Pearl Jam @ the Meadowlands, June 1

Here some thoughts from last night's show:

* This was my first PJ show in NYC since moving up from DC last year. I own the 7/8/03 DVD and CD of the MSG show (with Ben Harper on Indifference, you know the one...) and was shocked and unbelievably disappointed to find out that they were going to Jersey this time around. I'm still wondering what the explanation for this is.

* We missed MMJ because it took us 2 hours door-to-door to get from the city to the Meadowlands. The section we were in (216) was pathetic. I felt like I might as well be sitting in a suite with a handful of people that only know Jeremy. Yes, I struck out on the Ten Club seats and had to settle for shitty seats above and to the right of the stage, I'm still bitter. Fortunately, we were on the Mike McCready side, who, by the way, my fiance aptly referred to as a delightful freak. Yeah, that's about right...

* The first hour of the show was about the most routine PJ show that I've been to. And this is no knock against PJ, the songs were amazing (DTE, Evenflow, Dissident, Immortality, etc.). Eddie barely spoke to the crowd, only saying that "the crowd in Boston was louder." And it was true, the crowd just wasn't what I've come to expect (again, expectations probably too high after the 7/8 show).

* A PJ first for me, they broke out Alone which was great except for an issue with the mic or a guitar (not sure which) and they had to stop the song midway through only to pick it right back up where they left off a minute or so later. Very odd, the audience also began to cheer the end of the song before it was finished. Didn't go too well.

* The crowd finally found their groove and never looked back towards the end of the first set, and PJ's closer Rearviewmirror was just sick and continues to be one of my favorite live songs.

* Very funny exchange with Eddie and the crowd as he mentioned playing Bushleaguer last time at the Meadowlands and the backlash that followed. He then took a poll of the crowd to say that "if" they would play the song tonight, who would boo? Then asked the same for the cheers. Needless to say, the cheers far outweighed the boos. They didn't play it. They did play Leash and although I think it's a bit odd that they broke it out after 12 years in Boston (and not say, Irving Plaza), I'm not complaining.

* The HIGHLIGHT and another PJ first for me: the Mamasan Trilogy (only this time in reverse order). Google this if you're not familiar but it's first three songs ever written by Eddie and was played in this order: Footsteps, Once, Alive (closing out the 2nd set). Eddie by this point was hammered and took a pretty nasty fall after his exclamation point final jump on Alive and went off the stage limping. Unreal.

* Closed out the show with the lights on in the arena (they passed curfew) with Indifference and Baba O'Riley. I may be in the minority here but I'll take that closer over Yellow Ledbetter any day.

* Overall, and it's hard to say because the most recent show always seems like the best, but I think this was the best setlist that I've been a part of.

The set list:
Pre-set Ed solo: You've Got To Hide Your Love Away (by The Beatles)
Pre-set Ed w/My Morning Jacket: It Makes No Difference (by The Band)

Set List: Severed Hand, Corduroy, World Wide Suicide, Do The Evolution, Marker In The Sand, Given To Fly, Dissident, Even Flow, Army Reserve, Immortality, Green Disease, Not For You/(Modern Girl by Sleater Kinney), Alone, Jeremy, Why Go, Life Wasted, Rearviewmirror

1st encore: Wasted Reprise, Man Of The Hour, Come Back, Footsteps, Once, Alive
2nd encore: Last Exit, Comatose, Leatherman, Glorified G, Leash, Baba O'Riley, Indifference