FUN IN THE SUN
On Sunday, I did my little bit by helping the guys out at
Oxfam Community Aid Abroad for the annual Walk Against Want appeal... It was a wet, windy morning.. but armed with a
useless umbrella and my very own Oxfam T-shirt.. I certainly made the most of it...
I've been wanting to do volunteer work for some time.. but it has always been "all talk, no action"... and now that I've finally done it.. I hope that I can get off my arse more often and keep it going...
My duties for the day wasn't particularly challanging.. I basically had to stand at Glebe Point (about halfway along the course) and marshal the walkers into where they needed to go... Despite the inclement weather, people were in high spirits, and I managed to talk to quite a number of them as they walked past... I even got a few pats on the back... :)
The hardest part was dragging myself up outta bed at 7:30 on a Sunday morning (that's after getting home at 5:30am!), and hopping onto a train feeling like I had just been hit by a mack truck... but the satisfaction of knowing that I have contributed in some way to making an event of this nature a success, makes it all worthwhile...
THIS IS PEARL JAM
What can I say about a near perfect concert... I can't imagine seeing a better one in this lifetime (or the next)... The energy.. the passion.. the atmosphere.. the "good will amongst men".. and even some of that old time rock'n'roll music.. It was all there... I only wish that I was a little closer to the action, but can't complain about the floor "seats" that we had for my 2nd PJ experience... I just have to make sure I join
Ten Club, before they tour out this way next time (club members have a chance to get front row seats)...
Love was most definitely evident on Hallmark's Day... People just seemed to be in a happier mood.. The crowd was pumped.. and as soon as I walked into the arena.. I just knew that the night was going to be something special...
It all kicked off with a short Eddie Vedder solo acoustic set before the support acts appeared on stage... This set consisted of
Patriot, and
You've Got To Hide Your Love Away (from the touching "I Am Sam" soundtrack)...
He then joined Betchadupa (Liam Finn's band), for a rendition of
History Never Repeats - an old Split Enz classic... But this was just a taste of what was to follow...... Ok, let's get into it.. song by song...
Can't Keep - The opener for "Riot Act" and also the opener for Sydney #3.. I preferred this rather than "Long Road" on Tuesday night, only because I have not heard it live before (on the other bootlegs).. Mike's guitar is haunting and beautiful...
Save You - This is going to be a crowd favourite for many years to come.. My first attempt at a sing-a-long.. Gotta love that chorus..
"fuck me if I say something you don't wanna hear"...
Hail Hail - Yang and I knew this would be played at some stage during the night.. and when the first chord was played.. we just looked at each other.. and both went nuts...
Corduroy - Features in just about every PJ gig.. Tends to follow "Hail Hail" or vice versa.. so I knew it was coming.. Always a crowd pleaser and was no different on this occasion.. Matt Cameron (drummer) really shines in this one.. Mike did a new solo...
Grievance - Only one of two songs off "Binaural".. which was surprising.. but Ed really gave it everything..
"pull the innocents from the crowd, raise them sticks then bring them down"...
Ghost - Ed spoke for the first time before this.. he recognised that it was Hallmark's Day and thanked all the band members' girlfriends and wives for keeping them "balanced on the tightwire".. It was great to hear this song live.. Both Mike and Stone did some funky stuff with their guitars...
Cropduster - Continuing on the "Riot Act" theme.. Another song that I hadn't heard live before.. Stone's vocals were cool... You could sense that the crowd weren't too cluey with the new stuff.. but I was still rocking out regardless...
Dissident - Ed commented that they hadn't played this in a while.. and what a wonderful surprise it was! When Mike kicked into the solo, I just looked at Yang and almost hugged him.. I so love Stone's part during the verses...
Given To Fly - Received a HUGE crowd reaction.. A contender for highlight of the night..
"arms wide open with the sea as his floor"...
Even Flow - We're really cooking now.. Crowd was ready to tear the place down.. This is Jeff's song in my eyes.. but was (again) overshadowed by Mike's unbelievable solo.. This guy can really play.. It went on for six minutes.. Ed's and thousands of voices in unison...
I Am Mine - Ed introduced the band, including the "victorious" Jeff Ament, and Boom on keyboards.. then went into the first single off "Riot Act".. First time I noticed Boom's keyboards.. It gives it that authentic feel.. which is fitting...
Love Boat Captain - A beautiful beautiful song.. Ed sings with conviction and compassion..
"love is all you need, all you need is love"...
Wishlist - Just like Tuesday night, the mirrorball made an appearance during the song.. Only a five minute version though.. as opposed to eight minutes the other nite!
