Pearl Jam drummer Matt Cameron missed the band's May 12 show in Oakland due to COVID-19, but Josh Klinghoffer and Richard Stuverud filled in.
‘s positive COVID-19 diagnosis didn’t stop the band from soldiering on Thursday night at the first of two shows at Oakland Arena, as touring member Josh Klinghoffer and longtime Jeff Ament collaborator Richard Stuverud filled in behind the kit throughout the set. It was Cameron’s first missed show since joining Pearl Jam 24 years ago this month.
Frontman Eddie Vedder saluted Cameron at the outset of the performance, telling the crowd, “even his superhero status could not prevent him from testing positive. Let’s let the shit hit the fan and hopefully it’s good shit!” Pearl Jam opened with a cover of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World” for what is believed to be the first time since it began playing the song in 1992.