Embracing my inner Rob Gordon

Thanks to my friend Doug for providing the idea for the blog tonight. On my Facebook page, he asked me to "give me the top 5 Pearl Jam albums, in order. Explanations would be nice, but not necessary." I think that is simple enough. Channeling the protagonist of High Fidelity, here goes, from 5 to 1. Keep in mind that the answer may change following the release of Backspacer in September, if the album is as good as everyone seems to think it is.

5. Pearl Jam (2006)—This album is also known as "Avocado" among fans, so named for the piece of fruit on the front. It was an album of new beginnings in many ways: a first album after their contract with Epic Records had expired, a return to making videos and the top of the album charts. This album makes the list because it’s just a good record. There really isn’t a bad song on the album, and it marks the first album where everyone contributed lyrics to the song. Oh, and Matt Cameron sings backup for the most of the record. It’s the group at their most artistically sound and mature.

4. Live at Benaroya Hall (2003)—Before you go any further, I didn’t break any kind of rule. Doug asked for the best five albums. This is the product of a show played for Seattle area charity YouthCare at the home of the Seattle Symphony Orchestra. It’s a 2 and ½ hour show done acoustically that spans the bands career. It provides some funny moments (guitarist Mike McCready thought the Kiss song said “I wanna rock and roll all night and part of every day”), but also an amazing version of the song “Black.” To be honest with you, the rest of the album could suck completely, but based on that version of the song alone, I would still have this on the list.

3. Vs. (1993)—The second album, the one set sales records that stood for years. If you thought this would end up at #2, you were wrong. It’s a great album, showcasing a band coming to terms with blowing up overnight, and just beginning to realize their full potential. It’s also the first one recorded out of the shadow of Mother Love Bone. Don’t get me wrong, if you were looking for a continuation of Ten, you won’t be disappointed. The song "W.M.A." also marks the start of the band making political commentary through their music. A consistent effort.

2. Ten (1991; remastered 2009)—Please contain your shock. I know that everyone thinks this is the no-brainer #1. Well, you are all wrong. I’m not saying I don’t think it’s a classic album, because I do. I would argue it’s one of the seminal albums of my generation. It’s just not the best. It’s a band in their infancy, trying to find their way together, as a band, after the death of Andrew Wood. In fact, the whole album sits in his shadow. Eddie is trying to prove he’s no Andy, and the band is trying to prove they can make it without him. Yes, the songs are classics, but it’s just a first album. If you want to listen to a better version of this, check out the 2009 remastered version. It’s producer Brendan O’Brien’s take on things at the band’s request, done with reverence and really not providing too drastic of an overhaul.

1. Vitalogy (1994)—I know what all of you are thinking. How did this album make it to #1 on the list. Easy, it was recorded when everyone was getting pissed off at one another. Over the course of the recording of this album, drummer Dave Abbruzese began the path followed by many successful musicians: getting to big for the band, and ultimately getting the boot. Also, Stone has said in more than one interview, that the tension between the other members of the group almost lead to it being their final album. What comes out the sessions for this album as a result is some good music. Also, it marks an artistic left turn for the group, as they began to experiment a little more with their songs, a trend that would continue on later albums. The fact that the band would have the courage to potentially throw it all away for the risk of evolving puts this album at the top of the list.

Well, I hope this answers the questions and as a bonus, provides a little insight.

Go see The Hangover!

Do not pass go, do not collect the $200, just go see The Hangover.

Todd Phillips has outdone himself. In making this movie, he has outdone anything he put out there doing Old School.

The movie was hilarious. I actually came around on Zach Galafanakis as a result of this movie. I will admit that I really didn't like him till I saw this movie. He steals the movie from Ed Helms and Bradley Cooper. Not that either of those gentleman don't put forth a good performance in the film, Zach just steals it from them.

That said, Mike Tyson and his cameo are well worth the price of admission as well.

