Eddie Vedder's Ohana Festival bore witness to the birth of a new supergroup this weekend when the Pearl Jam frontman stepped in to replace Kings of Leon at short notice on September 24.
The original Friday headliners were forced to cancel their set in order to allow brothers and bandmates Caleb, Nathan and Jared Followill to spend time with their mother, Betty Ann Murphy, who then sadly passed away on the morning of the show.
Vedder stepped up to fill the slot with a little help from his friends: recruiting jam buddies Chad Smith and Andrew Watt, newly announced Pearl Jam touring guitarist (and former RHCP member) Josh Klinghoffer, and respected session bassist Pino Palladino for a last-minute headline performance at the California festival.
Vedder performed a set that included a wide range of covers, among them R.E.M.’s Drive, Prince’s Purple Rain and The Pretenders’ Precious. Vedder’s daughter Olivia also made an appearance on My Father’s Daughter (which the duo recorded for the forthcoming Flag Day soundtrack), further enhancing the family atmosphere.
Perhaps most the most poignant choice though was a cover of King’s of Leon’s Molly’s Chambers, which was introduced in tribute to the Followills’ mother.
“Love you Caleb, love you Nathan, love You Matthew, love you Jared. Love you Betty-Ann”, said Vedder, before telling the audience, “We’re kind of making it up here tonight. I need you!”
In addition, the singer played a (more rehearsed) solo show on Saturday (September 25) and closed the event with a Pearl Jam set last night (September 26), making the impromptu show one of three headline sets that Vedder performed across the festival.
All of the songwriter's band, with the exception of Palladino have also worked on Vedder’s forthcoming solo album, Earthling, his first for 10 years.