Entertainment For Lively Minds
I love a good live album don't you?
Right now I'm listening to Humble Pie's Rockin the Fillmore and its got me thinking about live albums that stand the test of time. You know, the ones that seemed to capture at least some of the spirit of said band in their prime in some theater out in the mid west or provincial town, quaffing JD or cheap wine on stage, extending guitar solos, improvising the keyboard parts, the singer bouncing off the crowd's adulation with the odd blokey quip, the band hitting a bum note here and there and those crowd cheer fade-ins at the end of each song. Oh, and the 10 minute drum solo at the end of side three (thats old LP terminology kids).
Of course, some celebrated "live" albums were far from live, many featured deft twiddling of knobs in the studio afterwards and, in some cases, overdubbed tracks laid down later to ensure the album bagged a few more Yankee dollars for the record company. But hey, I didn't care a roll of gaffer tape about that. If it sounded live it was good enough for this boy. So lets hear your favourites. Here are a few that regularly blow away the cobwebs in my house.
AC/DC - If You Want Blood You've Got It. If anyone is remotely interested in just how tight these guys were in the late 70s get this, and play it to the kids.
The Who Live at Leeds - ditto late 60s
Humble Pie at the Fillmore - Steve Marriot's vocal dexterity and genius on full display.
Thin Lizzy - Live and Dangerous. Its just perfect good time rock'n' roll. Of course, I couldnt possibly comment about the alleged doctoring of said tapes afterwards. No doubt others will.
UFO - Strangers in the Night. Was it live or not? Whatever, the guitar mastery of wunderkind and flawed genius, Michael Schenker, shines on this record.
Ziggy Stardust live Hammersmith 1973 - The best glam rock live album ever. Bar none.
Bursting Out Live - Jethro Tull. The best introduction to English arena folk rock and the sheer charisma and talent of Ian Anderson and his gang.
Get Your Ya Yas Out - The Stones - it drips with blues, bad weed and shaggy haired groupies puffing cigs at the side of the stage ogling Mick and Keef.
Bob Dylan bootleg 1966 - needs no explanation.
I'll stop there and let you guys take it from here.
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CBGB connections..
"It's Alive" the Ramones
"The Name of this band is Talking Heads" Talking Heads
both have enough of the rough sound & vitality you get at a good gig
"From DEEP in the heart of Texas...
Live at the Armadillo World Headquarters....
Com-man-der CODY and the Lost Planet Ayur-MEN!!!"
That's the boy for me. A stormer from start to finish
Raw Power ?
Do you mean "Metallic KO" ?
oops
you're right
go on, fix it
Then I'll ask Fraser to delete this bit and no-one will ever know
error corrected.
with a bit of Bob.
but now this part makes no sense at all
Oh well.
Can anyone explain negging this post ?
It was an entirely factual correction - wassup Wordistas ?
Greats from different genres
The Band - The Last Waltz (although some prefer Rock of Ages)
Roy Orbison - Black and White Night
but my all time favourite
Nanci Griffith - One Fair Summer Evening
Neither 'live' nor indeed 'good'...
...it could be argued, but i'm still thrilled when i hear Judas Priest's 'Unleashed In The East'.
As for Bowie, i've always adored 'Stage'.
Special mention too for David Gilmour's recent 'Live In Gdansk' which is absolutely superb.
It's
Too
Late
To
Stop
Now
Elvis Costello
Live At The El Mocambo is being released on Oct26th
Does anybody know if this is worth a punt?
oh yes
a belter
Crowd Noise
It's already out in the states , and reading some of the reviews on amazon.com, some people say the recording is ruined by some wag in the audience, whooping and yahooing through every song.
Is it bearable or would it be better to buy the "My Aim Is True" deluxe edition which has the "live at the Nashville Rooms" bonus disc?
The Deluxe Edition is good too
I'll need to dig our the el mocambo again and listen - it is entirely possible that there is some "woo! rock & roll!" going on
El Mocambo
A mate had it on vinyl when it was ultra rare and expensive. I thought it was a waste of money because of that loon.
David
Live is my all time favourite.
I hated that Frampton one.
As usual
The version of All the Young Dudes is worth the price of admission alone
Genesis - Seconds Out
I posted this on the Genesis thread a few days back, but whose lead guitar are we hearing on that album: Daryl Stuermer's or Steve Hackett's? In an interview I saw with Tony Banks some years back, Banks said that they mixed out Hackett's parts in retaliation for him going solo shortly after the tour ended.
