# Music by Genre > Rock, Folk Rock, Roots Rock, Rockabilly >  Eddie vedder

## Daniel Nestlerode

*Vedder on stage in SF
*Joel Selvin's review

Yep, that's a mando on stage, though Joel Selvin, a veteran reviewer for the SF Chronicle, should know better. You'd think he'd never heard of David Grisman.

Daniel

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## Chris Biorkman

Your quote at the bottom of your posts always makes me laugh.

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## Don Christy

Has anyone heard him live or the recording? How's his mando playing?
Don

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## hoffmannia2k7

it is really great on the album!

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## jefflester

L.A. Times critic Ann Powers used "electric ukulele" 3 times in her review of the tour opener in Vancouver. Makes me wonder if there was promo material that had it wrong.

L.A. Times review

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## JeffD

> L.A. Times critic Ann Powers used "electric ukulele" 3 times in her review of the tour opener in Vancouver. Makes me wonder if there was promo material that had it wrong.


Every write up I could find said "ukulele" or "electric ukulele". And some of these people are professional music critics!

I hadn't realized how insulated the rock critics are.

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## El Greco

Ridiculous. How can you not know how a mandolin looks like? I'm sorry, but even the eventual guy/gal who asks me at the airport gets closer to what the instrument is: "Is that a mini-guitar  ?"

Anyway, we can't be all things to all people

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## coletrickle

Slightly off topic, I remember when Ricky Skaggs and KT played the Cinci Tall Stacks festival a few years ago in Ohio and a reporter for a major paper said "Skaggs played a mean fiddle" true but he certainly didn't have it out that night.

As a music writer myself there is a lot to be said for checking the facts, regardless of whether you are writing about a musician and the instument they play or a computer programmer and the software they use. Mistakes happen, that's for sure, but of course us mando lovers really feel insulted when major publications can't tell the difference between a fiddle and a mando or a mando and a uke. Now if they called it a mando and it was a 'dola or an octave that might be a little different...

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## Frank Russell

Is that a Collings MF?

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## jefflester

> Is that a Collings MF?


Looks like it certainly might be. With a why'd-it-get-placed-there Schertler or a big ol' grey volume knob. :-)

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## jefflester

He has actaully played Ukulele in performance.

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## jefflester

> Originally Posted by  (frussell @ April 10 2008, 15:50)
> 
> Is that a Collings MF?
> 
> 
> Looks like it certainly might be. With a why'd-it-get-placed-there Schertler or a big ol' grey volume knob. :-)


Looks like a Schertler (and a Collings).

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## JeffD

> He has actaully played Ukulele in performance.


Yea, and look how much happier he looks playing the mandolin!

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## DryBones

seems like that 2nd pic was put in the articles listing ukelele as the instrument played. I emailed one of the writes who said Eddie repeated over and over they were ukelele's so maybe we just have a misprinted photo with the articles.

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## jefflester

Or Eddie himself is very confused?

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## Daniel Nestlerode

I suppose it's entirely possible that Joel Selvin witnessed Vedder play both a uke and a mando, and mentioned only the uke. So the pictures that ran in the Chronicle, which do not include a ukulele, could mislead one into thinking that Selvin doesn't know the difference between a mandolin and a ukulele.

I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

Daniel

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## JeffD

A friend of mine, this last Christmas, asked me in his card whether or not I still played the "banjolukee".

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## earnest

Eddie does, in fact, play the ukulele (I made him one) and it looks like he plays some mandolin too. 
Joel. Earnest Instruments

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## earthsave

Looks like he also played a giant 6 string ukulele.

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## Rick Parrish

Below is my email exchange with the reporter from the Seattle Times that first reported on Eddie's "ukeleles" (perhaps he told her that because he though she wouldn'd know the difference and would probably get it wrong anyway). If you've ever had to deal with newspaper reporters, you know what I mean.

-----Original Message-----
From: Nicole Brodeur [mailto:nbrodeur@seattletimes.com] 
Sent: Friday, April 04, 2008 11:53 AM
To: Rick
Subject: RE: Eddie Vedder 

Well, he said they were ukes, so that's what I wrote ...

-----Original Message-----
From: Rick 
Sent: Fri 4/4/2008 6:39 AM
To: Nicole Brodeur
Subject: Eddie Vedder 

Uhh..Nicole, those are MANDOLINS, not ukeleles-HUGE difference. Drop in to
Floyd, Virginia some Friday night and you'll hear them playing
everything-bluegrass, old time, jazz, blues, rock.

Peace,

Rick

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## Rick Schmidlin

I met Eddie back in 98, when X opened for a few Pearl Jam shows. He was really down to earth and a fun guy to hang out with. Those were my pre mando daze ,so we never talked that topic.

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## cooper4205

> I suppose it's entirely possible that Joel Selvin witnessed Vedder play both a uke and a mando, and mentioned only the uke. So the pictures that ran in the Chronicle, which do not include a ukulele, could mislead one into thinking that Selvin doesn't know the difference between a mandolin and a ukulele.
> 
> I'll give him the benefit of the doubt.
> 
> Daniel


the copy desk does the photo cutlines (although the photographer or writer are usually responsible for the IDs)


mettatater --

come on man, we're not all that hard to deal with

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## Ben Milne

> Eddie does, in fact, play the ukulele (I made him one) and it looks like he plays some mandolin too. 
> Joel. Earnest Instruments


Eddie's Earnest uke.

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## mrmando

> Below is my email exchange with the reporter from the Seattle Times that first reported on Eddie's "ukeleles" (perhaps he told her that because he though she wouldn'd know the difference and would probably get it wrong anyway). If you've ever had to deal with newspaper reporters, you know what I mean.


