Pearl Jam rocked a hits-heavy set for an enormous crowd at 2025 New Orleans Jazz Fest

It doesn’t rain on Pearl Jam at Jazz Fest.

Earlier in the week, forecasts warned of possible thunderstorms right around the time the band was slated to headline the main Festival Stage on Saturday.

But save a brief downpour just before noon, the festival stayed dry, just as it did for Pearl Jam's two previous appearances.

If the Fair Grounds were a seesaw, it would have tilted sharply toward the Festival Stage, where Pearl Jam's sea of humanity dwarfed the crowd at the Gentilly Stage at the opposite end.

The Pearl Jam throng felt even bigger than Lil Wayne’s last Saturday. It felt bigger than the capped crowd of 40,000 that watched the Rolling Stones last year.

For that big crowd, Pearl Jam delivered big-time.

Tough choices

To watch all of Pearl Jam required missing a lot of good music. Ledisi, singing Nina Simone songs. Tems. Laufey. Kenny Wayne Shepherd teaming up with Bobby Rush for a cross-generational Louisiana blues summit.

Earlier on Saturday, Margo Price paid sweet tribute to mentors John Prine, Rodney Crowell and, especially, Willie Nelson at the Allison Miner Music Heritage Stage in the Grandstand. She shared with interviewer Scott Jordan that Nelson called her recently to wish her a happy birthday.

Downstairs at the paddock area’s Lagniappe Stage, Sally Baby’s Silver Dollars put a fresh, street-smart spin on early jazz tradition via the convivial songs of frontman Sal Geloso and his bandmates’ musical dexterity.

With Geloso’s voice and guitar, plus drums, upright bass, sax, trumpet and keys, they taught an exceptionally listenable history lesson about famed Storyville madam Lulu White with “The Rise and Fall of the Diamond Queen.”

The band’s “I Got No More Tears Left to Cry” has carried them to the finals of National Public Radio’s Tiny Desk Contest, and with good reason: With its bordello tenor sax, it references classic New Orleans rhythm & blues while standing on its own as a Silver Dollars special.

At the Gentilly Stage, New Orleans transplant Rickie Lee Jones was utterly comfortable in her own skin. She noted that “love and gentleness go a long way,” before adding, “I know because I was screaming at some addicts in the park yesterday.”

Backed by a band that included guitarist Shane Theriot – his many credits include producing Dr. John’s final album and serving as Hall & Oates’ longtime musical director – and percussionist Mike Dillon, Jones leisurely hopped around her history. Before a faithful “Chuck E’s in Love,” she kicked off her shoes. “I love wearing ‘em,” she deadpanned, “but I’m gonna break my neck.”

In the run up to Pearl Jam, Samantha Fish concluded her set by powering through a long Gibson guitar instrumental workout on “Black Wind Howlin’.” She squared off with drummer Jamie Douglass as bassist Ron Johnson kept the pulse and keyboardist Mickey Finn sketched in additional space. Vocalists Anjelika "Jelly" Joseph and Kayla Jasmine contributed earlier in the set.

Neil Young and Crazy Horse might have appreciated Fish's final guitar odyssey. The members of Pearl Jam probably would have as well.

Heavy on the hits

The then-unknown Pearl Jam plugged in in New Orleans for the first time in 1991, then made its Jazz & Heritage Festival debut in 2010. The band returned to the Fair Grounds in 2016.

They haven’t played a proper arena show in New Orleans since 2003. For 20 years, festivals have been the only place to see them in the city.

This latest visit was the best. Lead guitarist Mike McCready’s extended solo in the opening “Corduroy” served notice that he was locked in and amped up. He was throughout the entire 20-song set, especially for his behind-the-head solo in “Even Flow.”

At the outset, singer Eddie Vedder wore a T-shirt with “EV60” – he is now 60 years old. He didn’t act it, even if his flying scissor-kick leaps don’t catch quite as much air as they once did. More crucially, his voice was wholly there, and he was wholly engaged.

He understands the assignment of being a rock frontman. He built rapport with the audience. He “life-guarded,” making sure everyone was all right. He made it clear he knew exactly where he was. 

“When we think of New Orleans, we think of zydeco,” he announced at the outset. “We think of Dr. John. We think of Preservation Hall. We think of positive juju. We think of perseverance. We think of community. We think of Jazz Fest.” Later he mentioned playing at Tipitina's.

After “Tremor Christ,” Vedder reminisced about recording the song at Daniel Lanois’ old Kingsway Studio on Esplanade Avenue. He later gave an extended shout-out to local hero and former Saints star Steve Gleason, who was watching from his wheelchair down front; Vedder even plugged Gleason’s autobiography.

The singer windmilled his guitar and swung his microphone. He got up close with folks along the barricades. He tossed tambourines, autographing at least one. Without naming names or issues, he encouraged people to be active and engaged and join together. “If something makes you crazy, don’t just react – respond!”

That introduced “React, Respond,” the first of two songs from last year’s “Dark Matter” album that made Saturday’s setlist. The other was the well-built “Wreckage.”

That was it for the new stuff. They tossed in a couple of twists, like recruiting famed rock photographer Danny Clinch to add harmonica to “Red Mosquito.”

But Vedder and company know that, especially in a festival setting, hits are most effective. At Jazz Fest, that included six songs from Pearl Jam’s smash debut, “Ten,” plus other favorites: “Elderly Woman Behind the Counter In a Small Town.” “Daughter.” “Even Flow.” “Black.” “Jeremy.” “State of Love and Trust.” “Better Man.” “Alive.” “Yellow Ledbetter.”

The setlist for every Pearl Jam show is different. Usually they end with either The Who’s “Baba O’Reilly” or Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World.”

Jazz Fest got both back-to-back, as a great American rock band delivered at a great American festival.