs

    Worst: Years of poor communication with its fanbase.
    Solid answer here. 
    Pittsburgh 2013
    Cincinnati 2014
    Greenville 2016
    (Raleigh 2016)
    Columbia 2016
  • JimmyVJimmyV Boston's MetroWest Posts: 19,335
    CantKeepmedown said:
    Best: not breaking up after Roskilde, hiring Matt Cameron, releasing bootlegs in 2000
    Worst: Arms Aloft in the 4 spot at Fenway 2 in 2018  :)

    JK, hard for me to come up with some of the worst things they've done. Probably leaving off specific songs from albums, as others have said. And there are probably other unreleased gems that will probably never see the light of day. But overall, they've gone 30 years without too many mishaps. I'd say they are in good shape. 
    Yep, that was pretty bad. 
    ___________________________________________

    "...I changed by not changing at all..."
  • pjhawkspjhawks Posts: 12,675
    best decision - hiring Ed

    worst decision - not sending out holiday singles on time
  • Spiritual_ChaosSpiritual_Chaos Posts: 30,846
    Best decision: Being Neil Young

    Worst decision: Being Bruce Springsteen
    "Mostly I think that people react sensitively because they know you’ve got a point"
  • hihobibohihobibo Tampa, FL Posts: 1,116
    Best : Varied Setlists, official bootlegs and the limited merchandise. Keeps the band interesting for all their fans. 

    Worst : Giving Dave A. The KISS treatment at the HOF ceremony and anything else that honors that era (funko pops). I understand the disagreement they had with him, but he should be acknowledged. 
  • vant0037vant0037 Posts: 6,146
    Worst: Sleeping By Myself.  Sheesh guys.  It’s just…so…bad…

    Best: Matt C.  Band probably needed him more than anyone realized at the time.
    1998-06-30 Minneapolis
    2003-06-16 St. Paul
    2006-06-26 St. Paul
    2007-08-05 Chicago
    2009-08-23 Chicago
    2009-08-28 San Francisco
    2010-05-01 NOLA (Jazz Fest)
    2011-07-02 EV Minneapolis
    2011-09-03 PJ20
    2011-09-04 PJ20
    2011-09-17 Winnipeg
    2012-06-26 Amsterdam
    2012-06-27 Amsterdam
    2013-07-19 Wrigley
    2013-11-21 San Diego
    2013-11-23 Los Angeles
    2013-11-24 Los Angeles
    2014-07-08 Leeds, UK
    2014-07-11 Milton Keynes, UK
    2014-10-09 Lincoln
    2014-10-19 St. Paul
    2014-10-20 Milwaukee
    2016-08-20 Wrigley 1
    2016-08-22 Wrigley 2
    2018-06-18 London 1
    2018-08-18 Wrigley 1
    2018-08-20 Wrigley 2
    2022-09-16 Nashville
    2023-08-31 St. Paul
    2023-09-02 St. Paul
    2023-09-05 Chicago 1
    2024-08-31 Wrigley 2
    2024-09-15 Fenway 1
    2024-09-27 Ohana 1
    2024-09-29 Ohana 2
  • HesCalledDyerHesCalledDyer Maryland Posts: 16,456
    Best - Stone giving a demo tape to his buddy Jack who in turn gave it to Eddie

    Worst - idk
    Star Lake 00 / Pittsburgh 03 / State College 03 / Bristow 03 / Cleveland 06 / Camden II 06 / DC 08 / Pittsburgh 13 / Baltimore 13 / Charlottesville 13 / Cincinnati 14 / St. Paul 14 / Hampton 16 / Wrigley I 16 / Wrigley II 16 / Baltimore 20 / Camden 22 / Baltimore 24
  • igotid88igotid88 Posts: 28,170
    Best: Becoming a band
    Worst: The fans
    I miss igotid88
  • 2-feign-reluctance2-feign-reluctance TigerTown, USA Posts: 23,345
    igotid88 said:
    Best: Becoming a band
    Worst: The fans
    Yikes! 
    www.cluthelee.com
  • Falling DownFalling Down Posts: 821
    Best: MTV Unplugged even though it may have seemed too commercial back then
    Worst: Playing Draw the Line TWICE at Fenway in 2016 

    Montreal 98, 00, 03, 05, 11
    Toronto 03, 06, 11
    Ottawa 05, 11
    Quebec 05; Saratoga 00; Boston 04; Toledo 04
    Albany 06; Honolulu 06; Hartford 08
    Costa Rica 11
    London (Ont.), Hartford 13
    Quebec, Fenway 1 + 2 16; London 18
    EV Montreal (2), Berkeley II, Albany, Boston, London (UK)

  • droptheleash9droptheleash9 Posts: 1,440
    Falling Down said:
    Best: MTV Unplugged even though it may have seemed too commercial back then
    Worst: Playing Draw the Line TWICE at Fenway in 2016 
    This made me chuckle. The insistence on playing Draw The Line in 2016 and Taillights Fade in 2018 on back to back nights was a headscratcher.