I would love to be able to say more about this movie, but quite frankly all I can remember about it is how muh I laughed. I think that itself should be an endorsement for this movie.

What a drag it is getting old.

Hello loyal readers, I have returned. Sorry, but I was not able to do the blogging thing Friday night, as I was seeing a band play in Newark, and then I went home to see my mom and dad for a dual fold visit. Fold One: Seeing Dad on Father's Day. Fold Two: Yesterday was my 33rd birthday.

I apologize for not blogging at any great length lately. That's not to say that I haven't had anything to say or share, because I have. I just really haven't felt that what I had to share should be accompanied by a page long post. I hope you all don't mind.

Just a heads up: I am trying to finalize plans to see The Hangover by the end of the week with some friends. If I do see it, I should have a review up by the weekend.

Ein, Zwei, DIE!

So, like I was saying. Oversexed teenagers, snowmobiling, and gold found in a ski cabin in Norway used by the Nazis during World War II.

What could possibly go wrong?

If you like horror movies, you won't mind having to read subtitles.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-KQh87_V2Q

My appointment television

Even though the ratings for a lot of TV shows have gone down for whatever reason (be it the use of a TiVo or other DVR, or just a decline in the quality of television overall) over the past several years, a lot of people still have what they call "appointment television." In other words, shows they will not miss, and if they do have to miss, they set up the DVR, or if you're old school like me, the VCR.

I have four of these shows, even though I have to catch up on the back episodes of the most recent addition.

• CSI: Crime Scene Investigation--this is the longest running of the "appointment" shows, holding down a spot since its Thursday night debut in 2001. I subsequently was able to catch up on the part of the season that aired in the hell known as Friday night. I'm not going to lie, I like this show a lot. I think it is a smartly written, well acted show. If I had to pick a favorite episode, it would be the two hour finale to Season 5, where Nick gets buried alive and the team must find him. Directed by Quentin Tarantino (also a personal favorite), the episode had everything you could want in good drama, including pulling the rug out from under you just when you think everything is safe (fire ants in the coffin anyone?).
  
  I will admit to even geeking out a bit on this show, as I created an episode guide, with summaries of each episode, and footnotes that cover major events in the series history. Please stop laughing and continue reading.
  
  Other likes: Warrick, after they got rid of his gambling problem, Nick's sarcastic wit, Catherine because she's attractive, Grissom and the Grissom-Sara romance. For the record, sad to see Warrick get killed off, Sara leave, but happy that her and Grissom ended up together, and also the Miniature Killer of Season 8.
  
  Dislikes: Louise Lombard's horrid attempt at an American accent for Sofia Curtis, the attempt to compete with Grey's Anatomy during the season where it got its butt kicked by that show by adding way too much plot.
  
  Also, I like the addition of Laurence Fishburne as a main character, but still miss Grissom. I think when he left the show earlier this year, a show already experiencing a slight decline in quality over the past year has seen that escalate a bit. The decline in quality coincides with this falling out of my "Favorite Show" spot.
  
  
• Lost: It occupies the "Bow to the Majesty which is JJ Abrams" spot. I will admit that I discovered this show in the process of watching another appointment show, Alias. For a while at the beginning of its run, Lost served as the lead-in to Alias. In an effort not to miss any of Alias, because to be honest, you really couldn't, I would turn on ABC a few minutes early. I was always impressed by the last five minutes of Lost during its first year, and so in the midst of the second, I caught up on it by buying it on DVD. I will admit that the show at times has frustrated me (I find my self screaming at the TV at least once an episode trying to figure things out), and I have thought about giving up on watching it for that reason. JJ has left the show in very capable hands (going on to do movies and finish up Alias) turning it over to Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, who are leading the show towards its end in 2010. If nothing else at this point, I have given enough time to the show that I have to know how it ends. At this point, it holds the mantle of "Favorite TV Show" as well.
  
