Pearl Jam is a band that never disappoints with their live performances. On April, 16th, the band played to a sold out crowd of 16,000 at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, SC.
While every Pearl Jam show is different, this one was unique because the band played their iconic second album VS in its entirety during the first set. (Only four other times has the band played an album in order over the years). VS held the spot for highest selling album for five years after its initial release in 1993. Songs from the album still find their way into setlists today, but a few are rarities (like “W.M.A.” and “Rats”).
The night started with “Corduroy” from the band’s third release, Vitalogy, and then went straight into VS, sending the crowd into an uproar.
After a quick break, the band came back with several songs from their most recent release, Lightning Bolt. Because it was Record Store Day, Ed gave a shout out to Horizon Records in Greenville for their 40th anniversary. He also thanked Mike for buying vinyl for the rest of the band members, then launched right into songs that pay homage to vinyl: “Let The Records Play” and “Spin The Black Circle”.
Following their first encore, Ed spotted a little girl on her dad’s shoulders. He could not hear the girl’s name, and he attributed it to “Standing in front of Matt Cameron all night so I can’t hear a god damn thing…. I can’t hear a fucking thing, and neither will you after tonight.”
Mike starts to play “Given To Fly” from Yield, but instead dedicates “Future Days” to a guy named Evan who has beaten cancer.
During instrument changes, Ed asked the audience if we knew who played this venue when it first opened. Someone in the crowd yelled, “JANET JACKSON!” to which he replied, “You are right, Janet Jackson. Or Miss Jackson if I’m nasty. So, no disrespect to Miss Jackson, but WE were the first band!”
One of the highlights of the evening (aside from hearing VS, of course) happened when the band covered “Comfortably Numb” by Pink Floyd. “This song was very important to me growing up,” Ed, said. “I think the first few times I listened to it I was on mushrooms, so I took a few just now. No, no I am responsible. Let’s play it. This song is like jumping off a cliff.” He even had a lyric sheet so he would not mess up the words. Ed even had a chance to play piano with Boom. (For those unfamiliar, Boom is the band’s keyboard player)
Since there were people sitting behind the stage, the band decided to play a song for them. Ed told the story of hearing “Last Kiss” for the first time. Twenty-five years ago, he heard it on a jukebox, learned it, and played it with Matt [Cameron] that night at a club.
The night was absolutely a night of Rock and Roll nostalgia mixed with die-hard fan deep cuts. For those who were there, it was definitely an evening to remember.
Set-List
- Corduroy
- Go
- Animal
- Daughter
- Glorified G
- Dissident
- W.M.A
- Blood
- Rearviewmirror
- Rats
- Elderly Woman Behind The Counter In A Small Town
- Leash
- Indifference
- Mind Your Manners
- Swallowed Whole
- Sirens
- Let The Records Play
- Spin The Black Circle
- Do The Evolution
- Future Days
- Nothingman
- Given To Fly
- Present Tense
- Comfortably Numb
- Lightning Bolt
- Porch
- Last Kiss
- Breath
- Comatose
- Betterman/Save It For Later
- Alive
- Baba O’Riley
- Yellow Ledbetter
