The Smashing Pumpkins 2008-11-18

November 18, 2008 – Chicago, IL, US
Live performance by The Smashing Pumpkins
20th Anniversary tour
Date	November 18, 2008
Venue	Chicago Theatre
Coordinates	41°53′7″N 87°37′40″W
Location	Chicago, IL, US
Venue type	Theater
Capacity	3,600
Personnel	Billy Corgan, Jimmy Chamberlin, Jeff Schroeder, Ginger Pooley, Lisa Harriton, Kristopher Pooley, Gingger Shankar, Stephen Bradley, Gabrial McNair
Order of bands	The Smashing Pumpkins
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Black Sunshine tour date. Everybody buying combination tickets to both the Black Sunshine and the White Crosses concerts during the Smashing Pumpkins 20th Anniversary tour received a download for Bonus EP in February 2009. The download contained four live songs recorded during the tour.

Setlist

1. (Intro) (prerecorded)
2. "Roctopus" 
3. "Everybody Come Clap Your Hands" [The Searchers] 
4. "Tarantula" 
5. "G.L.O.W." 
6. "Kill Your Parents" 
   1. "Siva" [9:10] 
7. "Eye" 
8. "Mayonaise" 
9. "Tonight, Tonight" 
10. "Speed Kills" 
11. "Transformer" 
12. "Superchrist" 
13. "United States" [12:27] 
    1. "The Star-Spangled Banner" [Francis Scott Key] (tease) 
14. "Once Upon a Time" (acoustic) 
15. "Again, Again, Again (The Crux)" (acoustic) 
16. "The Rose March" (acoustic) 
17. "Today" 
18. "Bullet with Butterfly Wings" 
19. "The Beginning Is the End Is the Beginning" 
20. "Heavy Metal Machine" [10:37] 
    1. "White Rabbit" [Jefferson Airplane] (tease) 
    2. "White Horse" [Laid Back] (tease) 
21. "Glass' Theme" 
22. "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun" [Pink Floyd] [18:33] 

Encore

23. "We Only Come Out at Night" 
24. "Everything Is Beautiful" [Ray Stevens] (final performance)

Notes

• Crowd sings the entire first verse of "Today"

