# Best live albums **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 17, 2013, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102 "2013-09-17T22:18:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/41 "2013-09-18T19:08:56Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Wow - I don’t know. It was streamed on the website Wolfgang’s Vault a few years ago and a friend saw it and burned a copy for himself and for me. I guess that would suggest it was the bootleg since it was prior to the official release. It sounds really great. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/42 "2013-09-18T21:35:12Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > Hmmm… re: Brussels '73 (Rolling Stones) – Shell out 180 bucks for the real thing, or 5 bucks for an “Amazon bootleg”? Advice, please! I went for a third option: Google Play, for five bucks. Can only play on my laptop, but it’s great. ---
**Author:** ![merickson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9de053/32.png) [@merickson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/merickson)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2013, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/43 "2013-09-18T21:38:43Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > Thanks, mmm, WordMan, and merickson. I’m purchasing the Lou Reed one and the Pete Seeger one as we speak, and then I’ll look for the '73 Stones thing. A word of warning about the Bowdoin concert. The recording was done by a student run radio station with mics in the audience. The volumn is not the best, e.g. the applause is way too loud. (But it does include him doing Tzena, Tzena, Tzena “solo”) If you’re not familiar with Pete, a different album might be a better introduction. “We Shall Overcome” perhaps. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/44 "2013-09-19T00:47:19Z")
> [@merickson](#): > > A word of warning about the Bowdoin concert. The recording was done by a student run radio station with mics in the audience. The volumn is not the best, e.g. the applause is way too loud. (But it does include him doing Tzena, Tzena, Tzena “solo”) > If you’re not familiar with Pete, a different album might be a better introduction. > “We Shall Overcome” perhaps. Thanks, but not to worry. I grew up in lower Hudson Valley, to folkie lefty parents who liked to volunteer on the Clearwater, and I wore out the “Greatest Hits” LP by the time I was six…but I hadn’t heard the Bowdoin concert until now. Love it! Again, thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/45 "2013-09-19T02:59:02Z")
Rush: A Show of Hands. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/46 "2013-09-19T03:08:14Z")
I don’t know if they can stand with the “best” live albums, and I haven’t heard either one in decades, but I used to love [One Live Badger](http://www.amazon.com/One-Live-Badger/dp/B0000CNY41) and Hawkwind’s [Space Ritual](http://www.amazon.com/Space-Ritual-Hawkwind/dp/B00005MCX2/). ---
**Author:** ![Molesworth\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9dc877/32.png) [@Molesworth\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Molesworth_2)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/47 "2013-09-19T13:53:28Z")
U2’s “Under a Blood Red Sky”. I know it’s not fashionable to like U2, but I remember making a mix tape for a friend back in the late '80s. I put the live version of “Electric Co” on the tape. My friend came to school the next day and said that he wasn’t really into heavy metal, but he’d liked that song which he suspected was from Iron Maiden or Judas Priest. [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/c5Y4JFwj7IE/hqdefault.jpg "U2 - Electric Co (Live @ Red Rocks)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5Y4JFwj7IE) ---
**Author:** ![Sparky812](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Sparky812](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparky812)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/48 "2013-09-19T14:17:22Z")
I’d also nominate these: Exit, Stage Left - Rush Live Rust - Neil Young and Crazy Horse One for the Road - The Kinks Others missing from the list so far: Iron Maiden - Live After Death - from the massive 1984 World Slavery Tour Tesla - Five Man Acoustical Jam - the first wave of the “unplugged” genre James Taylor - Live (1993) - about 15 years late but I saw this tour and it was excellent. Van Halen - Live: Right Here, Right Now - when they actually were On Top of the World! ---
**Author:** ![Enginerd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/bcef8e/32.png) [@Enginerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enginerd)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/49 "2013-09-19T17:11:24Z")
[Townes van Zandt’s](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_D46ab7FDk) [Live at the Old Quarter](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_at_the_Old_Quarter,_Houston,_Texas) (1973) [Warren Zevon’s](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaDOnOWX7Yc) [Learning to Flinch](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_to_Flinch) is a compilation of acoustic recordings from a 1993 tour, so I’m not sure if it completely qualifies, but it’s a great album. ---
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/50 "2013-09-19T17:26:31Z")
> [@Enginerd](#): > > [Warren Zevon’s](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaDOnOWX7Yc) [Learning to Flinch](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_to_Flinch) is a compilation of acoustic recordings from a 1993 tour, so I’m not sure if it completely qualifies, but it’s a great album. I like “Learning to Flinch” but I LOVE 1980’s [“Stand in the Fire”](http://www.allmusic.com/album/stand-in-the-fire-mw0000312819)! ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 5:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/51 "2013-09-19T17:52:53Z")
