Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam has revealed the advice that Bruce Springsteen gave him about performing solo for the first time.

Vedder was a guest on the Daddy Issues podcast, which is hosted by actor Oliver Hudson and sportscaster Joe Buck. Vedder revealed that Springsteen had some words of advice for him when he was feeling nervous about performing solo.

“I said ‘I’m starting these solo gigs tomorrow actually,’” Vedder recalls. “He gave this one gem of advice that just changed everything – because I was saying I was making mistakes in those first few mini-gigs.

“He said, ‘There’s real power when there’s just one person up there. It’s terrifying, for the audience even. It’s a tight-wire act. There’s just something, an intimacy in it, and there’s a power in it.’”

Vedder said that the advice from The Boss was “one of the greatest things to hear, because suddenly you didn’t feel as vulnerable.”

As well as sharing the advice, the Pearl Jam frontman also spoke candidly about his father’s “spiritual energy”. He also once criticised Trump’s presidency.

Eddie Vedder has been in a sharing mood as of late. In May, he revealed that him and eccentric former Chicago Bulls star, Dennis Rodman, once flew to Las Vegas and back just to see Jane’s Addiction play live.

Love Classic Rock?

Get the latest Classic Rock news, features, updates and giveaways straight to your inbox Learn more

Vedder recalled the incident taking place during an interview. Apparently, the pair were catching up at a Seattle Hotel. Rodman’s team were in town and it was early in the evening.

Vedder then said Rodman’s security guard approached him with three aeroplane tickets.

“And I’m like, ‘Jesus Christ, it’s like fuckin’ 6 o’clock,’” Vedder remembered, “he’s like, ‘We’ll get there by 9, they don’t go on until 9:30.’”

Gigaton, Pearl Jam’s first new album in almost seven years, was released back in March. Speaking to Rolling Stone, guitarist Stone Gossard commented on how diverse the album is musically.

“It’s got it all, I think,” he said. “And it’s really us. We really did it by ourselves.”

Check out ‘Who Ever Said’ by Pearl Jam:

Get unlimited access to the coverage that shapes our culture.
to Rolling Stone magazine
to Rolling Stone magazine