rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

York, Pennsylvania York ( Pennsylvania Dutch: ''Yarrick''), known as the White Rose City (after the symbol of the House of York), is the county seat of York County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located in the south-central region of the state. The populati ...

Ed Kowalczyk Edward Joel Kowalczyk (; born July 16, 1971)"Edward Kowalczyk IMDb entry"
''

(lead vocals, guitars),

Patrick Dahlheimer Patrick Michael "Pat" Dahlheimer (born May 30, 1971, in York, Pennsylvania) is the former bassist for Live and bassist for The Gracious Few. Live have sold over 20 million records, including the 8× platinum album ''Throwing Copper''.

(bass),

Chad Gracey Chad Alan Gracey (born July 23, 1971, in York, Pennsylvania, US) is the drummer for the bands Live and The Gracious Few. Live have sold over 20 million records, including the 8× platinum album ''Throwing Copper''.Chad Taylor (guitars). Kowalczyk is the only remaining member of this original lineup. The band started to gain attention following their single "Operation Spirit (The Tyranny of Tradition)", the video for which got regular airplay on MTV, and the moderate success of their second album, ''

Mental Jewelry ''Mental Jewelry'' is the second studio album by the band Live—but their first under this name; they had previously released the album ''The Death of a Dictionary'' under the name Public Affection, under which it also released the EP ''Divided ...

''. Their biggest success came in 1994 with their third album, ''

Throwing Copper ''Throwing Copper'' is the third studio album by American alternative rock band Live, released on April 26, 1994, on former MCA Records subsidiary Radioactive Records. It was produced by Jerry Harrison of Talking Heads and was recorded at Pach ...

'', which sold eight million copies in the U.S. The band had a string of hit singles in the mid-1990s, including " Lightning Crashes", which stayed at the top of the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

''

Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock is a music chart in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States, a category that combines the formats of active rock and heritage rock. The chart was launched in Ma ...

chart for ten consecutive weeks and the Modern Rock Tracks (now Alternative Songs) chart for nine weeks from February 25 to April 22, 1995. The band has sold over twenty million albums worldwide. When touring, Live has used additional musicians, including Ed Kowalczyk's younger brother

Adam Adam; el, Ἀδάμ, Adám; la, Adam is the name given in Genesis 1-5 to the first human. Beyond its use as the name of the first man, ''adam'' is also used in the Bible as a pronoun, individually as "a human" and in a collective sense as " ...

, British keyboardist Michael "Railo" Railton, rhythm guitarist Christopher Thorn of

Blind Melon Blind Melon is an American rock band formed in 1990 in Los Angeles by five musicians: three from Mississippi, one from Pennsylvania and one from Indiana. The band currently consists of guitarists Rogers Stevens and Christopher Thorn, drummer G ...

, and guitarist Zak Loy of

Alpha Rev Alpha Rev is an American alternative rock band from Austin, Texas, fronted by Casey McPherson (formerly of Endochine). McPherson remains the group's only consistent member, although historically the core members have also included Zak Loy on lead ...

. In 2009, Ed Kowalczyk left the band; he was replaced by singer

Chris Shinn Chris Shinn (born August 1, 1974) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. From March 2012 to December 2016, he was the lead singer of the band Live. He was previously the lead singer of the band Unified Theory. He is the son of former ...

and the band released the album '' The Turn'' in October 2014. Kowalczyk rejoined Live in December 2016 and in 2018, they released a new EP, ''Local 717''. Kowalczyk fired Taylor in June 2022 after taking majority control of the band. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' reported that Gracey and Dahlheimer have since been let go as well. Kowalczyk began touring with other musicians as Live in October 2022.

