“That was one hell of a fall”: Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready falls off stage mid-solo – but doesn’t miss a note
The Pearl Jam guitarist disappeared on the first night of the grunge heroes’ tour in Vancouver, but not even falling off stage could stop his shred-fest
Pearl Jam kicked off their US tour on Saturday, and for guitarist Mike McCready, things got off to a rough start as he tumbled off stage during his solo in Porch. But only a fool would think that would stop him from shredding.
Playing at Rogers Arena, Vancouver, the Seattle heavyweights were heading towards the home straight mishap-free – with Porch the final song before their encore – when the incident happened.
Armed with a sunburst Les Paul, McCready had already set his fretboard alight several times throughout the track, from 1991’s iconic Ten, when he decided to venture towards the corner of the stage.
Suddenly, McCready vanishes out of sight amid a whir of feedback, with only the headstock of his guitar in sight. Then, a quick-off-the-mark roadie pulls him back onto the stage, with McCready soling through the entire affair, much to the jubilation of the arena.
Though he had screaming feedback to contend with, there was a steely determination to carry on shredding, and it doesn't sound like he missed a note while gravity got one over him.
Despite the fall, it was a fierce performance from McCready, peppering the song with shred, leaving one YouTube commenter to ask “Dude, did Mike get possessed by Eddie Van Halen? He went off there!”
Skip to 3:23 on the video below to witness McCready falling with style.
Get The Pick Newsletter
All the latest guitar news, interviews, lessons, reviews, deals and more, direct to your inbox!
McCready, who was recently bestowed a gorgeous signature Stratocaster, channeled Van Halen on his recent appearance on the Howard Stern Show as he shredded EVH’s Eruption.
He also recounted the story of how Van Halen told him that he hated the sound of their debut record during a chance meeting at an LA recording studio as the band ramped up the promo for their 12th album, Dark Matter.
The tour continues in Portland and Sacramento this week before two dates in Las Vegas next week. Now fully acquainted with the stage’s geography, Guitar World expects McCready to tear through those shows on both feet.
Thank you for reading 5 articles this month**
Join now for unlimited access
US pricing $3.99 per month or $39.00 per year
UK pricing £2.99 per month or £29.00 per year
Europe pricing €3.49 per month or €34.00 per year
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
A freelance writer with a penchant for music that gets weird, Phil is a regular contributor to Prog, Guitar World, and Total Guitar magazines and is especially keen on shining a light on unknown artists. Outside of the journalism realm, you can find him writing angular riffs in progressive metal band, Prognosis, in which he slings an 8-string Strandberg Boden Original, churning that low string through a variety of tunings. He's also a published author and is currently penning his debut novel which chucks fantasy, mythology and humanity into a great big melting pot.
“Right before we started the set, Bill Evans called me on a pay phone. He said, ‘I’m bringing somebody to hear you.’ I said, ‘It’s not Miles, is it?’” How jazz guitar legend Mike Stern ended up joining Miles Davis’ band – and had a song named after him
“I took over where Billy Gibbons left off and did my half of the solo, and it was a very rare thing. My wife loves it. She doesn’t love anything I do...” Brian May, Billy Gibbons and Steve Cropper on how the three guitar icons learned to play together