**Winnipeg Fanviews Here**

I'm going to post this before reading the thread in hopes 1) I remember things as *I* remember them and not through someone else and 2) I reenforce what others have said because if they didn't say this was a phenomenal show then they're out of their mind.

My background: This was the fifth time I've seen them. I realized on the way up from Minneapolis that after my Winnipeg/Thunder Bay run that I will have seen them outside my home state more than inside (Fargo, Boston I, and then these two). I'm sure that is the case for many of you here, but it was still a strange thing for me to realize. At the border patrol station, as soon as we pulled up the guy took one look asked "Going to Pearl Jam?" After saying yes, he asked us the usual necessary questions and then said "Have a good time. Get outta here." Apparently many cars had preceded our border visit! Easiest border crossing ever.

We got to the show early to check out our seats (6th row on Mike's side) and chat with fellow fan clubbers. The Supersuckers were quite possibly the best opening band I've seen at a PJ show. Quite entertaining and deserving of further listening. Though they repeated their bass bit (where every band member takes a turn) both nights I saw, it was still fun to watch. Ed came out attired in a flashy suit jacket and mexican wrestling mask to sing X's Poor Girl which was well received by the half-full arena.

Pearl Jam came out to a thunderous ovation and I could barely make out the opening notes to Betterman. I turned to my friend and said "Wow". I could not believe they were opening with it. I knew right then that this night was going to be special in some way. Rumors were abound that Neil was going to show up, so that thought was there. Then there was the unbelievable crowd. Even though Eddie sang the entire opening verse, the crowd was just as loud. The band then churned out 4 1/10 rapid fire rockers. During the breakdown section in Save You, the fan club area was one up on Ed, doing the clap clap clap-clap-clap thing. Ed finally noticed and joined in with a slight look of surprise and joy on his face. Ed's mood changed though as he gave the finger to the American flag hanging in the arena during the appropriate line in Greivance. The 1/10 is because they got a short bit into Sad before Jeff and Stone made it clear that that wasn't the song that was supposed to be played. Jeff was trying to switch out basses when they just stopped. They went ahead with GTF- looking around the arena during the "Arms wide open..." line saw very few people without their hands in the air. Sad should be interesting on the bootleg as Mike was clearly having problems with his guitar. Several times he played chords that clearly were not what they should be, and he kept doing it at awkward times.

The first real indication that this crowd was bat-shit insane came during the Daughter tag. Ed grabbed a cell phone and had the crowd eating out of his hand. Noting how into the moment this crowd is, he starts ABITW2. The call and response on this song was nothing short of phenomenal in person. I'm a Floyd fan, so I was pumped to hear the tag, but hearing 16,000 people or whatever singing along gave me chills. PJ followed this up with Wishlist which resulted in another band-crowd moment. After seeing the crowd with their "hands upraised and open toward the sky" Ed simply said something along the lines of "fucking amazing", a sentiment he'd repeat a couple more times before the show was over.

Even Flow was next. No matter how many times we hear this song (and that's a lot of times), when you hear it in person it's like you haven't heard it in years. Listening to Mike's solo I just closed my eyes and soaked in his guitar playing. As far as I am concerned, I could listen to Mike play an Even Flow solo any day.

A lyrically different Untitled (probably because Ed seemed he couldn't quite remember the normal lyrics) was followed by a decent MFC that again seemed to be another fan club favorite. Next up was 1/2 Full, which I swear every time I hear the opening notes to I think I'm hearing Red Mosquito until 5-6 seconds in. I could swear I heard someone near me yell "Red Mosquito" too, so hopefully it just isn't me. 1/2 Full has really grown on me, though, so I didn't mind that I'd been fooled yet again.

Immortality. One of my favorite songs. I closed my eyes for most of it. Mike, no matter how he plays his solo, owns this song. This time the solo started with two long, sustained notes and these may be the most emotional two notes I've heard. I felt the emotion, I got the chills. Amazing.

The guy behind me timed Lukin- 59 seconds. Unbelievable. Jeremy was yet another display of crowd insanity. Ed let us sing and did we sing. Another chill moment as the crowd took over the "whoas" with zeal.

If I had to pick one Pearl Jam song I could never get sick of- Black is it. After the mostly acoustic 2003 versions, it was refreshing to hear a mostly electric version once again. Again, the crowd took over this song, this time before Ed even asked. Ed seemed genuinely emotional as he sat at the side of the stage and took in the moment. Mike had another incredible solo here as well. At the very end we got a "we belong together" before Ed said that he'd sang that song many times but very few times has he been moved like he was. What an incredible moment.

DTE closed out the set on a rockin note. The audience never stopped cheering. When the band returned and the opening notes of In Hiding rang out I probably said my 15th "Wow" of the night. What a treat to hear. After hearing the first (albeit truncated) version of In My Tree in 2003, I was more than excited to hear it again, as was everyone around me judging by the cheer that went up when it started. I'm sort of tired of Crazy Mary, so I wasn't exactly excited to hear it. The crowd was, though, taking over the "L O I T E R I N G" to Eddie's amazement. During the fantastic solo contest between Mike and Boom (with Mike right next to Boom, feeding off of each other like I've never seen) Eddie was outside on the opposite side of the stage passing out the wine bottle to an enthusiastic mob of fans. Alive saw the most people I've ever witnessed yelling "Yeah" in unison. An awesome sight- 16000 fist pumping arms in the air as the band torches the end of the song. Blood seemed almost an afterthought after this.

