all that's sacred #73

They say that the one constant in life is change. If that’s true, then we best be aware and active to affect the change we want to see in our lives and in the world around us. With the US elections around the corner, we take time out on ATS #73 to recognize Pearl Jam’s activism over the years with some incredible, politically-relevant cover tunes. Irrespective of your own personal political beliefs, I think we can all agree that it’s imperative to remain educated and engaged and not succumb to apathy and inertia. I think that fostering that type of involvement is the ultimate goal of the band and it’s also what we’re striving for on today’s podcast.

Thanks for listening.

Cheers! Donny

all that's sacred #72

The 20th anniversary of Pearl Jam's first show is this Friday on October 22, 2010. Many fans will be making the pilgrimage to Shoreline Amphiteatre this weekend to celebrate with the band and friends at the Bridge School Benefit Concert. To mark the occasion, there are a number of fan-run endeavors to entertain and educate. The Wishlist Foundation will be in and around Mountain View, CA all weekend with a series of pre-party fundraisers. Pearl Jam Radio is planning a sonic marathon Friday featuring complete shows from that date in years past along with exclusive interviews with Stone Gossard and Rick Friel. Two Feet Thick maybe tops them all with the production of a decade-in-the-making epic mini-book detailing the origins of the band.

And here on ATS? Well, we're keeping it low key and celebrating with a few libations and meandering commentary as we continue our theme from last week playing one song from each year in the band's storied career. I hope you find ATS #72 to be a fun and informative addition as you commemorate this landmark in Pearl Jam history.

Cheers! Donny

all that's sacred #71

We are just weeks away from the 20th anniversary of Pearl Jam's first-ever gig on October 22, 1990 at the Off Ramp in Seattle. To commemorate in some small way, we are playing one track from each year in the band's history - covering the 90's today and finishing up the naughts next week. It's been enlightening to take a step back from our usual themes and take a broader look at the band's massive live catalog. Picking out a snapshot from each year was an impossible task so I just went with a few listener recommendations, a couple of new finds, and some personal favorites. Despite everything we've already featured on the podcast, I think there will still be a few here that will be new to many of you.

Thanks for the continued support week after week - not just in terms of listenership, but even on a more personal level. I feel like I've gained hundreds of new friends over the life of this podcast. It's a very cool thing and so much appreciated.

I hope you enjoy #70.

Cheers! Donny

all that's sacred #70

You would think that you'd have heard just about every song in the Pearl Jam catalog over the last year and a half on ATS, having played some 577 tracks over 69 episodes. Well, you'd be mostly right. There are, however, a few that have eluded our weekly playlist for whatever reason and I thought it was high time we feature some of them on the podcast. ATS #70 digs deep and shines a light a few of these tunes that have been overlooked for far too long.

Cheers! Donny