Live Albums

When I was young, I hated listening to live albums. I hated that the singing and instruments were often out of tune, the crowd noise, the feedback, the changes that were made to arrangements, the medleys, the faster/slower tempos, the talking between songs, the jams, and the lengthy solos. It felt like I wasn't listening to the band or the songs I liked.

All of that changed as I got older and started going to concerts. I came to realise that live performance was a different medium to crafting songs in the studio. In the studio, artists could keep doing takes until they got it right, they could overdub and augment their sound, crafting beautiful productions. Live was about the energy and the interaction. It was honest, powerful, and more spontaneous. Once I had been to several concerts and had experienced them as a member of the audience, those live albums became a revelation to me. In many instances, I found I now preferred them.

In fact, I feel like I have come full-circle in recent years. I don't enjoy live concerts as much as I used to. Improvements in technology, such as autotune and playing to sequenced tracks, have taken the life out of modern concerts - it all sounds too perfect. It often sounds like I'm listening to the album while watching an amazing light show. It's impressive, but nowhere near as authentic and moving.

Ah well, as least I've got these classic live albums to listen to!

AC/DC - If You Want Blood, You've Got It (1978)

Aerosmith - Live! Bootleg (1978)

Black Sabbath - Live Evil (1982)

Blackfoot - Highway Song Live (1982)

Blue Öyster Cult - Some Enchanted Evening (1978)

Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band - 'Live' Bullet (1976)

Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band - Live/1975-85 (1986)

Cheap Trick - At Budokan (1979)

Cream - Wheels of Fire (1968)

David Bowie - David Live (1974)

David Bowie - Stage (1978)

David Bowie - Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars - The Motion Picture Soundtrack (2003)

Deep Purple - Made in Japan (1972)

Deep Purple - Made in Europe (1976)

Dire Straits - Alchemy - Dire Straits Live (1984)

Eagles - Live (1980)

Eric Clapton - Just One Night (1980)

Foghat - Live (1977)

Foreigner - Classic Hits Live/Best of Live 1977-1985 (1993)

Frank Marino & Mahogany Rush - Live (1978)

Free - Free Live! (1971)

Gary Moore - Live at the Marquee (1983)

Gary Moore - Rockin' Every Night – Live in Japan (1983)

Gary Moore - We Want Moore! (1984)

Grand Funk Railroad - Live Album (1970)

Humble Pie - Performance: Rockin' the Fillmore (1971)

Iggy and the Stooges - Metallic K.O. (1976)

Iron Maiden - Live After Death (1985)

Jackson Browne - Running on Empty (1977)

Jimi Hendrix - Band of Gypsys (1970)

Jimi Hendrix - Jimi Plays Monterey: Original Motion Picture Sound Track (1986)

Jimi Hendrix - Live at Woodstock (1999)

Joe Cocker - Mad Dogs & Englishmen (1971)

Journey - Captured (1981)

Journey - Greatest Hits Live 1981-1983 (1998)

Judas Priest - Priest... Live! (1987)

Judas Priest - Unleashed in the East: Live in Japan (1979)

Kansas - Two for the Show (1978)

KISS - Alive! (1975)

KISS - Alive II (1977)

Led Zeppelin - BBC Sessions (1997)

Led Zeppelin - How the West Was Won (2003)

Led Zeppelin - The Song Remains the Same (1976)

Little Feat - Waiting for Columbus (1978)

Lou Reed - Rock N Roll Animal (1974)

Lynyrd Skynyrd - One More From the Road (1976)

MC5 - Kick Out the Jams (1969)

Neil Young - Live Rust (1979)

Neil Young - Rust Never Sleeps (1979)

Ozzy Osbourne - Tribute (1987)

Pat Benatar - Live from Earth (1983)

Pat Travers - Live! Go for What You Know (1979)

Peter Frampton - Frampton Comes Alive! (1976)

Pink Floyd - Is There Anybody Out There? The Wall Live 1980–81 (2000)

Queen - Live at Wembley '86 (1990)

Queen - Live Killers (1979)

Rainbow - Finyl Vinyl (1986)

Rainbow - On Stage (1977)

Ramones - It’s Alive (1979)

REO Speedwagon - Live: You Get What You Play For (1977)

Robin Trower - Live (1976)

Rory Gallagher - Irish Tour '74 (1974)

Rush - All the World's a Stage (1976)

Rush - Exit...Stage Left (1981)

Sammy Hagar - All Night Long (1978) (Loud & Clear in the UK)

Sammy Hagar - Live 1980 (1983)

Santana - Live at the Fillmore 1968 (1997)

Santana - Lotus (1974)

Santana - Moonflower (1977)

Scorpions - World Wide Live (1985)

Slade - Slade Alive! (1972)

Status Quo - Live! (1977)

Styx - Caught in the Act (1984)

Ted Nugent - Double Live Gonzo! (1978)

The Allman Brothers Band - At Fillmore East (1971)

The Band - Rock of Ages (1972)

The Band - The Last Waltz (1978)

The Clash - From Here to Eternity: Live (1999)

The Doors - Absolutely Live (1970)

The J. Geils Band - "Live" Full House (1972)

The J. Geils Band - Blow Your Face Out (1976)

The Kinks - One for the Road (1980)

The Police - Live (1995)

The Rolling Stones - 'Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out!': The Rolling Stones in Concert (1970)

The Who - Live at Leeds (1995)

Thin Lizzy - Live and Dangerous (1978)

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers - Pack Up the Plantation: Live! (1985)

UFO - Strangers in the Night (1979)

Whitesnake - Live... in the Heart of the City (1980)

ZZ Top - Fandango! (1975)

ZZ Top - Live In Germany 1980 (2011)

Report abuse