That was a joke
He's been apologising for/explaining his comment ever since. Fans accused the band of fading Hackett's parts down in the mix, Banks was merely making a droll comment on the controversy. A cursory listen to 76 and 77 boots would seem to suggest the theory is bollocks. Daryl Steurmer is - mercifully - nowhere near Seconds Out.
Frank Zappa
Roxy & Elsewhere
Aahh.. now you're talking.
Purple - Made In Japan.
BOC - On Your Feet Or On Your Knees
UFO - Strangers In The Night
Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense
The last was great because the whole video thing made it so much better.
Do bands still release live albums now?
coincedentally
Am listening to "Stop Making Sense" now.
Superb album. I prefer some of the versions to the album versions. "Burning Down the House" with its mad noises and dodgy synth are great. "Psycho Killer" has a sort of serious menace about it.
Bonnie "Prince" Billy's "Is It The Sea?" live album with Harem Scarem was one of my favourites of the end of last year too.
Cock-on, Badger.
Psycho Killer especially.
It took on a whole new meaning with just a stary David Byrne, aN ACOUSTIC GUITAR AND A DRUM BOLLOCKS HIT CAPSLOCKhang on that's better where was I oh yeah a drum machine.
I still want a Big Suit.
Roxy Music! for...
'Eskimos and...Geordies!'
Where was that?
At Newcastle City Hall? I swear I was there man
The Trinity Session
Cowboy Junkies
Not sure if a live album in the accepted sense - but recorded on a single night in a single place around a single microphone - and singularly brilliant
I wouldn't have thought so
but I wish there were more albums recorded in this way. For my part I hate live albums. Most of them seem like contractual obligations. They are frequently tampered with ("Live and Dangerous"). The performances are usually poor and the production only works if you crank the thing up to ear-splitting / neighbour-antagonising level. The last one I knowingly bought was the Tubes one ("What do you want from Live?")from God know when, just because I was there and it was cheap.
Almost but not quite
The acapella opener, Mining For Gold, was recorded a few days later, in the same place, on the same microphone. As they walked out of the church after the initial recording, after midnight approprately enough, they realised they'd forgotten to record it and Margo and producer Peter Moore went back when he was recording an orchestra in the same building later on and knocked off the song.
I interviewed Moore about the recording a few years ago, and he was fascinating on the subject - for instance, the whoosh and tinkling noise you hear right at the start was him firing up the boiler furnace in the church, so you would hear this sound like miner's chipping away just before Margo starts singing.
They booked the church as The Timmins Singers, because they thought the people who ran it might object to the name Cowboy Junkies. It's a gorgeous church by the way, right on the edge of this giant shopping centre, very odd juxtaposition.
Very interesting
Thanks. Oh, and I have thought of another outstanding live album - this one more traditionally live: Keith Jarrett's "Koln Concert". The story behind this is that the piano was out of tune in places because of the cold weather. So Jarrett was unable to use the full keyboard. He still did a pretty good job!
More Koln trivia...
The opening refrain of track 1 side 1 is the 'interval over' tune from the venue. Hence the gentle giggling you can hear a few seconds in.
I don't own many live albums
If Nirvana Unplugged counts then that's definitely up there surely.
Other than that I own Live Seeds by Nick Cave which has some truly good versions of his songs. The Live Mercy Seat is better than the album version. The same is possibly true of red right hand.
I've got a bootleg copy somewhere of some late Bowie Stuff that has a great version of Aladdin Sane as well.
But apart from that I don't have and don't recall hearing many live albums. I wonder if this is because I have only ever listened to music since CD came along and that less live albums have been released on CD. Maybe that's not the case. But I have not had much exposure to the live album as a format. I think I've seen more live gigs on DVD, and definitely more live footage in documentary than I've heard through speakers.
I will be watching the thread for recommendations!
Donny Hathaway
Imaginatively titled Donny Hathaway - Live
The best live Lp I've ever heard - really captures the crowd atmosphere
A taster for you
Jealous Guy
That's very interesting, I've never heard that before
I played in a band in Belfast that opened a few times for Frankie Miller in the late 70's. I always thought his version of Jealous Guy was pretty much definitive but it sounds as though Donny beat him by several years. Frankie's version is fairly similar
Cheap Trick at Budokan
Best live album ever.