  Likes: After a few years of not, Sawyer. I disliked him very much during the first season or so because quite frankly, he was a huge prick. Charlie (why, o why, did they kill you off?), who I will admit to bawling over when he was killed off. I think the fact that he was flawed appealed to me for some reason. My favorite couple, Sun and Jin. Locke and Ben, sometimes. The mystery that is Richard Alpert and his eyelashes. Also, just having to figure out the giant puzzle that is the plot.
  
  Dislikes: Jack and Kate. I find them both increasingly whiny, and for that reason I think they belong together. Locke and Ben, sometimes.
  
  All my disagreements and yelling aside, I will miss this one when it's gone.

• Bones: I picked this one up during the Writers Strike last year, because quite frankly, I was getting tired of reruns and poor quality fill-ins. To be honest, I had wanted to check it out for at least a year, but just never got around to it, and also didn't want to deal with the shuffling around the show endures as a byproduct of American Idol.
  
  Likes: The relationship between Bones and Booth. Please don't let them actually sleep together. That is what makes the show appealing. They aren't a couple, but you root for them to get together. The fact that the show is highly technical in its dialogue. Watch when they explain how someone was killed sometime if you don't believe me. The fact that TNT now shows reruns every weeknight, so that I can get caught up on things. David Boreanaz and his local connections. For those of you who are not aware, his dad is Channel 6 weatherman, Dave Roberts. The fact that I think the show is a steady Thursday night resident for next season.
  
  Dislikes: Those same reruns, for one reason. One of the major characters colluded with a cannibalistic serial killer. When they show these episodes, it's hard to watch him examine the evidence knowing what he has done. The aforementioned American Idol related movement.

• True Blood: The most recent addition, this one occurred purely by accident. I was visiting friends on Memorial Day, and since there was nothing else on, including the race that was supposed to be broadcast in the evening from Charlotte, we ended up watching a recap of the first season of the show on HBO. I am trying to find something to replace Lost when it ends next May, and have been for a while, not finding anything that appealed to me. Needless to say, what I saw in the recap did. I am currently watching the first season of the show online, but am contemplating just breaking down and going to Blockbuster so I can catch up faster, especially since the second season started last night.
  
  Likes: The large amounts of sex. Seriously. I'm not going to lie. It makes the show a bit more watchable for me, and also serves as the means of (no pun intended) sucking you in. When it does suck you in, you find a well-written, tightly focused show.
  
  Dislikes: The fact that two of the main characters look a bit alike, both having dirty blond hair, which they similarly style. Honestly, right now that is pretty much it.

So, there you have it, these are the shows I actually try and be home to watch, or in the case of True Blood, try and catch up on, at least for the time being.

Link time...

I had a couple links to some things I wanted to put out there for all of you.

1. This is a link to an article about some asshole suing the Oakland Athletics because HE didn't get the Mother's Day giveaway last year. And lawyers wonder why people hate them when they do something like this. The link goes to writer Rick Reilly's "Life of Reilly" column for this week. In the words of my high school Physics teacher, Mr. Brylewski, "some call it nerve, some call it audacity, but I call it balls." http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=reilly_rick&id=4247723&sportCat=mlb
   
2. A documentary opens on August 14 in NY and LA called It Might Get Loud. If you like music, or at the very least artists (in this case, Jimmy Page, The Edge and Jack White) talking about their craft, you may want to give this a shot when it comes to your area. For more information, check out the official site for the movie at http://www.sonyclassics.com/itmightgetloud/.

Hello, faithful readers

I hope that you haven't been experiencing blog withdrawal since I haven't posted anything in the past two days. To be quite honest, I've ended up asleep before I've gotten to post something, so I just didn't. Please don't take it personally.

Also, I've talked a few of you, my loyal readers, lately. I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for reading this in the first place, but also for your praise and/or constructive criticism. It is all appreciated.

To be quite honest, another reason I haven't written lately is that I really haven't had anything I wanted to discuss. I do have one CD recommendation for all of you however.

