Live Throwing Copper hit #1

Throwing Copper Live

Released: April 19, 1994 Peak: 14 US, 37 UK, 15 CN, 17 AU, 13 DF Sales (in millions): 8.0 US, 0.1 UK, 12.0 world (includes US and UK) Genre: alternative rock

Tracks: Song Title (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to charts. The Dam at Otter Creek (19 DF) Selling the Drama (2/94, 43 BB, 42 BA, 34 CB, 29 GR, 30 RR, 4 AR, 1 MR, 30 UK, 41 CN, 49 AU, 6 DF) I Alone (8/22/94, 38 BA, 59 CB, 6 AR, 6 MR, 48 UK, 97 AU, 13 DF) Iris Lightning Crashes (9/24/94, 12 BA, 8 GR, 7 RR, 1 AR, 1 MR, 33 UK, 3 CN, 13 AU, 1 DF) Top (34 DF) All Over You (5/6/95, 33 BA, 2 AR, 4 MR, 48 UK, 18 CN, 52 AU, 27 DF) Shit Towne (19 DF) T.B.D. Stage Waitress (11 DF) Pillar of Davidson White, Discussion (7/29/95, 71 BA, 12 AR, 15 MR, 11 DF) Horse (“aka I Don’t Care”) [unlisted track] (4 DF) Total Running Time: 59:32 The Players: Ed Kowalczyk (vocals, rhythm guitar) Chad Taylor (guitar, backing vocals) Patric Dalheimer (bass) Chad Gracey (drums, backing vocals)

Rating: 4.299 out of 5.00 (average of 21 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album When it comes to rock in the 1990s, the brunt of the attention is focused on grunge but it was an active decade for plenty of bands that straddled the line between alternative and mainstream rock. Live was one of those bands. They formed in 1984 in York, Pennsylvania and first released The Death of a Dictionary in 1989 under the name Public Affection. In 1991, at the height of grunge, the band released their sophomore effort and major label debut, Mental Jewelry. The album garnered some attention with the top-ten alternative rock hit “Operation Spirit” but it was barely a hint of what the band would become. On their sophomore outing, Throwing Copper, Live “eased up a bit on the Eastern philosophy,” AM “tightened their sound, added crashing crescendos for dramatic effect, and injected some anger into their sound and songwriting.” AM “Ed Kowalczyk knows a thing or two about transmitting personal anguish through song. Even though the Live frontman is often derided as a budget-bin Michael Stipe, there is no denying his cathartic influence on this Pennsylvania foursome’s musical direction.” AZ This proves to be “the best showcase for Kowalczyk’s fierce vocal prowess,” AZ making for “an album of unparalleled intensity by a singer and group of rare passion.” AZ The result is “quite an improvement from the sometimes overly precious Mental Jewelry.” AM Throwing Copper “is a more cohesive, memorable record overall” AM and “ultimately a more passionate and successful album.” AM In fact, the album met with surpisingly strong commercial success. With their debut, Live was just another face in the crowd of alternative rock bands. With Copper, they jump to the head of the pack on the strength of massive airplay for songs like “the violent Selling the Drama” AZ, I Alone, and All Over You. The album’s biggest hit, though, was “the rebirth-themed Lightning Crashes,” AM a “moving” AZ tribute “written in memory of Barbara Lewis, a classmate who was killed by a drunk driver in 1993.” AM The song helped send the band into the stratosphere. The album would reach #1 over a year after its release and go on to sell more than 12 million copies worldwide. Four songs from the album reached the top-ten on the alternative and mainstream rock charts. “Other standouts include the Kurt Cobain/ Courtney Love-inspired Stage, the apocalyptic White, Discussion, the bass-driven, obsessive Iris, and the dark Dam at Otter Creek. Of course, Ed Kowalczyk couldn’t resist throwing in a song like T.B.D. (for the Tibetan Book of the Dead), based on Aldous Huxley’s slow descent into death, aided by heroin. Its melodrama is a bit much, even for Live, and is just a sign of things to come on their next album, Secret Samadhi. But Throwing Copper is still a huge improvement from Mental Jewelry, and is the least overtly preachy Live album to date.” AM The album was produced by Jerry Harrison of Talking Heads and was recorded at Pachyderm Recording Studio. The cover art is a painting by Scottish artist Peter Howson titled “Sisters of Mercy.” WK Notes: A special edition of the album included a bonus live disc, including “Operation Spirit,” “Good Spirit,” “Heaven Wore a Shirt,” and “Negation.”

Resources: AM AllMusic.com review by Gina Boldman AZ Amazon.com review by Aidin Vaziri WK Wikipedia Related DMDB Links: First posted 7/16/2010; last updated 11/27/2024.

Live “Lighting Crashes" charted

Lightning Crashes Live

Writer(s): Live (see lyrics here) Released: February 24, 1995 First Charted: January 28, 1995 Peak: 12a US, 7 RR, 110 AR, 19 MR, 33 UK, 3 CN, 13 AU, 1 DF (Click for codes to singles charts.) Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 82.26 video, 151.55 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: The rock band Live formed in York, Pennyslvania in 1984. They didn’t release their first album, Mental Jewelry, in 1991. The album produced three singles; “Operation Spirit” was a top-10 hit on the modern rock charts. Still, the album stalled at #73. However, the follow-up, 1994’s Throwing Copper, proved a massive success selling 8 million copies and topping the Billboard album chart. Four songs from the album reached the top 10 on the modern rock chart, including the #1 hits “Selling the Drama” and “Lightning Crashes.” New York magazine described the the latter song as “the story of a connection between an old lady dying and a new mother at the moment of giving birth.” WK Lead singer Ed Kowalczyk said the video created some misinterpretations. He said, “I envisioned it taking place in a hospital, where all these simultaneous deaths and births are going on, one family mourning the loss of a woman while a screaming baby emerges from a young mother in another room. Nobody’s dying in the act of childbirth, as some viewers think. What you’re seeing is actually a happy ending based on a kind of transference of life.” WK The song was dedicated to Barbara Lewis, a high school friend of the band’s who was killed by a drunk driver. Her brother-in-law Cory explained that “Ed is speaking to the circle of life, but specifically to how Barb’s life gave new life to many.” SF He cites how her heart is literally still beating because she was a donor. SF Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Live SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 10/1/2022.