Sounds best on
kamakzie yellow vinyl natch!
Sinatra at The Sands
with Count Basie and his Orchestra
Not too shabby.
"The September of My Years"
http://open.spotify.com/track/5xYkg3hwC7B9sqTwlH9u39
I also asked this question last year and here is what we thought
http://www.wordmagazine.co.uk/content/the-greatest-ever-live-album
The Allman Brothers Band
'Live at The Fillmore East'
is still the standout live album for me. Particularly 'Elizabeth Reed' and their take on 'Stormy Monday'
'Whipping Post !............'
kicking television
i love wilco but,
their live album 'kicking television' is ruined by the audience whooping and cheering
Can't beat a bit of...
Yessongs.
And that sleeve!
Rock n' Roll Animal
Lou's album I can listen to again and again, especially 'Heroin' and 'Lady Day' as well as "Rock and Roll', although I'm sure some of the crowd effects are repeated more than once. Did I put the apostrophe in the right place tho? Also his revisit of 'Berlin' is very good, in some warehouse, but never as good as the original. 'Metallic KO' is possibly the best 'live' album ever to my lugs, and Bill Withers live at Madison Square Garden(?) is another. "Grandma's Hands" and "Hope she's happy" cannot be equalled. 'David Live' I used to love but I haven't heard it for a long time, but forget the Hammersmith Odeon job, 'Santa Monica' is the best. Dr Feelgood, Eddie and the Hotrods (alright, an EP). I suppose listening to 'live' albums defeats the purpose but them's me choices. Oh, and at the risk of sounding a bit wet, I think that James Taylor's 'One man band' is the one that would sneak into my top ten, no problem. Saw the whole concert on the telly and downloaded the whole album from emusic. You miss a lot of banter, but Never grow old. Never die young.
"Sweet Jane"
from 'RnR A' was our school's too cool for school crowd's "Louie Louie".
The ancient walls echoing to a group of really rather nice chaps from the ghettos of Godalming, the mean streets of Maidenhead, imagining themselves as smack addicts from the Bowery.
Intro/Sweet Jane
Now that is a riff.
Live at Leeds - The Who
Just superb. I love Isle of Wight 1970 too, with the centerpiece being an excellent angry, aggressive and wonderfully sloppy runthrough of Tommy highlights.
Warren Zevon
Stand In The Fire, Fitzevon at this best.
And of course any bootleg of the Grateful Dead's night at Cornell University on the 8th of May 1977.
I thought that...
Dylan's 1964 was a much better listen than the 1966. Bob on fine comedy form, the audience roaring with laughter. You can hear a pin drop during the more "serious" numbers. Calling out for someone to get him started on "I Don't Believe You (She Acts Like We Never Met)" because he forgets the first verse. Deftly handling the heckling:
Audience Member: Sing, Mary Had A Little Lamb!
Dylan: Gosh, did I record that? Is that a protest song?
The banter between him and Baez, and Dylan's palpable surprise when Baez sings, "Daddy, you've been on my mind," instead of "Mama". The list goes on.
The 1966 is a terrible live show - Dylan slurs his way incoherently through the songs, and spits out Mr Tambourine Man. It only serves as historical interest in a what-the-hell-happened-to-you-in-those-two-years kind of way.
Strange how we hear things differently...
the Dylan 1966 concert is some of the most electrifying rock n' roll I've ever heard.
dylan 66
correct, Bootleg 66 is so good its a cultural milestone, though I also agree with our friend about 64 for its lighthearted folksy feel. A happy young Dylan on the threshold of greatness.
1975 Rolling Thunder
Is my preferred live Bootleg Series offering.
1975 it is
although 'Isis' on "Biograph" is the better version.
"This is for Leonard...if he's still here.."
Corker! Nice of them to include it on the free DVD that came with the CD set...
Isis
Love that Biograph version. "Here's a song about marriage!"
Judas!
Well, yes the '64 show is clearer, and I adore the banter and some of those renditions are just magic - but I really do like the weird edgy atmosphere of the '66 show. Everyone is tense as hell and although Dylan had clearly had a glass of Irn Bru beforehand, his slurry, streaky, cynical delivery just adds to the overall feeling of heightened drama! I really love the whole thing - 'Tell Me Momma' ("What's wroong with yooooouu.. this tiiiime!"), Garth Hudson's keyboards in 'Ballad Of A Thin Man', the staggering rage of 'She Acts Like We Never Have Met" and yes, that famous catcall at the end and the subsequent howling through "Rolling Stone"... wowza!