History

Early history, ''The Death of a Dictionary'', and ''Mental Jewelry'': 1984–1992

Live started in the early 1980s under the name First Aid, as a trio of Taylor, Dahlheimer, and Gracey. Kowalczyk joined in 1984, when the group lost a talent show. They went through various different names, including Action Front, Paisley Blues, and Club Fungus, before settling on Public Affection in January 1987. Gracey picked the name based on a comment by his girlfriend at the time. When the band graduated from high school, they recorded a self-released

cassette Cassette may refer to: Technology * Cassette tape (or ''musicassette'', ''audio cassette'', ''cassette tape'', or ''tape''), a worldwide standard for analog audio recording and playback ** Cassette single (or "Cassingle"), a music single in the ...

of original songs, titled ''

The Death of a Dictionary ''The Death of a Dictionary'' is the debut album by alternative rock band Public Affection. An EP titled ''Divided Mind, Divided Planet'' followed before the band changed their name to Live. History The album was released in June 1989, when the ...

'', in 1989. In 1990, they released an EP of demos produced by Jay Healy, titled ''Divided Mind, Divided Planet'', via their "Black Coffee" mailing list. They played regular concerts at

CBGB CBGB was a New York City music club opened in 1973 by Hilly Kristal in Manhattan's East Village. The club was previously a biker bar and before that was a dive bar. The letters ''CBGB'' were for '' Country'', '' BlueGrass'', and '' Blues'', Kri ...

in New York City, which helped earn them a contract with

Radioactive Records Radioactive Records was an American record label. It was formed as a joint venture between talent manager Gary Kurfirst (who managed such acts as the Ramones, Big Audio Dynamite, Deee-Lite and Deborah Harry) and MCA Records, and it is now out of ...

in 1991. In June that year, the band changed its name to Live. Under the new name, the band entered the studio with producer

Jerry Harrison Jeremiah Griffin Harrison (born February 21, 1949) is an American songwriter, musician, producer, and entrepreneur. He began his professional music career as a member of the cult band the Modern Lovers before becoming keyboardist and guitarist ...

(of

Talking Heads Talking Heads were an American rock band formed in 1975 in New York City and active until 1991.Talkin ...

) and recorded the EP '' Four Songs''. The single "Operation Spirit (The Tyranny of Tradition)" went to number nine on the

Modern Rock Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960s–1980s rock music. Radio format Mod ...

chart and was followed by their debut album, 1991's ''

Mental Jewelry ''Mental Jewelry'' is the second studio album by the band Live—but their first under this name; they had previously released the album ''The Death of a Dictionary'' under the name Public Affection, under which it also released the EP ''Divided ...

'', which Harrison again produced. Pat Dalheimer said, "So important to have somebody else in the room to help us, especially with arrangements. I mean, we were still learning how to write songs...Jerry just seemed to know everything...this guy's a wizard!" Some of the album's lyrics, written by Kowalczyk, were inspired by Indian philosopher and writer

Jiddu Krishnamurti Jiddu Krishnamurti (; 11 May 1895 – 17 February 1986) was a philosopher, speaker and writer. In his early life, he was groomed to be the new World Teacher, an advanced spiritual position in the theosophical tradition, but later rejected thi ...

.

''Throwing Copper'' and mainstream success: 1993–1996

After appearances on the

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

''

120 Minutes ''120 Minutes'' is a television program in the United States dedicated to the alternative music genre, that originally aired on MTV from 1986 to 2000, and then aired on MTV's associate channel MTV2 from 2001 to 2003. After its cancellation, MTV ...

'' tour, at

Woodstock '94 Woodstock '94 was an American music festival held in 1994 to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the original Woodstock festival of 1969. It was promoted as "2 More Days of Peace and Music". The poster used to promote the first concert was r ...

, and on

Peter Gabriel Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...

's

WOMAD WOMAD ( ; World of Music, Arts and Dance) is an international arts festival. The central aim of WOMAD is to celebrate the world's many forms of music, arts and dance. History WOMAD was founded in 1980 by English rock musician Peter Gabriel, ...

tour, Live's second album, ''

Throwing Copper ''Throwing Copper'' is the third studio album by American alternative rock band Live, released on April 26, 1994, on former MCA Records subsidiary Radioactive Records. It was produced by Jerry Harrison of Talking Heads and was recorded at Pach ...

