Early this morning I briefly shared my night out, but here is the rest of the story. Last night Sarah, Angelique and I went out for a bite and then to an evening of incredible music, thoughtful stories and high-pitched screaming (mostly from the 3 of us). We had the amazing privilege of seeing Eddie Vedder perform solo and it was absolutely fantastic.
I've been a fan of Eddie Vedder and Pearl Jam since 1991 when I was a flannel wearing, grunge inspired, espresso drinking young women running around Seattle looking for where Pearl Jam might have their next "impromptu secret show." Ahhh, life was good.
Fast forward 17 years (omg!) ...
Our evening started out at Teasim where I had some yummy tempeh curry. Then we headed to the back entrance of the Warner Theater, hoping we'd be there when Eddie arrived. We hung out for about 45 minutes but figured we we're not going to see him so we headed inside and took our seats.
Liam Finn opened and played for about 45 minutes. We hadn't heard him before and it was a nice treat. He uses electronics to layer his music on the fly and it makes for a fascinating show to both hear and see.
Eddie came on around 8:30ish and true to form, he played until after 11pm. He played most of the music from Into the Wild as well as some other great favorites. Here are some highlights...
- Trouble, Cat Stevens - this song is one of my all time favorites
- If You Want to Sing Out Sing Out - Cat Steven - Everyone sang out.
- Black Bird, Beatles - This song was really touching. He told a story before singing about how he learned why the song was written and how that really touched him. He talked a bit about civil rights and he asked us to think about the song's origins and the possibility of having our first African American president while he sang.
- Porch, Pearl Jam - Fantastic. What's not to like about a song that starts by asking " What the fuck is this world running to?"
- Throw Your Arms Around Me, Hunters & Collectors - just dreamy.
- All Along the Watch Tower, Jimi Hendrix - Always great and there was a surprise guest on this one, Brendan Canty, drummer from the late 80s DC punk rock band Fugazi - sweet!
- Hard Sun, Eddie Vedder - played with Liam Finn. Good times...
It was a truly amazing show and only solidified why I've always admired Eddie Vedder as both a performer and humanitarian.
After the show we decided to try and see Eddie as he left the theater. We waited, reminisced, laughed (ok giggled) and had a good time. Angelique, being an incredibly good mother, left around midnight. Sarah and I continued to hang-out with high hopes. Some time later (only a couple hours later) Eddie emerged. He did stop to say hi and actually talked with us (about 15 or 20 people) for about 20 minutes or so. He was very gracious, thoughtful and appreciative. We talk a bit of politics, a bit about the show and a bit about life...just as I would have imagined. He shook everyone's hand and thanked us personally. It's a moment to savor and remember for a long time to come...
Thank you Angelique and Sarah for sharing this night with me and for supporting (ok, encouraging) my 12 year old girl behaviors.
