Pearl Jam returned to Madison Square Garden for the first time in almost two years on Tuesday night, September 3rd. They have been supporting their strongest album in years, Dark Matter, produced by Andrew Watt. Watt most recently helped the Stones find their groove with Hackney Diamonds, which similarly featured some of the band’s best new material in recent memory. Pearl Jam finished up a pair of shows in Eddie Vedder’s favorite venue, Wrigley Field before another set of dates in Gotham.
Since their days playing the Wetlands, Pearl Jam has had a long history of amazing shows in New York. Their 49th can now be added to that list. Opening with “Pendulum,” from 2013’s Lightning Bolt, they delivered an epic 25 songs. “Better Man” followed, and the band held the crowd for the rest of the night. For the song’s “tag,” Eddie Vedder sang The English Beat’s “Save It For Later” for years. However, since his version of the song was featured on the most recent season of The Bear, he delivered a more fully-formed rendition.
Pearl Jam has long been compared to the Grateful Dead with their varied setlists and the absolute euphoria they inspire live. Having attended countless Dead shows at the Garden, this reviewer can attest that it’s an apt comparison. The band followed with another Vitalogy track, “Immortality.” Unlike the earlier shows on the Dark Matter tour, the band played the new material in spurts and was dividing it up among the two nights at MSG. The first 3-pack was well received, and “Wreckage” once again sounded like an instant classic.
Mike McCready, who graciously penned the foreword to this reviewer’s new Cheap Trick biography, American Standard, was a standout all night. Like his guitar hero, Rick Nielsen, McCready was in motion for the entire show. He moved in circles so often you’d get dizzy just watching him. He had his guitar behind his back, a la Hendrix, and even left it on stage to delicately pluck it one note at a time at one point, which seemed very Spinal Tap.
The band busted out “Out of My Mind,” only released as the B-side to another Vitalogy song, “Not For You” back in 1994. While they craft the setlist ahead of time, it clearly is done with great care and for the MSG shows it felt like they really tried to treat the fans. They do deviate from what’s on the paper, however. Instead of “Dance of the Clairvoyants,” the band played 2003’s “Love Boat Captain,” which built into something magical. The song, whose lyrics reference the nine fans who died at the Roskilde festival, is also filled with optimism, reminding the listener that even though it’s been sung before, all you need is love.
After a fantastic finish of “Black,” “Given to Fly,” and “Porch,” Pearl Jam referenced the Beatles again to kick off the encores. Eddie Vedder played “Imagine” acoustically, and the sing-a-long you’d expect followed. “Inside Job,” from the band’s fantastic 2006 self-titled album, followed. Vedder then told the story of how he wrote “Unthought Known” after an all-nighter where he knew he should call it a night but just couldn’t.
“Once,” from the Ten album was a real barn-burner and led to “Alive” and a cover of the Who’s “Baba O’ Riley.” Pearl Jam has been playing the song for years but have made it their own. Vedder is a Pete Townshend superfan but also played the tambourine like Roger Daltrey. In fact, he was constantly catching new ones on the run during the song like an NFL running back. He was wearing his retro Walter Payton Bears jersey all night, and “Sweetness” would have been impressed with Vedder’s ability to grab passes in stride. The night ended with the tour debut of “Indifference” to send the ecstatic crowd home. Even though it has the “Unplugged” feel, it was the perfect capper to an amazing night. But as the band sings, why go home?
