By Carol Beggy & Mark Shanahan, Globe Staff | May 27, 2006
Some 17,000 people saw Theo Epstein join Pearl Jam at the TD Banknorth Garden, and windmill his way through a cover of Neil Young's ``Rockin' in the Free World." But barely 50 folks were at Toad a few hours later, when Epstein and Eddie Vedder strolled into the tiny Cambridge club and jammed with Bill Janovitz . The Buffalo Tom singer had invited the Sox GM to drop by with his superstar sidekick, and -- lo and behold -- he did. ``I really didn't think they'd make it out," said Janovitz, who's been friends with Epstein for a few years and first met Vedder when their respective bands played at Bunratty's back in '91. Theo happily joined Janovitz and the Gentlemen's Ed Valauskas on a version of "Taillights Fade" -- a Buffalo Tom tune that's apparently a favorite of Vedder's -- before the Pearl Jam singer agreed to grab the mike on `` Rockin' in the Free World," Young's ``Cortez the Killer," and ``It Makes No Difference" by the Band. ``It took a little arm-twisting to get him up there, but not much," said Janovitz. An invigorated Vedder described the after-hours affair as ``off the grid" because, he said, the stage is ``about the size of [Pearl Jam drummer] Matt Cameron's drum kit." Afterward, the group, which included Epstein's fiancee Marie Whitney, sat around a table, talking about books, music, and family. "Eddie and I traded pictures of our kids," said Janovitz. ``It was really a great night, a total blast."
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