Awake: The Best Of Live

Product description Live: Ed Kowalczyk (vocals); Patrick Dahlheimer, Chad Gracey, Chad Taylor . Personnel: Jerry Harrison, Michael Railton (keyboards). Additional personnel: Shelby Lynne (vocals); Jerry Harrison, Michael Railton. Audio Mixers: Jerry Harrison; David Vartanian; Tim Palmer; Tom Lord-Alge. Liner Note Author: Ed Kowalczyk. Photographers: David Sestak; Ross Halfin; Michael Wilson ; Eddie Malluk; Danny Clinch. This 19-track greatest-hits collection provides a satisfying overview of one of the most popular heavy-rock acts of the mid-1990s. In the post-grunge era, when “alternative” became a byword for sincere, hard-hitting music with a thunderous guitar attack, Live dominated the charts by blending alt-rock muscle with the brainy, melodic sensibility of bands like R.E.M. and U2. AWAKE represents the band’s best moments and, since it gives equal shrift to each of their six albums, serves as an economical career retrospective as well. “Operation Spirit (The Tyranny of Tradition)” and “Pain Lies on the Riverside,” from Live’s first album, MENTAL JEWELRY, kick off the set. Both are swirling, tense rock songs driven by a popping, near-funk bass line. THROWING COPPER, the group’s sophomore effort, is represented here by the mega-hits “Selling the Drama” (a contemplative rocker), the churning “I Alone,” and the forbidding ballad “Lightning Crashes.” Though Live’s later records didn’t match the commercial success of their first two, the orchestral drama of “Overcome,” the furious “Lakini’s Juice,” and even a moody cover of Johnny Cash’s “I Walk the Line” prove that the music didn’t diminish in quality, even as Live passed out of the mainstream spotlight. A winning collection, AWAKE testifies to Live’s conviction and power. About the Artist Ed Kowalczyk and his band mates guitarist Chad Taylor, bassist Patrick Dahlheimer, and drummer Chad Gracey, first performed together over 17 years ago at their middle school talent show in York, PA. Now at the tender age of 32, with over 20 million albums sold, LIVE continue to be a major musical force. Their success includes two #1 albums on the Billboard Top 200 album chart (Throwing Copper and Secret Samadhi).