'Moments From This Theatre'...
by Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham. Two blokes singing and playing superb songs superbly well.
good
call Mr C. Not an all-time classic perhaps but you can hear the legacy of the South in every groove
Great album Patrick
Love the in-between song chat as well - particularly about the best version of Dark End of the Street.
And 'Old Folks' gets me every time. Something in my eye here...
'Old Folks'....
has exactly the same effect on me. I love the version of I'm Your Puppet from that album too.
Horace Tapscott - "The Dark Tree"
Thankfully, 2009 has seen the re-release of one of the greatest live jazz albums in history. I refer to Horace Tapscott's "The Dark Tree".
The quartet's line-up is absolutely peerless: Andrew Cyrille on drums, the mighty Cecil Mcbee on bass, John Carter soaring high on the B flat clarinet and maestro Tapscott himself on piano. If you like outside jazz, you owe it to yourself to hear it. Simply a staggering piece of work.
Live Albums
when I wor a lad (cue a tiny violin sawing away...) were often just a way of getting all of an act's "bestest songs" on one album.
Compilations didn't seem so common then - and of course downloading and file-sharing were light years away.
You didn't have enough allowance and certainly didn't have the temerity to ask for Ziggy and Hunky and Aladdin Sane and,oh Man Who please too - so you settled for David Live .
Good job it was brilliant
I would add
John Coltrane : Sheets Of Sound
The Grateful Dead : Fillmore West 1969
Kenny Burrell : At The Five Spot Cafe
Many of the above...
and also...
Waiting for Columbus, Electrif Lycanthrope - Little Feat
Irish tour 74 and Live in Europe - Rory Gallgher
Spy Boy - Emmylou Harris
Filmore - Allmans - yes I know mentioned already but it is so good it should be rementioned
Live Dead - Grateful Dead
Live Europe 72 - Soft Machine
Ummagumma live side - Pink Floyd
Live in Austin - RT
Rory
One artist - maybe the only one? - where the quality of his live albums is vastly superior to any of his studio albums?
And Also
Ian Hunter - Welcome to the Club
The only album of his I play regularly.
Bowie: Diamond Dogs.
But DD isn't a live album I hear you say.
Three seconds into the track Diamond Dogs you can hear Rod Stewart shouting "whey". The crowd noise was dubbed from The Faces live album Coast to Coast.
http://open.spotify.com/track/5BJrb3Gb56XbzFmz1kvqFw
This only begs the question if there is an alternative version with Ronnie Lane
shouting "rennet"?
yes
imagine if he'd said it in Sunderland.
Rank
The Smiths. Hard, fast and elegant!
Easy decision for me
"The Living End" by Husker Du is just superb.
The best live bootleg I've heard is "Small Club" by Prince, recorded in a nightclub in the Netherlands during the Lovesexy tour, and mainly comprised of new (still unreleased) tracks, jams, and cover versions. It's incredibly good.
Neil Young anyone...........?
Arc/Weld is caustically brilliant with Young in amp'ed up mode. Version of Blowin' in the Wind is mesmeric and some fabulous harmonies with Crazy Horse.
Live at the Fillmore East has a great takes on Winterlong and Cowgirl on it.
Talking of Crazy Horse - not sure if it's or Spotify on iTunes but the "North West Coast" cd that came with initial copies of Ian McNabb's Merseybeast is one of the best live albums I've ever heard. What She Did To My Mind/Evangeline/Pushin Too Hard/Understanding Jane/I Don't Want To Talk About It. Great stuff...
"Stupidity" - Dr Feelgood
All this way down and nobody has picked "Stupidity" ? I bought the DVD as well("Going Back Home") and it's hilarious to see the stage set for the 2,000 capacity homecoming gig at The Kursaal, Southend - much the same as when they played at The Marquee, wee amps, with a couple more lights at the side.
The live album is a gritty gem, a cracking band at the height of their powers.
good debate so far, here's some more
"How the West Was Won" - Led Zep, recorded over two 1972 gigs in California. Jimmy Page did a good job on these tapes. Its quite raw in places but personally I think its much better than "The Song Remains the Same" which until it was remastered last year always sounded a bit muddy through my old speakers in days gone by.
There have been countless BBC Sessions which I've invested in over the years, most recently Led Zeppelin (above average) "Dr Feelgood Down at the BBC" (quite good), and "Bowie at the Beeb" (excellent).
