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Pearl Jam’s final show in Auckland on Sunday will be a night to remember for one young Kiwi, who jammed alongside his idols to a rapturous crowd.
The budding guitarist, since identified as Nelson teen Leon Fenemor, received a shout-out early in the night at Go Media Stadium, when Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder spotted his home-made sign among a sea of fans.
“Eddie, can I play guitar with you, please?” said the sign, which had a list of song requests penned on the opposite side.
However, at that point, it was “too early in the show to be asking for favours”, Vedder, 59, joked as he read the request aloud to a cheering audience.
But during the encore, the 17-year-old’s wish was granted: plucked from the crowd by none other than Vedder himself, the young fan joined the rockers on stage for a rendition of Neil Young’s 1991 classic Rockin’ in the Free World.
His image emblazoned across the large LED screens flanking the stage, the beaming fan was handed a guitar, a pick, and launched into the performance of a lifetime, to a roaring reception. Phones were held aloft throughout the crowd as Leon jammed alongside the band’s guitarists, Stone Gossard and Mike McCready, and bassist Jeff Ament.
Jumping up and down with delight as he strummed the instrument, the young fan even exchanged a sweet moment with Vedder, the two captured speaking into each other’s ears and sharing a laugh.
Speaking to Stuff, Leon said it was an “unbelievable feeling” to rock out with his “favourite band”.
“I wasn’t actually nervous. Surprisingly, I was just happy to be on,” he told the news outlet.
“To kind of see it from the stage perspective and Eddie Vedder, you know, patting me on the back – just crazy. Oh, my gosh.”
The teen was handed a “few picks” by Vedder to put in his pocket and left the stage to raucous applause – and a selfie to commemorate the occasion.
The Herald has reached out to Leon’s family for comment.
Clips of the performance shared on social media garnered a positive reaction from fellow fans, with one commenting on Instagram: “Dude, what a dream! He even got Stoney-Pony [Stone Gossard] to drop to one knee (first time I’ve seen that move, lol).”
Many others praised Vedder and the band for embracing the young attendee and welcoming him into the fold.
“Truly a life-changing moment for the young man,” another wrote, while a third added: “What a treat for the kid! Sweet for Eddie to do. Love Stoney getting down.”
There were plenty of nods to Aotearoa New Zealand on Sunday night, including a kapa haka group opening the show with Ka Mate and a powerful waiata.
The band dedicated the 2009 song Amongst the Waves to the Surf Life Saving team at Karekare Beach, who on a fateful day in 1995 rescued Vedder from a rip as he surfed with New Zealand singer and Split Enz founder Tim Finn.
As the show neared its end, Vedder even thanked the Warriors for allowing the band to play on their home turf at Go Media Stadium.
The concert – which featured opening acts the Pixies and Liam Finn – marked Pearl Jam’s second and final show in New Zealand as part of the ongoing Dark Matter World Tour, in support of their 12th studio album. It also broke a 10-year absence from our shores, having last performed in Aotearoa at the Big Day Out in 2014.
Pearl Jam formed in Seattle, Washington in 1990 and have gone on to enjoy a career spanning more than three decades.
The band were considered one of the “Big Four” of Seattle’s music scene in the early 1990s, alongside Nirvana, Soundgarden and Alice in Chains. The four bands were deemed the leaders of grunge, a movement and musical scene associated with the “Seattle sound”.
Vedder is the last frontman standing of the original grunge line-up: Soundgarden’s Chris Cornell died in 2017, Alice in Chains’ Layne Staley died in 2002 and Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain died in 1994 – with the latter’s death putting an end to the brief but explosive movement.
Pearl Jam will now play the Gold Coast, Melbourne, and Sydney, marking the final stop on the tour.
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