'', achieved mainstream success. The record featured the singles "

I Alone "I Alone" is the second single from Live (band), Live's album, ''Throwing Copper''. The single was released to radio stations in Canada and the United States, but was only released commercially overseas. It reached No. 6 on the ''Billboard (magaz ...

", " All Over You", and the number-one US Modern Rock hits "

Selling the Drama "Selling the Drama" is the first single from Live's 1994 album, ''Throwing Copper''. It reached number one on the US ''Billboard'' Modern Rock Tracks chart, becoming their first of three singles to reach the top of this chart. The song also rea ...

" and " Lightning Crashes". "Lightning Crashes" also stayed at the top of the ''Billboard''

Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock is a music chart in ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States, a category that combines the formats of active rock and heritage rock. The chart was launched in Ma ...

chart for ten consecutive weeks. The band appeared on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

's ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

'', where they played "I Alone" and "Selling the Drama", and they performed for the first time in the UK, on '' The Word''. The success of these singles eventually gained ''Throwing Copper'' the number one position on the ''Billboard'' 200 album chart on May 6, 1995, its 52nd week on the chart. It was the third longest gap between an album first charting and reaching number one, behind

Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac are a British-American rock band, formed in London in 1967. Fleetwood Mac were founded by guitarist Peter Green, drummer Mick Fleetwood and guitarist Jeremy Spencer, before bassist John McVie joined the line-up for their epony ...

's eponymous album in 1976 (58 weeks) and

Paula Abdul Paula Julie Abdul (born June 19, 1962) is an American singer, dancer, choreographer, actress, and television personality. She began her career as a cheerleader for the Los Angeles Lakers at the age of 18 and later became the head choreograph ...

's ''

Forever Your Girl ''Forever Your Girl'' is the debut studio album by American singer Paula Abdul. It was released on June 21, 1988, through Virgin Records. The album was Abdul's breakthrough into the music industry after being a choreographer for high-profile art ...

'' in 1989 (64 weeks). It is Live's best-selling album to date, having sold eight million copies in the US alone.

''Secret Samadhi'' and ''The Distance to Here'': 1997–2000

The success of ''Throwing Copper'' helped 1997's '' Secret Samadhi'' (co-produced by the band and Jay Healy) to reach the number one position in its debut on the US album chart. It took its name from

Samadhi ''Samadhi'' (Pali and sa, समाधि), in Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism and yogic schools, is a state of meditative consciousness. In Buddhism, it is the last of the eight elements of the Noble Eightfold Path. In the Ashtanga Yoga ...

, a state of

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

meditation. The album contained four Modern Rock hit singles, but failed to match its predecessor's success, with sales reaching two million. The band performed "

Lakini's Juice "Lakini's Juice" is a song by alternative rock group Live, which was released as the first single from their 1997 album, '' Secret Samadhi''. The song opens with abrasive staccato guitar and features an orchestra towards the end. There is a const ...

" and "Heropsychodreamer" from the album on ''Saturday Night Live''. Jerry Harrison returned as co-producer for 1999's ''

The Distance to Here ''The Distance to Here'' is the fifth studio album by the band Live, released in 1999. It debuted at #4 on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 138,000 copies in its first week and was certified Platinum by the RIAA on November 19, 1999.

'', which entered the US album chart at number four and featured the hit single "

The Dolphin's Cry "The Dolphin's Cry" is a song by American alternative rock band Live, released on August 24, 1999, as the lead single from their fourth studio album, ''The Distance to Here''. The song was co-produced by Jerry Harrison of Talking Heads, and featu ...

". In 2000, Live embarked on a co-headlining tour with

Counting Crows Counting Crows is an American rock band from San Francisco, California. Formed in 1991, the band consists of guitarist David Bryson, drummer Jim Bogios, vocalist Adam Duritz, keyboardist Charlie Gillingham, David Immerglück, bass guitarist Mil ...