One record that's been around for years is "Deep Purple In Concert", recorded over two Beeb sessions in 1970 and 1972, which in my view is better than the much more celebrated "Made in Japan", and which contains the definitive live versions of Lazy, Speed King and Wring that Neck.
Led Zep @ BBC, yes - good
Led Zep @ BBC, yes - good call! "Travelin' Riverside Blues'!
Thank You!
I find the version of Thank You on this disc quite astounding, and quite frequently play it several times in a row
Townes van Zandt "Live at the Old Quarter, Houston, Texas
The first Townes album I ever heard, and it'll always be my favourite:
waiting around to die
i had the pleasure of seeing townes live back in 1994
i was listening to mark radcliffe's show on radio 1 and he had townes in session and he was on top form and he said he was playing at the southport arts centre the next night
so, after one bus and two trains i arrived at said venue and townes was fantastic, telling the same jokes he told on mark's show the previous night and being an all round entertainer(plus the stella on tap was very economical)
sadly missed but hopefully steve earle's latest album and a recent doc will bring his work to a new audience
'heartworn highways' is a must documentary for any fans of americana
Misty in Roots: "Live at the Counter Eurovision '79"
Still, after all these years, the finest of all live reggae albums:
Definitely one of the all time greats...
when will someone reissue it though!
Burning Spear - Live At Paris Zenith '88 and also Live At Montreaux '01 are both great. As is Linton Kwesi Johnson - In Concert With The Dub Band.
Non reggae, my picks are Magazine - Play, Gil Scott-Heron/Brian Jackson - It's Your World and Bill Withers - Live At Carnegie Hall.
If you can get hold of it then
the 1997 2 disc CD set called Jah Sees Jah Knows has it as disc 2. It is just called "Live" in this set but it is exactly the same.
It is on Snapper Music, SMDCD107
Quo Live...
...from the Apollo....Glasgow....
Soul
Anyone else think that soul has a better track record for live LP's than rock acts?
You'll never go wrong with any of those Stax Live albums.....a couple of Booker T. instrumentals, followed by Carla Thomas, the Mar-Keys, Sam & Dave, and climaxing with Otis.
And that Sam Cooke LP, Live at Harlem Square, is incredible.
Oh, and best introduction to the Beatles, 'Live at the BBC'.
Waiting For Columbus
If this isn't the best live album ever then it must be close.
Not really
David Hepworth posted the link to the immensely superior Electrif Lycanthrope some time ago.
Waiting For Columbus is a bit of a snooze fest. Little Feat had been known for, among many other fine qualities, their economy and brevity. Columbus saw these virtues eroded as 3 minute songs got sssttttrrreeettttcccchhhheeddd by quasi jazz noodlings. The ecomomy and brevity is there on EL, an album which was endorsed by the band.
Electric lycanthrope
Endorsed or not, Electric Lycanthrope is a bootleg, which I wasn't counting, and I'd still take the unbelievable energy generated by Teenage Nervous Breakdown (as just an example) over virtually any other live album.
Having said that, EL is an amazing album and well worth chasing on the Internet. After many years of searching unsuccessfully for an actual physical copy, the mighty Internet came to the rescue and it lived up to the hype. Interestingly, though, in terms of it's greatness as a live album, I had to keep reminding myself that what I was listening to WAS actaully recorded live , such is the quality of the playing.
Stiff Little Fingers
Live In Aberdeen
Much better than Hanx, or indeed any of the raft of live SLF albums released by various companies throughout the 80s (perhaps with the exception of See You Up There)
How about
Bowie - Stage
Dylan - Hard Rain (head and shoulders the best Dylan live album)
John Martyn - Foundations (I was there..!!)
Zevon - Stand in the Fire
John Cale - Sabotage
Live
Genesis, the album that changed my life
others
Performance: Rockin' the Fillmore ~ Humble Pie
Live at Leeds (original) ~ The Who
Wake ~ The Sisters Of Mercy (okay it's a video but...)
Live Bootleg ~ Aerosmith
velvet underground - the quine tapes
just blows me away everytime i hear it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bootleg_Series_Volume_1:_The_Quine_Tapes
3 cd's of great music, all the VU favourites but played slightly differently and sometimes even improved upon from the record.
that and the stranglers/Live X cert album, you can really smell the stale beer and fagbuts... just like seeing them live(which i did a few times)...
