I became addicted to live albums when I had the realisation that many of my favourite albums by artists were live in concert.
Since then, if I’ve wanted to explore a new group or singer, I’ve tended to start with a highly regarded live album. You can see what I’m listening to. You can also see my favourite studio albums.
After all, if they are no good live or they can’t get their fans excited, are they worth listening to?
My Favourite Live Albums – Ratings 24 & Over
My rating system has three components:
- the set list covering both the quality of the songs and the number of songs or the overall length of the album
- the performance
- the atmosphere/authenticity/recording quality.
All of these are recommended and the higher the score, the more I believe they are an essential element of a record collection.
For example, I love The Who and a lot of their live albums have terrific set lists in my opinion before they have so many great songs but the other two factors can vary dramatically.
Sometimes an album can gain and lose points for the same thing. A live compilation that summarises a tour should mean that the artist or band has picked the best performances available but it’s at the cost of authenticity for the ideal single concert recording.
I’ve struggled with trying to find the right balance between depth and breadth on this website since I want to include all the good live albums (and the less good albums by well known artists to act as a warning) but I also want to provide meaningful reviews.
I’m slowly adding my ratings to albums.
Do you agree with me?
Albums are listed by alphabetic order of the group within the rating score. I know I should rate more albums but I’m battling a depth vs width issue on the website. Ratings can also change as I get to know an artist or an album better. Some albums keep drawing me back and, of course, what usually happens is the more I play them, the more I like them.
Live Albums With A Rating Of 29/30
- Leonard Cohen Live In London
- Graham Parker & The Rumour Live In San Francisco 1979
- Jess Roden Live At The BBC
- The Rolling Stones The Brussels Affair
- Bruce Springsteen Hammersmith Odeon London 75
- Bruce Springsteen 1978/08/09 Cleveland Ohio
- Talking Heads The Name Of The Band Is Talking Heads
- The Who Live At Leeds
If I could only have three of these, I’d probably pick Jess Roden, The Brussels Affair and one of the Springsteen albums. All have the common element of rock with saxophone. The Leonard Cohen and Graham Parker albums risk being relegated to the next level because I want this highest rating to represent a very short list of the cream of the cream of albums that I can’t imagine living without.
Live Albums With A Rating Of 28/30
- James Brown Love Peace Power
- Sam Cooke Live At The Harlem Square Club
- Deep Purple Made In Japan
- BB King Live At The Regal
- Van Morrison It’s Too Late To Stop Now 1973
- Van Morrison Astral Weeks Live at the Hollywood Bowl 2008
- Bruce Springsteen Live In Dublin 2006 (it’s not his normal style but it is fantastic fun if you’re prepared to listen to a different side of Bruce Springsteen.
- Wings Over America 1976
I love each of these live albums but they don’t quite make it to the very top rating. All are extremely highly recommended.
Live Albums With A Rating Of 27/30
- AC/DC If You Want Blood You’ve Got It 1978
- Blue Oyster Cult On Your Feet Or On Your Knees 1974
- James Brown Live At The Apollo 1962
- Genesis Seconds Out
- Sly & The Family Stone – The Woodstock Experience
- Sting Bring On The Night 1985
- Johnnie Taylor Live at the Summit Club 1972
- Thin Lizzy Live And Dangerous 1977
- UFO Strangers In The Night 1978
- Bobby Womack Soul Sensation Live 1991
Looking at this list of albums rated at 27/30 almost makes my mouth water with anticipation. If you love the band or the category of music that they represent, I don’t believe you can go wrong with these excellent albums.
Live Albums With A Rating Of 26/30
- David Bowie David Live 1974
- Bob Dylan At Budokan – a controversial choice but I’ve always really enjoyed the arrangements
- Free Live
- Al Green – Tokyo Live
- Bruce Springsteen Live 1975 – 85
- Neil Young Weld
- Neil Young Unplugged
Live Albums With A Rating Of 25/30
- Maze Live In New Orleans
- Tom Petty Pack Up the Plantation Live 1978 to 1985
- The Rolling Stones Get Yer Ya Ya’s Out
- Roxy Music Viva 1973 to 1975
- Rod Stewart & The Faces Coast To Coast
- Bruce Springsteen Live In New York City
Live Albums With A Rating Of 24/30
- Barclay James Harvest Live Tapes 1977
- Bob Dylan Real Live 1984 – Mick Taylor on guitar is the big attraction for me here with some muscular versions of Dylan classics
- Funkadelic Live 1971
- Genesis Live 1973
- George Harrison Live In Japan 1991
- The Police Live! 1979 and 1983
- Roxy Music Live 2001
- The Who Join Together 1989
My Favourite Live Albums By Music Genre
There will be some crossovers between categories.