. On that tour, Counting Crows' lead singer,

Adam Duritz Adam Fredric Duritz (born August 1, 1964) is an American singer, best known as the frontman for the rock band Counting Crows, of which he is a founding member and principal composer. Since its founding in 1991, Counting Crows has sold over 20 mi ...

, often joined Live for their performance of "The Dolphin's Cry", while Kowalczyk sang a verse of "

Hanginaround "Hanginaround" is a song by American rock band Counting Crows. It is the first track on their third album, '' This Desert Life'' (1999). Released on October 18, 1999, the song reached number 28 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, becoming their big ...

" with Counting Crows.

''V'', ''Birds of Pray'', and ''Awake: The Best of Live'': 2001–2004

On September 18, 2001, the experimental '' V'' (originally to be called ''Ecstatic Fanatic'') was released to mixed reviews. The first single was "

Simple Creed "Simple Creed" is a song by alternative rock group Live (band), Live, which was released as the first single from their 2001 album, ''V (Live album), V''. It features vocals by English rapper Tricky (musician), Tricky. Chart performance The song ...

", which featured a rap by Tricky, but the events of

9/11 The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial ...

, which occurred a week before ''V'' was released, meant that the melancholic " Overcome" received significant airplay and became the album's selling point. ''V'' reached number 22 in the US. Also in 2001, Live contributed a live version of the song "I Alone" to the charity album '' Live in the X Lounge IV''. In May 2003, the band released the Jim Wirt-produced ''

Birds of Pray ''Birds of Pray'' is the seventh studio album by Live (band), Live, released in 2003. The first single, "Heaven" became the band's most successful single in several years, reaching number 59 on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100. ''Bir ...

'', which reached number 28 on the US album chart, boosted by the unexpected success of the single "

Heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...

", Live's first U.S. Hot 100 hit single since "The Dolphin's Cry". In November 2004, Live released a

greatest hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

compilation, '' Awake: The Best of Live''. ''Awake'' included " We Deal in Dreams", a previously unreleased song from the ''Throwing Copper'' sessions, a

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

of

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later stages of his ca ...

's "

I Walk the Line "I Walk the Line" is a song written and recorded in 1956 by Johnny Cash. After three attempts with moderate chart ratings, it became Cash's first #1 hit on the Billboard charts, ''Billboard'' charts, eventually reaching #17 on the US pop charts. ...

", and a new version of their song "

Run Away Runaway, Runaways or Run Away may refer to: Engineering * Runaway reaction, a chemical reaction releasing more heat than what can be removed and becoming uncontrollable * Thermal runaway, self-increase of the reaction rate of an exothermic proce ...

", with

Shelby Lynne Shelby Lynne (born Shelby Lynn Moorer, October 22, 1968) is an American singer and songwriter and the older sister of singer-songwriter Allison Moorer. The success of her pop rock album '' I Am Shelby Lynne'' (1999) led to her winning the Grammy ...

sharing lead vocals with Kowalczyk. A deluxe version of the album included a DVD with 22 music videos and an interview with Kowalczyk.

''Songs from Black Mountain'', ''Radiant Sea'', and live DVD: 2005–2008

In 2005, Live signed to

Sony BMG Music Entertainment Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout o ...

's

Epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film with heroic elements Epic or EPIC may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and medi ...

label. They released the album '' Songs from Black Mountain'' in June 2006. The record peaked at number 52 on the ''Billboard'' 200 album chart, and reached number three on the ''Billboard'' Independent album chart. The first single was " The River". Tgfchadgface

On season five of ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...

'', finalist

Chris Daughtry Christopher Adam Daughtry (; born December 26, 1979) is an American singer, musician, and actor. He is the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist for the rock band Daughtry, which he formed after placing fourth on the fifth season of ''American I ...

was accused of performing Live's version of Johnny Cash's "

I Walk the Line "I Walk the Line" is a song written and recorded in 1956 by Johnny Cash. After three attempts with moderate chart ratings, it became Cash's first #1 hit on the Billboard charts, ''Billboard'' charts, eventually reaching #17 on the US pop charts. ...

