Chris Shinn in Retrospect Options

[LiveForNow]

Now that the Chris Shinn chapter of Live has closed, what are your takeaways?

[Voodoo Lady]

I am appreciative that he made CCP happy for a while... that they were able to continue to do what they love--create music, their artform, their passion. Chris was just was not the right choice for them. However, I am glad that he wasn't the right choice....Because it all happens for a reason & it has led us to having Ed back.

[figure8]

Would be good for Live to say something official about Chris S no longer being part of Live. I mean like a thank you just to know that all is cool between the guys.

[gerrycan70]

Link to full size image


I'm grateful to Chris Shinn for a few reasons:

1. He helped fill a deep void for CCP

2. He allowed them to create new music; a style/sound that we fans might not have otherwise got to see / hear.

3. He gave CCP a chance to perform again as Live on the back of The Turn after all the turmoil the band had gone through with Ed. The band could have simply called it quits had they not found him; perhaps leading to them never mending the bridges with Ed.

4. He was a very impressionable person to meet, he was genuine and cared about the fans.

Only negative I have, I was personally disappointed to see hand written lyrics at Melbourne show on stage. Had this been his first ever Live show, I could understand, but not when he'd played so many shows for the past couple years. I would've expected him to have the lyrics to existing Live songs down pat. In his defense, perhaps he felt the constant pressure and expectation of Live fans and just wanted the lyrics there as a security blanket. It would be interesting to ask him about it.

Life is just way to short to hold grudges against people and throw mud at fans for the choices they made in supporting either singer or both.

I for one never took sides. I was always very happy to support both +Live+ with Shinn and Ed's solo career.

Thanks Chris Shinn for your service and commitment to +Live+ , the universe is a better place for it.

This post has been edited by dangum: Nov 18 2016, 8:35 am

[vivapokey]

Chris is the second best singer Live has had:

1. 90s Ed
2. Chris
3. Daylight
4. More daylight
5. Eternal nothingness
6. Post 1999 Ed.

Chris joined in a difficult situation ... in so many ways he was judged before he sang a note. He was damned by a lot of people who could not accept change and let bias rule them. Yes, the songs sounded different with his voice - how could they not? But that was ok, different is ok, so long as its good - and I thought it was great. He brought an energy and spirit back to the band I had been craving for so long. He wasn't the flashy showman that Ed was, but he didn't need to be. He was just a part of the band, not the Bono-esque attention grabber. He was understated and more subtle.

To me, 6310 is huge. That is a massively personal song to Chris given its content. He gave that song to Live rather than keep it to himself and regardless of whether you liked his voice or not, regardless of whether you like the song or not, you got to respect that. He invested personally. I liked his writing in general even though it was a team effort. I liked that with him we had a Live album with more song content than love/water/same old same old. Which Ed just continued to do under his solo stuff. I liked that Chris used the mic to effect in concert, playing with space and movement without effects. I loved the grit to his voice, the little waver in his voice that was almost Jeff Buckley-esque at times, as a friend summed up well, it had that ethereal floaty rasp quality to it. I loved his personality ... he was soft, he had a feminine quality to him which I have always been drawn to the feminine side of masculinity. He was an absolute pleasure to meet and talk to. I loved him live in concert - he gave an incredibly powerful performance when I saw him.

And yet I don't think he had much of a fair go in a lot of ways ... in some ways yes, he had a great opportunity handed to him and he got to do things he'd never have gotten to do otherwise. In others, I feel like he was handicapped - he got to write this great album and then the fuckers barely played any of it in concert over the tour. Yeah, he messed up some words here and there and he had one particularly bad gig, but, so what? Everyone has off nights and to me the mess ups just never bothered me too much. In the end, I feel like he was brought in and I think they wanted him to also have some of Ed's leadership qualities because as great as CCP are - they need a leader, they need someone to drive them, a workhorse. Ed has that to him. Chris didn't seem to be like that and I guess they hoped it would develop but .. I don't know. How could it? He surely couldn't ever really feel like it was "his" band to direct. It was an impossible situation in a lot of ways.

In the end, was he perfect? Of course not. But I sure as hell liked him and his presence will be sorely missed. And I am glad I got the chance to talk to him and thank him for what he did with the band and letting me, at least for a brief time, absolutely love Live again like I hadn't in over a decade.

