10 Greatest Hard Rock Moments On Live TV
4. Pearl Jam at Singles Release Party
When working in the music business, saying yes to every opportunity tends to be a bit of a double edged sword. Even though you're going to have an endless supply of work if you're looking for it, you can end up burning yourself out pretty quickly when you're not taking care of yourself. Case and point: the Singles Release Party with Pearl Jam headlining.
Being absolutely burnt out on tour, Pearl Jam wasn't looking forward to performing that night, which led to Eddie Vedder getting the party started early with a bottle of wine he shared with friends. Apparently the friends weren't thirsty though, leading to Vedder drinking the entire bottle dry before he took the stage. Getting more and more frustrated with the sound setup, Vedder lost his patience and ended up tearing down a fixture to the side of the stage, only to discover that he tore down the lighting setup instead.
Keep in mind that this wasn't some rowdy club either. This was the kind of party that was reserved for the head hanchos at MTV, who were starting to stream for the exits when things started to wrap up. In Stone Gossard's words, this was the moment where the band discovered that it's okay to say no to certain gigs if they didn't think they were up to it.