" and claiming it as his own interpretation. A week later, Daughtry acknowledged this was true and said that Live was one of his favorite bands. In May 2006, Live appeared on ''

The Howard Stern Show ''The Howard Stern Show'' is an American radio show hosted by Howard Stern that gained wide recognition when it was nationally syndicated on terrestrial radio from WXRK in New York City, between 1986 and 2005. The show has aired on Howard 100 a ...

'' to address this issue. On August 2, 2008, Daughtry and Live performed the band's interpretation of "I Walk the Line" together at the

Toms River Fest Toms River Fest was a major festival event held at the campus of Toms River High School North in Toms River Township, New Jersey, during the summers of 2005, 2006 and 2008. It was selected by the American Bus Association as one of the Top 100 Even ...

in

Toms River, New Jersey Toms River is a township in Ocean County, New Jersey, United States. Its mainland portion is also a census-designated place of the same name, which serves as the county seat of Ocean County. On September 14, 2007, Live released '' Radiant Sea: A Collection of Bootleg Rarities and Two New Songs'', their first album since 1989 on their own Action Front Records label. The new songs were "Beautiful Invisible" and "Radiant Sea". Live recorded their first concert DVD in the Netherlands during two shows at the Paradiso on June 30 and July 1, 2008. ''

Live at the Paradiso – Amsterdam ''Live at the Paradiso – Amsterdam'' is Live's first live concert album and DVD. History The DVD and CD were recorded over two nights at the Paradiso in Amsterdam. Two studio recordings, "Forever" and "Purifier" are included on the alb ...

'' was released on November 11, 2008, on DVD and CD. Also in 2008, the band headlined a US tour that also featured

Blues Traveler Blues Traveler (formerly known as "The Establishment" or "The Black Cat Jam" or "The Establishment Blues Band") is an American rock band that formed in Princeton, New Jersey in 1987. They are known for extensive use of segues in live performance ...

and

Collective Soul Collective Soul is an American rock band originally from Stockbridge, Georgia. Now based in Atlanta, the group consists of lead vocalist Ed Roland, rhythm guitarist Dean Roland, bassist Will Turpin, drummer Johnny Rabb, and lead guitarist Jes ...

. An unreleased Live song, "Hold Me Up", features in the 2008

Kevin Smith Kevin Patrick Smith (born August 2, 1970) is an American filmmaker, actor, comedian, comic book writer, author, YouTuber, and podcaster. He came to prominence with the low-budget comedy buddy film ''Clerks'' (1994), which he wrote, directed, co ...

film ''

Zack and Miri Make a Porno ''Zack and Miri Make a Porno'' (also known simply as ''Zack and Miri'') is a 2008 American sex comedy film written, directed and edited by Kevin Smith and starring Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks. It was released on October 31, 2008. Plot Zack B ...

''. Smith said, "I first heard (the song) in '95 when we were putting together the ''

Mallrats ''Mallrats'' is a 1995 American buddy comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith and starring Jason Lee, Jeremy London, Shannen Doherty, Claire Forlani, Ben Affleck, Jason Mewes, Joey Lauren Adams, Michael Rooker, and Smith as Silent Bob. ...

'' soundtrack. It was actually in the film for the first test screening, but Live decided they wanted to hold onto it as a potential single off their next album ... When I was editing ''

Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back ''Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back'' is a 2001 American satirical stoner buddy comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith, the fifth to be set in his View Askewniverse, a growing collection of characters and settings that developed out of hi ...

'' ... I put in a request for it...again, I was denied. Third time, apparently, was the charm. Needed a song for that sequence in ''Zack and Miri'' and remembered the Live track. This time, the band signed off on us using the track. Took 13 years, but was worth the wait!" In spite of Smith's endorsement, the song does not appear on the movie's soundtrack album.