[figure8]

Chris is the second best singer Live has had:

1. 90s Ed
2. Chris
3. Daylight
4. More daylight
5. Eternal nothingness
6. Post 1999 Ed.

Chris joined in a difficult situation ... in so many ways he was judged before he sang a note. He was damned by a lot of people who could not accept change and let bias rule them. Yes, the songs sounded different with his voice - how could they not? But that was ok, different is ok, so long as its good - and I thought it was great. He brought an energy and spirit back to the band I had been craving for so long. He wasn't the flashy showman that Ed was, but he didn't need to be. He was just a part of the band, not the Bono-esque attention grabber. He was understated and more subtle.

To me, 6310 is huge. That is a massively personal song to Chris given its content. He gave that song to Live rather than keep it to himself and regardless of whether you liked his voice or not, regardless of whether you like the song or not, you got to respect that. He invested personally. I liked his writing in general even though it was a team effort. I liked that with him we had a Live album with more song content than love/water/same old same old. Which Ed just continued to do under his solo stuff. I liked that Chris used the mic to effect in concert, playing with space and movement without effects. I loved the grit to his voice, the little waver in his voice that was almost Jeff Buckley-esque at times, as a friend summed up well, it had that ethereal floaty rasp quality to it. I loved his personality ... he was soft, he had a feminine quality to him which I have always been drawn to the feminine side of masculinity. He was an absolute pleasure to meet and talk to. I loved him live in concert - he gave an incredibly powerful performance when I saw him.

And yet I don't think he had much of a fair go in a lot of ways ... in some ways yes, he had a great opportunity handed to him and he got to do things he'd never have gotten to do otherwise. In others, I feel like he was handicapped - he got to write this great album and then the fuckers barely played any of it in concert over the tour. Yeah, he messed up some words here and there and he had one particularly bad gig, but, so what? Everyone has off nights and to me the mess ups just never bothered me too much. In the end, I feel like he was brought in and I think they wanted him to also have some of Ed's leadership qualities because as great as CCP are - they need a leader, they need someone to drive them, a workhorse. Ed has that to him. Chris didn't seem to be like that and I guess they hoped it would develop but .. I don't know. How could it? He surely couldn't ever really feel like it was "his" band to direct. It was an impossible situation in a lot of ways.

In the end, was he perfect? Of course not. But I sure as hell liked him and his presence will be sorely missed. And I am glad I got the chance to talk to him and thank him for what he did with the band and letting me, at least for a brief time, absolutely love Live again like I hadn't in over a decade.

Good post man. Good words used. Never was a fan of Chris S myself or Live 2.0 - but do have to agree that this guy can sing. Though I do have to say that Sirens Call was probably the best thing I've heard from Live in ages. And Chris was perfect for it. Probably need to listen to The Turn once again.

Anyways, what I do not like about this situation is the fact that they officially did not mention anything about Chris S not being a part of Live any longer. Not cool. And they are fuckers for doing that indeed, and I guess not only that judging by your post. Dunno

[Merica]

Chris is the second best singer Live has had:

1. 90s Ed
2. Chris
3. Daylight
4. More daylight
5. Eternal nothingness
6. Post 1999 Ed.

Chris joined in a difficult situation ... in so many ways he was judged before he sang a note. He was damned by a lot of people who could not accept change and let bias rule them. Yes, the songs sounded different with his voice - how could they not? But that was ok, different is ok, so long as its good - and I thought it was great. He brought an energy and spirit back to the band I had been craving for so long. He wasn't the flashy showman that Ed was, but he didn't need to be. He was just a part of the band, not the Bono-esque attention grabber. He was understated and more subtle.

To me, 6310 is huge. That is a massively personal song to Chris given its content. He gave that song to Live rather than keep it to himself and regardless of whether you liked his voice or not, regardless of whether you like the song or not, you got to respect that. He invested personally. I liked his writing in general even though it was a team effort. I liked that with him we had a Live album with more song content than love/water/same old same old. Which Ed just continued to do under his solo stuff. I liked that Chris used the mic to effect in concert, playing with space and movement without effects. I loved the grit to his voice, the little waver in his voice that was almost Jeff Buckley-esque at times, as a friend summed up well, it had that ethereal floaty rasp quality to it. I loved his personality ... he was soft, he had a feminine quality to him which I have always been drawn to the feminine side of masculinity. He was an absolute pleasure to meet and talk to. I loved him live in concert - he gave an incredibly powerful performance when I saw him.

