**Santa Cruz Fanviews here 4/05**

fanch75 wrote:

http://forums.pearljam.com/showpost.php?p=5241734&postcount=6

Hmm, yeah, pretty spot on, ok ok -- but I think we'll really get the protest songs tonight/tomorrow! Wow, when he's not downing 2 bottles of vino, he can play those stringed things pretty damn well -- was actually surprised in a couple of places how well he played!

Let alone the singing....

I don't think anyone has mentioned that he said he had skipped a surf to work out "Pulling into Santa Cruz." I never made it out to the water to see if there was anything worth riding. It was flat down along the bay Sunday morning.

And do get there early for Liam. Ed was fantastic all night, but Liam's I am Lightning/Dear Prudence was mind blowing.

acutejam wrote:

I thought it was just a Little Martin? (http://www.martinguitar.com/guitars/choosing/guitars.php?p=z&g=p&m=LXK2%20Little%20Martin)
I'll check it out from the close seats tonight!

Was painful to see the black telecaster style Uke take a Dive!!! After the two numbers he put it down and promptly tripped over the chord grabbing for his other instrument and the little uke went CRASH! OUCH!!!

No Banjo at SC? Just saw he played banjo in Vancouver -- don't recall it in SC?

I think it was smaller than that. It could have been the guitar/uke combo people have mentioned. It was definitely the size of a uke, or only a little bigger.

yodamex makes good points about the stage setup and how the stage was arranged.

Another cool thing I just remembered was right before he played "No More" he said, "This is a true story. Unfortunately the last one was too." (In reference to Lukin).

FUUUUUUUUUUCK~!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What does he mean they couldn't find a venue? I can think of 9-10 suitable places he could have played between Portland and Eugene.

mpnright wrote:

I haven't seen anyone mention how Eddie noted that the show was supposed to be played in Portland but they could not find a venue. I'm glad they chose Santa Cruz...what a show!

that aimee girl wrote:

I thought maybe I would try here as a last resort
I lost a tiny piece of plastic
tiny but very meaningful to me

the short of it
went to the show HUGE FAN for many many MANY years -
for the first time in all those years I made a valient attempt to meet Eddie and give him a thank you
miraculously was able to do so
was given a guitar pick by the man himself before the show
in the excitement of it all
LOST said guitar pick
maybe in front of the merch table?

its very clearly Eddies pick and is stamped
a shot in a million I know of having this return to me
but it means just that much that I have to try

Good luck...but I think your shot on finding someone who may have found it, is in the slim to none catergory.

RM

Ample Jar wrote:

i hoping you're joking or being sarcastic. if you weren't at the show, don't comment on what you don't know about. i'm not from santa cruz, but i can't definitely say that was not a song he'll be singing from town to town. way too specific to SC.

i was very moved and, like i said, i'm not even from there. and it was amazing to think Ed can pen a song like that on a whim...just riding in the bus.

what a great show!

Yes, i was joking, Gohike and I go way back, travel to shows together and usually throw out an inside joke from our get togethers. In this case GoHike was asked how old he was by my wife and he quickly replied, "12"

Santa Cruz was a great show, great town, great beers and most of all great friends there. I am jealous beacuse Ed would never tour nor write a song about........................


































Modesto.

*tears* What a fuckin magical experience! I'm still completely in AWE over here!!! So many moments during the night I just couldnt even move!!! Totally paralyzed and in awe.

What an extraordinary gift for Ed to invite us into his world like this. We are truly blessed.

This venue was soooooooooooo TINY! OMG! To see ED in a place like THIS?! I'm still in shock of that alone! The stage backdrops and all of the stuff surrounding him up there too?! Wow! Totally added to the unworldly atmosphere. You're really taken on a journey. The suitcase, all of his guitars, all this personal stuff blanketing him. It was really sweet and pulled you in and took you there even more! Beyond intimate. You truly do feel like you are just chillin with an old friend (which you are!), listening to him tell stories and serenade you along the way. SO fuckin special!!

Vedder has never sounded Better btw.*jaw on floor* It's seriously stunning how much sound,how much power, how much brilliance can come outta one man! Awww and his stories and jokes were the BEST! Our very own storytellers with EV. haha. I love it! The man is HI-LARIOUS! Someone mentioned how it's like amatuer hour between songs. LOL!!! Exactly! The omelette story was classic. "maybe I shoulda just tried it!" LOL!! And YES, the uke/happy friend story too. I'm never gonna be able to say "no worries" the same again....without doing the lil EV wave. hehehehe. *with his New Zealand accent* "Oh yes Eddie that was SPECTACULAR!" HA! I love how he mixes it up like this. One minute we're bawling out eyes out and the next minute we're laughing hysterically. Fuckin beautiful! The best of ALL worlds. God I love this man!

