Nate Rau, and Adam Tamburin

The Tennessean

Pearl Jam performed an exclusive show at Jack White's Third Man Records on Thursday evening and the show was apparently recorded directly to vinyl for a limited edition release.

Rumors swirled on social media and message boards that the band, which is one of the headliners for this year's Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival, planned to play at Third Man.

A tour bus was parked outside of Third Man - the record shop, performance venue and recording studio founded by the former White Stripes front man. A Third Man employee told The Tennessean that there is a private event there on Thursday night.

But, multiple sources confirmed the band will play at the small SoBro venue.

A security guard at Third Man said doors opened at 6 p.m. and the band was expected to start at 7 p.m. At about 8:30 p.m., the official Third Man Records' Twitter account thanked Pearl Jam. Soon after, the band tweeted out an eight-song set list.



A few dozen fans had lined up on the sidewalk in front of Third Man Records Thursday night. The group watched ticket holders go inside in hopes of getting a seat themselves.

Kris Hill came from Lebanon after reading about the show on Facebook. He said he saw Keith Urban go inside the record store before the show.

Hill and many others in the small group were resolute, staying in place even after they heard the muffled sounds of drums and guitars coming from the building.

"What else are you going to do on a Thursday after work," Cory Nowakowski said.

Adam Walz, who was in line nearby, agreed.

"Too many country fans downtown to go downtown," he replied.

Around 8, Walz said he would stay in line just in case the crowd of fans was invited inside. But he had a Plan B: He's planning to leave for Bonnaroo Friday and will catch Pearl Jam's show there this weekend.

Earlier on Thursday, Pearl Jam tweeted that its Bonnaroo poster would be on sale at Grimey's record shop. The band hinted at a "special bonus" for the first 25 "10 club" members who came to Grimey's.

Other than a few members of the Pearl Jam fan club and others who received invitations, the concert will be closed to the public.

Several members of the Pearl Jam fan club message board posted about the show and added that it will be recorded directly to acetate for a limited release.

Related Coverage

Reporter Holly Meyer contributed to this report.

Reach Nate Rau at 615-259-8094 and on Twitter @tnnaterau.