Pearl Jam's North American tour finally made it to NYC this weekend. The band played to an enthusiastic crowd at Madison Square Garden on Sunday night (9/11), and the night before, they played a much more intimate show at the Apollo Theater as part of SiriusXM's Small Stage Series. The MSG show was heavy on classics, and also included covers of Dead Boys' "Sonic Reducer," Prince's "Purple Rain," and Neil Young's "Rockin' in the Free World" (for which they brought out Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith). They also played Mother Love Bone's "Crown of Thorns" with its "Chloe Dancer" intro, their first time playing the two together since their 2016 show at the same venue. Pearl Jam shouted out basketball legend Sue Bird and Venus and Serena Williams ahead of "Even Flow," as the tennis icons watched the show from the wings.
With Sunday being the 21st anniversary of 9/11, the band also paid tribute to first responders and victims, some of whom were in the audience. Eddie Vedder paraphrased a first responder at one point, Spin reports, saying, "There was a time we supported each other. That’s the part we cannot forget. Let those lessons be remembered as our solidarity to come together and keep this country straight." Later, he said, “This is the 37th time this band has played in New York City. I think we’ve only played Seattle 50. Here’s the thing — I don’t remember half of those fuckin’ Seattle shows. I just don’t. But I feel like we remember ever Manhattan show. This potentially has the chance to be the most memorable of them all. We are quite honored to be spending this important date with you.” Pearl Jam closed out the night with guitarist Mike McCready playing a solo version of "The Star Spangled Banner" with the house lights on. The band left the stage after Vedder declared, "This was the best night ever."