Kowalczyk's departure and The Gracious Few: 2009–2011

After a concert in July 2009, Live announced that the band would take a two-year hiatus to work on other projects. Kowalczyk recorded his solo album ''

Alive Alive may refer to: *Life Books, comics and periodicals * ''Alive'' (novel), a 2015 novel by Scott Sigler * '' Alive: The Final Evolution'', a 2003 shonen manga by Tadashi Kawashima and Adachitoka * '' Alive: The Story of the Andes Survivors'', ...

'', and the other band members formed a group with Kevin Martin and

Sean Hennesy Sean Robert Hennesy is a guitarist for the bands Candlebox,"Band"
''candleboxrocks.com''

of

Candlebox Candlebox is an American rock band from Seattle, Washington. Since its formation in 1990, the group has released seven studio albums, several charting singles, a compilation, and a CD+DVD. Candlebox found immediate success with the release of ...

, called

The Gracious Few The Gracious Few (also known as TGF) were an American rock group from York, Pennsylvania. The band featured guitarist Chad Taylor, bassist Patrick Dahlheimer and drummer Chad Gracey from the band Live, along with lead vocalist Kevin Martin a ...

. That band proceeded to record a self-titled debut album in California for release in September 2010. On November 30, 2009, Taylor revealed that the "hiatus" could become a permanent split.Chad
"Live Breakup Imminent?"
''

Alternative Addiction Alternative Addiction was an American daily Internet publication devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus was on Alternative rock. It was in operation from 1999 to 2020. History The website was origin ...

'' – December 1, 2009. The other members of Live accused Kowalczyk of unreasonable demands in contract and salary negotiations.

Chris Shinn era and ''The Turn'': 2012–2016

On June 8, 2011, Taylor revealed that he, Dahlheimer, and Gracey would restart the band without Kowalczyk. He made no mention of any new lead singer, but said, "We'll have to begin addressing the hole left by our singer's departure". He added that, "I need to feel Live once again without the constraints that were placed on it over the last few years. Chad

racey Racey are a British pop group, formed in 1976 in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, England, by Clive Wilson and Phil Fursdon. They achieved success in the late 1970s and early 1980s, with hits such as "Lay Your Love on Me" and "Some Girls". Thei ...

Patrick, and I invested most of our lives to writing, recording, and performing the songs of Live. We deserve a chance to reconnect with the fans to say goodbye to the old era and hello to the new.""Exclusive Blog: Chad Taylor talks The Gracious Few and Live"
''The Comet'' – June 8, 2011 Kowalczyk disapproved of their decision. He complained that "they obfuscate that it's not the real band. They don't say that it's not the original lineup. They just kind of go out and surprise people, and it's really sort of lame"."Ed Kowalczyk Opens Up About His Ugly Split With Live"
– November 20, 2013 On January 24, 2012, Taylor, Dahlheimer, and Gracey announced that they were leading members in a project to renovate a four-story building at 210 York Street in

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

. The building housed a technology company, creating sixty new jobs. It also included a brand new recording studio. Live returned from their nearly three-year hiatus on March 12, 2012, with

Chris Shinn Chris Shinn (born August 1, 1974) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. From March 2012 to December 2016, he was the lead singer of the band Live. He was previously the lead singer of the band Unified Theory. He is the son of former ...

, formerly of

Unified Theory In physics, a unified field theory (UFT) is a type of field theory that allows all that is usually thought of as fundamental forces and elementary particles to be written in terms of a pair of physical and virtual fields. According to the modern ...

, as their new lead singer. The new lineup performed before an invited audience at the Strand-Capitol Performing Arts Center in

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

. They performed with new touring members, including Gracious Few bandmate Sean Hennesy on rhythm guitar and Alexander Lefever on keyboards.McCracken, Eri
"Live's new lead singer is Chris Shinn, formerly of Unified Theory"
''

York Daily Record The ''York Daily Record'' is a newspaper and news publisher serving York, Pennsylvania, United States, and the surrounding region. Its news publications are the ''York Daily Record'' and ''York Sunday News''. The newspaper's circulation is 37,32 ...

