16 September 2003
Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul, MN
soundcheck: Electrolite (w/ Jesse Greene) / World Leader Pretend / Daysleeper
Missing: Begin The Begin
00:00: Finest Worksong
01:36 Pilgrimage (Beginning cut)
06:20: Drive
11:32: Animal
16:18: So Fast, So Numb
22:55: Fall On Me
27:29: Bad Day
32:19: The One I Love
38:03: The Great Beyond
43:06: (Don't Go Back To) Rockville
48:10: Daysleeper
51:54: Electrolite
57:03: Losing My Religion
65:11: Find The River
69:41: She Just Wants To Be
76:50: Walk Unafraid
82:10: Man On The Moon
encore:
89:54: Everybody Hurts
99:32 Nightswimming
104:57 Final Straw
110:35 Imitation Of Life
114:20 It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)
Timeline notes: Jesse Greene plays violin on 'Electrolite'.
Notes:
-Before Animal, MS notes it "was written this year".
-After Animal MS notes "That was a big experiment. We turned the parts around". [PB is on acoustic normal?]
-Before Fall On Me MS discourages fans from fighting over [a lyric sheet?] hhe tossed out. He goes on to decline an invitation to fuck him and notes the band's long history in Minneapolis and sends the song out to Rabbi Brusso
-MS introduces Bob Weber as he is scurrying about the stage before Bad Day. He adds the song is fun to sing.
-Before Great Beyond MS summons Bob to stage front and teases him for wearing short earlier. "What is the R.E.M. policy regarding stage times since 1995 [Bob] No shorts on stage. [MS] And what happens if you wear shorts on stage? [Bob] Obviously you get harassed. [MS] You look great in long pants Bob. If I have to wear them then you do too. Am I cruel?" MS goes on to ask for a show of hands as to who was at R.E.M.'s last perfermance in Mineeapolis and how many of them caught pnumonia? Does anybody remember those really cool pants I had on that Madonna made poular like two years later? The gray corduroys that were flared at the bottom and had the studs going down the sides. Does anyone remeber that? And then suddenly 18 months later Madonna became a cowgirl? Do you know how much gray corduroy pants with studs going down the sides weigh when they get sopping wet? Did anybody see my penis that night? By a show of hands...no you didn't. I know who was looking. It's worth the wait I'l tell you that".
-Before Rockville MM is welcomed to the center of the stage, where MM announces, MS's mic "Is all sweaty and slippery". MS adds it has an odor too. MS then sends the song out to Johhny & June Cash "There's only two people in the world that would appreciate my attempt at a background vocal".
-Before LMR MS notes that it feels like "what's her name that goes down with the Titanic at the end". He talks about being in Vegas recently under a full moon "People expected a big show and all they got was us". He ends up modifying the standard intro to send it out to Carrie and Vanessa.
-Before Find The River, MS shows the audience a personalized hockey puck he was presented with on arrival at the venue "Very sweet gift. It's a hockey puck. I don't play hockey". He then tells a story "Does anybody remember when I had a hernia operation and I was showing my hernia scar all over the media? Right. I had a big scar right here and I was on painkillers. I'd just drop my pants for anybody in 1995 if they had a camera. But I woke up in the hospital on morphine and because I'm a performer my adrenaline level is that of three hockey players. Like big guys. Three of them. And the doctors told me thay had to give me a real lot of morphine to put me under. So I woke up and my mom was sitting there. I have a mother. I have a father too but he was outside smoking. And my mom was sitting there and I woke up in the bed in this white room and my hands were folded in my lap and I looked down at my hands and I saw the universe unfolding and it all made sense and everything was clear. In that moment I saw all of life and death and everything and it all made perfect sense and I said 'Mom, look. This is what it's all about. And I commenced to tell her for 45 minutes what the universe was all about and what it was. About two weeks later we're in the living room at my parent's house and they're taking care of my. I'm laying on the couch, I'm still on pain killers so anybody that walked by I would show them my scar. And they shaved half of my pubic hair too it was kind of attractive. It did grow back with time and I'm getting tangential, sorry Peter. Anyway my mom said 'honey do you want some iced tea?' and I said 'Yeah I'll take some iced tea' and she said 'Do you in the hospital you woke up and you looked at your hands and you said something to me'. And I'd completely forgotten because I was out of my head on morphine and I went 'Yes! I remember! Do you remember what I said?' and she said I said 'The universe is a hockey puck'
-Before Nightswimming MS notes a friend from Winnipeg sent a book backstage and MS directs him to a security person so they can talk backstage "We haven't seen you in 15 years and it'll be a nice reunion". He then sends the song out to Canada. Another fan asks for a backstage pass, MS "Let's see some flesh". When the fan obliges MM Ok, she gets one [MS] That was fucking ballsy, I like that". He goes on to address the Wendel Gee issue (similar to Red Rocks) and draws a parallel to Minnesota's 10,000 lakes to skinny dipping.
-Final Straw is sent out to Paul Wellstone
-IOL is sent out to Ed Harcourt
Grade: D
-Video is better than the audio