Pearl Jam in Chicago: Night 2

I will go ahead and provide a free advertisement (as if they need one) for Giordano's, Chicago's World Famous Stuffed Pizza. I always get Giordano's if I am in Chicago and this visit was no different (did I suddenly become a food examiner?) The lady and I enjoyed the wonderful deep dish, ultra-cheesy pepperoni pizza before heading to the United Center for Pearl Jam's second night in town. One has to always be careful eating before a show, especially if he or she treats his or her body the way I do during concerts.

Once again I entered the venue not feeling too well, carrying a fairly severe headache with me, my body bearing the weight of my outlandish jumping, dancing, etc. from the previous night, my voice barely existent. The lady and I found ourselves a mere five rows from the very top and back of the United Center, but once again with a fairly straight shot at the stage. I was a bit disappointed when comparing the seats to Night 1's, but I worked to remain positive as showtime approached. I have nothing to add to my review of Bad Religion's set because they played the exact same thing as the night before, including many of the same comments as well.

Pearl Jam took the stage about three or four minutes earlier than on Night 1, certainly a good sign of things to come. The piano intro played, the lights went out and once again, all the external factors were suddenly irrelevant. The band opened Night 2 with the best version of "Hard to Imagine" I have heard out of the three times I have seen it live. Something about the Chicago crowd, Vedder's voice, etc. made it feel like a special show from the very start. "Corduroy" followed once again as the second track of the set, and from the 300 section I could see the entire venue and the song was somehow even more glorious than the first night. The first big surprise of the night arrived next, in the form of "In My Tree," from 1996's No Code. The song is a rarely played gem (previous time played prior to Monday night - 9/1/06), and the original version to my knowledge had not been played since the 2000 tour. This was my 11th show and I had been wishing, hoping and waiting for the song since my very first one. Much like "Sad" and "Insignificance" from Night 1, "In My Tree" was a track that had just escaped my Pearl Jam experiences, the band playing it in sets just before and just after shows I have attended. Well here it was. Somehow, my 300 section seat seemed more appropriate for the song than if I had been down closer to the floor. There are very few moments that match the intimacy of Ed's "I wave to all my friends!" line.

A typically rousing version of "Last Exit" came next, which felt like quite a gift considering the song has not been played on a regular basis since the 2006 tour. "All Night" premiered in live form just last year and the band ran through it like a steam train, capping off the opening round of hard-hitters. Another big surprise in "Nothingman" slowed the evening down next, the band yet again delivering a song that has been largely absent from setlists for the past few years. As it ended, I turned to my girlfriend and asked, "Have you ever heard an arena sing together like that?" She smiled and shook her head. "The Fixer" made its return appearance, still fun and engaging for the crowd, followed by "Even Flow," Night 2's version featuring the drumming theatrics of Mr. Matt Cameron. Eddie remarked after the song that, "Mike McCready has to play that song or he'll f**king kick someone!" He noted that a guy in the front was wearing a shirt that read, "No Even Flow," laughing and retorting, "We take requests, not demands." Perfect.

The rest of the first set is a marvel to behold. I am not sure I have ever witnessed a string of songs played in such a fashion at any show. "Present Tense" began the run, beginning slowly and building gradually before exploding into a fireball of strobe light madness. The band plunged into "Whipping" insanely, seamlessly melding its ending into the opening drums of "Not For You," a Vitalogy one-two punch. The Sleater-Kinney "Modern Girl" tag at the end of "NFY" is a wonder to hear live, especially when landing at the base of an eight-minute monster medley. "Daughter" made an appearance next, Eddie tagging it with Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall, Part II." It was special to be at the first U.S. show at which "Brother" was played since its one live play in Los Angeles in February of 1991, and likely in a very different incarnation. Night 1 and thus far Night 2 had blown me away so much by this point that I had not even thought about the song and how it had been played at four shows on this tour, so when it popped up it was yet another great surprise. "Gone," "Got Some," "Do the Evolution" and "Alive" closed the first set, "Evolution" always a highlight, especially with its patented light-up-the-crowd "Hallelujah" bridge. I enjoyed the placement of "Alive" at the end of the first set, a change of pace from the previous night and the average setlist.

Going into the first encore, only five songs had been repeated from the previous night, "Corduroy," "Even Flow" and "Alive" being signature songs for the band, and "The Fixer" and "Got Some" being brand new tracks the group is road testing. Vedder came out and introduced Thomas Young's family, including his brothers and mother. For those who do not know, Ed's song "No More" was inspired by Young, an Iraq War veteran who will be spending the rest of his life in a wheelchair due to the action he saw over there. Ed's introduction was an emotional moment, remarking to Young's youngest brother, who looked about 10 or 11 years old that "hopefully you won't have to go to war like your brothers." He added that, "If a soldier asks you to play this song, you f**king" play it," before launching into "No More." Afterward, Eddie joked and said, "Sorry for saying "f**k," to Young's younger brother. The band proceeded to rip through the powerhouses of "Comatose" and "Grievance," barely pausing for breath. The number one song from my Pearl Jam countdown came next in the form of "Black." I really cannot explain what this track does to me, let alone live in the middle of a show, but feel free to read my article about it to grasp my feelings toward it. The Who's "The Real Me" made a reprise from Night 1, this time motivating Mike McCready to do laps around the stage throughout the duration of the song. "Porch," being the live destroyer that it is, closed the first encore aptly, the climax causing me to wonder if there is anything this band cannot do, and how the boys would top themselves after all that.