Banter

2008 Intro
Roctopus (Jimmy solo)
> Everybody Come Clap Your Hands
(BC as Jeff's solo begins: Rock and roll, people, this is rock and roll. Don't forget it.)
Tarantula
> G.L.O.W.
> Kill Your Parents
> Siva
Eye
Mayonaise
BC: Thank you, thank you.
> Tonight, Tonight
> Speed Kills
BC: Yes.
Transformer
Superchrist
> United States / Star Spangled Banner
BC: Thank you very much, thank you! Thank you. Well, you've survived the first part of the show, thank you very much for that. New York, they weren't sure about the first half of that show. Boston, little confused. You guys seem focused tonight, that's good, gotta keep your game up. How's everybody doing, you okay? Yes. That sounded like a crowd at the end of the Cubs season, it was sort of like "Ehh. Eh. Eh. Unh." Everybody doing alright? Yeah! Yeah. Blackhawks fans. They're comin’ back, Jeff, they're comin’ back strong after a thirteen year playoff absence or whatever the fuck it is at this point. Jeff is our resident hockey fan--how many years has it been for the ‘Hawks?
Guy in crowd: Too long.
BC: Too long, buddy, too long, heh.
Another guy in crowd: Let’s go, Bears!
BC: Somebody just yelled “Let's go, Bears,” that's a desperate man. Heh, if you still believe at this point, my friend, you're a desperate man. Yeah, exactly. Anyway, like to kick it down at this moment. Yes, kick it down. Slow--slow jams for you baby, right there, some slow jams. That's right, that's right, every night, slow jams for you, that's right. Heh heh. Chicago style right here. Now what is Chicago style, would you like to tell us? A girl who likes to have fun? Right, okay, number one. A guh--a girl with a good rear end, number two. That's right. Baby's got some back, we know it. Check it out! Check it out. Number three, standard issue Jennifer Aniston hair. Standard issue for a Chicago girl. No no no no no? You're working more the Angelina Jolie pre-Brad Pitt, what? What-what-what are we talking about here? Yes, god bless. See? We bore you and then we make you laugh, that's our gimmick right here. Like to introduce the band to you. Starting on my far left. Ms. Gingger Shankar. Yes. To my right, Stephen. Stephen of Oakland, that's his design label. A heh heh, heh. All the way from SoCal, Gabrial. Gettin' it done. To Gabe's left, Mr. Kristopher Pooley. To his left, his betrothed--is that a word?, yes--Mrs. Ginger Pooley. On the keys, Ms. Lisa Harriton. On the drums, Mr. Jimmy Chamberlin. What'd you ever do for Joliet? Hahaha, haha. Anybody from Joliet in the house? Yeah! Rockin' that...what is it, I-88, rockin' I-88? Listening to Boston? Exactly. Anyway, we'd like to kick it down.
Guy in crowd: Who are you?
BC: Who am I?, my name's Fred. Fred Durst, we're gettin' the Bizkit back together, hang in there.
Once Upon a Time (abandoned after 5 seconds)
BC: Oh, did I forget you?, ha ha ha! I didn't mean to! I didn't mean to. Ladies and gentlemen, an incredible guitar player. Now I'm gonna heap praise now. An unbelievable human being! Jeff "Shredder" Schroeder! Did I forget anybody else? Larry the gnome, Larry the gnome, Larry the gnome. I'd n-ahem.... I'd now like to sing a song about my deceased mother, but it's a song of hope. You'll understand.
Once Upon a Time (acoustic)
Again, Again, Again (acoustic)
Guy in crowd: More cowbell!
BC: Yeah, it's all good, it's all good. Get it all out of your system, it's okay. It's all good, get it all out, let it out. Now that we live in a democracy again, you can say whatever you want, you know? Let it ride, let it ride.
The Rose March (acoustic)
BC: Thank you very much, thank you. ... It's okay, it's okay, don't be afraid of the dark, it's okay. I like the dark better, go back to the dark. Yes, yes, let it all out, it's good, it's good therapy. Yes, 20 years of people yelling at me, believe me, I'm used to it, get it all out. That's right, get it all out, my friend, let it all out. I'm sorry uh, I'm sorry for you but what can I do? That's right, that's right, it seems so simple.
Guy in crowd: Go big or go home!
BC: That was a good one, "Go big or go home." I don't know if you see I'm dressed in a white dress, I don't really rock to the sports analogies when I'm on stage, if you know what I'm saying. Heh heh heh, you know what I'm saying?
Another guy in crowd: Thanks for coming!
BC: Thank you, thank you for coming, thank you. No, let's just, let's just enjoy the awkward moment, it's good, come on, enjoy it. Breathe it in! You don't get many anymore. You don't get any. Actually, you get some, but you don't get many. No, not many. Pre-programmed society...to serve you, awkward moments written out of the script. That's right, that's right. (inhales) Just breathe it in, (inhales), it's good, I love it! Love it. Yes. (crowd continues to shout things) Just let me know when you're done and we will pick back up the show. Just get it all out, come on! Just get it all out. How 'bout up there, you got anything to say, come on! Come on, there you go. Yes. Yes, there you go, see, it feels good to yell. Feels good. It's okay, I'm just a symbol, I'm not even here. I'm zero, zero, nothing, there's nobody. I'm not a human being, I didn't grow up here, I don't exist, I didn't write these songs, I'm not even here. It's amazing. It's a figment of your imagination. Heh heh heh heh, a heh heh heh. People! People! We're alive, right? We're alive, yes? Are you alive? Yes, you, are you alive?, this man's alive. That's what I wanna see, there we go.
Today
> Bullet with Butterfly Wings
BC: Get it?
The Beginning Is the End Is the Beginning
Heavy Metal Machine / White Rabbit / White Horse
> Glass' Theme
Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun
[encore break]
We Only Come Out at Night
> Everything Is Beautiful