It's the self titled debut of a band by the name of Chickenfoot. It features people from a few bands you may have heard of--Van Halen, in it's "Van Hagar" phase (Sammy Hagar and guitarist Michael Anthony), the Red Hot Chili Peppers (their drummer Chad Smith) and guitar virtuoso Joe Satriani.

My review: It's just a great record all around. Great sound, great playing, great everything. Pick it up on either iTunes or like I do, go out and buy the damn thing at a store. Actually you should do that. The packaging is printed with a heat sensitive ink that changes appearance when above or below 84 degrees. If nothing else, it's cheap fun to put your fingers all over the case.

Rollins at the Grand

Initally, my Sunday was going to be used to recuperate from the NIN/JA show if I needed to. Hey, I'm not as young as I used to be, so i figured it was a distinct possibility. That was, until my friend Mike asked me if I wanted to see Henry Rollins at the Grand Opera House in Wilmington. I was, to borrow a baseball term, being asked to pitch hit for the previous holder of the ticket, who decided they did not want to go.

The Grand is a very non-descript looking venue in the heart of downtown Wilmington. When we walked up to the building I realized how many times I had driven past it before while in the city.

Special thanks to the poseurs behind me for making me remember all of this, but Rollins is one of those people who has done pretty much everything. He started out as the singer of influential punk band, and through a "sure, I can do that" sort of attitude, moved into acting, spoken word performances, hosting his own show, documentary making and writing and publishing his own works.

After being fashionably late, Rollins performed for over two hours without even a break for so much as a drink of water. During that time, he touched on a wide variety of topics, including the recent shooting of abortion doctor David Teller, the state of the GOP, traveling to Iran, Syria and other hot button countries, seeing the Killing Fields of Cambodia, Marilyn Manson and his relation to the shootings in Columbine, the Transportation Safety Administration, acting with Cuba Gooding, and what is the most unlikely one of all to me, being a commencement speaker at Sonoma State University in California.

Rollins is a contradiction. Let me clarify. His buffed up, tattoed physique is not the kind you would expect to hide such a brilliant intellect like the one on display tonight. The talk was thought provoking, and due in part to his dry sense of humor, extremely funny. And, like any truly good speaker, he made the time fly.

To be honest, he threw enough stuff at the audience that I am still processing, and the show ended about three hours ago. But, I will say that I was blown away.

NIN/Jane's Recap

First off, I owe all of my loyal readers an apology. Sorry, but I didn't really feel like posting at 2am Saturday morning. Quite frankly, I just wanted to go to bed. Then yesterday, I crashed at about 8pm. I somehow managed to avoid the crash from the concert till yesterday. Well, better late than never. For the crash and the blog.

Friday night was the Nine Inch Nails/Jane's Addiction concert, which sounds like it should be taking place in 1991, and not 2009. This tour is preceded by the scuttlebutt that it will be Trent Renor's last for a while for whatever reason. I've heard marriage, that's he quitting, you name it, I've likely heard it.

Anyway...

Before the NIN set, the opening act, former Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello's new project, Street Scene Social Club performed. I was not impressed. First off, someone should tell them you don't have to curse to be entertaining. It seemed as though the amazing guitar work of Tom Morello, which I will admit made the set worth it on its own, was put to waste by crap lyrics. And to be honest, I'm being a bit kind. It doesn't help that the lead singer kept being sure to mention that the group was "more than a band, we're a social club." I don't care if you are the second coming of Christ, if you have amazing guitar work and horrid lyrics to go with it, I'm not going to be impressed, and I wasn't.

