What Eddie Vedder does when he can’t remember the lyrics to a song

The frontman of Pearl Jam, Eddie Vedder spoke about the difficulties he sometimes encounters in performing live, particularly the times when he forgets song lyrics during concerts. The sincere admission occurred during a chat at The Howard Stern Show.

Eddie Vedder he explained his experiences with memory lapses during live shows and the strategies he implements to manage these not always pleasant situations. “Many times, it happens to me… maybe it’s a song I haven’t played in a while. I have to sing it. The voice is about to come in and I can’t, I don’t know. I don’t know what the first verse is. And if you open your mouth, the first verse comes out. It’s a strange thing that happens most of the time.”

However, the 61-year-old American musician also described his backup plan when even when he opens his mouth the verse doesn’t come to him. “Every now and then, one out of ten times, it doesn’t come out. Then you have to look. At least the people in the front row usually know, so I can just walk up and ask them. But one of those people likes it. Two of them say ‘Oh’, three or four of them say ‘I feel like that’s unprofessional’.”