Betterman - The ultimate sing-a-long.. As soon as Ed played the first note (F#), I knew what it was going to be (and it seemed like I screamed before everyone else knew what it was.. go me!).. During the first verse, Ed gave up and let the crowd sing for him.. Boom's keyboard soared above.. Still trying to figure out what the tag was..
"I need you, I need you"...
Thumbing My Way - After mucking around with the tuning for a short while, Ed started off on this song by himself, which apparently is about "hitchhiking your way through a broken heart".. As the rest of the band joins in, you are amazed by how intimate the place feels.. Jeff sitting down on the double bass...
Lukin - Yang didn't feel much like hearing this one, but I for one was very glad.. A short-one-minute-blast that always gets the blood pumpin'...
Insignificance - A more reserved version compared to the ones I've heard on other bootlegs.. Features a very pertinent line..
"bombs dropping down, please forgive my hometown"...
Rearviewmirror - What a way to close the first set.. Had a slow-motion beginning.. but finished with one big flurry, with Mike, Stone and Ed all hammering away.. During Mike's jam in the middle, Jeff nearly did the bassline for "Jeremy", which got Yang and I fairly excited.. The flashing lights at the end nearly gave me an epileptic fit! The ensuing encore break was timely as I needed a breather after all that.. we all did...
Bushleaguer - To my great horror, I couldn't recognise the start of it.. Stone's guitar was alot cleaner than the album's.. It wasn't until Ed came out in the now infamous Dubya mask, together with his shiny gold jacket, that I could tell what it was.. At one point, he took off the mask, and he placed it near.... um, well, let's just say that Dubya really blew it...
Daughter/War - As soon as Stone picked up the acoustic, I knew what it would be.. The tag was none other than "War" by Edwin Starr.. Ed made sure the crowd was extra loud for this one for the radio..
"war, war, what is it good for? absolutely nothing!"...
Black - I adored this version.. Stone on his acoustic and Mike on the Strat, together with Ed's soaring vocals, complemented each other perfectly.. Mike's solo just bewildering.. and the crowd doing the
"do-do-doo-doo do-do-dooo" bit was a nice touch...
Do The Evolution - By this time, my throat was hurting from all the singing and screaming.. But I couldn't tell how my voice was affected, as I couldn't even hear myself talk, let alone sing.. Matt is incredible in this song.. the guy just never misses a beat (pardon the pun)...
Alive - "We just got an idea here, we'll try something.." That was Ed, before Stone started on the riff.. Probably had the biggest crowd reaction on the night.. This was for all the Triple M listeners who have been complaining that PJ haven't been playing this song on the tour.. Again, Mike leaves the whole arena in a trance...
The Kids Are Alright - After the 2nd encore break, Ed spoke.. and spoke a lot.. He covered a wide range of issues including urging people to attend the peace rally on Sunday, to showing off his new surfboard (formerly Mark Richard's surfboard), to stressing his support for his hero Pete Townsend in regards to the recent media hoopla on the man.. He then proceeded to play The Who's classic song alone..
Yellow Ledbetter - To top off a magical evening.. the rest of the band returned to play my fave PJ song, with the house lights on...
To Eddie and the boys.. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.. My life is now complete...
THE DAY I SHOOK EDDIE VEDDER'S HAND
Still trying to come to grips with what implications this event will have on my life... We all have one person, in our hearts and minds, that we would dearly love to meet.. and would do just about anything to achieve this.. and that person for me has always been Eddie...
And now.. I can say that I have met him...
Ok, so it wasn't for very long (about 5 seconds).. but nevertheless, I shook the man's hand... I, pike, shook Eddie Vedder's hand!! The whole thing is a bit of a blur to me now.. but let me try to explain how it happened...
After seeing the greatest band in the world play live in front of a rapturous crowd at the Sydney Entertainment Centre (more on this later).. I met up with an online friend from Belgium, who found this blog when she searched for "Pearl Jam in Sydney" (or something similar).. We had a couple of drinks at the local pub, and she gave me a few pointers on how best to survive Europe, amongst other things..
We parted ways.. and as I was walking back to the car.. I noticed a crowd congregated at the back of the SEC... My immediate thoughts were.. "you fools, they're not gonna show..."
But you know what they say.... Curiosity killed the cat... Except on this occasion, the cat wasn't a cat.. he was a pike.... pike still died.. but he went to heaven.... ummm.. yeh....
I decided to wait there with the other fifty or so p.jammers... The security dudes did their utmost to piss us off with comments like "they've all gone home.. they went a long time ago..", which was crap, as it didn't make any sense as to why they were still there (the security dudes, I mean)...