Aound 815, I got hammered into the person directly in front of me, and moved about a foot to the left of where I was standing, which was next to my friend Mike who I went to the show with and then slammed into the new person in front of me. Why did this happen you may ask? That would be one of the hazards of being in the pit at a NIN show. I will be honest, I had to look up the setlist before I started writing this. I had an idea of what they played, but the fact that at some point I was more worried about being able to breathe, I just wanted to get my facts straight. Trent played a few covers (Gary Numan, Saul Williams and Adam Ant), and played a lot of material from the last few albums, but also trotted out some of the old reliables from back in the day, namely the pleasant surprises "Heresy" and "Mr. Self Destruct." I was very happy getting slammed into the person in front of me, and belting out the words, all while on a few occasions realizing that I couldn't breathe because I was getting crushed.

That said, I wouldn't trade any of those 90 minutes for anything. My shirt was covered in sweat, and I can say I don't know how much of it was mine.

After the NIN set, there was a small break before Jane's came out. Mike and I took the time to go outside and recover. I had made it through my first experience in the pit. I may go back into the pit, but I don't think I would for a NIN show.

At Trent's request, Jane's Addiction was the headliner. I will admit that I had to be convinced to stay. I really didn't care if I saw them or not. And then, they played the song "Three Days" and I was blown away by the guitar work of both Dave Navarro and Eric Avery. What was even more impressive is that during his playing, Navarro was able to pick out a girl to meet him backstage after the show. Mike and I both saw it happen, although Mike saw the whole thing, I just caught the second half of things. They played for about an hour or so, before walking off stage before the encore, but not before bringing out the old hits such as "Ain't No Right," "Mountain Song," and "Been Caught Stealing." They saved "Jane Says" for the encore.

All in all, the trip back to 1991 was fun. The only thing I would change is no pit.

My long history with Pearl Jam, Part Two

Anyway, when we last left me, I was telling you that because of Pearl Jam I also boycotted Ticketmaster.

Well, they released Binaural in 2000, and I really wanted to see them in concert if they came around, even if it meant having to deal with Ticketmaster. Around the time I headed to the Exton Target to grab the new album they announced a tour, with the evil giant, and they were playing in Camden. I had a shot.

Thankfully, I was dating a smoker, who incidentally went to get smokes around the time tickets went on sale. She came back to the apartment we lived in and told me "if you want tickets, you better get somewhere fast, they added a second show."

Note to all of you out there: Boscov's have TicketMaster windows.

Thank God, she was a smoker, and that the Coventry Mall Boscov's was so close to the apartment.

Got there in time, and waited for the guy in front of me to get tickets to Chicago (seriously!). I got a pair for the second show of the set in Camden. Now I just needed someone to go with. I asked her to go, and she gave me the same answer she gave a friend of hers when they mentioned Pearl Jam to her at lunch at college: "Yeah, I used to like them, but then I graduated high school. "

For the record, I went with a friend of mine from college. Also, things between us (the girl and I) continued to slide south until she moved out about a year later. We lost touch, and I couldn't even get a hold of her to break up with her officially till 2004. Not that her answer aboout going to the show caused the break up, but it didn't help.

The concert was awesome, and I was so happy to actually see them in concert that I could barely contain myself. The fact that they started the bootleg program with this tour came in handy too because I could buy the show, even if I managed to lose it for years (I'll explain later). Hell, I didn't even care that I got lost in Camden trying to find my friend an ATM before going back across the bridge. OK, I lie. That part scared the shit out of me. Big time. Have you ever been to Camden? Enough said.

Thankfully, they built a Target in Oaks, which is much closer than running to Exton, and that is how I snagged Riot Act and Lost Dogs, the album of b-sides. Also, around this time, they came back and played the Spectrum. I had a co-worker who was also a huge Pearl Jam fan, who went and made a copy of the show, which managed to get me in trouble one train ride home.

On Vs. , there is a song called "Animal" and it features the line "I'd rather be with an animal." Well, long story short, back then, I had a habit of singing along to the Walkman, and apparently, the fact that I sang that particular line freaked the young lady next to me out.

The group also helped me to break a rule I have about movies, thanks to providing a song in Tim Burton's movie Big Fish called "Man of the Hour." I usually don't buy I a movie if I haven't seen it first, but I figured what the heck. Who knew it would be that good? The Golden Globe nod was well deserved.

