Customer Reviews

Seattle, Washington, November 6, 2000

5 star:		(35)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Sure, you're going to pay a few extra bucks for this particular set since it's 3 CD's, but believe me, you will be glad you did. I was fortunate enough to be at this concert, and it was a very special, emotional night. Pearl Jam had been through a lot in the year 2000, and this night was the end of it all. They played with more passion than I had ever seen them play live before, and they held nothing back. Like Eddie says in the midst of it all, "We're gonna be here for a while. We're not going anywhere." The result was over three hours of sheer greatness, and to my surprise, much of it was captured on these discs. Everything worked this night. The set list, the covers, Eddie's speeches, the crowd, the energy...this is PJ at its best. If you're still stuck in the haze that has been all these recent live releases from them, I highly recommend putting this one at the top of your list. The high point for me is "Daughter", where Eddie begins chanting at the end, and the crowd follows him. What's unfortunately not captured in these discs is the sheer delight displayed by Eddie at the climax of the song. He began jumping and dancing around like the Eddie of old, and you can tell by the crowd's response. I could go on to mention all the other great performances of the night, but words wouldn't do them justice. I'll sum up by saying that of all the Pearl Jam bootlegs we've heard over the years, this is the crown jewel. Since I'm in the fan club, I've been listening to it for a month now, and it keeps getting better. Enjoy.

Disclaimer: Owner of all 72 official PJ bootlegs. This hometown gig to end the massive 2000 world tour is definitely a fan favorite, and the show is a triumphant return to the old stomping grounds. But I feel that this show is so highly rated among the fans merely for sentimental reasons. After slowly absorbing all 72 of the bootlegs, I feel that this final show is certainly above average, but it's not even among the top 20 greatest shows. For some specific reasons, I'm gonna have to give this one an A-minus (but it's still good enough for five Amazon stars).

First, despite the sentimental nature of the evening, this is not an especially powerful performance by the band. In fact, it sounds like they just want to wrap things up and go home. The shows a few days earlier in Boise and Portland are much more enthusiastic. And don't be fooled by the fact that this bootleg is stretched onto an extra third CD. This gig is about 30 minutes longer than the bootleg average, and it's probably four minutes too long to squeeze onto two CD's. However, there are only 29 songs played overall, and this is not any higher than the tour average (there are a few shows that stretch to a whopping 31 songs). The reason this show is so long is all of Eddie Vedder's extra stage talk. He does include some sentimental stuff about the hometown and all their local friends, but most of the time he's griping about the security arrangements and the local politics. These are not very enlightening harangues, from a guy who is usually very insightful.

That's enough negativity, so now on to the good parts of this show. "Rearviewmirror" makes an unusually early appearance, and this rendition is among the most powerful of the tour. Other highlights include powerful readings of "Hail Hail" and "Jeremy," and especially grandiose and moving takes on "Parting Ways" and "Immortality." In a hilarious moment, Eddie plays the "Iron Man" riff on the ukelele before launching into "Soon Forget" (which is dedicated to Bill Gates tonight). The most moving part of this hometown love-fest is the triumphant return of "Alive" to the set list. They had not played this song since the European leg of the tour, in deference to the nine fans who died in Denmark. The band dramatically and emotionally brings this warhorse back to life to end the tour with a bang.

I'll keep this short and to the point. This was the best show on the tour. I only saw one other, Los Angeles, a few weeks prior, but I don't think the energy of this final performance was ever matched in Europe or the US.

They were playing for the Roskilde tragedy. They were playing for their hometown. Their were playing for the love of the music. And most importantly, they were playing for each other. Vedder is in rare form. As political as ever. "Jeremy" has a tag at the end that will blow the listener away. "once" is played with newfound energy. "Alive" is heartwarming.

The air in the Key Arena was juiced, thanks in large part to the Chilli Peppers (just your average opening band, right?) who tore the place up and warmed the stage for PJ. You won't hear them on this disk, but you'll hear the crowd - louder then a Seahawks game in the late Kingdome.

Watching Vedder during the Wellwater Conspiracy's (opening band) set, sidestage, drinking a beer with a sound engineer, toasting the last show of the tour, brought it all home. These guys are modern day prophets, deliving a message of unity, spirituality, -peace, and rock and roll.

This three disc set carries that message, loud and clear.

