Great Live Albums (1 Viewer)

[Ben Motley]

Thanks Philip! I'll take your advice in mind, but I wonder how I'd react to the 2cd remaster without having ever heard the original release. Hmmm, this is a conundrum!
By the way, this full Tommy performance; you're not saying this is on the Leeds remaster, are you? I know that The Isle of Wight cd is a two cd set that has the only live recorded performance of Tommy with Keith Moon (if I remember that correctly - I think that what the liner notes said). Is that the one you're talking about? If so, I've got that one (mentioned it my first post too) and can only recommend it highly.

 

[Jay Gregory]

Some live albums that haven't been mentioned:
I'm very fond of Aretha Franklin's Live at the Fillmore West . Aretha jams on a few "hits" and tries to reach the SF kids by featuring some oddball covers. But it's all Aretha (and also some Ray Charles.)
A terrific debut: the MC5's Kick Out The Jams .
One of my very favorite albums: Neil Young's Time Fades Away .
My favorite "official" Bob Dylan or the Band live album (next to Live 1966, of course, which is possibly the greatest album mentioned on this page, and possibly the greatest album ever,) is Before The Flood . Bob goes a little crazy on that tour, and this document is, at least, the "official" precedent for his song re-envisioning ever since. I recommend getting ahold of the vinyl for this one, since the available version is an old school CD release, and somewhat impaired (sonicly speaking.) (Columbia needs to get a move on remastering the Dylan catalog.)
I also really enjoy the vinyl version (it features bonus tracks) of Luna's Luna Live : an old-school styled two record live album that doubles as a greatest "hits."

 

[Rachael B]

I used to drive my parents crazy with Johnny Winter And. I wore out several copies and my parent's ears !
Les McCann & Eddie Harris' SWISS MOVEMENT is Compared To What...

!

 

[Philip Hamm]

By the way, this full Tommy performance; you're not saying this is on the Leeds remaster, are you? I know that The Isle of Wight cd is a two cd set that has the only live recorded performance of Tommy with Keith Moon (if I remember that correctly - I think that what the liner notes said). Is that the one you're talking about? If so, I've got that one (mentioned it my first post too) and can only recommend it highly.

I think that liner note was penned before the second re-release of "Leeds". At the time it was the only full "Tommy" available, but now it's not.
NP: The Clash On Broadway box set

 

[Brian Perry]

Despite the fact that Peter Gabriel had moved on, I think Genesis' Seconds Out is great, both musically and sonically.

 

[Kristian Sorensen]

Deep Purple - Made In Japan (a classic)

Neil Young - Weld

Kristian

 

[Derek S]

Dave Matthews Band - Live @ Red Rocks 8.15.95

Derek

 

[Samuel Des]

Speaking of Dave Matthews, I really enjoyed Live at Luther College. Would you also recommend the new one, Live in Chicago?

 

[DEAN DE FURIA]

I'll probably get some flack for this but, I still really like "Frampton Comes Alive" I love his version of "Jumping Jack Flash".

I also dig "Kiss Alive", Pink Floyd "Pulse", and Elvis' "Alternate Aloha" for his awesome version of James Taylor's "Steamroller"

About "At Fillmore East" DTS, It is the original Quadraphonic mix from the mid-70's. Very interesting to listen to. It has a "you are there" sound from an on-stage vantage point. You hear some vocals and guitars behind you and to the sides. Very cool and worth checking out.

 

[Jim_F]

J. Geils Band - Full House Live. They never were a studio band, but this one captures some of the fun of their live shows.

 

[Dan B]

Another vote for Live at Leeds. No other live album really matters to me. (well, except for bootleg Who concerts)

I put Cheap Trick Live at Budokan in the car for some fun driving music once in a while. Those guys are also from my neck of the woods, which is a plus. (played basketball with them when I was a wee lad too)

-Dan

 

[ChadB]

some of my favs off the top of my head, so i'm sure there are more

1. Grand Funk Railroad: Live Album

2. The Who: Live At Leeds

3. The Who: Live At the Isle of Wight '70

4. Humble Pie: Performance

5. Deep Purple: Made In Japan

6. 10cc: Live And Let Live

7. UFO: Stangers In The Night

8. Traffic: On The Road

9. Led Zeppelin: The Song Remains The Same

10. The Rolling Stones: Get Your Ya Ya's Out

11. Kiss: Alive

12. Big Brother & The Holding Company: Cheap Thrills

13. DiMeola, Mclaughlin, DeLucia: Friday Night in San Francisco

14. Renaissance: Live At Carnegie Hall

 

[Andrew 'Ange Hamm' Hamm]

Genesis - Archive 1 discs 1, 2, and 3. Featuring all of The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, as well as "Supper's Ready," "Dancing with the Moonlit Knight," and other Gabriel-era classics.