And yet I don't think he had much of a fair go in a lot of ways ... in some ways yes, he had a great opportunity handed to him and he got to do things he'd never have gotten to do otherwise. In others, I feel like he was handicapped - he got to write this great album and then the fuckers barely played any of it in concert over the tour. Yeah, he messed up some words here and there and he had one particularly bad gig, but, so what? Everyone has off nights and to me the mess ups just never bothered me too much. In the end, I feel like he was brought in and I think they wanted him to also have some of Ed's leadership qualities because as great as CCP are - they need a leader, they need someone to drive them, a workhorse. Ed has that to him. Chris didn't seem to be like that and I guess they hoped it would develop but .. I don't know. How could it? He surely couldn't ever really feel like it was "his" band to direct. It was an impossible situation in a lot of ways.

In the end, was he perfect? Of course not. But I sure as hell liked him and his presence will be sorely missed. And I am glad I got the chance to talk to him and thank him for what he did with the band and letting me, at least for a brief time, absolutely love Live again like I hadn't in over a decade.

You must spread some reputation around before giving it to this member again.

[vivapokey]

You must spread some reputation around before giving it to this member again.

Your post has an ethereal floaty rasp quality to it

[mfitz804]

He had funny hair. And we has a guy that was bald with a braid in the back.

[Unsheathed]

I like the dude. I respect him for carrying the torch while Ed and CCP got their shit together. Without Chris Shinn, who knows, we might never have seen Ed and Chad in the same room together again.

But ultimately, I never really felt like I got to know him as a musician and songwriter. The Turn was the beginning of a discovery phase for me, where I start to learn and ponder all of the things Chris wanted to say through his music.

It felt like everything was aborted very shortly after the album dropped, and potentially before it was even finished. In the end, the Chris Shinn era is a fascinating stint shrouded in mystery that produced a fantastic album, in my opinion.

[baggieneil]

Vivapokey exactly how i felt.spot on
I met Chris at the London gig.chatted with him for a while.by the end i felt like we were mates.A genuine person.i wish him well

[alexou]

The Turn is still a solid rock album. Thanks Chris for everything. Pokey is spot on. Can't say more. Nice duDe to chat with, humble and all. Wish him all the best. Hope he's well.

[meltdown5]

I love all these takeaways about Chris's time with the band. The dude can sing - that is for sure. I never saw him perform with Live, but I did really enjoy The Turn. I think he did help the band get back to its rock roots and I'm grateful for that. I didn't know how I would feel if/when Ed ever returned to the band, but I am genuinely excited for what the future holds. I'm most happy that CCP were able to put away whatever was going on behind the scenes with Ed and move on (watched the Oct. 24 radio interview he and chad looked so happy). I must admit that I did get kind of a salty taste in my mouth when I would hear Live after Ed left. I was bitter for a while. I didn't attend any Live shows with Chris fronting the band and I didn't catch Ed's acoustic TC sets even though I could have. I admit I used to kind of long for the way it used to be - but you gotta move forward and this is exactly what the band seems to be doing. The future looks bright.

[mfitz804]

I love all these takeaways about Chris's time with the band. The dude can sing - that is for sure. I never saw him perform with Live, but I did really enjoy The Turn. I think he did help the band get back to its rock roots and I'm grateful for that. I didn't know how I would feel if/when Ed ever returned to the band, but I am genuinely excited for what the future holds. I'm most happy that CCP were able to put away whatever was going on behind the scenes with Ed and move on (watched the Oct. 24 radio interview he and chad looked so happy). I must admit that I did get kind of a salty taste in my mouth when I would hear Live after Ed left. I was bitter for a while. I didn't attend any Live shows with Chris fronting the band and I didn't catch Ed's acoustic TC sets even though I could have. I admit I used to kind of long for the way it used to be - but you gotta move forward and this is exactly what the band seems to be doing. The future looks bright.

I went to see an Ed show and couldn't really get past the fact that there was another band there playing Live songs. Kind of the reverse of what you are saying. It was still enjoyable, but it wasn't right.

[throwing_cheetahs]

.

This post has been edited by throwing_cheetahs: Nov 17 2016, 5:47 pm