Things with the group were quiet for a while until the beginning of 2006, when I heard the buzz that a new album was coming out, just not on Epic. They also put out a video. Who were these guys? Guys that were touring and damn it I had to go, that's who! And I almost won seats ahead of time. Except....

that my damn cell phone gave out. Let me explain. WMMR, the local station, was giving tickets away, provided that you could identify the songs in a sentence made from song lyrics. I could, and I was able to get through. Sadly, the phone died as I was starting to give my answer. I could hear them, but they couldn't hear me. I still got to go.

By the time tickets went on sale, I had made the Target run to Oaks for the CD, and was digging it. The show went on sale on a Saturday, and the girl who was my girlfriend at the time recommended that if I wanted to get seats, I might want to go stand in line at the Exton Strawbridge's for her and I, and my friend Mike, also a big fan.

Before I go any further, I just realized that I had to explain that I lost a cd of the Camden 2000 set. It was around this time that things were getting serious between the new girl and I, which meant I spent a good chunk of my free weekends at her place in Bear, DE. More of my cd's started to find their way there, including the one in question. Long story short, I lost the second cd of that set for about two years, until she found it after I had moved out, and she came across some things I manged to have left behind.

In case you're wondering, I did get up and get to the store and stand in line to get led back to the Ticketmaster window. Tenth in line to be exact. Around the time tickets went on sale, someone from the store came out and informed those of us standing in line, who by this point had to be around 75 people, that they would do a drawing to see who got first place in line at the box office. We were given a number based on our place in line, and the person with that number would be first, and all those behind him would be next in line, with those before him/her at the end. While not exactly fair to the early crowd, I sort of saw the point. So, they get this little kid to draw at 945 (tickets went on sale at 10), and give you one guess what number she drew--mine! I couldn't even get the word "Me" out when they asked who had number 10, the guy behind had to speak for me.

Needless to say, getting tickets was easy. I went and informed the girlfriend of the luck I had, and also thanked her for pushing me to get out of bed and get to Strawbridge's, especially since I really did owe her.

As for the show, I wasn't big on it at the time, but after getting a copy of it recently, I realized something. The show actually was really good, since it was a band clearly at the height of their powers leaving everything they had on the stage.

Side note: The girlfriend and I later got engaged, but ultimately ended up breaking up early last year, not because she didn't like Pearl Jam (she actually liked them more because of being with me, or at least that is my impression), but simply because things between us ultimately fell apart.

Since I mentioned my friend Mike, I should make a note here that he got me at least one of my rarities, thanks to independent record store collections. He is the reason I scored Live at Easy Street, an EP of a show played for an independent record store meeting in Seattle. Also, through a friend, he is the reason I scored the copy of the Camden show in 2006 recently.

I mentioned the girlfriend (and later fiancee) who went to the 06 show with me, and I bring her up because she figures into my getting to go again last year to see them in Camden again. She got me the tickets for my birthday, since they were playing two days before it in June, but we broke up between when we got the tickets and the show. Needless to say, it was hard for me at that point to go with her, mainly because I think I was still emotionally raw, but I had fun, thanks to her friend Chrissy. She had bought tickets for us, not realizing that we had gotten our own. Thankfully, I sold the tickets my now ex bought to a friend of mine I knew would love to go, and I hung out with them for most of the night.

I got to buy the show again, and also got one for free. Let me explain. The Camden venue was known as the Tweeter Center till early last year, when it became the Susquehanna Bank Center. When I received the Camden show in the mail, I actually received the Tweeter Center show from Massachusetts. I called the Ten Club, which I actually finally joined at this point (only took 17 years), and they told me just to keep it, and they would send me the Camden show. Pretty damn cool.

Then, recently, in an effort to make me feel old, Pearl Jam re-released Ten. OK, maybe not to make me feel old, but to celebrate the fact that is going to be out for almost 20 years.

