THE BAND: Ed Kowalczyk (vocals, guitar), Chad Taylor (lead guitar), Patrick Dahlheimer (bass), Chad Gracey (drums & percussion). Hometown: York, PA.

THE DISC: (2004) 19 tracks clocking in at approximately 77 minutes. Included with the disc is a 7-page foldout containing song titles/credits (no lyrics), band photos, what songs came from which albums, a quick paragraph on each album from Kowalczyk, and thank you's. This compilation follows the band from their 1991 debut through "Birds Of Pray" in 2003. There is an additional 2-disc release (the CD with music, and a DVD with interview and videos) also available. Label - Radioactive Records.

ALBUM REPRESENTATION: Mental Jewelry (3 songs), Throwing Copper (5), Secret Samadhi (2), The Distance To Here (3), V (2), Birds Of Pray (2), Unreleased (2).

COMMENTS: Outside of "Throwing Copper" (1994), this "Best Of" compilation might be all the Live you need. It absolutely hits on all the highlights of each album. Tracks 1-3 find the band in raw form from "Mental Jewelry"... singing and playing like they had something to prove. "Operation Spirit" and "Pain Lies On The Riverside" were the standout songs and worthy of inclusion here. Tracks 4-8 are from "Throwing Copper" - easily their biggest and most recognized tunes. "Copper" had so many great songs - and Kowalczyk never sang with such conviction. The melodies were most importantly... memorable. And then Kowalczyk shaved his head and went Zen on everyone. For me, "Secret Samadhi" (1997) was the start of the decline for Live. "Lakini's Juice" was my favorite track from this one because of the weird guitar chords. "Turn My Head" was the other good tune from "Samadhi", but the rest of the album was a mixed bag at best. Kowalczyk singing about spirit, his Holiness, angel wings, birds and dolphins crying in the near future was losing audiences. Not to mention the music just not being that strong - outside of a few tracks on each album - all of which are here on "Awake - Best Of Live". The Distance To Here" made some waves but quickly lost steam and fell from the charts. Their fifth album "V" (labeled as "experimental") was trashed by most major music mags. "Birds Of Pray" was a semi return to form, but once again garnered mixed reviews and almost no FM-airplay. The unreleased "We Deal With Dreams" was an extra song from the "Throwing Copper" sessions and is a nice inclusion here. Live's remake of Johnny Cash's "I Walk The Line" is nothing out of the ordinary, but still respectable. Missing are a few personal favorites (but by no means essential) - "Iris", "Top", "White, Discussion", "Ghost", "Voodoo Lady", and "Graze". This is a fantastic disc because it has the band's best songs over their 1st dozen years ALL in one place. Despite Live's 2nd half fall from the charts, this is a stellar introduction to the band (5 stars).

I have loved live since Throwing Copper came out in the mid-90's.

I then fell in love with their earlier album, Mental Jewlery.

Both are great, and probably owning the pair give you Live's truely greatest hits.

This album is basically all of the singles, more or less, that made it on radio.

The only thing that I would have added was Iris from Throwing Copper. It is, in my opinion, Live's greatest song.

But if you don't own any Live, own Throwing Copper first, then if you want to expand maybe get this album and then Mental Jewlery. The rest of their albums, I feel, is fairly represented in this Greatest Hits CD. Enjoy.

The four members of LIVE met in their York, PA high school before forming a band to compete in a school talent show. They mixed in the angst of being trapped in a nowhere city, the crisis of spiritual identity and a love of rebellious noise and came out with "Mental Jewelry." The three songs from that CD here lay out the blueprint for the next couple decades of LIVE material. Earnest vocals with lyrics that reflect a quest for spiritual ascendance.

Under the hand of Talking Head Jerry Harrison, who kept the band's recorded sound dense and textured, LIVE got better fast. They cut a masterpiece on the second try. "Throwing Copper" opened with the shouts of "Lightning Crashes" and "Selling The Drama," contained the fighting "I Alone," and the moral diatribe of "White, Discussion." This was a powerful, passionate album and it made them stars. The follow up, "Secret Samadhi," was darker in tone but more direct. "Turn My Head" was the closest thing to an actual love song, and "Lakini's Juice" mirrored Led Zepplin more than U2.

It was right about now that LIVE began to lose their footing. "The Distance To Here" began a shift towards a maturity that took away from the band's edge. While Ed Kowlaczyk may claim that this is his favorite of the LIVE albums, it is the point where LIVE began to experiment with their basic sound. On "Distance's" best song, "The Dolphin's Cry," it works, but for most of the album, it just seemed uncharacteristic. "V" suffered from the same hodgepodge (Tricky rapping with Ed, too much electronic noodling, etc), but it also contained the transcendent "Overcome," which seemed to appear from nowhere after the horror of 9/11, giving voice to the feelings of a national anguish. "Birds Of Pray" tries to return to form, but comes off as over baked. While the duet with Shelby Lynne, "Run Away," is terrific, the cheesy religious ballad "Heaven" is entirely forgettable. Fortunately, "Awake!" closes with a fine cover of Johnny Cash's "I Walk The Line."

PS: The bonus DVD with the deluxe version is definitely worth picking up. In addition to a few of the songs left of the CD, ("Freaks," "They Stood Up For Love" and a couple live tracks), you get "Simple Creed," probably one of the two decent tracks from "V." The other "V" video for "Overcome" may be a tougher watch, as it is made from 9/11 footage. It's also worth getting to see the youthful exuberance of LIVE's first video, "Operation Spirit."

Live is my favorite band, and after having bought all of their studio albums, seen all their videos, and heard most of their b-side songs, I couldn't resist buying this CD/DVD as well. I'm so glad I did - there is a level of depth to this package that is hard to find elsewhere.

The CD takes you on a trip from their earliest years to the present, and listening to them mature as a band is a remarkable experience. The DVD includes a 30-minute interview with Ed, who explains what some of the songs mean to him, why he wrote some of them, how the songs or videos came to be, etc. The DVD also starts from their earliest videos and progresses to the present.

I've had a chance to hear "We Deal in Dreams" before and it has always been one of my favorite b-sides from Live, but the version on the CD is different from anything else I've heard before. I really liked it and I hope Live gets a lot of positive feedback on this song, as I hope they release some of their other b-sides.

All in all, there's a lot to enjoy on this album. If you've never bought a Live album before, this is a great place to start! If you're a long-time fan like me, it is a great compliment to the rest of the Live collection. Now if Live will just schedule another tour date in New Orleans....

I absolutely LOVE this CD!! It hardly ever leaves my CD player. All of the songs are great, but some of my favorites are "All Over You", "Lightning Crashes", "Turn My Head", "Dance With You", "Run to the Water", and "Dolphin's Cry". "Overcome" is also really good. Actually, I might as well just name every single song on the album! Buy this and you will not be let down!