October 10, 2000, University of Illinois, Chicago Pavilion, Chicago, IL
Set List: (both solo acoustic) I Am A Patriot by Steven Van Zandt,
The Times They Are A-Changin' by Bob Dylan
Manish Bhatia (leatherman10@yahoo.com):
Eddie played solo acoustic. introduced by Michael
Moore...
MM: "an individual who consistently follows his or her
conscience and the individual that I'd like to bring
out right now is someone who not only has given us
some of the best rock n'roll of the last decade, but
is someone who, along with his bandmates, have stood
up for what they believed in regardless of the
consequences. And to have him here on this tour,
supporting Ralph Nader, and pointing out the corporate
control of this country, that is our real enemy, is a
real privilege and an honor. So before I say what I'm
gonna say tonight, I would much rather listen to
someone I greatly admire and respect. Please give a
warm Chicago welcome for Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder..."
EV: "Thanks alot Michael, that's really nice, and it's
an honor to be up here with these folks up here and
also to be in front of you, people who care in
Chicago. Its great. I'm gonna use my time just to play
a couple songs, and I'd just like to thank Ralph and
the Green party for giving people who care something
to believe in..."
[I Am A Patriot played]
EV: "Thanks a lot. I was really hoping that I could write
a song for Ralph. I showed up at the one in Seattle
and it was just great. So its been two weeks and I
still haven't really come up with anything and I think
the reason why is 'cause somewhere in the writing
process I came across this song and once there was
this song it seemed...uh...which was written thirty
years ago and, actually seems more pertinent now, well
it's pertinent and valid today as it's ever been, and I
don't think I could do one this good, and I'll mention
it's played with permission of the author..."
[The Times They Are A-Changin' by Bob Dylan played]
--Manish Bhatia
Nick Wesselman (nickjjw@usa.net):
I have to give Ed credit for introducing me to Ralph Nader. After reading
Ed's endorsement of Nader in Forbes, I read more about him and found out
what an amazing person he really is. Since then I've protested his exclusion
from the debates, and spread the word about him whenever I can. I was
extremely excited to find that some friends of mine were interested in
making the drive from Milwaukee to Chicago for the Green Party Super Rally.
The fact that Ed was going to be playing made the trip even more exciting,
especially since I had just seen him at Alpine Valley two days prior. I
definitely wasn't as close this time, but I was a great deal warmer! :-)
The rally opened with many great speakers, including Phil Donahue and Studs
Terkel. Then Michael Moore came on, and gave Ed a long, flattering, fitting
introduction. He played "I am a Patriot" beautifully. He then covered
Dylan's "Times They Are A-Changin'", remarking that he had tried to write a
song for Nader, but felt that what he had to say had already been said
better. Quite amazing!!! Ed thanked the crowd, and gave a final "Vote
Nader."
The rest of the rally was amazing as well, with Michael Moore giving a
passionate, funny, convincing speech, followed by the ever-incredible Nader
himself. However, many people missed these two great speeches, because they
left as soon as Ed left the stage. Personally, I found this to be extremely
rude to Michael Moore, Nader, and Ed as well. Obviously Ed was there to
support Nader and the Green Party, so why disrespect him by blowing them
off?
In any case, Ed was in full form, and it was very cool to see him in a more
relaxed environment. I was really hopin' for the ukelele, though. ;-)
Nick
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