    Best: Varied setlists and saving the best seats in the house at their shows for their fanclub
    Worst: The entitled fans that complain about not getting seats to a show that 15,000 other fans put in ticket requests for.
  • hrd2imgnhrd2imgn Southwest Burbs of Chicago Posts: 4,902
    Best: opening a cassette demo they got in the mail

    Worst: letting politics get in the way of their music.
  • igotid88igotid88 Posts: 28,170
    hrd2imgn said:
    Best: opening a cassette demo they got in the mail

    Worst: letting politics get in the way of their music.
    They wouldn't be Pearl Jam then
    I miss igotid88
  • Go BeaversGo Beavers Posts: 9,303
    Best: being friends with Jack Irons in 1990. 
    Worst: Dirty Frank
  • Go BeaversGo Beavers Posts: 9,303
    2-feign-reluctance said:
    Of The Aggie said:
    Best: Ten, Vs., Vitalogy
    Worst: Backspacer, Lightning Bolt, Gigaton
    Ouch! 
    She’s been reported. 
  • Go BeaversGo Beavers Posts: 9,303
    CopperTom said:
    Best: Official Bootlegs

    Worst: Years of poor communication with its fanbase.
    You don’t email back and forth with Boom? 
  • igotid88igotid88 Posts: 28,170
    edited December 2021
    Best: Birth of No. Most likely kept the band together
    Worst: Only for my own selfish reasons. The birth of no. I would have liked to have seen them on TV more during vs, Vitalogy, and No Code. What if they had performed Daughter or go on Letterman in 93/94? Or made music videos for those albums. They went from being the biggest band of the 90s to "they still make music?". Obviously they did well for themselves. Are first ballot Hall of Famers. And so forth. But sucks when casual fans are asked about 90s bands they're not mentioned as much.
    I miss igotid88
  • on2legson2legs Posts: 15,409
    igotid88 said:
    Best: Becoming a band
    Worst: The fans
    This guy gets it. 
    1996: Randall's Island 2  1998: East Rutherford | MSG 1 & 2  2000: Cincinnati | Columbus | Jones Beach 1, 2, & 3 | Boston 1 | Camden 1 & 2 2003: Philadelphia | Uniondale | MSG 1 & 2 | Holmdel  2005: Atlantic City 1  2006: Camden 1 | East Rutherford 1 & 2 2008: Camden 1 & 2 | MSG 1 & 2 | Newark (EV)  2009: Philadelphia 1, 2 & 4  2010: Newark | MSG 1 & 2  2011: Toronto 1  2013: Wrigley Field | Brooklyn 2 | Philadelphia 1 & 2 | Baltimore  2015: Central Park  2016: Philadelphia 1 & 2 | MSG 1 & 2 | Fenway Park 2 | MSG (TOTD)  2017: Brooklyn (RnR HOF)  2020: MSG | Asbury Park  2021: Asbury Park  2022: MSG | Camden | Nashville  2024: MSG 1 & 2 (#50) | Philadelphia 1 & 2 | Baltimore  2025: Raleigh


  • Weston1283Weston1283 Fredericksburg, VA Posts: 4,955
    edited December 2021
    Hard to say.  The good is so overwhelming compared to the bad.  Not enough can be said about the good over the last 30 years.

    The only bad that the band controls, in my opinion, is a general lack of communication.

    The WORST thing, that the band could have never predicted and it’s hard to blame them for, but still sucks - We have a 5 year period from 2017-2021 in their touring prime to late prime that has now become a complete wash minus a few ballpark shows and a Euro Tour.  The 2013, 2014 and 2016 Tours were some of the best we have ever had, and it all came to a screeching halt.   
    Post edited by Weston1283 on
    2010: Cleveland
    2012: Atlanta
    2013: London ONT / Wrigley Field / Pittsburgh / Buffalo / San Diego / Los Angeles I / Los Angeles II
    2014: Cincinnati / St. Louis / Tulsa / Lincoln / Detroit / Denver
    2015: New York City
    2016: Ft. Lauderdale / Miami / Jacksonville / Greenville / Hampton / Columbia / Lexington / Philly II / New York City II / Toronto II / Bonnaroo / Telluride / Fenway I / Wrigley I / Wrigley - II / TOTD - Philadelphia, San Francisco
    2017: Ohana Fest (EV)
    2018: Amsterdam I / Amsterdam II / Seattle I / Seattle II / Boston I / Boston II
    2021: Asbury Park / Ohana Encore 1 / Ohana Encore 2
    2022: Phoenix / LA I / LA II / Quebec City / Ottawa / New York City / Camden / Nashville / St. Louis / Denver
    2023: St. Paul II
    2024: Las Vegas I / Las Vegas II / New York City I / New York City II / Philly I / Philly II / Baltimore
  • mbowersmbowers Posts: 109
    Best: easily Jack Irons. They became a much much better band after 1995 that it’s not even close. 
    Worst: honestly, unplugged. They sound unprepared. Porch is great, and some other songs are good, but overall it just sounds like they are playing the same songs with acoustic instruments. It could have been more. Bridge shows have shown that
  • 1ThoughtKnown1ThoughtKnown Posts: 6,155
    Best - Mixing up setlists and official bootleg series
    Worst - BOB remix of Ten 
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