I listened to it in its remastered form, and the effect is still the same. It still blows me away, much like the group did the other night playing "Get Some" on Conan.

A lot of things have changed in my life, be it the girls I date, the year of school I'm in, or the town/state I live in, but one thing has remained a constant--Pearl Jam. They have been there through the good, the bad, the ugly. The good breaks, and the painful ones.

They are truly, the soundtrack to my life. And that makes me proud to say that I have been having a love affair with them since 1991.

My long history with Pearl Jam, Part One.

As I have said before, I like Pearl Jam. A lot. Anyone that knows me for any length of time knows that they are my favorite musical group. There isn't even a question as to whether or not I like another group more. It's been this way for almost twenty years.

I remember sitting in cafeteria at lunch during the second part of my sophomore year of high school talking with some of my friends, one of whom could not stop talking about a group named Pearl Jam and their new cassette Ten (what? They were still the dominant medium when I was 15) and he recommended buying it. Thankfully, I got paid to serve weddings at my church and had spare money to spend. I picked it up at the Wall to Wall Sound and Video (it's FYE, about two name changes ago, with electronics and TV's) on MacArthur Road in Whitehall, just outside of Allentown.

I took it home, put it into my crappy little stereo and got blown away. If I were to make a movie reference that even comes close, I would choose the scene where the central character in Almost Famous discovers the copy of Tommy his sister leaves behind after she ran away from home and he and gets that dumbfounded look on his face after putting the needle to the wax. I can't put into words what the album said, but I can honestly say, that it spoke to me. Something in those songs just jumped out and grabbed me. I don't know if it was the influence of the death of Andrew Wood on the proceedings, or the fact that I was a teenager, who looking back on it, was probably in my serious and brooding phase. Who knows?

Anyway, the album opened my eyes to the world of rock and roll, since my musical tastes I am ashamed to say before that had run the gamut of the popular stuff of the time from Taylor Dayne to Paula Abdul and those sorts of artists (and I have the tapes packed away somewhere to prove it), but I digress. The debut album held me over till near the start of my senior year, even though I got close to wearing the tape out.

They were also a part of history, as I had mentioned before in this blog. I moved into the world of compact discs, giving my mom money (they had dropped me at a school dadnce and were going to kill time at a newarby mall till it was time to pick me up) and a piece of paper with the title of the soundtrack to the movie Singles written on it. Among the other songs on the CD were two from Eddie and the boys, "Breath" and "State of Love and Trust."

In October 1993, I had gone on a college visit on Monday I had off from school (apparently Mom did not want me to blow the perfect attendance record). I went to see the campus of Moravian College in Bethlehem and get a look at their English program. On the way back home, we stopped at the MacArthur Road area, for what I don't remember, but I think my mother wanted to buy something. I, on the other hand, had to go to Camelot Music, and buy something--Vs. It had come out the previous Tuesday, and was selling like crazy, with over 950,000 units sold in the first week. I had moved into Cd's by this point, and actually own a hard to find version of the album--the Eco-Pak. Think the cardboard cases used by some bands today, combined with the traditional jewel case.

Again, I was blown away, and to be honest, I don't think the album came out of the cd player until sometime after New Year's. Pearl jam had put me through two or so years of high school, and now we would face the rigors of college together.

The rigors of which would be made easier by a welcome friend in early December 1994. After waiting the two weeks after it was released on vinyl to my CD version, I hit MacArthur Road one more time, this time at the Wall in the Lehigh Valley Mall, to get Vitalogy. It sticks out in my mind for one major reason--it looked different. The CD wasn't in the traditional jewel case, instead looking like a small black textbook. Incidentally, the version that was released isn't the original version of the book, since some of it was still under a copyright.

