Last night, Pearl Jam kicked off a two-night stand at Toronto’s Air Canada Center with a rousing performance that included a guest appearance from hometown hero Neil Young. Young, who is in Toronto to debut his Jonathan Demme film Neil Young Journeys at the Toronto International Film Festival, emerged during the second encore for a take on his own “Rockin’ in the Free World.” Pearl Jam regularly closes out their shows with the cover and has performed it alongside Young on numerous occasions. The first such collaboration took place at the MTV Music Awards in the Fall of ’92 when Young emerged for an extended take on “Rockin’ in the Free World.” Since then, the collaborations have continued through the years with Pearl Jam appearing on Young’s ’95 album Mirror Ball, and Young returning the favor on Pearl Jam’s Merkin Ball EP from the same session. Last October at Young’s Bridge School Benefit, Vedder joked that Pearl Jam would have only made it “five or six years if Uncle Neil hadn’t been looking after us.”

Pearl Jam returns to Toronto’s Air Canada Center tonight as part of a 10-date Canadian tour celebrating the band’s 20th anniversary.