Who Live At Leeds - More Is Less
A significant part of what makes a great live album is the editing. THE WHO - LIVE AT LEEDS is one of the great live albums - great songs, loud and FAST. We segue from one song to the next, motorised. The re-issued 2-disc expanded version - even those songs that are taken straight from the original album - is a clod-hopping, otiose disaster. Did we really need to hear all that inane inter-song babble? The concert has turned into a sludgy bore. Less IS oftentimes more.
agreed
the original just got it right, the version with Tommy is even more of a chore
I had to look up otiose BTW
The 2 disc version is a washout
due to over compression. The '95 one disc 14 track reissue of Live at Leeds is far better sounding and more concise.
All that mid-70's Miles stuff..
so heavy and intense, was recorded live: Pangaea,Agartha,Dark Magus. Kind of Blue it ain't.
Agartha
I second you on that, sir.
Truly mesmerising.
5
Van - "It's Too Late To Stop Now"
Dylan - "Hard Rain"
Joni Mitchell - "Shadows & Light"
Talking Heads - "Stop Making Sense" (the original version - sometimes less is way more)
The Grateful Dead - "Live Dead"
Good call
for Hard Rain, Steven.
I'm waiting for CBS to wake up to the possibilities of putting out a double set with the Hard Rain LP (all songs from both shows) and a dvd of the one hour TV special, possibly Dylan's finest hour in front of the cameras. That would be something special.
Now that would be a worthy Bootleg Series Vol. 9
I still have the vinyl LP that a friend in school gave away in disgust, it being only his second Dylan purchase after BOTT. I knew right way it was not ordinary. I then acquired a ropey VHS copy of the TV Special, and you're right it is fantastic.
Who should we write to?
Jeff Rosen
The fact they still have that footage in the vaults was borne out by the use of it in the opening montage of the 30th Anniversary Concert.
Shadows and Light
Mr Woodville, a man of patrician bearing and taciturn to the point of incivility - entered the ticks common room.
"What is this?" he asked
"Er, Joni Mitchell, sir" someone replied.
He sat down and listened to the end of the song "Shadows and Light".
"Very good". He said as he stood up and left.
My German teacher at school was really into Little Feat...
and if I mentioned 'Waiting For Columbus' to him he miraculously forgot that my homework was late or lousy.
My Live List
The Who - Live At Leeds
Deep Purple - Made In Japan
Uriah Heep - Live (1973)
Yes - Yessongs
Rory Gallagher - Irish Tour '74
Thin Lizzy - Live & Dangerous
Pink Floyd - Pulse
The Kinks - One For The Road
Status Quo - Quo Live
No gimpy dancing til Hammersmith
In 1982/83 Depeche Mode Released 4 live tracks from a Hammersmith Odeon show as 33rpm B sides to 3 of their 12" singles in that time.
Despite what people generally say, live versions by synth-heavy bands can be very different to what is on the recorded work. The live sound is simpler, more direct. The bass shakes the floor, the wall and your teeth (if you're Fred Wedlock).
Rory Gallagher
Seconded (or er, thirded?) for Live in Europe. The cd reissue has a few extra tracks that are not really needed but the vinyl is a first class album. He remains one of the best live acts I've ever seen (Cardiff Top Rank.. 1982) and somewhere in an attic in south Wales is a box that contains a now faded denim jacket with his signature on.
So as it's tipping down outside a quick best ever live gig list ....
1. Rory Gallagher - Cardiff Top Rank - 1982
2. Nina Simone - Ronnie Scott's - 1984
3. Neutral Milk Hotel - late 90s supporting someone at the Shepherds Bush Empire. They were that good I've forgotten who the main act was.
count and frankie still the best for mine
followed by duke at newport
followed by the davis seventies cited earlier
rock....
live rust anyone ?
ditto hard rain - shelter from the storm outstanding oh and idiot wind
live at leeds
ya yas remastered perhaps the leeds boot surpasses
rock' n' roll animal never mind lou -its all about the guitars
a twofer -otis redding and hendrix live at monterey -a side each - stunning
blues overdose- johnny winter and live with rick derringer
derek and dominoes at the filmore -sounded better than layla even if it lacked duane
Otis & Jimi
One of the first albums I bought - a Japanese pressing, vinyl as thick as a desk, and indestructible.
