11/6/00: Seattle, Washington - Pearl Jam (CD 2001)

I picked this one up perhaps three months ago and I've listened to it quite many times since. Probably the most sought after of any of the 72 bootlegs released by Pearl Jam of their 2000 tour, Seattle, Washington 11/6/00 is certainly one of the concerts with the highest amount of energy.

The first thing collectors and fans alike will notice is the length of the show. At around three hours and 29 songs, there is plenty of time to get comfortable in your favourite seat. If Pearl Jam is one of your favourite bands, then this is certainly a good point to start your collection. The tracklisting begins with Release, off PJ's first album, Ten, and it is here that the fans realise that they are in for a special show.

Early setlist staples, Corduroy and Grievance follow, but it is the early setlist appearance of Rearviewmirror, at track four, which is surprising and certainly rewarding. The band treats the crowd to a jam in the middle of the song where the guitarists feed off each other and the crowd.

One of the better versions of Dissident and In Hiding come soon after and the first disc is closed with the 'man trilogy' of songs.

There is a very special version of Better Man in this bracket of songs, where Eddie improvises some lines about his wife, as featured on the TouringBand 2000 DVD. It is an impassioned performance of the song, and stands out amongst other versions from the same tour.

The second disc contains many fantastic, if overplayed, songs, three classics, Even Flow, Jeremy and Daughter feature here.

A rare appearance of the Binaural song, Parting Ways is included here and Go and Once close the disc with plenty of excitement.

The third disc features three cover songs, all of which are inspired and played brilliantly. It starts off with Crazy Mary, a slower song about a homeless woman, which is followed by Immortality. However this version is not plagued with lyrical mistakes that a lot of the tour versions are and it stands out as the best of the tour. A manic drum solo by Matt Cameron ends the song before Pearl Jam launch into Alive, a song not played since the European tour. It is a special moment during a concert littered with special moments. Eddie Vedder shows his sense of humour whilst tuning his ukelele, by playing Black Sabbath's "Iron Man" before the next song, Soon Forget.

Two excellent Who covers follow before the band closes with Yellow Ledbetter, a Hendrix-like song from the Jeremy single.

The band display fantastic charisma throughout the show and show that they really respect the fans for turning up and supporting them. Apparently there were 17,000 people there that night, and its almost like you can hear every one of them. Unfortunately, the mixing suffers a bit. The crowd is perfect, but the guitars sound a little too loud and Eddie Vedder is often indistinct. The North American 1st leg may have had better mixing, in my opinion. However, the value for money of this live show is fantastic. The setlist reads like a best of and there is a high level of awe and joy amongst the crowd. Definitely a good starting point for any collector, and a great point for any band to end their tour, their hometown.