Nov. 14: I Am Mine
Nov. 15: Save You

After seeing the taping of the Late Show in April, 2000 when PJ played "Grievance", I just had to plan another trip to NYC for this year's show. I called up my friend Kevin, who lives in Manhattan and made plans to come out. As of Wednesday, the day before taping, I didn't have tickets so we planned on milling around outside the show in hope of acquiring tickets. Around 10 on Wed. evening I checked my voicemail to find a message from the Late Show saying that there were tickets available and to call back as soon as possible. I called back and left a message. The next morning around 20 after 10 they called back and asked me a trivia question. ? Who was the doctor that Dave refers to on the show? Dr. Phil!! She told me I have two tickets on the Gold List and to be at the Ed Sullivan Theater for 5:30. I'm so excited at this point so I called Kevin and told him the great news. My mom and sister decided they wanted to go as well so I gave them the phone number for the standby line. My mom called and received numbers 3 and 4!

We left Scranton, PA around 2:00 and arrived in NYC to meet Kevin at 4:30. We went and got our tickets and then grabbed a bite to eat. I was absolutely amazed that I was going to see Pearl Jam play the Late Show once again. I heard from someone that "I am Mine" was played during the first taping, so I wondered what would be played. I was hoping for "Love Boat Captain" so I could get to truly feel the power of the Hammond B3!

We met the Late Show crew over at the Roseland to line up and then be escorted into the theatre. We passed my mom and sister standing in line and wished them luck. We were seated on the balcony somewhere in the middle. The CBS Orchestra came out followed by Paul Shaffer. Then Dave came out to warm-up the crowd. The Top Ten List was hilarious! Al Gore really surprised me in that he actually has a sense of humor! Dave even seemed to notice that he had gotten more funny over the years.

A commercial break and they start to set up PJ's equipment. The anticipation of the song we would hear was intense. Finally, "I'm gonna save you fucker......" was heard as I found it hard to sit still. The whole band was animated and totally in tune. Ed sang with intense emotion and the whole band seemed to be energized. It has been 2 years since I saw them in Seattle with the Peppers. They really did blow off the fuckin' roof!! The trip to NYC was once again well-worth it.

After the show when I came outside and walked to the side of the theater, I found out that my mom and sister had gotten in! My sister was excited and hoped to see her long-time crush, Ed Ved walk out of the theater. The band came out and Ed tipped his hat to our group of people and got into the van. As the van passed, my sister waved into the van from about a foot away and received a huge smile and wave from Ed! I had a wonderful time meeting my friend again for the Late Show and seeing PJ.

You know, it's memories like this that keep me listening to Pearl Jam. I will always remain a fan, for I know that PJ will NEVER sell out. And for those who said that they sold out for not saying Fuck on national TV........... FUCK YOU! Thanks for listening. pe of things never happen to people like me. Well, it goes to show you that dreams do come true! Thanks for a great night Pearl Jam!

Friday morning. Lifting my head, I glance up at my alarm clock which reads 8:30. Damn, i over slept. With only four hours of sleep, getting up was tough. The night before i wrote a four page fanview for enlish class of a STP show i attended while i was in Boston. It was a major grade that was due friday, so I spent as much time on it as i could.

Leaping up out of bed i slipped into my levis, put on a shirt, and slapped some shoes on my feet. Before long, i was on my way to my high school. Highschool these days is one big mass of brainwashed students. Brainwashed by MTV's image of talent. They have no perception of what great music is. Ask some one if they know who Pearl Jam is and they'll say "what?", Pearl Jam "Oh Last Kiss, that song fuckin sucks." With Riot Act in the player, I try to write a late note and drive at the same time. Swerving this way and that, I decide to wait for a stoplight to write the note. Ghost ends and the opening riff to I Am Mine rings in my ears. I'm reminded of their kick ass performance the night before and i wonder what they'll play tonight. "They definitely wont play Save You. Network television has rules."

After getting home from school, I played guitar for a few hours, not wanting to miss Letterman, I didn't make any late plans that night. I caught a movie at about 8:00 oclock with a buddy of mine, The Grey Zone, it was the best movie I'd seen in a long time at a movie theater. When we arrived my friend and I flipped on the tele. I set up the vcr so all my ass had to do was push the record button. If I didn't record this I knew I'd kick myself for weeks. We stepped outside for a smoke and when we came back, Al Gore was on. I thought, "This guy is such a fuckin actor, what a politician man. I'm glad HE's not president."

Finally, PJ was up. I ran to the vcr, hit record, and crashed on the couch. Paul Schaffer's blues number was hilarious, and to see Jeff smiling was nice. The band looked like they were having a good time. They sure as hell sounded like it. Was that a Metallica shirt Jeff was wearing? I couldn't tell. If it was, that's fuckin bad ass cause Metallica gets so much shit from my age group. [The shirt said "Montana" in a Metallica style - Synergy]

When Mike ripped into the intro riff to Save You I just about died. "Dude he says fuck like a million times" I said to my friend, "what balls." I understand he didn't say every single syllable, but it was close enough. Ed was wearin his classic khaki colored shirt. The man just let himself go on this. He silenced that meat-head critic from Rolling Stone who said that Eddie and the band are "tired." I just wanna say that guys got his head so far up his ass he doesn't know what music sounds like. He's not a fuckin musician. This performance was the best thing i've ever seen on television in years. Stone's solo was musical bliss, and Matt's drumming was perfect as usual. As David Letterman would say "They blew the roof off the dump." Ed's little hop at the end was the most bad ass thing i've ever seen. PJ basically gave a "fuck you" to critics who think they're washed up or base there greatness on album sales.

it was a performance that blew my mind,