Best Live Album

[storrsroars]

Just going to do a 2nd post to add a live album that's not on any critics list but was such a huge cultural touchpoint that it can't be ignored: Woodstock.

Also wanted to mention The T.A.M.I. Show, but apparently memory failed me in that it was only ever a movie and surprisingly never an official album - no bootleg LPs ever captured the whole show. But it was legendary.

 

[TRest]

Just going to do a 2nd post to add a live album that's not on any critics list but was such a huge cultural touchpoint that it can't be ignored: Woodstock.

Also wanted to mention The T.A.M.I. Show, but apparently memory failed me in that it was only ever a movie and surprisingly never an official album - no bootleg LPs ever captured the whole show. But it was legendary.

Was the Last waltz released as an album. Some great performances there.

 

[8893]

Was the Last waltz released as an album. Some great performances there.

Yes.

Rock of Ages is another great live album from The Band. Allen Toussaint’s horn charts add a lot of goodness.

 

[boba]

Stand in the Fire - Warren Zevon hasn't been mentioned. (Not the title track)
I think you could see through my copy of Allman Brothers Live at Fillmore East due to the wear caused the number of times it was played.

 

[98Uconn]

4 Way Street. CSNY

I love this album.. and the best part about it.. I was introduced to it my first week at UConn by my roommate. New London 1st floor. 93-98

NL1MF

 

[Yankees32123]

Allman Brothers’ At Filmore East and Simon & Gurfunkle Concert in Central Park are my top two.

 

[UConnfan4ever]

Ten years after live at the Filmore East

 

[cullaville]

 

[Husky Alien]

U2 - Under A Blood Red Sky
The Who- Live At Leeds
MC5- Kick Out the Jams

 

[uconngb]

Live at Fillmore East
Allman Brothers

Winner

 

[huskyfan224]

Not a live "album" but Red Hot Chili Peppers Live at Slane Castle

You going to see them this year? I got pit tix in Nashville. Having John back is going to be epic, can’t wait for their new album

 

[87Xfer]

Pass the Peas!

Check out Roots and Grooves. Half of it is live, with Dennis Chambers on drums.

 

[Husky Alien]

Tower Of Power - Live and In Living Color

 

[TXHuskyFan]

Allman Brothers’ At Filmore East and Simon & Gurfunkle Concert in Central Park are my top two.

I’ve always had the concert in Central Park on my desert island list.

 

[Umami Zen]

No love for Jimi Hendrix Live? I know Yarders are typically younger folks but come on .. Live at Monterey/Fillmore East/Woodstock??

Let's get real here y'all.

 

[gtcam]

Live at Filmore East - Allman Brothers
The Last Waltz - The Band
Skull and Roses/ Cornell 5/8/77 - Grateful Dead
Live at the Roxy/LIVE! - Bob Marley & The Wailers
Waiting For Columbus- Little Feat
Live at the Harlem Square Club - Sam Cooke
Made in Japan - Deep Purple
One More from the Road - Lynard Skynard

 

[imno1]

Nine Tonight - Bob Seger/SBB

Good stuff but not even his best live imo. I'll give that to "Live Bullet"

 

[nomar]

Little Feat - "Waiting for Columbus".... the Tower of Power horn section puts this band into another gear.

The version of Spanish Moon off Waiting for Columbus might be in my top 10 tracks of all time. "Tower of Power on horns..."

 

[nomar]

Greatful Dead Dick’s Picks, Volume 8 Harpur College (SUNY Binghamton) 1970). First set acoustic. Second and third sets electric. Magical stuff.

Live shows not officially released, but widely available and absolutely spectacular:
The Cars, Univ of Sussex, Brighton, England, 11/22/1978; Steely Dan, Live at JJ’s Bar & Grill, San Diego, 3/23/1974.

I have two bootlegs that I both love:

5/8/77 Dead @ Cornell
5/9/77 Floyd @ Oakland

The Dead at Barton Hall set is legendary.

Why Is The Grateful Dead's 5/8/77 Cornell Show Considered Their Greatest Performance?

