On the eve of my 50th show
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in The Porch
Tomorrow marks my 50th Pearl Jam show after 29 years of seeing the band play live. I'm 55 now, and after Boston, my show total will equal one number less than my age. It's been an amazing ride. I feel I have to be among the luckiest PJ fans on the planet. In 1995, I won the opportunity to see Pearl Jam play one of their two Voters For Choice concerts in Washington DC by mailing in a postcard. I mailed one REM postcard I got through their fan club, and I was selected to buy tickets for the second show! I couldn't believe it. It was everything I had hoped for. That one postcard ended up being my ticket to a lifetime of phenomenal live music. Pearl Jam's music has been part of the soundtrack to my life since my mid 20's. It has kept the magic alive in my heart, and in my everyday. It's been there for me whenever I've needed it most. Their concerts are the Christmases I remember as a child. Tonight is Christmas Eve again for me. This music and the live experiences with the band are the only thing in my life that have ever given me that same sense of excitement I remember having at Christmas as a child. It's just pure magic to me.
When I think back on the different shows I've attended, I'm able to remember something about each one. I've found a lot of my older shows up on YouTube. 1/15/95 Washington DC, my very first show, is there. New Orleans from September of that same year is there. Randall's Island in '96, Camden in '98, the 1999 Bridge School shows...they are all there, and I'm thankful for that. It's a total thrill for me to look back and watch those performances. It makes me feel nostalgic, but it also makes me appreciate how much the band has evolved and grown over the years. As fans of this band, I think we are all so unbelievably lucky. I am very grateful to the band for the music they continue to make, and to the 10c for all of the opportunities they've given me to see them play live. I cherish all of my concert memories, the friends I've made along the way, my bootleg collection, my very favorite t-shirts...everything associated with it. I'm so thankful to have something like this in my life to enjoy, to have fun with, and to look forward to. Life is so damn difficult sometimes, but all of this has always been so great. It has always been the best to me. Thank you so much for all of it.
I will be there cheering at every show now through the rest of the east coast leg. I'm excited to go tomorrow night with a very close friend. I recently bought tickets for my daughter (24) and youngest son (18) so we can all head over together. This will be my youngest son's first ever rock concert. My oldest son (21) will join me on Monday night and at the Boston shows. It's been a fantastic lifetime of loving this band. Things have really come full circle. I am beyond thrilled and excited for everything still in front of us.
If you've read this far down and are going to a show, try to walk in without a wish list. Walk in and be excited for whatever they deliver to you, because you know it will be great.
Try not to get fixated on "rare" songs, or taking 100 pictures. Be in the moment and you won't need any pictures. You'll remember it all, trust me.
Be smart, be safe, and most importantly, ROCK YOUR ASS OFF AND HAVE A BLAST! That's EXACTLY what I'll be doing!
Thank you, Pearl Jam! 1/15/1995 - 9/7/2024 Here's to our next 50!
When I think back on the different shows I've attended, I'm able to remember something about each one. I've found a lot of my older shows up on YouTube. 1/15/95 Washington DC, my very first show, is there. New Orleans from September of that same year is there. Randall's Island in '96, Camden in '98, the 1999 Bridge School shows...they are all there, and I'm thankful for that. It's a total thrill for me to look back and watch those performances. It makes me feel nostalgic, but it also makes me appreciate how much the band has evolved and grown over the years. As fans of this band, I think we are all so unbelievably lucky. I am very grateful to the band for the music they continue to make, and to the 10c for all of the opportunities they've given me to see them play live. I cherish all of my concert memories, the friends I've made along the way, my bootleg collection, my very favorite t-shirts...everything associated with it. I'm so thankful to have something like this in my life to enjoy, to have fun with, and to look forward to. Life is so damn difficult sometimes, but all of this has always been so great. It has always been the best to me. Thank you so much for all of it.
I will be there cheering at every show now through the rest of the east coast leg. I'm excited to go tomorrow night with a very close friend. I recently bought tickets for my daughter (24) and youngest son (18) so we can all head over together. This will be my youngest son's first ever rock concert. My oldest son (21) will join me on Monday night and at the Boston shows. It's been a fantastic lifetime of loving this band. Things have really come full circle. I am beyond thrilled and excited for everything still in front of us.
If you've read this far down and are going to a show, try to walk in without a wish list. Walk in and be excited for whatever they deliver to you, because you know it will be great.
Try not to get fixated on "rare" songs, or taking 100 pictures. Be in the moment and you won't need any pictures. You'll remember it all, trust me.
Be smart, be safe, and most importantly, ROCK YOUR ASS OFF AND HAVE A BLAST! That's EXACTLY what I'll be doing!
Thank you, Pearl Jam! 1/15/1995 - 9/7/2024 Here's to our next 50!
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'98 6/14 DC; 9/18 Columbia
'03 5/2 Buffalo; 7/1 Bristow; 7/5 Camden
'04 10/1 Reading; 10/11 DC
'06 5/27 Camden; 5/28 Camden; 5/30 DC
'08 6/22 DC; 6/24 MSG; 6/25 MSG
'09 10/30 Spectrum
'10 5/21 MSG
'11 9/3 Alpine Valley; 9/4 Alpine Valley
'13 7/19 Wrigley; 10/18 Brooklyn; 10/19 Brooklyn; 10/27 Baltimore; 10/29 Charlottesville; 11/21 San Diego; 11/23 LA
'14 10/5 ACL Austin; 10/12 ACL Austin
'16 4/18 Hampton; 4/28 Philly; 4/29 Philly; May 1 MSG; May 2 MSG; 8/5 Fenway; 8/7 Fenway
'24 8/29 Wrigley, 8/31 Wrigley, 9/3 MSG, 9/4 MSG
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