Bruce Cockburn - Live. Fron the Big Circumstance tour. It's amazing how much music 3 guys can create.

Joe Jackson - anything live. Specifics? OK, Live 1980-86 (4 mini-albums in one 2 CD set), Summer in the City (great piano trio stuff), and the most recent tour's Two Rainy Nights, which features, in Joes own opinion, the best live band he's ever had--which is saying a ton.

Peter Garbiel - Plays Live. The definitive portrait of Gabriel's best solo work live.

 

[Ron Reda]

Samuel Des,

If you like Dave Matthews Band's "Live At Red Rocks" and Dave & Tim's "Luther College," then you will enjoy "Live In Chicago." It's got plenty of energy and is a good sounding release. Of coruse, you will hear some of the same songs, but with different twists.

Great call, ChadB...I can't believe I didn't remember "DiMeola, Mclaughlin, DeLucia: Friday Night in San Francisco." That's like one of my all-time favorites!

 

[Ike]

Just look at my NP.

NP: The Velvet Underground-Live 1969 Volume 2 "White Light/White Heat"

 

[Derek S]

samuel Des, what Ron said, I am a huge dave matthews band fan so i am not sure my opinion counts....i have about 170 of their shows. live in chicago has The Maker which is a rare daniel linois (SP) song. and The Last Stop, which is a rare concert song....I would say pick it up.

Peace

Derek

"if hate's the gate to peace, this is the last stop" -djm

 

[KeithH]

I prefer studio albums to live albums from the standpoint of sound quality, but many live albums offer great performances. In comparison to live albums, I hate it when solos are restricted in the studio to something that will fit the needs of radio stations.
I have a number of live albums, and I will undoubtedly leave out many good ones, but here are a few I love:
Rush Exit...Stage Left: This was one of the first CDs I bought back in 1987. I couldn't get enough of Neil Peart's drum solo on "YYZ". Case in point to what I said above, the solo on Moving Pictures is lame.
Rush All the World's a Stage: Rush is just awesome live.
Pink Floyd Pulse: Pink Floyd is also incredible live, not that should be news to anyone here. I like this album in particular because I saw them on this tour.
George Thorogood Live: Good, straight, driving rock and roll. Great stuff.

 

[Ken_McAlinden]

I had to resurrect this thread since I just listened to The J. Geils Band's "Blow Your Face Out", which I like even better than "Full House Live". They were one band whose live albums regularly kicked the snot out of their studio work. Growing up listening to Detroit radio, they were always popular, and their live tracks were usually played more than the original single versions of the hits, at least until the 80s and "Love Stinks".
Of course, the other mid-70s live album whose tracks were staples of Detroit radio was "Live Bullet" from Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band. Those two albums may be why I missed out on the whole "Framptom Comes Alive" phenomenon.
Close seconds from the 70s for me are:
P-Funk Earth Tour Live
Cheap Trick Live at Budokan
Wings Over America
The top of the heap is still The Who Live at Leeds, though.
Regards,

 

[Lin Park]

I don't know how I missed this one when it was going around in April. Here are a few that weren't mentioned:
B.B. King - Blues is King (Live at the Regal is good but this one is better IMHO - recorded in a small club in Chicago in the mid-60's using some pretty awesome tube amps along with classic Lucille - and the singin' ain't bad either )
Mahalia Jackson - Recorded Live in Europe During Her Latest Concert Tour - wait, before you nail me for picking a gospel album go listen, the last two tracks "Listen to the Rain" and "When the Saints Go Marchin' In" are to die for; the most amazing thing is that practically no one in the audience could speak English but Mahalia moved them like no other singer could; now that's an incredible performance
Other favorites:
Eva Cassidy - Live at Blues Alley
Allman Brothers - The Fillmore Concerts
Lin

 

[Ken_McAlinden]

James Brown is an artist that noone has mentioned in this thread that has released a great live album or two representing every major era of his carreer. Check out:
Live at the Apollo (1963)
Live at the Apollo Vol. 2 (1968)
Say It Live & Loud: Live in Dallas 1968 (first released in 1998)
Love Power Peace: Live at the Olympia, Paris 1971 (first released in 1992)
Revolution of the Mind (Live at the Apollo Vol. 3) (1971)
JB released some partly or entirely fake live albums with audience noise dubbed over studio tracks (one of them, "Sex Machine", was even pretty darn good ), but the above are all the "real deal".
Regards,