While every single second of the show was pure EV bliss, here are some highlights that I absolutely HAVE to mention....

Walking The Cow!!!! Perfection! I've always wanted to hear this song and SC was the dream coming true. Looooved it.

Around the Bend 2nd song in!? *lifts off the ground* Awwww I'm already a sobbing mess. haha. THANK YOU EDDIE!!! This is seriously one the most beautiful songs that EVER existed! I cant even express how head over heels in love I am! I'm soooo grateful/giddy/glad that it's getting much play at these shows. Such a sweet ass lullaby that totally soothes the soul. What an ideal setting for this blissful beauty. Really though. Cloud 9 and then some!

I'm Open? Wait. Wtf? I'm Open? Reeeally? haha. Everyone in our section gasped and I couldnt help but blurt out "oh shit!". I mean seriously. No one saw that coming! The man sounded like an angel! GORGEOUS!

And then to go directly into MOTH on the uke!? *drowing in tears* The song already digs way deep and is one of the most emotional for me personally. Experiencing it like this? In this environment? Wow. Took the comfort to a whole new level. I'm tearing up just thinking about it. Chillin with our friend Eddie, having him telling us it's ok....this is just "goodbye for now". *tears*

Hard Sun! Ok I actually feel like I take this song for granted sometimes. I mean I love it and all but it's probably my least listened to song on the album. Well it was completely transformed live!! What a BURST of bright light and surging energy! It just demanded you to get up, shake those hips and sing and smile like it was going outta style! hehe. Man! It was a lot of FUN actually. A FUN and phenomenal performance all at once. What Liam and EJ (who are AMAZING btw!!) add to it is out of this world. *chills* Again...completely transformed!


Far Behind! I just have to say that ALL of these Into the Wild songs are even MORE brilliant in a live setting. Its crazy! This is one that really stood out too! Strumming the shit outta that guitar. How can this much sound come outta ONE person!? Unreal! I have a newfound love for Far Behind.

And then there's Rise! Awwww this is my song! *heart swells* I couldnt wait for this moment to finally come. *smiles all around* Fuckin beautiful! Its just so damn positive and empowering. To experience this feeling live was incredible. I couldnt stop smiling and couldnt help but tear up with tears of joy. When it was over I was also forced to RISE UP and give the man a standing ovation. I just couldnt help it. To my surprise quite a few around me the same. Awwww! It was beautiful! Not sure if I mentioned that already?


Speaking of standing ovations...there were a lot throughout the night. It made me feel so proud of our boy. Well...even more than I did already...which I didnt think was possible...but you know how it goes. He's up there completely stripped down, bare and vulnerable as can be. I think SC did a fabulous of job of letting him know just how much we appreciated and embraced this!


Broken hearted! Oh man! *tears* Cry-baby was out full force during this one. This gem has always been one of my absolute favs. ADORE it to no end. Ed really does just break my heart into a million pieces here. *tears* In the greatest way possible of course. *sigh* Such a moving performance.

Millworker! Woooooow. Never heard this before. I was floored.

Goodbye! There you go rippin my heart outta my chest again Vedder. God damn! What a gripping performance. These words carried out by THIS voice!? *sigh* Under attack. Nuff said.

Driftin- YAY!! Another extremely FUN moment of the night.

Hide Your Love away-crowd participation kicked ass! We were LOUD!


Forever Young. Ed dims the lights and tells everyone that he just wants us to focus on the words and the music. *chills* Just closed my eyes and took it all in. Stunning. You wanna talk about being transported somewhere else? Wow. I was moved to tears yet again. By far one of the most amazing moments of the night!!!!! These words too?! My god. He could not have picked a more perfect song to spotlight. THANK YOU EDDIE!


Porch rocked our chilled out faces off! Wheeeew lord. This song acoustic is just so bad ass! I fuckin LOVE it! It has such a slow-mo added groove to it. Ugh! And yeah, the crowd was awesome during this one. Fists pumping all over the place. Everyone singing along. Amazing infectious energy!


Happy Birthday McCready...introduced by saying "it's one of my fav guitarists's birthday today." Awwwwwwww!!!!! We all sang Happy Bday to him which was so sweet!! Ed also mentioned how we should sing loud cuze he'll probably hear us, since he's "in the neighborhood" :eek: I kept thinking he was gonna pop out sidestage but it all makes since to me now. It was his bday. He was taking some time for himself. Spending the day/night in Santa Cruz. Enjoy the beauty of it all. Understandable. Berkeley, however, we will be McCreadyied. Oh yes, we will. I can feel it.