The second encore did not disappoint. Eddie came out and gave a tear jerking speech about Chicago and the beauty about one of his hometowns, the audience and the whole experience. No one knows how to create intimacy among nearly 20,000 people like Eddie Vedder. His speech segued into "Wasted Reprise," during which I somewhat lost it and shed a few tears myself. The short track went right into "Better Man," entire crowd sing along and all. The "Save it for Later" tag has always been a favorite, but somehow the way Ed conducted it Monday night made it even better, the entire United Center rocking along and outsinging the man himself. "Crazy Mary" featured an extended Boom Gaspar organ solo, but no duel with Mike McCready's normal electric lead. It felt as though the band would not stop at this point. The last thing I was about to do was check the time, but I could definitely tell that it was after 11 p.m. by the time "Better Man" ended. I knew Night 1 had only gone for about two hours and 15 minutes, ending around 11:05. Night 2 would be no such match. The boys tore into "State of Love and Trust," its usual nastiness fully intact and shredding the audience. Ed then lied and stated, "This will be our last song," before the band romped its way through Neil Young's "F**kin' Up" with the house lights on. He dedicated the song to #91, i.e. Chicago Bulls legendary rebounder and defender Dennis Rodman. The song is a great jam for the band, as they draw it into a long, demented hard rock stampede, Crazy Horse style. Eddie bashed his way through his tambourines (as usual) and gave them away to the front row. As he reached back from the audience, he proceeded to tie his hair back, then donned a hilarious blonde wig, dancing maniacally through the rest of the song. Like I said to my girlfriend: "You never know what's going to happen at any given Pearl Jam show." The lights stayed on but the band refused to leave the stage, gentle lying us back down with the classic sing along of "Yellow Ledbetter," including Mike McCready's rip-off of Jimi Hendrix's version of "The Star-Spangled Banner" to close the show. As the six men bowed and walked off the stage, I wished there was some way we could keep them there. As usual, I did not want it all to end.

Chicago II is simply the finest concert I have ever attended. Pearl Jam is playing in their tightest, finest form right now. Eddie's voice sounds fantastic, better than it did when I saw the band in '07 and '08. Mike never missed a damn note. Stone seems to have more energy than I can recall since those Ten-era videos, as he rocked like a wild man through Boom's solos during "Crazy Mary." Jeff is still jumping like he is under 30. Matt is precise, powerful and somehow humble amidst all this. 56 total songs and 49 different ones over the course of two nights. There is no band in the land like Pearl Jam. I attended the Rothbury Music Festival last month and saw a large group of extremely talented musicians made for the stage, particularly The Dead, Umphrey's McGee, Ani DiFranco, John Butler, Guster, Damien Marley & Nas and the String Cheese Incident. While there are more refined, more talented and more legendary musicians among many of these acts, all of them missed that something special that defines the live Pearl Jam experience. Before the 60 Days of Pearl Jam are over, I will delve more deeply into what that something special is, but for now let me state that nobody combines great musicianship, sing alongs, jamming, smiles and class into one singular performance like Pearl Jam. Sunday and Monday reminded me of that and made me more grateful for this band than ever before. As I saw typed in fat bold letters on the Ten Club message board: I just love this band more every time I see them

Indeed.

Pearl Jam - 8/24/09, Chicago Setlist:

Set I: Hard to Imagine, Corduroy, In My Tree, Last Exit, All Night, Nothingman, The Fixer, Even Flow, Present Tense, Whipping, Not For You/Modern Girl, Daughter/Another Brick in the Wall Part II, Brother, Gone, Got Some, Do the Evolution, Alive

Encore I: No More, Comatose, Grievance, Black, The Real Me, Porch

Encore II: Wasted Reprise, Better Man/Save it for Later, Crazy Mary, State of Love and Trust, F**kin' Up, Yellow Ledbetter/The Star-Spangled Banner

A review of my Pearl Jam song countdown and the ultimate fan-voted Top Pearl Jam songs list to come. Stay tuned!

Review of Chicago I here: www.examiner.com/examiner/x-3940-Indianapolis-Pop-Culture-Examiner~y2009m8d26-Pearl-Jam-in-Chicago-Night-1

My Pearl Jam song countdown here: www.examiner.com/x-3940-Indianapolis-Pop-Culture-Examiner