Do the classics lack feeling?

nocode85 · July 2008

Ok, I'm sure you all know that when pearl jam plays some of their classics like evenflow, alive, go and so on they seem to lack feeling. Theyre always so rushed and meaningless. Do you get this feeling? It sucks that the staple songs at all the shows are so unbearable to listen to. I downloaded a show from 92 where alive and evenflow are played at the right tempo and have so much more feeling in them. They sound closer to the studio versions. Ledbetter is one of my favorites but it never sounds anything like the studio version live. I found a show from 94 in which Mike plays it almost identical to the studio recording. Maybe its just me but these songs sound so much better when theyre slowed down, they seem to have a lot more emotion and feeling. Granted theyve played these songs tons of times but if its so unbearable to play maybe they should retire said songs. Thoughts?

tsarax · July 2008

Couldn't disagree with you more...

Now, if I was going to 6 or 8 shows, I may tire of hearing Evenflow or Alive at each show. But I can only afford to see 1 or 2 shows per tour and I love to hear the classics mixed with some rare songs!

vedder_soup · July 2008

i tired of hearing alive 6 times this tour...
well, boston 2 was ok as it was part of the reverse trilogy

a few shows mike really took the solo to an unbelievable level in even flow...
they have to play those songs really though...
if i was a casual fan, and saw a show of rare stuff, i guess i would be a bit annoyed

faithful227 · July 2008

Sometimes it does feel like even they're tired of playing the staples, however once in awhile they just crush 'em live. I've seen Even Flow at every show I've been too, however at Columbia this year it was awesome. Probably the best version I've seen/heard. Plus, like someone else mentioned, they have to play them. The casual listener is going to expect to hear them.

mozetti · July 2008

Listen to Black and Rearviewmirror from the DC show (6/22/08) -- that'll change your mind.

Also, IMHO, Ledbetter is much, much better live than the studio version. Sure, the studio still kicks ass but Mike pretty much shreds every time he plays Ledbetter live.

Roeghmann · July 2008

nonsens - Alive for instance have never feelt more alive than the last 3 years. Why Go is another classic that has been given a new life. IMO.

rtwilli4 · July 2008

You know when I listen to PJ in the car I usually skip over those "radio songs" and even sometimes when they start playing them I want to skip them. Then the crowd (I always sit in the grass, and always go to outdoor shows) gets wild and I get into it. They have to play those songs and I'm glad they do. Even flow is one of the best songs for Mike and Matt to showcase their talents to the casual fan. I sit in the back so I can dance and get wild and the best time for this is during Even Flow, Jeremy, Betterman, Alive, Rearview Mirror, Corduroy, etc.

Not to say that Not for You, Evolution, Last Exit, Brain of J, Last Exit, Blood, and Spin the Black Circle don't f cking ROCK !

rearviewmiror · July 2008

Evenflow needs to be slower, though it has it's moments.
Alive is always a great version because it brings down the house. Fast or not. It kicks ass.
Ledbetter is a bluesy song that eddie has always changed the lyrics to. So I really don't get the need to hear the original when it's never been the same twice anyways.

TransplantedNewf · July 2008

Alive is one of the best songs to see at a show, in my opinion. The energy from the crowd is simply amazing. And i've noticed at times, it's made Ed stand back in awe.

Tone · July 2008

Krisdababe wrote:

Alive is one of the best songs to see at a show, in my opinion. The energy from the crowd is simply amazing. And i've noticed at times, it's made Ed stand back in awe.

I completely agree. When the crowd gets so hyped and into it, I just love seeing Ed's reaction... what a feeling to have that massive wall of sound of 20,000 people hit you. Awesome!

IAmMyself · July 2008

I would agree that Eddie doesn't blow his vocal chords out to sing the songs off 10 like he used to, thank goodness, ie unplugged.
But come'on, they still sing with feeling, it's just like making love to the same person for 15 years, you have to change it up a bit or you will go insane!

patrickredeyes · July 2008

Both nites at MSG they blew me away with Even Flow.

IAmMyself · July 2008

patrickredeyes wrote:

Both nites at MSG they blew me away with Even Flow.

MSG will live in infamy AGAIN!

nfanel · July 2008

mozetti wrote:

Listen to Black and Rearviewmirror from the DC show (6/22/08) -- that'll change your mind.

that was the best RVM i've ever heard.

and i love alive....i love looking around at the crowd during that song the way ed does. i am always in awe, too.

libragirl · July 2008

I feel that way with evenflow mostly...

sward · July 2008

Black seems like one of the classics that never sounds tired. Even Flow certainly has the tendency to sound 'forced', I guess..if that even describes it. While Im not a huge fan of the drum solo, in theory, I think it helped jazz up Even Flow a bit. Alive always gets energized by the crowd. I remember when they did Alive in Halifax 2005, that they had some of the magic back for it. So it was a combo of band getting into it and crowd eating it up. Nice when that happens..but I think I like hearing Alive either way. They way Eddie shouts the 'YEah, Yeah, Yeah" at the end is always an indicator to me about how into the song he is. :-)

Indifference71 · July 2008

mozetti wrote:

Listen to Black and Rearviewmirror from the DC show (6/22/08) -- that'll change your mind.

Also, IMHO, Ledbetter is much, much better live than the studio version. Sure, the studio still kicks ass but Mike pretty much shreds every time he plays Ledbetter live.

I couldn't agree more. That was a beautiful version of Black that night in DC. And RVM just plain fucking rocked. I can't wait for the bootleg to get here.

nocode85 · July 2008

mozetti wrote:

Listen to Black and Rearviewmirror from the DC show (6/22/08) -- that'll change your mind.

