Pearl Jam Fan Chosen To Create Band’s Setlist

Ever wanted to make a concert setlist for your favorite band? Well, one mega-fan of Pearl Jam was awarded that opportunity! Brian Farias is one of the oldest members of the Ten Club (Pearl Jam's official fan club), in that he was in the fan club for Mother Love Bone, which eventually spawned into Pearl Jam. He claims that he was just kind of rolled over into the Ten Club. That's why he was chosen for this unique experience. Keep reading to find out about all the AWESOME stuff he got to do!

From Yahoo Music:

"I thought I was hearing things when [frontman] Eddie [Vedder] offered it to me," Farias recalls. He was selected by Ten Club, Pearl Jam's longtime fan group, to be flown to Amsterdam to attend a pair of shows and meet the band. He is one of what the Ten Club calls its "charter members" – because, as Farias puts it, he's "been there since the very, very beginning." He was a fan club member for Mother Love Bone, the grunge outfit fronted by the late Andy Wood that gave rise to Pearl Jam. "I kinda got rolled over into Ten Club," he explains.

Farias’ first Pearl Jam experience occurred before the band had even released Ten, their landmark 1991 debut. "It wasn't even on their itinerary," he recalls of the Providence, Rhode Island show at Club Baby Head. "The paid admission was only 12 people or something. It's one of those small venues where the stage is only knee-high. Even at that, Eddie was swinging from the ceiling."

Last week, while on his flight to Amsterdam, Farias had no idea that he'd soon be making what some fans are now calling the "greatest Pearl Jam setlist of all time." But once Vedder gave him the opportunity, Farias’ real work began. As he explains, the challenge became how best to balance his own "selfish" desires with songs that audience members would enjoy, while also taking into consideration what the band was capable of playing. "It was really stressful," he admits of the setlist-building process, "because it's something you know is never gonna happen again. You’re only getting one shot at it."

In the end, Farias concocted a setlist for the ages. The second of the two Amsterdam shows – or as he calls it, "my show" – included deep cuts ("Alone," a b-side from the Vs. single "Go"), vintage rarities ("Crown of Thorns," a rarely-played Mother Love Bone number) and crowd favorites ("Alive," Daughter"). In fact, there was only one song, Farias says, that he absolutely needed to hear: "Bugs." The obscure Vitalogy cut, on which Vedder plays accordion and rambles about insects, had only been played once in concert, and it was the only album cut that Farias had never heard. Vedder was initially hesitant. "Brian, we didn't bring the accordion. I don't have it with me," the singer told Farias. But, as Farias explains, "Ed being Ed, always going above and beyond, he went back to his hotel and learned a way to do it on guitar. He turned it into a totally beautiful, different song."

The story continues with the conclusion of his journey being, to him, better than winning the lottery. He was brought out to take a bow with the band at the end of the show!

How would you react if your favorite band chose you to make YOUR perfect concert?