'' – March 12, 2012 In July 2012, Live commenced more legal proceedings against Kowalczyk for misuse of the band's name while promoting his live performances. Live's first major tour with Shinn was as part of the Summerland Tour 2013, playing 35 shows across the US. Other featured bands were Everclear,

Filter Filter, filtering or filters may refer to: Science and technology Computing * Filter (higher-order function), in functional programming * Filter (software), a computer program to process a data stream * Filter (video), a software component tha ...

, and

Sponge Sponges, the members of the phylum Porifera (; meaning 'pore bearer'), are a basal animal clade as a sister of the diploblasts. They are multicellular organisms that have bodies full of pores and channels allowing water to circulate through t ...

. Live's first album to feature Shinn, '' The Turn'', was released on October 28, 2014.Childers, Cha
"Live Make The Turn With New Vocalist Chris Shinn"
''

Loudwire ''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August of 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive ...

'' – August 28, 2014 The record's first single, "The Way Around Is Through", was uploaded to YouTube on September 10, 2014, and officially released on September 16. During 2014–2015, Kowalczyk embarked on a worldwide tour, playing acoustic "unplugged" shows celebrating the twentieth anniversary of the release of ''Throwing Copper''. Zak Loy accompanied Kowalczyk on this tour, playing guitar, mandolin, pedal steel, and singing backing vocals.

Kowalczyk's return and Taylor's firing: 2016–present

On October 24, 2016, Chad Taylor and Ed Kowalczyk, along with singer Zoe LaBelle, took part in an interview for

WVYC WVYC is a campus radio, college radio station licensed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to serve the community of York, Pennsylvania, United States. The station broadcasts from the Robert V. Iosue Student Union Building on the campu ...

. Although the primary reason for the interview was to promote new music by LaBelle that Taylor had worked on, it marked the first time that the two former bandmates had publicly appeared together since 2009. Fueling speculation over a possible reunion, the Live Facebook page returned on November 16, 2016, with an early picture of the band's original lineup and a new logo. On the same day, Ed Kowalczyk's Facebook page was also updated with a new profile picture and cover photo, both displaying the same logo from the band's page. Despite the changes on Facebook, Live's website remained black until December 9, when a countdown was posted suggesting new information would be released on December 12. Later that day, Live's Twitter and Facebook pages announced that the band's original lineup had reunited with tour dates in 2017. In autumn 2018, they released the singles "Love Lounge" and "Be a Giver, Man". On October 12, they released their new EP, ''Local 717''. On June 21, 2022, Kowalczyk announced that Chad Taylor had been fired from the band the day before. Gracey also posted about the band's internal issues, emphasizing that Kowalczyk "is not the problem". In September 2022, Kowalczyk announced that he would be touring as Live without Dahlheimer or Gracey. In a November 2022 interview with ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' magazine, former lead singer Chris Shinn confirmed that Dahlheimer and Gracey had been fired by Kowalczyk. This leaves Kowalczyk as the only original member left in the band. In November 2022, it was reported that Gracey filed a lawsuit against Taylor and Dahlheimer as managers of their company, ThinkLoud. Gracey cited counts of breach of fiduciary duty and breach of contract.

Band members

;Current members *

Ed Kowalczyk Edward Joel Kowalczyk (; born July 16, 1971)"Edward Kowalczyk IMDb entry"
''

– lead vocals, rhythm guitar (1989–2009, 2016–present) * Zak Loy – lead guitar, backing vocals (2022–present; 2016–2022 touring) * Robin Diaz – drums (2022–present, 2017–2019 touring) * Chris Heerlein – bass (2022–present) ;Former members *

Chris Shinn Chris Shinn (born August 1, 1974) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. From March 2012 to December 2016, he was the lead singer of the band Live. He was previously the lead singer of the band Unified Theory. He is the son of former ...