Society! HOLY MOTHER!!! Its like we have 2 versions now. The original and one with fuckin Liam! UNBELIEVABLE!!! What a team these 2 make! Phenomenal. This was by far one of my greatest anticipations of the evening and it blew me away even more than I expected! Standing ovation once again!!!!

Lukin! Heeeeell yeah. The dude in front of my was yelling for this a few times throughout the night. He was sitting most of the show and when Ed started violently strumming those opening chords dude catapolted outta his seat with the biggest grin slapped on his face. Our little section rocked out to this rockin quickie! Afterwards I had to give the guy a high-five. hehehe. Good times!!

No More was intense and chilling as always. The participation during the chorus was great. Once again, lots of fists pumping in the air. Everyone was feeling it!

And after this super passionate performance, Ed shuffles about the stage, puts on his white scientists labcoat...and right then and there we all knew. You try to prepare yourself but nothing can really prepare you for whats about to happen.

ARC! *body goes numb* The entire place was at a stand still. You can feel it all around you. You can feel Ed's voice vibrating through your entire being!!! My god! One of the most overwhelmingly intense feelings. The tears started pouring down my face. Total out of body experience. I dont have any more words for this one...............


Thats the thing with this entire show. You think there's no way you could possibly love, connect, respect Eddie more than you already do....but this experience just pushes it all to even higher levels. The man ALWAYS pours his heart and soul into everything 110%. These shows are something else. Its like he's pouring it all directly into YOU! I dont know how to even describe it but those that were there KNOW. It's a connection far and beyond anything I've ever experienced.

Which leads me to one of the deepest connections of the evening. Ed and his love affair with SC. *grins* We got our own fuckin LOVE song!!! I cant get over this! Eddie skipped out on surfing to write Santa Cruz a love song? How super special are we?! Awww and the song was frickin gorgeous! So refreshing. He started it out too by saying something like "I skipped out on surfing and I hope it was worth it." Something to that effect. Ummm yeah Ed, most definitely worth it buddy. HUUUUGE thanks to you acutejam for posting those words! Aww! "when we see each other we're 17 again" Love it!

The 2 lines I was able to remember were....

I need to sea to set me free
I need the wind so I breathe

Wasnt it?

And yep...of course the unforgettable threat that we ALL wanna see come to life! "I think I need to pack my bags and move my ass to Santa Cruz!!" hahah. Hell yes!! The roaring applause for that was awesome. Seriously Ed...we are in full support of this. Shit, we'll even help ya pack!

SC most definitely suits this man though. At one point he also mentioned something about Vancouver and then said how it was a good show "but Santa Cruz.....Santa Cruz...." and then he put his hand on his heart, pounding it a few times. Very touching and very true. Santa Cruz is YOU Ed. I feel incredibly blessed to be able to witness this match made in heaven.

I also must mention the super kick ass group of people I was with that just made it all that much more! ((I love you guys!))

The pre-party was a ton of fun as well. What a stellar job Eric! You get a standing ovation too my friend!

It was great (as always) running into a ton of old/new friends. *HUGE HUGS TO YOU ALL* Majorly looking forward to that again TONIGHT!
(Jeff our paths must cross!!)

All around, what a magical fuckin experience! Still reeling entirely.

THANK YOU FOR SANTA CRUZ EV!!!!!! A beautiful evening I won't soon forgot. Beautiful. Beautiful. That word gets thrown around like crazy when talking about this show. It's so true though! I can't say it enough. Beautiful, blissful, magical...just SO incredibly special.

And the magical journey has only just begun!

Berkeley! TONIGHT?!!? *squeals* I keep getting serious butterflies!! SERIOUS. Only have to make it through a few more hours of work (which has been a major challenge today!) and then its back to EDDIELAND!!!

The EV euphoria continues...and right here in my backyard! Ahhhh god!!! *shivers all over* He's taken it to even greater levels already.......

WoodenHammer wrote:

I am pretty sure he talked about it being an electric mandolin. Or was that for a different song?

Mandolin has a different body shape...he had no name for it "but for now I just call it "expensive!"". The small thing is smaller than a small martin (my hub has one of those), but it's bigger than a uke....I'll try to find the photos of all three...and post them here. However, it's not like it really matters what it was - he plays all the instruments with such ease and makes them sound their best! Sigh....Master of strings, he is -- a bit of all right!

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/photogalleries/musicnightlife2004324871/4.html - mandolin

vedhead, i nearly cried reading your post.....thank you for the amazingly beautiful review of the show....much appreciated!

DarkStar wrote:

so many things at the SC show...but I didn't see where anyone posted this yet...ed's bat wings are back! was nice to see them.

ds

I noticed at Van 1.