Photo Credit: Stephen Bloch

Following the Canadian stint of their North American tour, Pearl Jam returned to The States on Saturday, Sept. 10, for a gig at the Apollo Theater, where they busted out “Sleight of Hand” and “Parachutes” for the first time since 2016. They followed up by taking the stage last night at Madison Square Garden, where they were joined by Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith for a cover of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World,” which was then capped by a run-through of the “The Star-Spangled Banner,” on the 21st anniversary of September 11, terrorist attacks.

After Pearl Jam’s performance at the Apollo Theater on Saturday, which saw bust outs and a take on The Who’s “Baba O’Riley” during the night’s encore, the troupe returned to the stage in The Big Apple on Sunday. For this performance, Pearl Jam descended upon Madison Square Garden for the first time since 2016 and began the show with “Release” and “Garden.” Then, frontman Eddie Vedder addressed the audience, touching on what an honor it was to play in New York on such an occasion while also mentioning that several first responders were currently at the show. He followed with a touching take on “Come Back” before continuing with “Present Tense.” 

Amongst the packed 18-song main set were cherished numbers like “Porch,” “Dissident,” “Even Flow” and “Better Man.” Mixed into the latter half of the show was a taste of Elton John’s “Tiny Dancer,” which opened takes on two Mother Love Bone numbers, “Chloe Dancer” and “Crown of Thorns.” The covers continued with Dead Boys’ “Sonic Reducer,” which gave the band a moment to thank the first responders in attendance, once more. Then, they capped the main set with “Rearviewmirror.”

For the night’s encore, Pearl Jam began with “Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town” before working into “Why Go” and “Do the Evolution.” Then, they took on Prince’s “Purple Rain.” After the band played “Alive,” Red Hot Chili Pepper drummer Chad Smith arrived on stage to sit in on a high-energy rendition of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World.” To follow, the group ended the night with an emotional take on “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

Scroll down to see the complete setlists from Pearl Jam’s New York City concerts at the Apollo Theatre and Madison Square Garden. 

Pearl Jam 

Madison Square Garden – New York

Sept. 11, 2022 

Set: Release, Garden, Come Back, Present Tense, Porch, Dissident, Given to Fly, Who Ever Said, Even Flow, Daughter, Dance of the Clairvoyants, I’m Open, Better Man, Chloe Dancer^, Clown of Thorns^, Sonic Reducer*, Rearviewmirror

Enc.: Elderly Woman Behind the Counter in a Small Town, Why Go, Do the Evolution, Purple Rain+, Alive, Rockin’ in the Free World&%, The Star-Spangled Banner# 

Notes:

^ Mother Love Bone cover 

* Dead Boys 

+ Prince cover 

& Neil Young cover 

% With Chad Smith 

# John Stafford Smith & Francis Scott Keys 

Pearl Jam 

Apollo Theater – New York

Sept. 10, 2022 

Set: Footsteps, Pendulum, Sleight of Hand+, Parachutes+, Hard to Imagine, Keep Me in Your Heart-, Who Ever Said, Even Flow, Dance of the Clairvoyants, Quick Escape, Spin the Black Circle, Alright, Retrograde, Never Destination, Take the Long Way, Whipping, Porch

Enc.: Better Man, Do the Evolution, Baba O’Riley@, Indifference 

Notes:

+ First time played since 2016

– Warren Zevon cover 

@ The Who cover