June 18th, 2003
United Center
Chicago, Illinois

Idlewild

Main Set...
Release, Hail, Hail, Save You, Cropduster, Love Boat Captain, I Am Mine, Given To Fly, Even Flow, Off He Goes, Light Years, Green Disease, Grievance, Present Tense, Daughter/With My Own Two Hands, Bushleaguer, Alive, Rearviewmirror
First Encore...
Arc, Corduroy, Elderly Woman, Better Man, Crazy Mary, Do The Evolution
Second Encore...
Down, Rockin' In The Free World, Yellow Ledbetter


After what seemed like way too long of a day...

...driving from Detroit to Chicago...
...dealing with Chicago drivers...
...getting rained on in line...
...feeling sick from lack of food...
...eventually being caught in a monsoon...
...I just really wanted to get the Chicago show over with. Not exactly the perfect attitude for your favorite band's concert.

The show opened with a welcomed Release. I suspected the show would begin with the perfect PJ opener and I suspected correctly.

The main set kicked off with Hail, Hail and continued to totally burn.

I had a crying moment during the show. Between legs, we had to put our dog, Rascal, to sleep. I remember when we put him down how badly I just wished the Pearl Jam tour was happening so I could get my mind off his loss. The band played Light Years and I broke down: it was the first time I had heard it since Rascal died.

The main set was quite stellar: namely Green Disease, Present Tense, and Bushleaguer. I was so happy to hear Bushleaguer again...to see it wasn't retired on Leg One.

The encore began with a figment of all our imaginations...
Ed performing Arc.

Even if this didn't "really" happen, it was the one and only time I witnessed Arc on tour.

The encore...I hate to be cynical...but the encore destroyed this show for almost all involved. I guess that is what we all get for putting much more weight on our expecations for cities with a spectacular PJ concert past (like Chicago).

I would say the only great thing about the encore was that Down was played.

Ending a Chicago show without a Baba O'Riley performance just didn't feel right. Not even a Rockin' In the Free World with Idlewild satisfied the Chicago craving.

Even though Chicago was my first show of Leg Two...the unexpected day off from the canceled Cincy show was welcomed with open arms.
 
 

08.15.03
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