I was at Bonnaroo last month and as previously reported here, it was awesome. Pearl Jam was the headliner that weekend on Saturday night and rocked Bonnaroo for three hours. I have been a huge Pearl Jam fan since 1991 so it was a thrill to be a part of a crowd of 80,000 rocking and singing along with my favorite band. I purchased the CD of Pearl Jam’s performance that night (since 2000 the band has offered almost all of their live performances for sale or download through their website) and received it in the mail yesterday. Well, I just got done listening to it and got to relive the awesomeness of the show all over again.
For those of you that don’t know the band, and it’s lead singer Eddie Vedder, they are very politically active. Particularly Eddie. Vedder has the tendency to give political and social speeches during their shows. In 2000, the band supported Nader and Eddie did a bunch of benefit shows for the Green party. In 2004, Pearl Jam was a big part of the vote for change tour that Bruce Springsteen headlined to raise funds to get Kerry elected and register voters. During their 2003 tour, when Bush and the the war in Iraq had very high approval ratings, Vedder would come on stage wearing a suit and a Bush mask. The band would play a song that mocked Bush called Bushleaguer and he would then sometimes impale the mask on the mic stand or throw it on the ground and stomp on it. IT WAS GREAT!!! Some fans like what Vedder does, (me) and some fans don’t. Actually, Eddie doing things like this has alienated a good portion of their fan base throughout the years. The band has made it clear that they don’t care, and neither do I. I’m of the opinion that if you have the platform, you have to use it. If you don’t like what Vedder and the band says or does during a show, go see Good Charlotte or something. Anyway, during their Bonnaroo set, Eddie gave a speech regarding change.
Music brought you here, I am absolutely sure that a song or music cannot change the world. Absolutely positive of this. It can have a slight effect, it gets us through, but it cannot change the world. But, you all, this many people...It is determined, it is positive, it is proven that this many people can change the world. How do we know? Because it is written, it is stitched into the fabric of our flag, it is welded into our constitution that the people have the right to make change. And, not only the right, but the responsibility to make change. You can here this? IS THIS MIC WORKING? On this planet there is a time and place for all of this, right? This kind of talk. But, this has to be the time. It can’t get any worse, we can’t let it get any worse. This has to be the time and we’re right in the middle of America and we have the power to change the whole world. Because America is the super-power right? You’re Americans, you can change the whole world, so this is the time, do you agree with me? Is this the place?
Followed by loud cheering and applause.
The press wrote about this speech and mentioned that although Eddie talked about change, he did not mention Obama by name. I noticed that too. How could I not? Well, to my pleasant surprise, while listening to the CD today, I picked up that Eddie actually did mention Obama by name. The last song of their set they covered, All Along the Watchtower. There’s a point in the song where Eddie repeats the line “two riders were approaching” over and over again. During one of those, he replaces “two riders” with “Obama is approaching.” I thought it was very cool that he snuck that in and no one, not even me, noticed.
I know, I know, this is not a big deal to many of you. To me it’s huge because I am a Pearl Jam fan and an Obama supporter. I want to tell you about an even better moment in the show though.
Vedder dedicated a song to a wounded Iraqi veteran that he has become friends with who has taken a turn for the worse. His name is Tomas Young. He’s featured in a movie that was put together by Phil Donahue called Body of War. While in Iraq, Tomas was hit by a bullet in the back and paralyzed. He went into a coma last month for a couple of weeks and came out of it shortly before the show. Pearl Jam contributed a song to the soundtrack called No More. The chorus is simply “No More War.” To be a part of 80,000 people singing along with that chorus was just amazing, even spiritual. Vedder told us that he would give the recording of our sing-along to Tomas to keep his sprits up.
My point here (besides writing about my love for Pearl Jam) is to say that we need to support bands and artists that champion good causes and are politically active. Pearl Jam lists all of the organizations and charities that they support on their website. So I know when I buy merchandise or a ticket to a show, part of that money is going to an honorable cause. Their clothing is USA made and made with organic cotton. Their CD’s are made of recycled material and they try to keep their carbon footprint low when they tour. I’d love to hear about some artists that you guys listen to that are socially conscious and politically active.
Cross-posted on my site