As soon I saw the acoustic bass being brought out to the stage during the set break I knew what I was going to hear- Indifference. This was the song I was dying to hear live since I saw them for the first time. Knowing it isn't played that often, I was actually nervous in anticipation to hear it. Jeff started the baseline amidst the crowd noise from the bands return to the stage and I'll be damned if that crowd didn't go nearly silent as the song began to take shape. They knew this was a special song. The chills I got during the "I will scream.." part were intense. I can die a happy man.

Now it was a special fan's turn. Ed mentioned seeing this gal at the shows wearing the same shirt and that he was nervous it hadn't been washed so they were going to play the song. We didn't know what it was until she got up on the stage and turned around. Smile. The fan club area was very happy, it seemed, to hear this one. On a side note- throw in the TB show the next night, and the last three shows I've seen have had a fan be invited up onto the stage to sing. Maybe I'll have a turn some day.

Ed finally made reference to Neil Young after this, and honestly this was the first time I thought of Neil since the beginning of the show. Pearl Jam did a damn fine job of keeping my mind off of that potential show stealer. Unfortunately it was made clear that Neil was not there, so we would not be seeing him that night, but Small Town was played and dedicated to "Uncle Neil". Fuckin' Up or RITFW were pretty much a given to close, but surprisingly we got both. The Winnipeg fans ate it up. With the house lights up you could clearly see how much this crowd loved what they were hearing. If I had a camera I would have taken a picture- I had never seen anything like it. The show ended on an incredible note, and Ed thanked the Winnipeg fans for being "fucking amazing". They were.


Frankly, on paper this show looks as if it is a run-of-the-mill 2003 Pearl Jam show, save for Sad and a couple encores. However, this show was anything but run-of-the-mill. Bottom line is this is likely the loudest and most energetic crowd I've ever been a part of at an arena show, beating out the Target Center show in Minneapolis in '98. The fans were indeed nothing short of fucking amazing. I ran in to an old high school friend after the show who was seeing his 31-32 PJ shows. He agreed that it was the loudest he has heard a crowd. Somehow I doubt this will come through on the bootlegs as the mics are not facing the crowd, but trust me when I say this crowd should go down as one of the best ever. The band clearly felt it as they put on a fucking incredible show in response. I have never been as exhausted after a show as I was after Winnipeg. I slept like a baby, dreaming of more PJ yet to come.

Winnipeg show was amazing. Pearl Jam is the best band going with the coolest fans.

Creed Disease wrote:

Hello, I am new to this board. Is it just me, or does the bootleg for the Winnipeg show have a second disc that is over 80 minutes? Or is that just me? Thanks!

Hello, I'm new too (though I've been lurking and reading the reviews of all the Canadian shows, and I was way up at the far end of the arena at this show - AWESOME show!). I went to burn the Winnipeg boot onto CD, and disc 2 is about 6 seconds too long! To get around this I simply omitted the "Encore" cheering - there is one track just under 1 minute long - then it fits easily. Maybe using a different program to burn it would have allowed it to fit...I used Sonic.

This was my second live PJ show, the first was way back in 93 at Sunfest in Gimli (which was pretty awesome, though my memory of it is blurred by the vast quantities of alcohol I had ingested that day). I thought the crowd and band were amazing in 'The Phone Booth' (MTS Centre). I've been to over 50 arena/stadium concerts easily, have seen some of the biggest bands in the world (The Rolling Stones, U2, Pink Floyd, Aerosmith...) and this was the BEST show I've been to. No messing around with useless banter, just a straight ahead rock show where the band and the music are ON. Thanks PJ, and all the rocking fans there last Thursday.

ahh, i think i just had another eargasm

Thinking of driving up from NY for the two shows Thur and Fri in canada. 10c member who got shut out of tix. Can anyone help? Thanks Jack

Yes, I can die happy now. What an amazing concert, and decent floor seats made it so intimate. I still smile when I think about that night!

I am ashamed to admit I was more excited to see U2 in Toronto this Friday, but after Pearl Jam, I'm like damn, could they even be nearly as good as Pearl Jam?? After that concert Pearl Jam's moved a notch above U2 in my book!! At least for this week!

Has anyone else been reading this?:
http://www.chartattack.com/damn/2005/09/1203.cfm

It is a series of reviews from Shaun Gibson, a long time fan who is following the band through Canada. Perhaps this was already posted here somewhere?

I've seen 100's of different concerts, shows and gigs and this Pearl Jam show was by far the best I've ever seen. I hope I don't have to wait too long to see them again. At least I have the boot to relive this incredible experience. Thanx Pearl Jam

Does anyone have pics from the Winnipeg show that are better than the ones from the boot?