> [@Labdad](#): > > And another: [The Bootleg Series, Vol 4: Bob Dylan Live 1966 The “Royal Albert Hall” Concert](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Bootleg_Series_Vol._4:_Bob_Dylan_Live_1966,_The_%22Royal_Albert_Hall%22_Concert) A good one, though the 1964 Carnegie Hall Concert (Volume 5 or 6) is also excellent and a lot more fun. _Cheap Thrills_ was not Big Brother and the Holding Company (with Janis Joplin)'s first album, but it is the one that made her a star and is fantastic. ---
**Author:** ![Fiddle\_Peghead](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiddle_peghead/32/3506_2.png) [@Fiddle\_Peghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiddle_Peghead)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/52 "2013-09-19T19:54:52Z")
“One More From the Road” - Lynyrd Skynyrd I bought tickets to see them, about a month before the plane crash. Because of this, I sometimes forget I never saw them live. ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/53 "2013-09-19T20:16:12Z")
\*\*Wilco’s \*\*“Kicking Television” is a fantastic double-cd live album. ---
**Author:** ![GESancMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gesancman/32/2923_2.png) [@GESancMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GESancMan)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/54 "2013-09-19T20:39:16Z")
Really? No mention of _Yessongs_? My mind is blown. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2013, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/55 "2013-09-19T20:45:40Z")
I hate most live recordings by rock artists because (IMO) they usually sound like crap. The only \*good \*live album I’ve heard is _ **Cheap Trick at Budokan** _. It rocks. The screams from the Tokyo high school girls in the audience are like an additional instrument to the songs. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/56 "2013-09-20T07:04:19Z")
> [@Enginerd](#): > > [Townes van Zandt’s](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x_D46ab7FDk) [Live at the Old Quarter](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_at_the_Old_Quarter,_Houston,_Texas) (1973) Man, that’s one that almost justifies live albums existing, thank you for mentioning it. ---
**Author:** ![Harvey\_The\_Heavy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Harvey\_The\_Heavy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harvey_The_Heavy)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/57 "2013-09-20T10:37:20Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Wow - I don’t know. It was streamed on the website Wolfgang’s Vault a few years ago and a friend saw it and burned a copy for himself and for me. I guess that would suggest it was the bootleg since it was prior to the official release. It sounds really great. Yeah, that one’s been floating around as a bootleg for a long time. Nice to see it get an official release. I wish more bands would release official versions of some of the good boots. There are Cheap Trick bootlegs that blow away _Budokan_ if you can believe that (Rockford IL '77 and Royal Oak Michigan '78 for example). ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/58 "2013-09-20T12:36:36Z")
[Not a full album, but a great performance by an iconic 80s band.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cShJFma4ASE) ---
**Author:** ![Learjeff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/94ad74/32.png) [@Learjeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Learjeff)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/59 "2013-09-20T14:38:10Z")
Adding my vote (and showing my age) for these. I’m sticking to rock, just due to ignorance. As much as I love other genres now, I can’t say I could pick the good live albums. > [@KarlGauss](#): > > Here are mine: > > Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out > Live at the Filmore East - Allman Brothers > Made in Japan - Deep Purple > Live at Leeds - The Who > Ummagumma - Pink Floyd[Learjeff sez: – I prefer Live at Pompei, though that’s a video] > [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > Live Dead – The Grateful Dead is their most famous live album, but they’ve got over a hundred I’d guess. [Learjeff sez: and mostly, much better than their studio albums] > > The Last Waltz – The Band > [@campp](#): > > **Humble Pie -Rocking The Fillmore** > _Frampton Comes Alive_ is the poor man’s _Rocking The Fillmore_. [Learjeff sez: I have nothing against the poor man. > [@twickster](#): > > Joe Cocker: _Mad Dogs and Englishmen_ Mine (not better than the above, just additions, and _definitely_ showing my age: Yessongs Chicago IV (great performances, but poor recordings) Stop Making Sense - Talking Heads Waiting for Columbus - Little Feat Steppenwolf Live Of course, Woodstock deserves special mention. It may not be the best, but it’s definitely one of the best loved. There are a lot mentioned above that I’ve never heard and I bet I’d enjoy. This list looks pretty good: [100 Greatest Live Rock Albums](http://www.digitaldreamdoor.com/pages/best_livealb.html). I see at least one I have to buy right now: Uptown Rulers: The Meters Live on the Queen Mary Amazon has a nice list too, not limited to rock. ---
**Author:** ![Art\_Rock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/art_rock/32/525_2.png) [@Art\_Rock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Art_Rock)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2013, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102/60 "2013-09-20T15:51:23Z")
Peter Gabriel Plays Live, the #1 choice by far for me. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-live-albums/669102.md?page=4)