Also, IMHO, Ledbetter is much, much better live than the studio version. Sure, the studio still kicks ass but Mike pretty much shreds every time he plays Ledbetter live.

Oh I know I was actually at DC and I've heard everyone talking about how good they think the version of Black is. I agree. I guess I've just heard these songs so many times that sometimes I'd rather skip them. But I guess its true that those songs are staples and fan favorites and they really do involve a lot of band/fan interaction. Someone said earlier something about sitting back in awe during alive, I get that.

dthomas · July 2008

OK this is a good topic in general. How come so many classics so often.

Yeah yeah, the casual fan argument but really? They've been touring for over 15 years. If you haven't heard Even Flow yet you haven't been to a single! show in your life

Now that being said, Even Flow since 2006 has been awesome.

The 2000 and 2003 tours to me were not great for any of the songs let alone the classics.

But since 2005 everything has been very very good.

I don't have complaints about Alive or Even Flow or even Jeremy because the band is ON during those songs. Heck, we never had a drum solo ever with PJ until recently during Even Flow.

What perturbs me is this band can totally rework a song like Jeremy or Garden and it's amazing, but they do it rarely. I'd like more of that.

And the only, only! two songs that get to me at shows are Better Man (because it's a crowd sing along and every single night it seems) and Yellow Ledbetter.

That used to be a rarity now it's all the time. I was psyched when All Along The Watchtower was introduced into sets. With RITFW and Baba and Indifference as a slow ender there are a few possibilities. I'd like Porch to reclaim the closer title personally. Yellow ledbetter. sigh.

Crazy Mary has also lost a lot for me since its regular inclusion in sets. Breath on the other hand...keep it coming.

I say this as someone who has seen a LOT of shows. You feel bad complaining because they are all great but this is how I'd tweak the sets for the future for sure. I could completely forget Binaural and Riot Act with a very few exceptions as well. Sorry those were the dark times IMHO. And shoot, this is all for fun. I'll take any set.

Ledbetterman10 · July 2008

Alive NEVER lacks feeling

nocode85 · July 2008

dthomas wrote:

OK this is a good topic in general. How come so many classics so often.

Yeah yeah, the casual fan argument but really? They've been touring for over 15 years. If you haven't heard Even Flow yet you haven't been to a single! show in your life

Now that being said, Even Flow since 2006 has been awesome.

The 2000 and 2003 tours to me were not great for any of the songs let alone the classics.

But since 2005 everything has been very very good.

I don't have complaints about Alive or Even Flow or even Jeremy because the band is ON during those songs. Heck, we never had a drum solo ever with PJ until recently during Even Flow.

What perturbs me is this band can totally rework a song like Jeremy or Garden and it's amazing, but they do it rarely. I'd like more of that.

And the only, only! two songs that get to me at shows are Better Man (because it's a crowd sing along and every single night it seems) and Yellow Ledbetter.

That used to be a rarity now it's all the time. I was psyched when All Along The Watchtower was introduced into sets. With RITFW and Baba and Indifference as a slow ender there are a few possibilities. I'd like Porch to reclaim the closer title personally. Yellow ledbetter. sigh.

Crazy Mary has also lost a lot for me since its regular inclusion in sets. Breath on the other hand...keep it coming.

I say this as someone who has seen a LOT of shows. You feel bad complaining because they are all great but this is how I'd tweak the sets for the future for sure. I could completely forget Binaural and Riot Act with a very few exceptions as well. Sorry those were the dark times IMHO. And shoot, this is all for fun. I'll take any set.

Thank You! you really got the point of what I was saying. I mean, I'm obviously not going to complain about any chance I've had to see the band. But yeah, maybe a little tweaking is all they need. Keep some of the songs a little rarer so they're more fresh when they're played. Well put

NYCPJ · July 2008

Maybe its because ive only seen them 4 times, but i dont get tired of hearing Evenflow or Alive; i still think on most nights they absolutely tear it up on those songs. They only played Go once on this tour and I was very pleased to have heard it (MSG2) and RVM from MSG1 was unreal. Its too bad there is no bootleg of the Beacon -- Black was sick that night.

I also dont mind it when they keep some often-played songs on the shelf (or just play it once or twice) for a tour or two and then bring it back. In that regard, id love to Nothing as it seems next time out!

Left Porch · July 2008

For for the person at his/her first PJ show, evenflow really is an experience the first time you hear it live, and the solos tend to differ from night to night which does give it a little bit of a different vibe for those who go to a ton of shows. With that being said, if evenflow wasn't played for like 3 years or was played like once or twice a tour, I definitly feel like it would give it a new life and PJ has enough hits that they could get by with the casual fan with songs like Alive,Jeremy,Black etc... Maybe every tour drop one of the hits and don't play it then bring it back and give it some new life. I'd say stick with Alive though, that song gets better each time they play it.

12345AGNST1 · July 2008

They certainly do NOT rush "alive". Anytime I listen to an older version of Alive, they tend to end the song at around 4:30 or 5:00. Im always like "WTF?" Any new version of alive is atleast 6 minutes. The older versions of alive suck compared to the new ones. I love how matt accents on the hihat or does a few rolls on the toms for each fist pump. Not to mention mike just going off like crazy for way more than 4.5 minutes.

PJammer4life · July 2008

vedder_soup wrote:

i tired of hearing alive 6 times this tour...

To those who didn't get to see 6 shows or haven't had a tour in years ..you come off as kind of an ass for that statement. Sorry....

Do the classics lack feeling?

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