Great performances, and still a joy
Johnny Winter And Live
Good shout on above. One track sticks in my memory from hearing it when I was about 10 - their version of "Good Morning Little Schoolgirl" - fantastic rifferama
Excellent call
You are so right Sheev. This is absolutely stunning. Bonkers, and stunning. For guitar porn take out the right ear bud and just listen to Rick Derringer's "second guitar" on "It's my own fault". Staggering.
While we're chez freres Hiver, "Roadwork" by Edgar's White Trash is brilliant too.
The Guv'nor.
Live at Leeds - John Martyn.
Can't belive it hasn't been mentioned this far down !. Side two of the LP is perfection. Danny Thompson's bass lines weave in and out of the whole thing and if there were ever three musicians on the same vibe then this has captured it exquisitely. Some of the bootlegs from this period are poor and it's a pity there isn't a decent copy of any of the gigs that Kossoff did around that time too. Live at Leeds is JM at his very best.
IT's too late to stop now - missing Video/DVD
My favourite live album.
parts of which was recorded at the Rainbow in I think '73 which I was at.
Some time later it was shown on BBC TV with a simultaneous Stereo Broadcast on Radio 1.
I have trawled the web for this on DVD, without success.
Does any member of the Massive, know if this was ever released and if not, why not.
Although I'm sure the legendary un-accommodating Mr Morrison is responsible. Hope I'm wrong. But it must be the only piece of music video, which should be available, but has not been released.
a friend well informed
advises that there is a bootleg DVD of the OGWT 55 mins in total.
no i don't have it and nor does he
A few personal faves for many reasons
The Cure - Concert
Robyn Hitchcock - Gotta Let This Hen Out
Saxon - The Eagle Has Landed
Genesis - Seconds Out
Rush - Exit Stage Left
Frank Sinatra - Sinatra At The Sands With Count Basie
Gotta Let This Hen Out
greatest title of a tune/album anywhere even if I know the back story
If you want blood
One of the best Acadaca moments. I can smell the smoke and feel and sweat every time this comes on...pure energy.
James Brown (and some jazz)
James Brown - "Love!Power!Peace! Live at the Paris Olympia 1971". A frenzied yet still funky hullabaloo.
For a more relaxed evening - Bill Evans - "At The Village Vanguard".
Which of course reminded me I can never choose between John Coltrane's "Live At The Village Vanguard" and "Live At The Village Vanguard Again".
I love a good bootleg live album don't you?
Concur with all the praise of Dylan 66.
Similarly, I didn't really get Bruce Springsteen until I heard Live at the Roxy 1978. Eight tracks turned up on the live box but somehow with some of the excitement leeched out, and other great tracks not included at all.
Same again only more so, Bowie in Santa Monica on the Station To Station tour in '76. Some of these turned up as extras on Bowie CDs reissues, but totally lacking the mad live rush of that rubbishy C-90.
And a mention for the execrably recorded but still much-valued boot of Elvis Costello and T-Bone Burnett in 1984.
Proper live albums ? Loads of the above, plus
Christy Moore Live At The Point
Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison
James Brown Live At The Apollo
Otis At Monterey. And In France. And while I'm thiking about it, that tape the old NME did years ago of the Stax/Volt tour in 1967.
Duke Ellington at Newport (if only for that track with the 27 choruses)
Many of my personal favourites have already been mentioned, but
I haven't seen anyone talk about:-
1) Friday Night in San Francisco, by John McLaughlin. Al Di Meola and Paco de Lucia. Flamenco guitarist on guitarist on guitarist action at its finest.
2) Stanley Clarke - Live '75/'76 (or is it '76/'77? Can't check at the moment as Mrs C has "borrowed" my iPod but whatever, it's completely brilliant).
3) Pat Metheny Group - Travels. If you only buy one PMG album, get this one.
And my favourite live album of recent years is definitely Kicking Television by Wilco, particularly the second CD. Worth buying for "Ashes of American Flags" alone in my view. It would seem that not everyone in this parish agrees, but I don't care.
One More From The Road
Lynyrd Skynyrd - first two albums - condensed. Brilliant
Live Albums
Can't believe you've missed:
Free Live!
Bob Marley & The Wailers Live at the Lyceum
and howzabout, guys & gals?:
Slade Alive!
Aswad - Live & Direct
Van Morrison - A Night In San Francisco
and I abslutely concur with:
Rockin' the Fillmore - Humble Pie,
Stop Making Sense and The Name of this Band is.. both by Talking Heads,
the marvelous Live at Leeds by John Martyn (posted to my door!)
and maybe....
