Pearl Jam - LIVE 08/20/2000 [320k MP3] Cincinnati

Pearl Jam - 8/20/00 - Cincinnati, Ohio

Track Listing [320k MP3]

Disc: 1

01. Of The Girl
02. Breakerfall
03. Corduroy
04. Go
05. Gods' Dice
06. Even Flow
07. Faithful
08. Nothing As It Seems
09. Grievance
10. Untitled
11. MFC
12. Habit
13. Wishlist
14. Better Man
15. Rival
16. Sleight Of Hand
17. Insignificance
18. Porch

Disc: 2

01. Encore Break
02. The Kids Are Alright [Pete Townshend, The Who]
03. Give To Fly
04. Do The Evolution
05. Jeremy
06. Once
07. Black
08. Soldier Of Love
09. rearviewmirror
10. Soon Forget
11. Yellow Ledbetter

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Review

For those lucky enough to be at Riverbend that warm August night, it would prove to be an unforgettable evening. Pearl Jam showed us why, despite sagging album sales, it remains one of THE premier rock bands.
Without resorting to any special effect or pyotechnics, the band strolled on stage, quasi non-chalantly, and strummed into the beginning notes of "Of A Girl", one of 9 songs they ended up playing from the underrated "Binaural" album. What a daring move! Rather than starting with a stomp-along crowd pleaser, PJ starts with a mid-tempo, introverted song, unfamiliar to many in the crowd. Beautiful! PJ works its way through many choice cuts, primarily form "Binaural" (including a haunting "Nothing As It Seems") and "Yield". Regretfully, only one selection (albeit a torrid one! "Habit") from "No Code", in my opinion the best overall PJ album.

What makes this concert and CD "Cincinnati only", comes when Eddie Vedder returns to the stage after the Encore break, and starts talking to the crowd, making jokes, but then turning serious, explaining that "the name of the city Cincinnati has come up lately, you know, for some difficult reasons [referring to the parallels between the Who tragedy in 1979 at the Riverfront Coliseum and the tragedy at PJ's concert in Denmark earlier that summer], and I'm gonna play this next song because of our new bond", soloing into The Who's "The Kids Are Alright". An unforgettable moment!! [I am not sure whether the "new bond" Vedder talks about, is his bond to Cincinnati, or his bond to Pete Townsend.]

Meanwhile, guitarists Stone Gossard and Mike McCready are in top form all night. The CD must be heard through headphones in order to appreciate all the "noodling" that makes PJ sound as full "live" as in the studio. Good examples are "Of A Girl" and "Black".

At the second encore, Vedder again comes out alone, this time, to play another "Binaural" track, the short and almost-sounding-like-a-throwaway-on-the-album "Soon Forget", even hushing the crowd to be quiet. What other band would dare do this, when the crowd was ready to tear doen the building after a rebel-rousing "rearviewmirror" just minutes ago? Superb!

Looking at the bigger picture, the depth of PJ's catalogue, as demonstrated in the different set lists on the CD's of the tour, is nothing short of mind-boggling. Also, I really believe that in 10 or 20 years from now, PJ's decision to release all its summer concerts (both Europe and North America) on CD at fan-friendly prices will not only be viewed as a "significant moment in rock", but also will cement once and for all the band's place in history for its musical accomplishments, to the extent that any still doubted PJ's place.