Another reason I remember this CD was that I eventually had to get it "replaced" by somewhat defrauding The Wall. If you lived in PA before Best Buy came in, you remember the stickers The Wall put on their Cd's so that you could replace them if they ever went bad. Well, I scratched mine up pretty bad taking it out of the packaging to put it into my stereo. Oh, and I made it worse by running up and down a cinder block wall, a fact I neglected to tell the employee at the South Mall in Allentown when I went to replace it. It was also around this time that a friend of mine actually helped me out by giving me Ten on CD for Christmas . At this point it had fallen a bit by the wayside as the group had more albums, and I sort of stopped using the tape player.

We had both done some growing up at this point, me heading towards graduation, them into a influential and increasingly political band, by this time starting their boycott of Ticketmaster. I was young and didn't care too much about that, because I had a new album called No Code to keep me happy. An album my friend Dave and I stood in line for at a local record store the night before it went on sale to be the first to get it. If I think about it, it was the first of many times we did that, but then again we were kids with nothing to spend our money on but music and that is exactly what we did. The album was also unique for it's packaging, which contained nine Polaroid photos with the lyrics to the songs on the back. That was also the night I got the Pearl Jam poster I had for many years. The store gave them away with every copy of the new cd purchased.

The boycott of Ticketmaster meant that they wouldn't be coming east, which made me a bit sad, but it also was the first time I decided to do something influenced by someone popular-- I too boycotted Ticketmaster, not attending a show they sold tickets for until 2000.

I'll tell you tommorrow who played that show.

Pearl Jam on Conan

Here is the performance from last night, courtesy of Hulu.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/75484/the-tonight-show-with-conan-obrien-musical-performance-pearl-jam#x-4,vclip,1

I've Got Some if You Need It.

If you've known me for any length of time, you know that I like Pearl Jam. Ok, so maybe I'm understating that a bit. Some. OK, a lot. A look at my CD collection will confirm that. Through a quick (and rough) estimation just now, I figured out that about 15% of my collection is Pearl Jam, be it studio, b-side collections, concerts, special editions, you name it.

Even with all the changes that occur over the course of a lifetime, they have been a constant in my life for almost 20 years. They were part of the first cd I ever bought was Singles, the soundtrack to the Cameron Crowe movie they had two songs on, and Jeff, Stone and Eddie cameoed in as part of Matt Dillon's band, Citizen Dick. To borrow a phrase from a friend of mine, they are the soundtrack to my life. I can find one of their songs to fit almost every mood, or help me get back into a good frame of mind.

One indication of how big of a fan I am: I can spot the Pearl Jam reference in Almost Famous, and I know that Mike McCready played the lead guitar parts for Stillwater in the movie as well. How do I know that you ask? Well, you know what, just ask me and I will tell you.

I salivate at even the thought of new material, and I have since I heard they were making a follow-up to Ten. It was called Vs., and sold over a million copies in the first week, maybe you heard of it. Since I heard they were recording a new album I've been waiting (I'd say patiently, but I would lying) to hear the songs. I found out recently that I will get the chance on The Tonight Show.

I have to hand it to Conan O'Brian, he certainly set the bar high, as far as musical guests go, having Pearl Jam as his first musical guest. Even more so, considering they don't do much in the way of network TV, or even TV performances for that matter (and they usually play on Dave).

With the new songs, I will try and be objective, especially since one of my readers pointed out to me "they could sing the ABC's and you would rave." Disclaimer fully in place, here's my thoughts. I also offer the offensive language disclaimer here. Sorry.

Holy Fucking Shit! The song is called "Got Some," but I will go with "Buzzsaw." It was about two and a half minutes of unbridled hell. Also, it's catchy, a word I know I have never used to describe a song by the group EVER. Not that I should be shocked by this, but Mike absolutely shredded the solo in this one. I honestly had to go jump around like a dork for about five minutes outside of where I'm living, so I could calm down enough to write this post in the first place.

If this is any indication, I will be a very happy man come Sept. 20, holding a copy of Backspacer, walking out of Target with a stupid looking, shit eating grin planted all over my face.