– lead vocals, rhythm guitar (2012–2016) * Chad Taylor – lead guitar, backing vocals (1989–2009, 2012–2022) *

Patrick Dahlheimer Patrick Michael "Pat" Dahlheimer (born May 30, 1971, in York, Pennsylvania) is the former bassist for Live and bassist for The Gracious Few. Live have sold over 20 million records, including the 8× platinum album ''Throwing Copper''.

– bass (1989–2009, 2012–2022) *

Chad Gracey Chad Alan Gracey (born July 23, 1971, in York, Pennsylvania, US) is the drummer for the bands Live and The Gracious Few. Live have sold over 20 million records, including the 8× platinum album ''Throwing Copper''.Adam Kowalczyk Adam E. Kowalczyk (born September 27, 1975) is an American musician. He is the brother of Ed Kowalczyk, lead singer of the band Live. Biography Kowalczyk was born in York, Pennsylvania to a family of Polish descent. He began learning the guit ...

– rhythm guitar, backing vocals (1999–2009) * Michael "Railo" Railton – keyboards (1999–2002 & 2008) *

Sean Hennesy Sean Robert Hennesy is a guitarist for the bands Candlebox,"Band"
''candleboxrocks.com''

– rhythm guitar (2012) * Alexander Lefever – keyboards (2012) * Clint Simmons – percussion (2019–2022) ;Timeline

Discography

* ''

The Death of a Dictionary ''The Death of a Dictionary'' is the debut album by alternative rock band Public Affection. An EP titled ''Divided Mind, Divided Planet'' followed before the band changed their name to Live. History The album was released in June 1989, when the ...

'' (1989, as Public Affection) * ''

Mental Jewelry ''Mental Jewelry'' is the second studio album by the band Live—but their first under this name; they had previously released the album ''The Death of a Dictionary'' under the name Public Affection, under which it also released the EP ''Divided ...

'' (1991) * ''

Throwing Copper ''Throwing Copper'' is the third studio album by American alternative rock band Live, released on April 26, 1994, on former MCA Records subsidiary Radioactive Records. It was produced by Jerry Harrison of Talking Heads and was recorded at Pach ...

'' (1994) * '' Secret Samadhi'' (1997) * ''

The Distance to Here ''The Distance to Here'' is the fifth studio album by the band Live, released in 1999. It debuted at #4 on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 138,000 copies in its first week and was certified Platinum by the RIAA on November 19, 1999.

'' (1999) * '' V'' (2001) * ''

Birds of Pray ''Birds of Pray'' is the seventh studio album by Live (band), Live, released in 2003. The first single, "Heaven" became the band's most successful single in several years, reaching number 59 on the Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100. ''Bir ...

'' (2003) * '' Songs from Black Mountain'' (2006) * '' The Turn'' (2014)

References

External links

*
YouTube
{{DEFAULTSORT:Live 1984 establishments in Pennsylvania 2009 disestablishments in Pennsylvania 2011 establishments in Pennsylvania Alternative rock groups from Pennsylvania American post-grunge musical groups Epic Records artists Hard rock musical groups from Pennsylvania Musical groups established in 1984 Musical groups disestablished in 2009 Musical groups reestablished in 2011 Musical groups from Pennsylvania Musical quartets Musicians from York, Pennsylvania Sony BMG artists Vanguard Records artists York, Pennsylvania

History

Early history, ''The Death of a Dictionary'', and ''Mental Jewelry'': 1984–1992

''Throwing Copper'' and mainstream success: 1993–1996

''Secret Samadhi'' and ''The Distance to Here'': 1997–2000

''V'', ''Birds of Pray'', and ''Awake: The Best of Live'': 2001–2004

''Songs from Black Mountain'', ''Radiant Sea'', and live DVD: 2005–2008

Kowalczyk's departure and The Gracious Few: 2009–2011

Chris Shinn era and ''The Turn'': 2012–2016

Kowalczyk's return and Taylor's firing: 2016–present

Band members

Discography

See also

References

External links