Half an hour had elapsed.. and no sign of anyone.. Hope was fading... People were starting to give up and leave... and yes.. I have to admit, that I was one of them... I made it as far as Darling Drive (just outside the Entertainment Centre carpark).. when I heard some shouting and carryings-on...
* Shit! *
I bolted... I ran as hard as I possibly could... (man.. I was really movin'! well, I felt like it anyway).. By the time I made it back, the screaming had died out.. and people just stood and watched in awe... My heart was a thumpin'.... I frantically tried to get a good view of the man.. It was just Ed, and a few of the security meatheads.. The rest of us were separated by a three metre high fence.. and all we could do was reach out our hands through the gaps to try to shake his hand...
At this point, I didn't really know what to do.. Just the mere notion of being in his presence makes me go a bit gah-gah... I remember fumbling for my camera, and taking snaps like a crazed Japanese-punk-ass-tourist.. I remember looking up to the sky, and thanking whoever it was out there that made this possible.. I remember sticking my hand in between two chicks, who had a prime position next to the fence, to make sure I had a chance to at least shake hands with him.. Luckily, I didn't get a smack across the face...
Ok.. now get this... Ed was making an effort to meet and speak to EVERY SINGLE PERSON there... I mean how good is that?? It must've taken him a good ten minutes to get around to where I was... and when he finally did come around.. I was left speechless...
With the benefit of hinesight.. there are so many things I should have said... like how his words and spirit are with me constantly.. how he has given me hope in times of anguish and solitude.. how he has shaped me to be the person that I am today....
And in that crucial moment, all that came out was a simple "thank you".... He looked at me and smiled... We shook each others hands... and that was it....
5 seconds...
Did this really happen?? Well, the photos suggest that it did... This was truely a gift from heaven.. or at least some place where some dude hands out really good stuff to people that don't deserve it... ie - me..... I am blessed to have had the opportunity to meet my all-time idol and be touched by his greatness... I have a sudden urge to do good, and be good to all that come before me... and for that, I am grateful....
Oh yeh.. the show... It was purty good... Me and Mish found it a bit frustrating sitting down... but hey, this was my first ever PJ concert, and I'm not going to complain! Highlights were Wishlist, Thumbing My Way, Not For You, Red Dot, Spin The Black Circle, Down, and Rearviewmirror...
But as you can see, the concert itself was completely overshadowed by this life-altering event...
SCRATCHING THE SURFACE
Far From Heaven is a beautifully shot, masterfully directed film by Todd Haynes.. Throw in a brilliant performance by Julianne Moore, and you have one of the pictures of the year...
Well.. FFH, for all intents and purposes, IS a 50s movie... It's set in the 50s.. and it's made to look like a 50s flick... And Haynes and his production team did a superb job recreating the semblance of the period...
The attention to detail is nothing short of astonishing, right down to the way people used to walk in those times... The set design is inch perfect, with everything 50s... The musical score (Elmer Bernstein) has a certain familiarity to it but it moves you just the same... The colours are rich, but simple.. grabbing you from the very start...
It could be classified as being a little slow at times, but when seen from a distance and you just let the colours blend in front of you.. it is a profoundly rewarding experience...
SOME OF THE WORST WRONGS
GET RIGHTED ON THREE CHORDS
Another week.. another gig... This time it was the beautiful Beth Orton's turn to enthral the pike... I must admit though, I did not really know what to expect of it... Mainly because I did not know much about her, not until a few days before the concert...
I'm happy to report, that I was more than impressed... The first thing that strikes you, is her on-stage presence... She looked as comfortable as anyone I've seen live (despite her many claims of being nervous).. Almost as if she was born to perform... She was able to connect with the audience like not many others can.. It was comparable to the way Ben Harper can completely draw in a crowd to the music and the moment...
Speaking of Ben, I was surprised to read that she had collaborated with him on a couple of songs over the years.. one of them being
Love Like Laughter.. and her rendition of it last night happened to be one of the most touching moments...
Two other things stood out for me... First, her voice.. It's so effortless.. Has that Sarah MacLachlan-esque feel about it... And second, her guitarist, Ted Barnes... He was right in front of me all night.. I could just about reach out my hand and strum the guitar for him... His play was exquisite.. flawless... and I got a few pointers, lemme tell you... At one point, a dude in the crowd yelled out "Ted Barnes is a GOD!!"... The band didn't quite know how to take that comment... Ted had this bemused look on his face, and I reckon Beth was a little jealous...
Other great moments were
Pass In Time,
I Wish I Saw The Sunshine,
Concrete Sky, and
The Sweetest Decline...
It was two hours of pure goodness.. Thanks Beth for a great night!
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