From a fan standpoint, this is the quitessential set of the 72 live official bootlegs from the recent PJ tour. Pearl Jam is the last band standing from the Seattle scene and what a way to end it. How many bands have released an entire tour for their fans...none. This ranks up there with the Greatful Dead supplying outlets for fans to make their own bootlegs of their shows. What a way to bow before the curtain. After arguably one of the best albums (Binaural) since Vs. PJ ends in classic fashion with this official bootleg set. If you can, buy all 72 shows, if not this last show, at home, of the American tour is by far the best yet. All the heavy hitters are present and accounted for. The only performance of "Alive" since the tradegy in Europe, the band nails it like it was 1992 all of the sudden. Three discs of Grandma Pearl's Jar o' Exstacy. From the clasic opener Release, to the classic ender (Keely hit the lights) Yellow Ledbetter, Pearl Jam is a tour de Force. The only discs in this set that I've heard which compare are the 2 shows from Italy (especially Milan). At home in Seattle, the crowd is empthatic. Makes you wish there was a Lollapalooza '92 official bootleg. Betterman is at its best (yeah, the same version you've been seeing on VH1). Classic covers like Baba O'Reilly and Crazy Mary creep into the 3rd disc. Daughter edges into ten minutes of bliss. Lead guitarist Mike McCready splices the classic Hendrix "Runnin' with the wind" into the Ledbetter finale(a perfect setting since Hendrix was born here). Vedder is closer than ever with the audience, and love is reciprocated. Early on Vedder proclaims "One more show Seattle, this is it." And if this is truly the last we see of the greatest band of this generation, then this whole set will be the greatest gift a rock and roll fan could ever hope for. Pearl Jam is dead...long live Pearl Jam

The highlights: Eddie & the crowd get together and respond to each others respective mumblings and chants/screams in a way that's just utterly sweet throughout the show; Eddie repeatedly insults the crowd from their previous performance (which IS the monkey/manless, un-PJ favorite bootleg number seventy-one); a live version of "Nothing As It Seems" that will rock your socks off, revealing your beautiful toes in a much more efficient manner than did the studio "Binaural" one; actual, live performances of "Leatherman," "Not For You," and "Immortality"; a classicly flubbed (or intentionally changed) line in "Even Flow" that reveals some disgruntlement from Vedder (paving the way for a ripping "Not For You"); Eddie tells the crowd that he'll see them in the voting booth tomorrow, and if someone doesn't vote that is how eternity will see them on their gravestones; Eddie plays the famous riff from "Ironman" on his ukulele!

This is just an amazing, sprawling, lengthy (3 CD!) concert full of the greatest PJ tracks that you may not necessarily expect to hear in concert. The band sounds wonderful, Eddie sounds wonderful, and everyone sounds like they had fun. It's PJ's home town and everything went over very well. Hence, monkey/man designation as one of their favorite concerts from the tour. It's definitely one of my favorite concerts from the tour. It'll definitely be one of your favorite concerts from the tour.

I'm not going to go into how wonderful they were for having done the bootleg project, or how wonderful each song was, or how this may be one of their last. (He does say so himself in the little break between "Dissident" and "Nothing As It Seems.") The band has tremendous energy and everyone has a moment to shine; even Matt Cameron (the drummer-o'-the-week) gets into a little drum solo after Eddie tells a small, chanting crowd to speak up. (Naturally, the whole crowd took this request as directed toward them to make as much noise as possible.) As you may have put together, there was a lot of banter, joy, and all the little oddities that make live performances what they are documented on this triple-album. Buy it, buy it, buy it. You're not going to find a much better bootleg out there.

I love "Immortality."

I'm the owner of roughly one out of every six 2000 bootlegs, and this one is the best. The lyrical flubs that plague some shows limit themselves here to Evenflow. To make up for it, all Pearl Jam does is give us transcendent takes on virtually all of their best material. If Betterman, Corduroy, Dissident, Hail Hail, Immortality, In Hiding, Leatherman, Not for you, Nothing as it Seems, Nothingman, Parting Ways, RVM, Soon Forget, or Yellow Ledbetter are your favorite Pearl Jam songs, you'll find them performed at their finest here. And YES, Ed finally gets Immortality right! Also included are excellent Who covers: Baba O'Riley and The Kids are Alright. If there's any criticism to be found, it's because of the relative absence of No Code/Yield material. I don't know about you, but getting a definitive collection of the rest of their music is good enough for me.

