Rock Music Menu: Live tour announcement a letdown, Daily Local News Options

[dangum]

Rock Music Menu: Live tour announcement a letdown
By Michael Christopher, rockmusicmenu@gmail.com

Posted: 04/05/18, 11:02 AM EDT | Updated: 2 days ago
Since late 2016 when Live revealed they would be reuniting with frontman Ed Kowalczyk for the first time in seven years, fans have been eagerly awaiting a proper U.S tour. Earlier this week, an announcement finally came, but much to the disappointment of longtime followers of the York, Pa. natives, it’s going to be as openers for Counting Crows.

“Live is beyond excited to get out on the road this summer and play for our fans,” Kowalczyk said in a pre-packaged statement. “We are freshly reunited and performing with a confidence and ferocity that we can’t wait for people to experience. The fact that we will be sharing the stage once again with the incomparable Counting Crows is icing on the cake!”

That cake is leaving a bitter taste in in the mouths of fans who took to the band’s Facebook page to criticize the positioning on the bill, dubbed “25 Years and Counting” by the headliners which will have two area appearances, Hersheypark Stadium August 10 and at the BB&T Pavilion the following night.

“There’s nothing exciting about opening for Counting Crows...especially when the opening band is 1000x better,” wrote one fan. “Live is getting screwed. Shame.”

“Live is opening? No way is that a thing that should be happening,” posted another. “Live is the headliner here. Yes, I have seen [Counting Crows] live... thanks but no thanks.”

“Why is Live the opening act? Should be the other way around,” read one response which seemed to echo the majority.

The outcry is more than just sour grapes from devotees of one group who don’t want to see their beloved hitmakers as a support act for what they believe to be an inferior band. There is a legitimate beef here and not just preferential blinders being worn. What seems like an easy argument to make is Counting Crows are the bigger band, and obviously the bigger band headlines the gigs. But is that really the case? And how would one quantify it anyway — albums sales? Radio hits? Popularity?

Let’s break it all down.

Live released their first album in 1991 and have put out eight overall. According to the RIAA, they have gone 12 times platinum, with more than eight million records of their smash sophomore effort ‘Throwing Copper’ sold. All eight landed in the Top 200 on the Billboard charts with two of them reaching No. 1 and three in the Top 10. Three singles have ended up in the Top 100, with “Selling the Drama” coming in at the highest, No. 43, in 1994.

Counting Crows released their first album in 1993 and have put out seven overall. According to the RIAA, they have gone 11 times platinum, with more than seven million records of their debut ‘August and Everything After’ sold. All seven landed in the Top 200 on the Billboard charts, and while just one reached No. 1, six have made it into the Top 10 and the one which didn’t, a 2012 covers LP put out on an independent label, hit No. 11. Like Live, they too have had three singles end up in the Top 100, with “Hanginaround,” coming in at the highest, No. 28, in 2000.

Objectively then, both Live and Counting Crows are nearly equal. The former has more platinum and chart-topping albums while the latter has more landing in the Top 10 and higher charting singles. Therefore, it could go either way as to who should headline. That’s where other factors come into play, and things start to get subjective, if not downright murky at the same time.

Taking a cursory look at Facebook, Live has just in the neighborhood of 250,000 “likes.” Counting Crows demolish that number with almost 1,150,000. Yet it needs to be taken into account that Live created theirs when Kowalczyk had already split the group and even deactivated it for a period while their future remained unclear. That time is also one of the major reasons why Live is an opening act.

Returning from a three-year hiatus with then unknown new singer Chris Shinn went over about as well as those things seem to do with modern and alternative rock bands; see Stone Temple Pilots, 10,000 Maniacs and The Cars for example. Live pretty much fell off the map, going back to clubs playing to audiences of mostly hardcore fans as Kowalczyk pursued a solo career which did just about the same. While all that disarray was going on, Counting Crows were putting out albums every so many years and touring almost every single summer. They kept themselves in the public eye and consciousness.

On the other hand, Live is one of the biggest modern rock bands from the ‘90s. Reuniting with its original lineup should be enough to command a headlining tour, or at the very least a co-headlining run, which, coincidentally, they did with Counting Crows in the summer of 2000. To be relegated to being an opening act is an insult to their comeback, legacy and, to be honest, fans who don’t want to shell out well-earned money for the support act.

The complaints on Live’s Facebook page were prevalent enough for the social media platform administrator to step in on a number of occasions in the comments to iterate the fact that the band would be playing a “full” set of 70 minutes. That will be more than they did at a surprise show New Year’s Eve 2016 at York’s Valencia Ballroom and a few months later at the MMR*B*Q festival, but it’s still not enough for many. And until Live get out there as headliners again, there will be a lingering sense that this reunion isn’t nearly as big as it could or should be.

To contact music columnist Michael Christopher, send an email to rockmusicmenu@gmail.com. Also, check out his blog at www.thechroniclesofmc.com

http://www.dailylocal.com/article/DL/20180405/NEWS/180409878

[Hoodstock]

Cool - Live's reply to my comment made it into a newspaper article.

This article is spot on. I'm happy just to see them again but Live fans want a full length show. 2 hours of Live, after all these years, would be great. Even co-headlining would be better than this. This is a huge thing. A reunion of one of the best bands from the 90's. A Rolling Stone Magazine Artist of the Year with some of the biggest hits from their time.

I'm glad they are friends with Live but opening for CC is a huge disappointment. It's a total underestimation of their own fan base and a miscalculation of what their fans want. I get why some people are hesitant to pay their hard earned money for these shows when they want to just see Live.

That's why I'm glad about the Groupon. I can justify paying for the shorter than desired setlist. I can also leave the show a little early if I want without feeling like I threw money away on CC.

I'm not a CC fan. I don't hate them but I don't care for them either. I've seen them onstage and they were one of the worst concert bands I've ever seen. I can only think of PJ Harvey being worse. IMO they are strictly a studio band - which isn't necessarily a bad thing.

I hope CC is reading things like this article. Maybe they would consider giving Live a little more time on stage if they understand the demand.

I also hope Live realizes that their is a love and demand for their music. I would love to see it continue beyond this current recording effort and tour.

This post has been edited by Hoodstock: Apr 8 2018, 12:07 pm