Best Live Album Ever...


Spent this afternoon listening to Genesis, "Seconds Out" album. Very good sound quality but amazing musicianship. Possibly my favorite live album ever. Also like Little Feat " Waiting for Columbus" and Van Morrison "Friday night in San Francisco" any other votes out there?
spinaker01
thanks everyone for complicating my day. now i have 20 or so new records to check out to spotify. ha john
Several...cream live at the royal albert hall; eric clapton 24 nights at the royal albert hall; david gilmore, remember that night; 2010 crossroads with eric clapton. Jallen
I second David Live, 1974 Diamond Dogs Tour. Top notch musicians playing Bowies great early material. David Sanborn, Luther Vandross(vocals) Michael Kamen, Earl Slick just to name a few. Another personal favorite is Lou Reed's
Rock and Roll Animal Album. Another great band featuring Dick Wagner/Steve
Hunter on Guitar.
Thanks Lindisfarne. The 70's had some awesome guitarists, but these guys were special. They did KILL and ROCK!!!
A lot of good calls here, already. One more thought:

Richard Thompson has done a bunch of great live records, and one or two have already been mentioned above. However, the one I find myself returning to most often is "Two Letter Words", available direct only from Beeswing.com (I believe). Great performances of a great set list.

Marty
Ooops!

Not only is the website not called Beeswing.com (it was beesweb.com), it seems to be gone, now.

The new URL for Richard Thompon direct sales is:

http://www.richardthompson-music.com/
The Paco de Lucia, Al Di Meola, John McLaughlin in San Fran is a great one. I'll also agree with Transnova on the ABB/Los Lonely Boys at the Fillmore East albums.

However, Mitchchavis nailed it for me with the Bill Evans rec. Waltz for Debby and Sunday at the Village Vanguard are my favorite live recordings ever.
If your not familiar with Kate Wolf you should be. Her live recording, "Give Yourself to Love" is beyond reproach.
Full House-J.Geils Band
Rainbow Concert-Clapton
Live in Germany-Bottle Rockets
Live at Rockpalast-Cracker
In no particular order of preference, just listing them off the top of my head...

CSNY -- Four Way Street
Allman Brothers Band -- Filmore East
Peter Frampton -- Comes Alive
Joni Mitchell -- Miles of Aisles
Grateful Dead -- Europe '72
Dave Brubeck -- Together Again for the First Time
Duke Ellington -- Newport 1956
Deep Purple -- Made in Japan
Cheap Trick -- Live at Boudukan
Woodstock -- Soundtrack
+1 on J.Geils Band. I remember the pal that turned me onto the 1st record saying, as he dropped the needle on the groove, "it's a mellow(!) rock'n'roll record". After the 1st coupla tunes I told him; "it's mellow 'cause you've got the volume turned down, crank it!!";) I remember going to the Rockpile (a small warehouse that was converted to a music venue, yr basic sweaty dump, I LOVED the joint!) to see the J. Geils Band 2nd billing to Edgar Winter's White Trash (listen to 'Full House' and than 'Roadwork' to hear what I heard that night!). All for $7.50!! Talk about a rockin' evening, whatanight!!
I don't know about "Best", but even if some were strung out, I really liked: The Concert for Bangladesh.
Concert For Bangladesh, The Last Waltz, Eric Clapton Unplugged, Concert For George
In Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, only 18 albums were live albums:

Live at the Apollo by James Brown (#25)
At Fillmore East by The Allman Brothers Band (#49)
At Folsom Prison by Johnny Cash (#88)
Live at the Regal by B. B. King (#141)
Alive! by Kiss (#158)
Live at Leeds by The Who (#169)
Happy Trails by Quicksilver Messenger Service (#189)
Wheels of Fire by Cream (#203)
Live/Dead by Grateful Dead (#241)
Kick Out the Jams by MC5 (#290)
MTV Unplugged in New York by Nirvana (#311)
Stop Making Sense by Talking Heads (#345)
At Newport 1960 by Muddy Waters (#348)
Rust Never Sleeps by Neil Young and Crazy Horse (#350)
Cheap Trick at Budokan by Cheap Trick (#430)
Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963 by Sam Cooke (#435)
Live in Europe by Otis Redding (#466)
Live in Cook County Jail by B. B. King (#499)

for me, the "best" live albums don't merely replay studio tracks, but present new or dramatically re-worked material. this my own list would include live at fillmore east, quicksilver's happy trails and even stuff like joe jackson's big world and jackson browne's running on empty, all of which, i believe, are comprised of previously unreleased songs.
Bob Marley Live - Unquestionably one of the greatest 'live' records ever made. If you enjoy this, I'd strongly recommend Marley's 'Live At The Roxy'. Recorded in '76 (1 year after the 1st live record) and released in 2003. Curiously, this record has better sonics so from an audio POV this is the one, but the 1st one has a 'fever', it sweats, and the audience seems to be in a state of rapture! It's interesting to compare the records from this angle, pretty much the same music (although the Roxy disc is a double!) but one has pristene sonics, the other captures a moment, so which is the one to pick up? For me the answer's easy, I own 'em both! Along with a 1/2 dozen other Marley records!
Here's some great one's that no one has mentioned:
1. Al Jarreau / Look to the Rainbow
2. Grover Washington Jr. / Live at the Bijou

One more vote for:
ABB/Fillmore East
Feat/Waiting for Columbus
Dead/Europe 72
N.Young/Massey Hall