Live frontman does it his way, for SA audiences
FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 25
E2015 d Kowalczyk’s Throwing Copper Unplugged 20th Anniversary Tour started in Johannesburg on Wednesday and hits the Mother City tonight. Shortly before the Live frontman’s shows, the American singersongwriter (pictured) sat down with Tonight.
Live is one of the most well-known rock bands in the world and their second album, Throwing Copper, is a classic. So no one was more pleased than Kowalczyk to know that changing the sound wouldn’t dishearten fans.
He told me: “The show morphed into this idea that I had to do Throwing Copper in a more stripped down approach. I developed a multimedia show with visuals for all the songs. We play the album from (track) one to 14.
“I got to do visuals for songs that didn’t have music videos which was pretty exciting,” he continued.
“It’s an acoustic, stripped down show but it’s still very powerful and still rocks. I took this record that people were very familiar with and did something different with it that made it new and fresh for me and that’s translating to the audience.”
The audience was almost robbed of a chance to hear Lightning Crashes, a hit from the album, as a single because the record company wasn’t feeling it.
“Lighting Crashes was an interesting thing because it was my favourite,” he grinned. “Just the way that it came out, it was five-and-a-half minutes long. And really, it was more of an album-oriented song. Definitely didn’t have ‘single’ written on it. But nonetheless it was my favourite and I communicated it to the record company.
“And they said they like it too, but it’ll never be a single because it’s far too long and I said: ‘Fair enough, we’ll see’. The album had been out almost a year and the second single, I Alone, had done well on radio so they were looking for the next single. So the news came out that it would be Lightning Crashes and I just chuckled to myself. I have a fun time performing and telling that story because for me, it’ll always be the little song that could.”
Having gone solo in 2009 and gone through law suits with his former band members, Kowalczyk is satisfied that he’s been able to do things his way and release three solo albums along the way. With this being Heritage Month, I asked him what he hopes the heritage or legacy of Live is.
The lyricist said: “Taking my cue from the artists who inspired me and continue to inspire me to make music that speaks to the soul and transcends people’s differences geographically, language, creed, colour – all the differences that people assume are there – to show through music that they’re not there. Taking a page from U2 to John Lennon to Bob Marley and trying to do it in my way. I think that’s the heritage of my lyric, my melody and everything I’ve done.”
Most recently, he was able to collaborate with South African songstress, Tailor, on Angel On A Razor – a song off Kowalczyk’s third album, The Flood and The Mercy.
“I absolutely loved it,” he said of the collab. “She’s an amazing singer. We’re label mates down here on Just Music. She’s a fan and I found out about her music. It happened very organically.”
Another thing that’s been happening organically is his next album. “I’m working on new music now. I’m about halfway through that process so hopefully I’ll have the album out next year.”
Catch Ed Kowalczyk’s Throwing Copper Unplugged 20th Anniversary Tour at the GrandWest Casino in Cape Town on Friday and Saturday. Book at Computicket