The Gracious Few is Chad Taylor, Chad Gracey and Patrick Dahlheimer from LIVE & Kevin Martin and Sean Hennesy from CANDLEBOX.
I updated my music catalog on my Zune player last night and ran across the LIVE Throwing Copper cd. I thought, “Wow, I haven’t listened to this in a while!” I then thought, “Whatever happened to that band?” I decided to do some digging. I found out the story to LIVE’s “hiatus” which included secret contracts and diva-like demands, and the side projects they all have lined up.
It was on November 30, 2009 when LIVE guitarist Chad Taylor wrote on his blog that LIVE was going on a “two year hiatus.” Reading the blog there is a sense that the two year hiatus was going to be more than that with Taylor stating, “Ed was able to stab his three best friends from middle school in the back” along with, “In light of these matter, I can’t ever see myself working with Ed, let alone ever being in the same room with him.” Taylor does point the finger at former frontman Ed Kowalczyk for their demise, but in July he soon blogged how he started sounding too much like Courtney Love and needed a break from . FYI Chad deleted his post about Ed’s behavior, but it can be found here.
It sounds like Ed’s head got a bit too big. Back in 2005 Ed signed a secret publishing deal that gave him the sole rights for all royalties. Chad writes, “Yes, it is true, there was a hidden publishing contract signed in 2005. I personally discovered it via a communication breakdown.” In addition Ed asked for “a $100,000 ‘lead singer bonus’” in order for LIVE to play at Pinkpop Festival in the Netherlands. Ed comments, ” LIVE was always about the band, when Ed lost sight of that in favor of his own ambitions and goals, our considerable fans base began to sigh a collective yawn.”
So what’s happening now? Chad reached out to his friend Kevin Martin (vocalist for Candlebox) to start a side project called The Gracious Few. Appropriate name right, at least I thought so? Chad told Martin that he was no longer interested in playing guitar solos, which lead to the poaching of Candlebox guitarist Sean Hennesy. The Gracious Few released their self-titled debut album on September 14, 2010. They are doing some extensive touring in the US promoting their self-titled debut.
From what I listened to on YouTube, they make a killer supergroup rock band. Don’t expect them to sound like LIVE since the swap of lead vocals and guitar nor sounding like Candlebox. Check out the video for “Honest Man” below:
The Gracious Few Tour Dates:
9/24 Buffalo, NY – Tralf Music Hall
9/25 Toronto, ON – Mod Club
9/26 Rochester, NY – Water Street Music Hall
9/28 Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club
9/29 Baltimore, MD – Bourbon Street Ballroom
10/1 Philadelphia, PA – TLA
10/2 Falls Church, VA – State Theatre
10/3 Richmond, VA – The Hat Factory
10/5 Raleigh, NC – Lincoln Theatre
10/6 Greenville, SC – The Handlebar
10/8 Charlotte, NC – Visulite Theatre w/American Bang
10/9 Charleston, SC – The Music Farm w/American Bang
10/10 Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade w/American Bang
10/13 Houston, TX – The Warehouse w/American Bang
10/14 Dallas, TX – The Loft w/American Bang
10/15 Austin, TX – The Independent w/American Bang
10/16 Little Rock, AR – Revolution Music Room w/American Bang
10/18 Birmingham, AL – WorkPlay Theater
10/19 Memphis, TN – Newby’s w/American Bang
10/20 New Orleans, LA – Tipitinas w/American Bang
10/26 Cincinnati, OH – 20TH Century Theatre w/American Bang
10/28 Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall w/American Bang
10/29 Flint, MI – The Machine Shop w/American Bang
10/30 Lancaster, PA – The Chameleon
10/31 Ephrata, PA – Ephrata Theatre (2 acoustic shows)
11/3 New York, NY – Fillmore @ Irving Plaza
11/4 Northampton, MA – Pearl Street
11/5 Asbury Park, NJ – The Stone Pony
11/6 Pittsburgh, PA – The Altar
11/9 Grand Rapids, MI – The Intersection
11/11 Indianapolis, IN – The Vogue
11/12 Chicago, IL – Double Door
11/13 Des Moines, IA – People’s Court
11/14 Madison, WI – Majestic Theatre
11/16 Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
11/17 Council Bluffs, IA – Whiskey Roadhouse
11/19 Denver, CO – Bluebird Theatre
11/20 Colorado Springs, CO – The Black Sheep
11/30 Spokane, WA – Knitting Factory
12/1 Seattle, WA – Showbox Market
12/3 Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
12/4 Reno, NV – Knitting Factory
12/6 Sacramento, CA – Harlow’s
12/7 San Francisco, CA – The Independent
12/9 San Diego, CA – House of Blues
12/10 Anaheim, CA – House of Blues
12/11 Ventura, CA – Ventura Theatre