After what turned out to be the defining year of the band's career, the emotions run high in every Mike McCready guitar solo, every Matt Cameron drum beat, and every word out of Eddie Vedder's mouth. If you can't feel it, I don't know what to tell you. It just always seems to get a little dusty in my room when I'm playing the third disc, and Ed says "This is it... this is it, and we go home... We'll see you in the voting booth tomorrow." The world's greatest rock band, home after six months of triumph and tragedy... and then Yellow Ledbetter starts up.

*sniff*

Just buy this CD. Do it now.

When I bought this CD I was expecting a highly charged emotional bootleg. That is exactly what I got. The superb opener Release really shows the superb vocals of Eddie Vedder while rearview mirror shows the amazing guitar expertise from Mike McCready. This bootleg really shows how Pearl Jam have changed their style with the contrast of songs from the first album TEN like Even flow that are really groovy grunge tracks to the mellow Parting Ways from Binaural the latest LP. The main plus point of this album is the way the crowd follow the songs through singing along and making the event a really special occassion. Just listen at the end of Daughter where we hear Eddies usual wandering into a very smooth chanting which the crowd copies to a T. The highlight track from this album I feel is a cover of the Who's Baba o Riley which really adds that bit of spice to an already amazing performance. The only problem with this bootleg is the lack of two songs Black and Elderly woman......town but they certainly make up for it with the inclusion of a highly emotional Crazy Mary and a brilliant uplifting Jeremy. I own 7 of the bootlegs this is the best. This is a must for all Pearl Jam fans.

I had to pick up a copy of this CD because the show took place in Seattle a.k.a. The Rainy City. Seattle is the hometown of most grunge bands and Peral Jam ended up playing 2 nights in Seattle after the first show was sold out. The setlists on this 3 CD recording are awesome! The band put on the best show ever in the entire tour in an excellent way to close the tour. They did a different version of "Jeremy" in the set rather than the studio version. "Alive" was slightly longer than the studio version. However, it was a good live version. There were a lot of emotional moments between the band and the crowds throughout the show. Pearl Jam did a short tease of "Stairway To Heaven" within "Crazy Mary". Overall, this bootleg is a must have for every true Pearl Jam fans.

The final recording of Pearl Jam's 2000 tour came from their final show that year on November 6 in Seattle. At the beginning of the show, Eddie Vedder teases that this may be it for Pearl Jam. I found that interesting because I hadn't heard anything prior to that, which would suggest that to be the case. Then again, it just might have been me.

The show is one of the best from the tour. Eddie and the boys are clearly energized to be playing at home in front of fans that they say are one of the best on the tour. Throughout the recording, Eddie repeatedly thanks the fans for their energy. Apparently the crowd for the 11/5/2002 tour was found to be lacking. In addition, all the proceeds from the show were going to charity.

The set peformed by the band was a culmination of their best work from their five albums. 'Couduroy', 'Betterman', 'Even Flow', 'Jeremy', 'Daughter', 'Alive', and 'Yellow Ledbetter' were some of the highlights.

Before closing out the show with 'Yellow Ledbetter', Eddie encourages everyone to get out and vote the following day. Like the rest of us, he had no idea what a fiasco the 2000 election would be. On top of that, he shot off some criticisms towards the city for mandating a ton of extra security for the show.

Fortunately, it turns out that Pearl Jam was not calling it quits, and a new album is due sometime in the later half of 2002. If the fans are fortunate, a long inspiring tour will follow with plenty of 'official' bootlegs to follow.

I've bought many of the recent tours live recordings, and have been generally happy with each one- they all have good quality sound, great music, and you can generally tell that the band is having a good time. This one's different....it's the best one of the bunch. The crowd is amazing, and the band is on FIRE. Some of the best guitar work of the tour can be found throughout the disk, with the best on the 3rd one- some simply tasty licks. Eddie's in the best form since the Magnusson Park Free Concert a few years back, and is singing with the same energy he had way back before they were huge and were playing at the Offramp. Matt Cameron, arguably the best drummer since Niel Peart, lets it fly and it all comes together to make this release the apex of the tour. Everything seemed to just be clicking that night.

It's by far the best live album I've heard in a long time- right up there with the classics (Frampton Comes Alive, KISS Alive II, Etc).

If you're thinking of buying just one of the tour CD's, this is the one!!!