BC: Ladies and gentlemen, that's the end of the show. Yes. Believe it or not, that's the end of the show. It went by so quick, didn't it? Just flew right by. Hahahaha. Ohhhh, you make me laugh. So we'd like to dedicate this song to you before we leave. It's from the bottom of our hearts. (singing) Everything is beautiful in its own way. Everyone is beautiful--(speaking) even you--(singing) in its own way. (speaking) You know, after 20 years I know I speak for Jimmy and I...Jimmy's over there.
Jimmy: That's me.
BC: After 20 years, it's been a bunch of fun, bunch of laughs, hasn't it?
Jimmy: It feels like...20 years.
BC: Hahahahahaha! Maybe like 19, but it's just flown by, hasn't it?
Jimmy: Yep, like one long summer.
BC: Just a path of rainbows.
Jimmy: Glittering rainbows, unicorns.
BC: And I know that when I look back in 20 more years, I'll think back to this night.
Jimmy: The next 20 years when we meet here again.
BC: Right.
Jimmy: When we play all our hit songs.
BC: In 20 years.
Jimmy: Right?
BC: In 20 years.
Jimmy: 'Cause we'll have even more of them.
BC: I hope so.
Jimmy: Oh, yeah.
BC: (singing) Everything is beautiful in its own way. Everyone is beautiful--(speaking) even you--in its own way.
Jimmy: Especially you.
BC: You know, when I go home tonight--yes, when I go home tonight--and I'm masturbating....
Jeff: (off mic) Yeah! Heh heh.
BC: Thinking of Sarah Palin.
Jimmy: Haha.
BC: Bent over that amp right there. Hahaha! And I just can't find the power to get off, you know, I just can't get there? Maybe it's the five kids, maybe it's Todd on the snow cycle?
Jimmy: Not for lack of trying.
BC: And I need that little extra boost, I'm gonna think about you to get me off, that's right. (singing) Everything is beautiful in its own way. (speaking) That's right. You know, for 20 years, we've tried to make people happy and failed again and again. It's so confusing!
Jimmy: We're so good at it.
BC: Is it that we don't play music? Do we not play music, is that what it is?
Jimmy: (off mic) It’s possible, it’s [unintelligible].
BC: Is it because I don't put a big smile on my face, what is it? Is it the funny voice, what is it? How come people just aren't happy with us, huh? Why? Why, Jimmy, why?!
Jimmy: Ask them!
BC: Why aren't you happy with us right now?
(crowd yelling)
Jimmy: Now do you know?
BC: Let me check one more time. Why are you upset with us? (more crowd yelling) Oh, I get it, I get it. It's 'cause we don't do what you want us to do, that's what it is, that’s what it is. That's what it is.
Jimmy: Wait. But that's why, that's why I thought they liked us.
BC: So which is it? Do you like us 'cause we do what we wanna do? (crowd cheers) Or do you not like us 'cause we don't do what you want us to do? That's kinda mixed, kinda mixed. What is it, what is it?
Guy in crowd: One more song!
BC: One more song? No, it's--believe me, if it took one more song, heh...if it took more one, heh.... (hits mic on head) If it took one more song to get you people off, believe me we'd do it. Believe me, we'd do it. But you know.... But you know.... Sometimes crowds remind me of ex-girlfriends. And you--you remind me of this one that took a lot of my money and didn't like me. And she told me she loved me but she wasn't really there for me, that's what this reminds me of. It's that kind of relationship, isn't it? Have you ever had one of those relationships, Stephen? "Hell yeah!" Heh heh, heh, no? No? You're in one now? Heh, long time ago, long time ago. Ladies and gentlemen, for 20 years, we haven't earned your...wait...wait, hold on, hold on, hold on. For 20 years we have not yet earned your trust, have we? Show of hands, who does not trust us after 20 years? Come on, be honest, be honest. This guy right there, he's not trustin' us, he's not trustin' us.
Guy from crowd: (off mic) I trusted you to come up at the best [unintelligible word]!
BC: Come on, you need the microphone, my friend, come here. This man needs the microphone.
Guy from crowd: I paid three hundred dollars for these seats, you’re the man!! We trust you, yeah!! StubHub rules!! I have 42 dollars to my name, you’re the man! Play it! I need to get down, 20 years, you’re the man, all the way until I was 10. Yeah!! You guys rule! Don’t ever stop playing, we love you, you gotta believe in yourself, baby!! You’re no zero!! I don’t care if you’re wearing a dress!! Go big or go home, welcome back, welcome to Chicago!! (chanting) Billy, Billy, Billy, Billy, Billy, Billy, Billy, yeah!! Chicago loves you!!
BC: Aw, heh, you might wanna check the record sales on that one. We don't see the eh--the evidence of that in our demographics if you know what I'm sayin'. Right? Sometimes you just gotta reach out. That's what we're tryin' to do right here, we're tryin' to reach out to you.
Guy from crowd: Come on Chicago, let’s hear you!!
BC: 21 years ago, I did not know this man. I do not know this man. 21 years later, I think I know you. Right? Hahaha! It doesn't go anywhere from here, you might as well head to your cars, now is a good time. Get that jump, get that jump in the parking garage. Ladies and gentlemen, what we're tryin’ to say to you, we're trying to say to you is.... If you'd like to say it, come on up 'cause I--I'm just tryin’ to finish this thing up. What we're tryin’ to say to you is...that we're happy to be back, number one. Number two, it's always an honor to play for you, so thank you for coming tonight, we do appreciate it. Number three, this doesn't speak to everyone, but many of you, we don't know what the fuck you want from us, okay, that's number three. Last I checked, we are in an alternative band, alternative means different than what everyone else is doing, including those reunion bands that go out and just play the old songs. So, for those of you we disappointed, we're sorry, we hope you give us another chance. For those of you that love us, we're gonna torch you for 20 more years at least. God bless.