Do you remember what you were doing on August 26, 1998? I do. I attended my Grandfather's funeral. It was one of the saddest days of my life. After the funeral ended, I got in a car and rode to Cleveland to see one of my favorite bands. Pearl Jam. It was the second time I would be seeing them, the first coming the week before in Indy.
I've seen Pearl Jam a bunch since then, but this one will always stick in my mind. I had quit the only job I had ever had shortly before, and then quit my new job after a week because it was horrible and they made me feel guilty about asking off for my Grandfather's funeral. I was jobless, sad, and incredibly tired. The concert seemed a million miles from where I was, but I went because we had bought tickets and I thought it would have been good to get my mind off things.
It was one of the most transcendent nights of my life. We were in about the tenth or so row. The band was incredible. They played "Footsteps" and "Baba O'Riley." I left the concert still feeling sad, yet uplifted by the power of one band playing music so powerful that you forget your surroundings and just left go. Enjoy the moment. It was one of the most magical performances I had ever seen.
Tonight I sit listening to those recordings, over a decade later, and I can still feel the electricity. It may have been over a decade ago, but it is so close in my mind.
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2 comments:
As potent a testament as any to the power of music. To have a recorded document of that experience must be incredible.
does this mean you're quitting the next time Pearl Jam comes through Ohio? because i can make sure that doesn't happen.
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