The Gracious Few, Official Thread for the new band! Options

[SJN1279]

"The Gracious Few" is the name of the new band with Chad Taylor, Pat Dahlheimer and Chad Gracey of Live and Kevin Martin of Candlebox. Rehearsals begin this week. New music soon

[The Thrill]

Greetings, I am a new member of the message boards. I came across these boards after being referred from one of your members "Imheyjude"

I have read some things and felt like commenting. Afterall that is what a message board is for.
As it is the fans that support the bands and make them who they are.

I am about to say some thing that many of you will like and that some of you may hate.
I will probably say some things that some of you may even find skeptical. Its ok and everyone is entitled to their opinion.

The first will deal with why Chad Taylor needed to get his thoughts off his chest and how some of the members on here thought it was not needed.
As I have read through this forum, I will say some of it is ammusing as many people speculate and assume they know the truth. What Chad did was clear the air and tell you what exactley happened. There isnt even room for debate. What Ed did was underhanded, and totally stabbed his 3 best friends in the back. Now, I am sure the courts will decide if Ed did anything civil or criminially wrong. However, the main thing he did wrong was morally wrong and you just dont do that to friends. If it werent for those 3 friends of his, Ed may still be in York PA.

All 4 members were equal contributors to the bands overall success. No one person is bigger then the rest. This rings true in sports as well as music. How many baseball, football and even futbol teams have the superstar on their team, but they never win a championship?
It happens all the time. Why was Mental Jewelry, Throwing Copper and Secret Samadhi so successful? That was one team, working as a cohesive unit and for the same cause!

This brings me to THE GRACIOUS FEW. These 5 guys are working their ass off as a team.
They have been through adversity and have remained focused to the task at hand.
Some have made stupid comments about what Kevin said....thats ok thats your opinion.
This was not some rah rah speach by him. Kevin and Chad Taylor are emotional people. They wear there emotions on their sleeves and are passionate in what they do.

When they are in the studio they are not drinking or partying. They are focused and determined. They wake up in the morning, go to the studio and stay there all day and they work! 12 hour, 15 hour days so the music is true!

When Kevin stated "We can't afford not to suck" its actually a common term in the business world. It means that "we have so much time, effort and money invested in this business or project. We have so much blood, sweat and tears invested into this project, we are away from our children and our wives, our friends and family to make this project. We have been locked into seclusion to make a 100% tried and true rock album.....FOR THE FANS!

They cant afford not to suck.not for the money.....for the fans of Rock Music. Not the fans of Live or the Fans of Candlebox. But for all fans of Rock Music.
This is not LIVE, it is not Candlebox.
they truly are THE GRACIOUS FEW...and as Kevin stated they can go out and make a "Live" album or a "CandleBox album" but thats it definitely not what they are doing.

In addition as we know most bands have a particular sound. If I were to say "Metalica, or Van Halen or Pearl Jam" you know what I mean. Most fans could close there eyes and once that first note is struck, you know the band that is playing.
That being said, the vocalist you hear on Candlebox is not the same on The Gracious Few. Did he reinvent himself as others may suggest...no, not at all. However, as a true musician and artist, he is just showing us his actual vocal range and the many different octaves he can sing in. Like I said before, CandleBox has their respective sound and with that sound requires that voice.

When Chad Gracey, Chad Taylor and Patrick Dahlheimer set out to start this band they basically made their wish list of vocalists....Kevin Martin was the top person on that list. Kevin Martin is an amazing musician and vocalist. He doesnt have an ego and is one of the nicest guys you will meet. When I have let a few close friends listen to a track or two they have all said to me the same thing "Thats not the singer from CandleBox" my response to them is "your correct, that is not the singer from CandleBox....its the singer from The Gracious Few, same person...different singer.
However, we can say that about Chad Taylor. Same person from Live....different guitar player. Chad Gracey...same person....different drummer and Patrick Dahlheimer...same person, different bass player.
The sound you will hear will be distinct unto them and will not remind you of either band.

That leads me to my next point. How well do I think they will do?
Well, everyone is correct, you cant really tell from the music in the blog or any other snippet you may have heard.
What I can tell you is that you will not be dissapointed when you hear the finished product.

As a whole I am confident this album has some amazing songs and has something for everyone. Without a doubt in my mind this album is multi platinum material.
If your a rock fan, this album will be on your all time favorites list.
I actually felt this, well before any music was written, well before the band even jammed together for the first time.
When I was first told the name, I thought to myself "Hmm, thats an interesting name" I didnt pass judgement on the name...good or bad. By nature I am a very inquisitive person so I asked them "why that name? whats it mean, whats it stand for? how have you or will you live up to that name?"
We had just left a Black Crowes concert in York, PA its then Chad Taylor and Chad Gracey told me how the name was derived and the process the band went through to come up with the name. I immediately felt the name was perfect for them. It was at that moment I knew this band would be succesful and make music that will "speak" to the fans and they were in the right frame of mind to make this all happen.
I will not go into any intimate details of those conversations as I think it would be more appropriate for the members of the band to share with everyone how they came up with the name if they so desire.

All I ask is that you go into this album as you would go into any other new band you would listen to. Turn on the music, close your eyes and take it all in and then pass judgement.

Dont let what happened with LIVE skew your judgement of this album just because Ed isnt involved.

Nobody said Live was dead or 100% broken up. All Chad said is that Ed is no longer the vocalist for Live.
Chad Taylor, Chad Gracey and Patrick Dahlheimer, they are without a doubt some of the finest people I know. They are ethical and kind hearted and if you ever had a chance to interact with them, you can get a sense of their personality.

If Ed fixed the situation and apologized those three guys would forgive and forget. They have that capacity in their heart. However, when someone has a huge ego, sometimes it is very difficult to admit you made a mistake.
So if anyone is upset or pissed at the 3 of them or think that they were responsible for this hiatus or time apart you shouldnt be. They did everything in their power to keep the band together. Yes it is a shame that for most fans on here, your favorite band is broken up and by all means you dont want to blame Ed since he was the "voice". However, your blame or anger shouldnt be directed at the other 3.
Fans speak of "being true to the music" How many of you were dissapointed in some of the albums and how they didnt meet your expectations from previous albums?
They kept the band together, and made albums they werent behind and look what happens. The music suffers.
Before a musician can be true to the music and true to the fans, they need to be true to themselves.
Would any of you work with someone who you knew was doing things behind your back and signing contracts that legally bind your company without a vote?

So dont be upset with Chad setting the record straight, he just wanted to stop the speculation and rumors. Rumors dont help the situation.
Chad Taylor is being honest with the fans and he will remain that way. Its built into the fabric of who he is and he will not let you down.
With this album, you will see 5 musicians that are first and foremost...true to themselves and true to the music and in turn true to the fans of rock music.

Thank you for your time.

Bill Hynes

This post has been edited by The Thrill: Dec 6 2009, 7:24 am