Live: 8-3-00 - Virginia Beach, Virginia - Pearl Jam

In a move to beat bootleggers to the punch, Pearl Jam decided to release each of their 2000 American concert performances in a series of inexpensive double-CD sets. The August 3rd concert recorded in Virginia Beach, VA, begins with the softly droning "The Long Road" and slides into the decidedly more upbeat "Corduroy." The crowd favorite "Daughter" is interspersed with sections of a song called "It's OK" by Portland, OR, indie rock band Dead Moon, a longtime favorite of Eddie Vedder. Obviously nervous since the nine deaths at their show at the European Roskilde Festival, Vedder approaches the crowd tentatively, stating "The last time that we had to ask the crowd to do something was under very different circumstances than this. So, it's a little nerve racking to... it'd be nice to start anew. So I was going to ask you to do something and maybe you'd do it. It's singing... sing. And sing loud cause it's outside. Sing loud cause you're still alive." A stripped-down version of "Small Town" is hindered a little by Vedder forgetting some of the words, but the audience sings along to get him back on track. A blistering version of "Go" and a subdued ukulele-only version of "Soon Forget" round out the second disc. The show closes with "Yellow Ledbetter" which includes an effect-laden solo from guitarist Mike McCready reminiscent of Eddie Van Halen's "Cathedral." A fine show, not one of their best but decent overall. ~ Zac Johnson, All Music Guide