On the anniversary of this classic show, we break down why the Grateful Dead's 5/8/77 Cornell performance is considered their best.

liveforlivemusic.com

And the Floyd show has them playing in support of Animals. It's not their best album but the songs lend themselves to live performances. Sheep is incredible. And the setlist also included all of WYWH.

Pink Floyd - Oakland Coliseum, Oakland, CA, 5-9-1977

Slowly but surely, I've been posting what I consider to be the best and most important Pink Floyd live performances. Most of those were perf...

albumsthatshouldexist.blogspot.com

Pink Floyd live in Oakland 1977 05 09 Best! Audio

It's just stunning to me that these two totally different but totally amazing shows happened on opposite coasts one day apart.

 

[beakumhawks]

Simon and Garfunkel Live in Central Park and Peter Gabriel Secret Garden Live are my top two

 

[8893]

I have two bootlegs that I both love:

5/8/77 Dead @ Cornell
5/9/77 Floyd @ Oakland

The Dead at Barton Hall set is legendary.

Buffalo and New Haven the same week also awesome.

 

[alexd]

Buffalo and New Haven the same week also awesome.

The Dead... "To Terrapin: Hartford '77" from the final night of that '77 spring tour is phenominal.

 

[HobokenHusky]

Am I really the first one to mention Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds live at Luther college?

Not sure if it’s the best but it soundtracked many fun times in Storrs.

 

[Husky Alien]

Isley Brothers Live 1973
Ernie Isley tears it up on Carol King's It's To Late at the end.

 

[Friarsnoop]

U2 at Red Rocks

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

Talking Heads, Stop Making Sense

"The Name of This, Band is Talking Heads"

 

[ju6381]

Am I really the first one to mention Dave Matthews and Tim Reynolds live at Luther college?

Not sure if it’s the best but it soundtracked many fun times in Storrs.

Love Dave. Any live album with him is A-OK with me.

 

[uconnfan68]

Alchemy is great.

Some Boomer will say Frampton Comes Alive.

Mark Knopfler is phenomenal. Great way to leadoff a thread.

Brothers in Arms. My 2yo daughter loved Money for Nothing (from MTV), because they were singing about baby chickens. We listened to that album a lot. Sorry it’s not a live album…

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

In the past few days, I have been working within a vast LP library, and yesterday, I retrieved from my own storage all live & radio recordings I have on cassette. Both of these make this thread too overwhelming to answer as asked, so I'll redefine the parameters simply to draw attention to some LPs that may not be familiar to some here.

I'm only choosing from LPs that I currently own. I offer nothing from what I once may have owned but don't own now, and nothing in any form other than a vinyl record.

This list doesn't mean these are my favorites ever or what I might consider the best. They just happen to be what I have under the stated 'rules.' These choices are made only from the remaining 78 rock albums I own. No other genres are eligible.

And there are no repeats of anything already listed. Whether I currently own or have ever owned them, there are many choices that have been posted here that I like (some very much), and several I definitely do not like or even dislike.

OFFICIAL RELEASES
801 - 801 Live
Dan Hicks & his Hot Licks - Where's the Money
Hot Tuna - Hot Tuna
Kinks - Everybody's in Showbiz
Ramones - It's Alive

COMPILATIONS
Stiffs Live
Roxy London WC2 (Jan-Apr 77)

BOOTLEGS
Van Morrison - George Ivan Morrison
Graham Parker - Live at Marble Arch
Graham Parker - Best Kept Girl I the West
Talking Heads - Compassion is a Virtue, But...
Neil Young - Young Man's Fancy

Truly, it's just a list of what I could physically produce if challenged, a defined sample with nothing omitted.

 

[storrsroars]

Kinks - Everybody's in Showbiz

Requires an asterisk. Double album, one studio, one live.

An underrated album, especially considering the commercial disasters that followed. But the studio album introduced us to Celluloid Heroes, while the live album has the definitive version of Alcohol, which alone is almost worth the purchase.

Oddly, they only teased Lola on the last track of the live album. Always wondered if a full live version that could've received radio play might've boosted unit sales.