Ed Kowalczyk debuted his fake version of Live after firing guitarist Chad Taylor, and for some reason replacing his remaining bandmates on tour despite them still legally members. In fairness, there was also a fake version of Live without Ed in the 2010’s, with Chris Shinn replacing him on vocals. You can watch videos below.
A fan named Cory wrote on Facebook, “Long read. Let’s be real. LIVE hasn’t been “LIVE” for well over 15 years. What I mean by that is the 4 original band members writing music together as a unit. As someone who grew up as them being my favorite band and they still are to this day, it’s been a long time since there was that magic. I’ve come to the realization over time that we aren’t going to ever get that original magic back.
The best thing to come out of the first break up was multiple albums with pieces of the original band. Whether it be Ed solo, TGF or LIVE with Shinn. Fans had choices and something different than what had been coming out of the LIVE camp toward the end of that first run.
I’m so over the fans arguing what’s LIVE and what’s not LIVE. Everyone has their opinion, including myself. But all of us are here because of the magic the original 4 members created.
Some fans, like myself have to realize that a majority of the casual fans associate bands by the lead singer. I’m even subject to that with other bands. There are plenty of bands I wouldn’t be able to tell if they switched a bassist or drummer. But I would notice a difference in a singer.
Some fans also have to remember that there are those of us feel a distinct way when they hear Chad’s drumming, or Pat’s mesmerizing bass, or see Chad T’s stomp in person. And that’s a big part of what LIVE is to us.
Let people enjoy what they want. Whether you agree with it or not, our opinion doesn’t matter. Not one of the original 4 members is asking anyone of us for our input on their business and personal decisions in life.
The great thing about music, once it’s created, it’s here for a lifetime. All those magical albums that the original 4 members created together will forever be part of this world. Enjoy that. Anything after that, pick and choose what you like. We were given a lot from these 4 guys. I wish them all the best. In a perfect world they would have never lost that friendship or business relationships and kept on continuing making awesome music as a foursome. But this is not a perfect world. People change. Businesses change, this is a business after all.
I’m just a guy that has a favorite band from York, PA. I’ll never lose memories of their music, or friends I made along the way. To that I applaud them.”