Family at the BBC, Mountain Live, Live Cream,
and some more I can't quite remember....
peace y'all,
Dan x
Man - Spunk Rock
Not sure I could really talk about a favourite live album without providing a long list....and the list I give you this week would, in all likelihood, be different from the list I give next week.
What I would suggest, though, is that the version of Man's Spunk Rock that appears on the Greasy Trucker's Party album is very likely my single favourite live track from any band or artist.
22 minutes of superbly played, pulsating guitar driven rock featuring the peerless talents of Micky Jones, Deke Leonard, Martin Ace and Terry Williams. Awesome in its' power even after all these years
Deke Leonard's book is good
I've no idea what Man sound like, but his book is hilarious.
"Maybe I Should've Stayed In Bed". I see from Amazon
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Maybe-Shouldve-Stayed-Flip-Dream/dp/1900711095
that the price has rocketed : I got it in a book clearout in the last days of Tower Records in Glasgow for less than the £45 it is now listed at!
As is its' companion Rhinos,
As is its' companion Rhinos, Winos & Lunatic which, in similar style, covers his adventures with the Manband.
Not sure if there are plans to reissue the books at all - given the type of price your seeing it does suggest there's some kind of market for it.
Dear Mr. Rank Badjin
should we ever meet, can I get a borrow of Deke's book and a squint Dr. Fleabag's Stupidity DVD?
Geography permitting
of course you can!
I still have that
hem, hem DVD of your former combo for you
One you may have missed: J.
One you may have missed:
J. Geils Band - Full House live!
As live albums go, this one puts you right in the thick of it. Featuring the rhymin, jivin Peter Wolf at his best
Other top live album moments:
Jimi plays Moneterey - no arguments there, I hope
The Sensational Alex Harvey Band - live - "Good evening boys and girls..."
Deep Purple - Made in Japan "can we have everything louder than everything else"
Agree with the appraisal of Electrif Lycanthrope as the best example of Little Feat live. I still have a cassette of it, and on the other side is another bootleg, Aurora Backseat, on which Lowell tells the story of meeting his hero, Howlin' Wolf, and Wolf tells him to F*** off.
Can't beleive I missed Full House!
Yes, it's a great one, you can almost smell the crowd!
Live albums always let you down...
they lack to purity of the studio and the atmosphere of the gig. Why bother.
Across the Wire -
By Counting Crows. The first disc is the first live album I ever loved. Magnificent reinterpretations of some of their best early tunes.
mention on the podcast - thank you
thank you to the podcast guys for mentioning myself and this thread, which has been a brilliant debate so far.
some more lesser known rock live albums.
Ted Nugent - Double Live Gonzo
Black Sabbath - Live Evil
Rory Gallagher - Stagestruck
Molly Hatchet - Locked and Loaded
Mountain - Twin Peaks live
Stevie Ray Vaughan - Live Alive
Talk of the Devil - Ozzy Osbourne
Once in a live time - Dream Theater
Keith Jarrett - not just "Köln"
Keith Jarrett has recorded plenty of other top-notch live albums apart from the oft-quoted "Köln Concert". Two big thumbs up for this tremendous ten:
1. La Scala
2. Vienna Concert
3. Still Live
4. Tokyo '96
5. Carnegie Hall Concert
6. "Concerts" (i.e. Bregenz)
7. Bremen/Lausanne
8. Whisper Not
9. Up For It
10. Inside Out
Does anyone have the "Sun Bear Concerts" 6CD box? Is it worth it? I've often considered getting it, but have never quite taken the plunge...
The new live album,
Testament, pretty much tops his live list if you ask me. Gobsmackingly good.
Doesn't Kiss Alive! normally rank among the best?
In that it is seen as the best showcase for the band -- if you don't like this then you don't like Kiss sort of thing.
Penguin Café Orchestra - "Concert Program"
A wonderful live album, and the perfect entry-point to the group's oeuvre:
For Peace Comes Dropping Slow - Jackie Leven
One man and one guitar, a voice, classic songs, bawdy and crude tales, almost as good as being there....maybe considering the venue better than being there!
Bursting Out
Gotta be Ian & the boys. Introduced me to the mightiness of '70s Tull.
And like all my favourite albums, I hated it when I first tried it. Bit like beer & whisky.....