New PJ Article 7/16/08 film.com

Indifference

http://www.film.com/tv/story/vh1-rock-honors-long-live/13982602/21830374

LukinFan

It was about 17 years ago that Eddie Vedder went surfing and dreamed up the magniloquent rock-operatic lyrics that made him uncomfortably famous, along with the guitar debating society that was Pearl Jam. 17 years ago, Vedder was obsessed with The Who's Quadrophenia, which was 17 years old at that point. Now he's old and independent, doing solo shows, scoring Into the Wild for his pal Sean Penn -- and singing "Love, Reign O'er Me" from Quadrophenia with Pearl Jam (plus an orchestra) for its author on VH1.

It seems like yesterday that he was Eddie, debutant star, shimmying up the Space Needle to unscrew a light bulb and playfully send it to a Rolling Stone reporter, and telling me backstage, right after he'd surfed the entire audience at his first concert filmed for MTV at Seattle's Moore Theater, how wonderful it was to feel the varying strengths in each fan's arms as they passed him around, the women's arms weaker, the strong guys saving him from falling, everybody celebrating the blissful communion of their g-g-generation. As fame became less blissful, Eddie's idol Pete Townshend, I'm told, phoned and comforted him by saying, "You are one of the fortunate ones."

Now he's grownup -- his bandmates call him "Ed" -- and he's repaying Pete's kindness by doing this show.