There is some speculation as to whether Secret Samadhi, and the single "Rattlesnake" in particular is directly influenced by Stephen King's 1996 book "Desperation".
V, originally titled Ecstatic Fanatic, is Live's fifth album, released in 2001.
Featuring the singles "Simple Creed" and "Overcome" (the latter of which received significant exposure following 9/11), V nonetheless reflected Live's continued commercial fall-off, reaching only #22 on the album charts at home, and failing to even reach gold, despite reasonably positive reviews.
The remix of "Deep Enough," which is a hidden track on this album, was featured in the movie The Fast and the Furious. Additionally, "Forever May Not Be Long Enough" appears on the soundtrack to The Mummy Returns and plays during the end credits of the movie, and "Overcome" appeared in the FX Network television show The Shield.
All songs written by Ed Kowalczyk, except where noted:
Birds of Pray is Live's sixth album, released in 2003. The first single, "Heaven," became the band's most successful single in several years. While Birds of Pray only reached #28 at home and failed to reach gold, it still posted a sales boost from 2001's V.
Mental Jewelry is the 1991 album by Live, the rock band from York, Pennsylvania. Many of the songs are based on the writings of Indian philosopher Jiddu Krishnamurti.
The single "Operation Spirit (The Tyranny of Tradition)" went to #9 on the Modern Rock chart, and paved the way for the band's Harrison-produced full-length debut, 1991's Mental Jewelry (#73). The album lyrics, penned by Kowalczyk, were heavily inspired by Indian guru Jiddu Krishnamurti.
On Throwing Copper, Live tightened their sound, added crashing crescendos for dramatic effect, and injected some anger into their sound and songwriting. They also eased up a bit on the Eastern philosophy; the result is a more cohesive, memorable record overall, and quite an improvement from the sometimes overly precious Mental Jewelry. And for all of Mental Jewelry's ideologies, Throwing Copper is ultimately a more passionate and successful album, thanks to tracks like "I Alone," "Selling the Drama," and "All Over You," all of which received heavy radio play. The rebirth-themed "Lightning Crashes," the album's biggest hit, was written in memory of Barbara Lewis, a classmate who was killed by a drunk driver in 1993. Other standouts include the Kurt Cobain/Courtney Love-inspired "Stage," the apocalyptic "White, Discussion," the bass-driven, obsessive "Iris," and the dark "Dam at Otter Creek."
To date, the album has sold over eight million copies in the U.S.
Singer/songwriter Ed Kowalczyk was asked in an Australian radio interview in 1997 if R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe had sung the backing vocals at the end of the song "Pillar of Davidson." Kowalczyk laughed and replied, "No, that's just me trying to sound like Michael Stipe as hard as I can!"
