Photo: Redferns
A Chilean Pearl Jam fan by the name of Carlos Zamorano recently enjoyed the experience of a lifetime when he performed "Yellow Ledbetter" with the band. As NME reports, the guitarist flew 7,000 miles to attend two Pearl Jam shows in Barcelona, Spain. He got in line at 4am both days, and on the first offered Eddie Vedder Chilean wine. During the first show, he held up a sign that read: “Pls let me play Y.Ledbetter on guitar. P.S. hope u liked the Chilean wine.”
The frontman noted the sign but didn't bring Zamorano up onstage. At one point, he took the sign and had security return it with the message “Keep playing” written on it.
During the second show, Zamorano persisted with another sign thar read: “I swear I’m good at playing guitar.” This time when Vedder recognized him, he told the audience he dreamed about a fan asking to play with them. “This guy has been asking me for a song for two days,” he quipped before inviting Zamorano onstage.
“You really know how to play guitar?” Vedder asked as they geared up to play the 1992 hit. And he definitely did! Fan-shot footage shows how impressed the band was when they heard Zamorano play.
“I don’t think there are any words that can convey what this moment meant to me, and the joy that seeing these images still gives me," Zamorano captioned an Instagram post detailing the experience (translated by NME). "It was a dream come true, and I really enjoyed it to the fullest.”
The Barcelona shows went down after Pearl Jam members came down with a serious illness that Vedder described as a "near-death experience." The band plans to come back to the US next month. Check out a full list of US tour dates and see fan-shot footage of Zamorano performing "Yellow Ledbetter" with Pearl Jam below.
Pearl Jam 2024 US Tour Dates
08/22 – Missoula, MT @ Washington-Grizzly Stadium %
08/26 – Indianapolis, IN @ Ruoff Music Center %
08/29 – Chicago, IL @ Wrigley Field %
08/31 – Chicago, IL @ Wrigley Field %
09/03 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden %
09/04 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden %
09/07 – Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center %
09/09 – Philadelphia, PA @ Wells Fargo Center %
09/12 – Baltimore, MD @ CFG Bank Arena %
09/15 – Boston, MA @ Fenway Park %
09/17 – Boston, MA @ Fenway Park %
09/27 – Dana Point, CA @ Ohana Festival
09/29 – Dana Point, CA @ Ohana Festival
% = w/ Glen Hansard