Eddie Vedder gets into that Santa Cruz frame of mindOne thing is readily apparent from Eddie Vedder's sold out show at the Civic Auditorium last Saturday night: the man loves Santa Cruz. He loves it enough he stayed in his hotel room -- shunning the waves he loves to ride -- to pen a tribute to our fair city.
Vedder's ode to Surf City came toward the end of his 28-song set, and the chorus went something like "I can't feel any blues/I can feel myself rising anew/Got the feeling I just can't lose/Pulling into Santa Cruz." It also included a reference to listening to a "Neil Young tape on the stereo/It goes with me everywhere I go." The appreciative crowd ate it up.
In the past, Vedder's been accused of being overly serious, even downright depressing. But he's got a fantastic sense of humor, when he feels comfortable enough to open up. And this intimate solo acoustic tour gives him just that opportunity. Over the course of the evening, he joked about everything from a strange room service mixup concerning an egg-white omelette with tomatoes and cheese in a Vancouver hotel, and how coming to Santa Cruz directly from Vancouver reminded him of the feeling of "pissing in a wet suit" -- an ode to Santa Cruz being the birthplace of surfer's neoprene. He even poked fun at an unfortunate fan sitting near the front whose cell phone rang, not once, but twice in the space of half a minute. He talked of how he likes to write sad songs on a happy instrument, the ukulele.
And he fit in a rendition of "Happy Birthday" for his Pearl Jam bandmate Mike McCready whom Vedder called "one of my all-time favorite guitarists."
Beyond the jokes and the relaxed banter, though, Vedder gave a stirring performance of some lesser-known Pearl Jam tracks, weaved his way through the best parts of his "Into the Wild" soundtrack and pulled out some stunning covers. And while he forgot some lyrics here and there, and even botched a song that he had to start over, the friendly campfire-like vibe helped soften his miscues.
Clad in a brown flannel grunge still lives!, white jeans and brown boots, hair hanging to his shoulders over a short-cropped beard, Vedder opened the show with "Walking the Cow," a song written by Daniel Johnston and covered by Pearl Jam at one of their many Bridge School Benefit concerts in the past.
The stage set was simple, with Vedder seated on a stool in the middle of the stage surrounded by an acoustic guitar, tenor guitar, ukulele, a mandolin and two electric guitars in the form of a Fender Strat and a Fender Tele. To his left stood a table with an old-fashioned reel-to-reel tape player more on that later. The lighting was simple and understated, which fit the mood of the night well. A Corona beer case adorned with stickers acted as a set piece.
From there, Vedder moved along to two Pearl Jam songs, "Around the Bend" from 1996's "No Code," and "I Am Mine" from 2002's "Riot Act." Both songs showed off Vedder's impressively warm baritone voice.
Next up came the haunting "Dead Man," written for Tim Robbins' film "Dead Man Walking," but not included on the soundtrack. Written from the perspective of a prisoner on death row, it sent the crowd into an attentive silence.
After a brief version of "I'm Open," an obscure song from "No Code" which he introduced by saying he imagined it as a conversation between a lone backcountry hiker and the sky, Vedder again dipped into his soundtrack work, this time performing "Man of the Hour," written for Tim Burton's film "Big Fish."
He joked about the size and the layout of the Civic Auditorium, saying it was like an arena that was miniaturized. "It makes me feel bigger," he said, pounding on the up stage with his boot.
From there, Vedder played a few selections from the "Into the Wild" soundtrack, including "Setting Forth," "Far Behind," "Rise," "No Ceiling" and "Guaranteed." These songs were stripped down versions of those on the already raw soundtrack album, and showcased Vedder's able finger-picking skills.
Before settling into a set of ukulele songs, Vedder unveiled a fantastic cover of James Taylor's "Millworker," which has been covered by everyone from Bette Midler to Emmylou Harris.
His ukulele set featured some unreleased Vedder gems that were new to many in the audience. He joked that no matter how sad he felt, the ukulele was like that uber-positive friend everyone has who always makes you look at the bright side of life, "you know, kind of like Australians," he said, finishing with a "No worries" in a mock Aussie accent.
What followed next was a short humorous song about, according the Vedder, "the time I lost my job and my girlfriend on the same day." He said it was about the time he spent working in a liquor store in Chicago, and it may have been called "I Used to Work in Chicago," but the reference to servicing a female patron who asked for liquor, along with Vedder's sly grin, points to Vedder's sly sense of humor -- in line with songwriters like Ray Davies and Neil Young.
Then came a rousing version of "Drifting," off Pearl Jam's "Lost Dogs" collection of B-sides and rarities released in 2003. A trio of covers came next, including the Beatles' "You've Got to Hide Your Love Away" with the crowd providing the "heys!", "Trouble" by Cat Stevens, and Bob Dylan's "Forever Young." For that song, a handheld suitcase was open at Vedder's feet, and it contained a small bulb that provided the only light, at Vedder's direction. He asked for the bright stage lights to be completely dimmed because he wanted to "give the audience a message."
He closed the initial set with "Porch," from 1991's landmark album "Ten." Vedder returned to the stage, joined by opening act Liam Finn, to sing Mike McCready "Happy Birthday." Finn and Vedder then joined forces for a moving version of "Into the Wild" track "Society," originally written by Jerry Hannan. If Vedder is slightly undersized, Finn is downright elfin, although what he lacks in size, he more than makes up for in passion and delivery, much like Vedder.
Vedder punked up the acoustic guitar with a thrash version of "Lukin," a track named after Mudhoney drummer Matt Lukin and included on "No Code." This featured some of the fiercest strumming of the night, showing that Vedder, despite wielding an acoustic guitar, is still in touch with his punk rock roots.
The singer prefaced his next song, "No More," by saying he'd like everyone to sing along, no matter what their political affiliation. The song is Vedder's contribution to the movie "Body of War," and was inspired by Thomas Young, a soldier who came home from Iraq disillusioned and angry.
Up next was an impressive experiment that featured Vedder stepping a little outside his usual comfort zone. Donning a white scientist's gown that his roadie was also wearing all night, and using a live looping device, Vedder layered his own voice and then proceeded to let loose a spine-tingling, Middle Eastern-tinged vocal melody line that recalled his work with the late Qawwalli singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. A second short break ensued, with the curtains again separating, to the surprise of a cigarette-puffing Vedder, who quickly stomped out the butt, and then introduced his ode to Santa Cruz.
The last song of the night saw Liam Finn and his bandmate E.J. Barnes join Vedder on an inspiring version of "Hard Sun," from the "Into the Wild" soundtrack. The song included a backing acoustic guitar track played from the aforementioned reel-to-reel player, Finn on drums, Barnes on backing vocals and Vedder on electric guitar and lead vocals. Oh yes, and a fog-machine that blanketed the stage floor with a thin layer of white mist.
Opener Liam Finn clearly inherited the melody gene from his dad, Neil Finn of Split Enz and Crowded House fame. His vocal melodies were very Beatles-esque, and his song "I'll Be Lightning," featured some riffing from the song "Dear Prudence."
Finn played guitar and drums, using a looping device to create sonic layers of melody and harmony. Bandmate Barnes's lovely female voice blended fantastically with Finn's, and she utilized a looping device on her voice too. Check out Finn's debut album, "I'll Be Lightning."
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