Your Top 3 Moments of Being a Fan

URthekey said:

Lots of amazing experiences to choose from…so hard to narrow it down to just 3 but here goes:

1. 10/22/13 Wachovia Center, Philadelphia PA.
This was the first tour PJ had a GA pit and I got rail right in front of Ed. He recognized me from the Spectrum Halloween show and made a very special dedication for me that was so insightful it helped me correct my life’s path. It had come after a particularly dark year where my neighbor intentionally shot and killed my dog, my nephew died of a fentanyl overdose, and I had made some very poor decisions that hurt a lot of people I love. The lyrics of Parachutes ‘..I don’t want to know your past, but together share the dawn’  cleansed my sole, helped me heal and move past all that noise to become a better version of myself. 

2. 11/22 -24/05 Halifax, St John, Canada
This was the first time I had a random encounter with a band member, (MM) and Halifax was my first shows with my own fan club # tickets.
I was pregnant with my second child when PJ announced their Canadian tour. I wanted to catch a few shows but was due to give birth in that same time frame so I decided to try to deliver the baby via VBAC (to speed recovery) but it went horribly wrong when I had a uterine rupture, went into shock, and almost lost the baby. About 7 weeks later, when we’d both recovered, I decided live music was exactly what I needed; so I enlisted my niece, who was 19 at the time, to join us to provide child care while I went to the shows. The first show was amazing- (if you haven’t heard the Halifax boot you should give it a listen!) I ended up with 11th row seats right in front of Stone, and got a pick from him, and everything was grand!
Then it was on to St Johns for two more shows…
There was a night off between the two cities and my niece wanted to go to the bar in the hotel since she was legal to drink in Canada but not in the U.S., so I agreed. She ended up meeting some locals, going downtown, getting shit faced, and staying out til 4am while I lay awake worrying she was dead. 
The next morning came way too soon for all of us when both kids woke up screaming with ear aches from the pressurized air of the flights. To give her some space I packed up the kids, one in a stroller and the other in a bjorn, and walked all over the city in the wind and rain while my niece slept off her binge. When show time came she was still in pretty bad shape and didn’t want to watch the kids. I was pissed. So we agreed that I would just run down to the venue last minute and she could call me if she couldn’t deal. She blew up my phone the entire show, causing me to leave early and was still ill the next day. I was not about to let her stupidity ruin the 2nd nights show - we’d come 2000 miles and she had one job - so I took both kids down to the lobby with books and toys and tried occupying them while she slept. Like 3 hrs into it the kids were cranky and wanted a change so I head out to a little cafe across the street. As we’re eating I look out the window and spot Mike walking with his wife and a few other folks. He had bright red hair at the time and was impossible to miss. I asked a waitresses to watch my 2yr old and me and the baby ran across 6 lanes of traffic to talk to him on the street. I don’t even remember what I said but he asked my name, was very nice and wished me well. Later, back at the hotel I saw him again and he came up to me, calling me by name and we spoke for a bit longer and he signed my ticket stub from the night before. Later that evening he spotted me in the crowd and pointed to me and did a little ‘ rock the baby’ thing with his arms then proceeded to melt my face while looking directly into my eyes during Black.
I again had to leave the show early b/c by this point the niece and both kids were all crying to me over the phone, but I didn’t care, I was on cloud nine.

3. 4/06/94 Springfield MA
This was where it all began. The local record store had a promotion that if you bought the Vs. album you were entered into a drawing to win a spot on their ‘tour bus’ which was two tickets to the Springfield show and a ride there & back on a Coach bus. I won and me & my friend baked a batch of ‘adults only’ brownies and giggled all the way to Massachusetts. When we got into the show our seats were killer - 3rd row aisle seats side stage right off the floor. As soon as the band hit the first chords of RVM the floor erupted and we realized we didn’t want to be in seats anymore. During Whipping we went over the barricade into the pit straight into the lions den, getting jostled around in the crowd, fully absorbed in the music, loving every minute. 

From that point forward I never looked back.

Honorable mentions:

6/20/95 - Red Rocks Amphitheater CO - best venue ever, amazing setlist, all around 10/10.