I know Nicole Brodeur and if you knew her too, you wouldn't say such things. She's a very good columnist as well as an experienced reporter.

It's possible that the photo editor is the one who goofed ... picking a mando photo to go with a ukulele story. 

On the other hand, I was in a theatrical production a couple of years ago and we got a review from a local paper (not the Seattle Times, but a suburban rag) which got several elementary facts wrong, wrong, wrong. One of the theatre staff said she knew the critic who wrote the story, and that said critic never actually showed up at the theatre to watch the show.

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## Ed Goist

> Eddie does, in fact, play the ukulele (I made him one) and it looks like he plays some mandolin too. 
> Joel. Earnest Instruments


Indeed he does!!
But why couldn't it have been _"Mandolin Songs"_? 
*Why oh why!*  :Frown: 
Hats off to him regardless...This is great stuff!  :Mandosmiley:

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## bwachter70

That's a nice ukulele earnest!

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## luckylarue

Just got the Ukulele Songs cd & the Water on the Road dvd.  Both are great.

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## Phil1580

New to the Cafe and the mandolin, and a monstrous Pearl Jam fan! Seen 'em 20+ times. Guitar player for 15 years and wanted to learn something new, but I'm not big on the luau-sound of a uke. (Even though I love Eddie's new uke album.) I agree, I wish he went with a mandolin! I am loving my Kentucky, and I've only had it a week or so.

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## Ronny Stecher

I saw the Bob Dylan tribute @ Madison Square Garden in 1992 and Vedder (vocals), McCrary (acoustic), & G.E.Smith (Mandolin) performed Masters Of War with just the 3 of them, Nice powerful version. He's been aware of the mando for a while, I'm sure he's indulged a little.

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## LastMohican

I'm almost sure that's a Breedlove McKenzie F.

You can see the scrolled "B" logo at the end of the peghead.

If I'm right, then we can say Eddie has excellent taste in Mandolins!

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## Justin Carvitto

FYI: Vedder will be on Letterman tonight.

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## LastMohican

> I'm almost sure that's a Breedlove McKenzie F.
> 
> You can see the scrolled "B" logo at the end of the peghead.
> 
> If I'm right, then we can say Eddie has excellent taste in Mandolins!


Yep, you guys are right, i just saw the larger photo. Collings.

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## journeybear

Nice performance on Letterman - acoustic, two mikes. Afterward, Dave said, "If I could sing like that, everyone could kiss my a--." Good enough endorsement, I guess. ;-)

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## Paul Merlo

Nice performance by Eddie Vedder last night.  I'm going to see him this Sunday at the Fox Theatre in Detroit, and am looking forward to it a little more now...

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## RichM

Nice to see Eddie giving the wonderful people at Mya-Moe Ukuleles some national air time  :Smile:

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## luckylarue

Rich - off-topic question:  Couldn't help but notice your Beardsell avatar.  How do you like it?  Very intriguing.

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## Paul Merlo

I saw Eddie Vedder last night @ the Fox in Detroit and really enjoyed it.  He played over 2 hrs and was surrounded by a nice rotating arsenal of strung instruments.  The first 1/2 hour+ was his Ukelele Songs album (all played on ukelele), then it was on to much much more mostly played on acoustic guitar.  I didn't have my glasses on and was standing in the corner, side stage left (one of the caveats of being a volunteer usher is I'm not guaranteed a seat for sold-out performances) so I didn't see exactly what kind of mandolin it was he played on Rise, but it was an A shape.  I couldn't tell if it was oval or ff hole, but it sounded a little tubby to me. I was pretty happy to see a mando make an appearance for at least one song.  

Eddie played a few noticable covers too.  He nailed "Uncle Neil's" Needle and Damage Done, and got the crowd standing and rocking to Pete Townsend's "Let My Love Open the Door".  During the encore he dedicated Bob Dylan's Forever Young to Chris Chelios too.  He and (supporting act) Glen Hansard closed the show with a raucous Big Hard Sun and everybody left with smiles.  You can search online for a complete setlist and other reviews, but I thought it was worth mentioning that my wife and I had a great time and I was glad to see a mando played too.

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## Justin Carvitto

Nice review, I'm going to the second seattle show. Thats a great dedication to Chelios.

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## Paul Merlo

> Nice review, I'm going to the second seattle show. Thats a great dedication to Chelios.


More on the Chelios story: Eddie started talking about how he had the chance once to drink from the Stanley Cup. The Detroit crowd (with a large Canadian contingent present too) cheered loudly. Then he said he was in Chicago when it happened. The crowd booed (good naturedly of course).  Then he went on about how he was at a party with a friend of his, and it was that friend who was in part responsible for booking the Detroit gig. Eddie said that the Fox show was added after Chris Chelios suggested he play it, so the next time we see him, we should thank him. The crowd then cheered again.  It was cool.  

I also heard on the radio today that Eddie, Chelios and John Cusack were at Comerica Park (home of Detroit Tigers, immediately across the street from the Fox) on Sunday afternoon playing ball. That would've been fun.

Mando content: Chelios > Greek descent > bouzouki > mandolin

Enjoy the Seattle show.  Also, get there early because they hand out souvenier programs, but typically don't have enough for the whole crowd.

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## Justin Carvitto

Thanks for the tip, I'll get there early then. Maybe I'll wear one of my Chelios jerseys to the show... I should probably go with the blackhawks.

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## Rob Gerety

Did Eddie play?

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## Ed Goist

Happy birthday Eddie Vedder, born on this date in 1964.

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