Live on Two Legs - Pearl Jam (CD 1998)

As the opening chords of Corduroy start up, you might think, hmmm, this sounds good . But as the song gradually speeds up, the verse begins, and the band warm up, then you begin to realise what a quality band Pearl Jam are. Each performance is finely honed and the band play together beautifully. Vedder s vocals are as impressive as ever, Ament, Gossard and McCready all contribute to a building effect, and the drummer (I forget who it was at this point) is simply amazing. I can hardly believe he can sit through these 16 songs, pounding away as if there were no tomorrow.

So, Corduroy is an amazing opener, and is played at a considerably faster pace than the original. In fact, most of the album is played at twice the speed, and indeed Given to fly is very fast here. However, even if they re in a rush (Vedder does admit that they were making up for lost time, having started late), not a single note or drum roll is out of place. Everything is placed correctly, the rock and roll timing is impeccable, and only a few songs fail to improve on their album counterparts. Now, that, for me, makes an amazing concert. When you start to listen to this cd more than the albums, then you know you are clutching a gem in your hands. That s exactly what this amazing live album is, a gem.

Only Hail, hail doesn t fully match the power of its studio counterpart, although there is the benefit that you can actually understand what Vedder is saying on this version. This is followed by Daughter which is not as good as the album counterpart, but lets face it, it was pretty hard to surpass, considering that Daughter is probably one of the finest songs ever written. For some reason they add some lyrics from Neil Young s Rockin in the free world at the end of this song.

The next one is the longest title in the Pearl Jam catalogue , Elderly woman behind the counter in a small town . What a title, and what a song. This live rendition is simply outstanding, an improvement on the already amazing song. By replacing the acoustic guitars with electric guitars played softly, the song gains some power and bite without losing the fragile integrity of the original. Vedder s singing is absolutely masterly. The new song, Untitled , is simply a brief grunge ballad intro into MFC , which is an adequate song, although this version brings out the best in it.

Go is surprisingly powerful and sounds great. The heavy guitar chord sounds just as powerful as ever, and even manages to sound different somehow, although I think I still prefer the studio version. Red Mosquito is another unexpected gem on this album, followed by an amazing rendition of Evenflow . Both versions surpass the studio versions with ease. This is also true of my favourite two songs from this album, Off he goes and Nothingman . Like Elderly woman... , the songs benefit from replacing acoustic with electric guitars, making the songs gain an impressive amount of power. Off he goes is simply masterful, with various guitars layered one over the other, meshing and blending and forming a cohesively brilliant whole. Nothingman though, is simply astounding. The fact that for me it is capable of entirely replacing the studio version, to the extent that I only ever listen to this one, is quite shocking. However, it puts the studio version to shame, turning it into an amazing listening experience. I cannot fully express the beauty of this performance; it is genuinely inspired.

Do the evolution is almost twice as loud as it is on Yield , and is also just as good, and just as fun. Better Man is another song that has found itself replaced by this live version. It is more powerful in every respect, and there is something intensely moving in hearing the whole audience singing along with Vedder on the opening verse. That goes for Black too, which has gone from being one of my favourite Pearl Jam songs, to be one of my all-time favourite songs ever at all. This version is intensely powerful and deeply moving. Again, I don t have the words to express the beauty of the song. Finally, Pearl Jam perform Neil Young s F*!#in up loudly, powerfully, but not quite as well as Neil young himself on Ragged Glory .

This is perhaps the best concert cd I have ever heard in my life. Usually there are only a few songs I genuinely enjoy on any one concert, but this cd, from start to finish, is simply amazing. The band don t let up for a second, they don t sound tired at any points, and they manage to better most of their songs. Pearl Jam s intensity in concert is no exaggeration, even after having past their prime a few years ago (apparently, their early concerts put even this masterpiece to shame). These guys must be some of the most important and talented musicians of the decade. This album really proves why.