5/3/10 - Kansas City MO - best show after the show. The Gas & Lights district had a huge indoor mall right across from the venue and they were showing the 7/8/03 Live at the Garden DVD on a giant screen in the courtyard. It seemed like the whole crowd just left the show and migrated here and the party continued into the wee hours.

7/2/2012 Prague, CZ - Was on the guest list and went backstage after the show. Oh, and they opened the 1st encore w/Of The Girl.

10/2/21 Ohana, Dana Point CA
If you watch the video you can see that during Unthought Known Ed is totally locked in to someone in the crowd > yeah, that was me. I swear his eyes pierced my brain and our thoughts at that moment were shared telepathically.

10/4/08 Brooklyn NY - drank Heinekens at the Warsaw Bar w/Stone at his ‘Dig It’ after party.

fl247556 said:

1. Zurich 06/23/2000

my first concert. I had discovered the group 7 years ago with VS at 13 years old. This group charged my life from that moment on. he accompanied me at all times. the best and the worst. and every day! Anyway, in the morning I take school exams and then with a great friend we hitchhike to join another friend. then we go to Switzerland from France. several hours of driving, an adventure! and then we discover PJ’s fans while chatting outside. we arrive during the first part (no experiences at the time!). Then the crazy concert! I take everything as it comes, it’s fabulous, how is that possible? the trilogy insignificance, RVM and porch I was in a trance. then we ended up running under jets of water in the early morning, still levitating... All that's sacred comes from youth.

2. Firenze, Italy 21/09/2006
we had to wait 6 very long years for them to return to Europe... it's such a long time. for this year 3 concerts on the program: Bern, Verona and Pistoia (for my birthday). This is my first PJ road trip, all other European tours will follow. And then we do a little visiting with my wife in Firenze... and I come face to face with Mike! Shit ! I don't want to bother him but I just want to say thank you. for everything. In short, all the testimonies agree: he is so nice and cool. When I shook his hand, I was surprised that such small hands could be like... one of the most magical things. we talked a little, I remember him telling me he had a pen with Mont Blanc (my region in France), he also thanked me, this guy is fantastic. he was like me with his wife and his camera.

3.I've already done 4 concerts on Gigaton's European tour, and I'm taking my wife to Vienna and Prague. and then the cancellations happen. I'm depressed. we go to a club / bar in the evening in Prague. And there are lots of PJ t-shirts. Italians, Spanish, Germans... we party all night until dawn dancing to PJ, Nirvana, etc... like crazy. like lifelong friends. This is the Pearl Jam family. it's magnificent.

And..

this sunset over the sea during long road song to the ancient theater of Taormina during an Eddie concert, followed by fireworks. 

Otherwise of course the concerts! where I experienced some of the best times of my life. 
with this side that I love so much: what will be the next song? thank you for this incredible and unexpected setlist! the top 5 (it changes all the time): Berlin 2014, Krakow 2018, Amsterdam 2 2012, Pistoia 2006 and Barcelona 2 2024

1. Barcelona 2024

- After 2 cancellations in Berlin (We were there) Day before first show we crossed paths with Mike, I just stopped looking at him and he came to us (Me my Wife and 2 kids with PJ shirts) so we talked about cancellation shows and if we would get shows in Barcelona. He was super nice, asked all of us our names we took some photos and my daughter gave him a bracelet she made with Waiting for Stevie written. After a few hours we crossed paths again and he complemented us again.

- Next day 1st show we were seated in the stands and when Present Tense starts a message appears on screens saying: “Tonight we dedicate this song to Daniel, Susana, Joana, João” all our names

- 2nd show we were in the rail 3rd in line in front of Mike and he recognizes me and my daughter from our encounter and showed her he had the bracelet on his wrist. Just before Waiting for Stevie he points to Eddie and when the songs starts he points at her saying “This one is for you”. Near the end Mike throws a bunch of picks our way, we got 11 of them.

During Black Eddie gives my daughter a Tambourine.

 2. Cascais 11/25/1996

- My first PJ show

3. New York MSG 9/11/2022

- Our 1st trip to the US as a family, for us being from Portugal it is a big deal and dream came true.