Avocado Week 2020 #2
by Henrik Tuxen
“There’s absolutely nothing wrong with this September evening, but everyone is going to Berlin the next day, so it’s about time to call it a night.Around this time, I take out the setlist Ed gave me and check it out.To my surprise, the encore list has three songs they didn’t play:Hail Hail, Leash and Black. I complain jokingly to Stone and demand an explanation. “Well, partly because we’re sick and partly because of curfew. The subway only runs ‘til a certain time, so we had to stop the show earlier than planned. But if you want to hear them tomorrow, we’ll play ‘em,” he says. Stone takes an extra look at the setlist and laments thatBu$hleaguer“sucked” and that they “fucked up” inComatose.”
Late night at Charles Bridge. Stone Gossard & Henrik Tuxen. Prague, Czech Republic. September 22, 2006. Photo: Susan Nielsen.
As I have experienced both before and earlier. It can be seriously difficult to get access to Fort Pearl Jam, but once you do, the door and hospitality is wide open.
Although 2006 marked the 10-year scratch for my first meeting and serious hangout with Pearl Jam and especially Eddie Vedder, this was my first at the band's private residence so to speak, The Pearl Jam HQ Warehouse in Seattle. March 1st 2006.
At the time with 10 Club stock in the basement, studio, and rehearsal room in the next, and on top location for Management, decorated meeting rooms, and a special studio where all the live albums at the time were being mixed.
Treatment for a friend, journalist and not at least a fan. As I recall I spent most of the day there, talking with lots of different people and going to specific pre-scheduled interviews. First a solo one with Eddie and subsequently a get together in the kitchen with Stone and Mike. Here is a snippet from both, first the legendary guitar duo.
When I asked Stone’s first wife Liz, way back in 2003, who she thought Stone was closest to in the band, she said ‘Mike’. As far as functioning as a well-trimmed tandem on stage, as the two main guitar players, in what is first and foremost ‘a guitar rock band’, the two of them can certainly also communicate without instruments, and at times even telepathically. At this point they had spent more than one and a half decade in the same band, both were expectant fathers for the first time. The subsequent months, both their respective wife’s gave birth to a daughter; born the exact same day, at the same hospital.
Whether it was the upcoming fatherhood, the relief of releasing a new album, or whatever I cannot say, but the guitar-duo was in a super chilled and seriously funny mood this day. They were literally cracking the jokes and hitting the one-liners. Like this sequence when they were both winding back as growing up as hard rock freaks
Mike – I spray painted a “Let there be rock” AC/DC logo on the back of a puffy jacket. It looked terrible.
Stone – That was back in 78, you were in the 7th grade. You were just rocking so hard so early, and doing the art as well, so that is great. I made a Zeppelin pillow in 7th grade cause we could make pillows in home ec class. The pillow was this big [stretches out his hands to indicate how big], and I spelled Led Zeppelin wrong [Mike and Stone break into laughter]. “Zepplin” – I missed the “e” – and it wasn’t until a year later that I noticed. It was easy to spell wrong.
Mike – AC/DC is not too hard to spell wrong.
Stone – No too easy to spell wrong. Not too hard to spell wrong or not easy?
Mike – Exactly, it is too hard to spell wrong… ohh I can’t even think.
Speaking of Zeppelin or Zepplin, you just played the House of Blues in Chicago with Robert Plant at a benefit concert for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. How was that?
Mike – Plant and Ed were harmonizing together on stage, improvising, it was great. We played Little Sister and the Zeppelin songs Thank You and Fool in the Rain [Mike starts singing].
What Pearl Jam songs did you play?
Mike – Well, we did a little side wave. We played Given to Fly going into Going to California [there are close similarities between the old classic from Led Zeppelin IV and Pearl Jam’s song]. That sort of dressed up that entire situation. We did it live.
What did Plant have to say about that, or how did he feel about it?
Mike – Great, it was his suggestion. [Mike and Stone both start laughing and flinging ironic claims that Given to Fly and Going to California are completely different from each other.] We had a fun time. I went over to him on stage and he gave me one of those “fingernail Planties” [Mike stands up and mimics Plant’s gesticulations].
Is he a nice guy?
Mike – Completely. He is the consummate gentleman.