My Favourite Art Rock Live Albums
- Talking Heads The Name Of The Band Is Talking Heads 29/30
- Roxy Music Viva 1973 to 1975 25/30
- Barclay James Harvest Live Tapes 1977 24/30
- Roxy Music Live 2001 24/30
David Bowie’s 1976 Nassau concert will be high in this section.
My Favourite Blues Rock Albums
- Jess Roden Live At The BBC – 29/30
- The Rolling Stones The Brussels Affair – 29/30
- Van Morrison It’s Too Late To Stop Now 1973 – 28/30
- Free Live – 27/30
- Led Zeppelin How The West Was Won 1972 – 25/30
- The Rolling Stones Get Yer Ya Ya’s Out – 25/30
My Favourite Classic Rock Live Albums
- Bruce Springsteen Hammersmith Odeon London 75 – 29/30
- Bruce Springsteen 1978/08/09 Cleveland Ohio – 29/30
- Wings Over America 1976 – 28/30
- Sting Bring On The Night 1985 – 27/30
- Thin Lizzy Live And Dangerous 1977 – 27/30
- UFO Strangers In The Night 1978 – 27/30
- David Bowie David Live 1974 – 26/30
- Bob Dylan At Budokan – 26/30
- Bruce Springsteen Live 1975 – 85 – 26/30
- Tom Petty Pack Up the Plantation Live 1978 to 1985 – 25/30
- Rod Stewart & The Faces Coast To Coast – 25/30
- Bruce Springsteen Live In New York City – 25/30
- George Harrison Live In Japan 1991 – 24/30
- The Police Live! 1979 and 1983 – 24/30
- Roxy Music Live 2001 – 24/30
- The Who Join Together 1989 – 24/30
My Favourite Funk Live Albums
- James Brown Love Peace Power 28/30
- Sly & The Family Stone – The Woodstock Experience 27/30
- Maze Live In New Orleans 25/30
- Funkadelic Live 1971 24/30
My Favourite Hard Rock & Heavy Metal Live Albums
- The Who Live At Leeds – 29/30
- Deep Purple Made In Japan – 28/30
- AC/DC If You Want Blood You’ve Got It 1978 – 27/30
- Blue Oyster Cult On Your Feet Or On Your Knees 1974 – 27/30
- Thin Lizzy Live And Dangerous 1977 – 27/30
- UFO Strangers In The Night 1978 – 27/30
- Neil Young Weld – 26/30
My Favourite Progressive Rock Live Albums
- Genesis Seconds Out 27/30
- Barclay James Harvest Live Tapes 1977 24/30
- Genesis Live 1973 24/30
This is another category where I need to give marks to some of my favourite albums like Yessongs which may go straight to the top.
My Favourite Early R&B and Rock & Roll Live Albums
This is a bit of an odd category as it collects together a mix of blues, soul, R&B, jazz and rock & roll. It’s hard to define and quite wide ranging but I know the albums when I hear them.
- Jess Roden Live At The BBC 29/30
- Van Morrison It’s Too Late To Stop Now 1973 28/30
- James Brown Live At The Apollo 1962 27/30
My Favourite Singer Songwriter Live Albums
- Leonard Cohen Live In London 29/30
- Van Morrison It’s Too Late To Stop Now 1973 28/30
- Van Morrison Astral Weeks Live at the Hollywood Bowl 2008 28/30
- Bob Dylan At Budokan – 26/30
- Neil Young Unplugged 26/30
- George Harrison Live In Japan 1991 24/30
I need to grade more albums in this category to provide you with a good choice.
My Favourite Soul Live Albums
- Sam Cooke Live At The Harlem Square Club 28/30
- James Brown Live At The Apollo 1962 27/30
- Johnnie Taylor Live at the Summit Club 1972 27/30
- Bobby Womack Soul Sensation Live 1991 27/30
- Al Green – Tokyo Live 26/30
- Maze Live In New Orleans 25/30 (it will go higher if they give us back the missing songs)
Live Albums That Didn’t Make The “Best Live Albums” Cut
I’m deliberately trying to be very selective so that you can find the best of the best.
This means that some highly rated albums scored below 24 because their strengths didn’t make up for a glaring weakness.
Live Albums That Didn’t Make The Cut – is your favourite live album lurking here and if so, can you convince me to go back and listen to it again?
The Great Missing Live Albums
There are some potential live recordings that have the potential to go to the very top of my lists – the great missing live albums that haven’t been released yet
Maybe you are too young to remember “Caught in the Act” (1975) Grand Funk Railroad’s second live effort. 🙂
Grand Funk Railroad haven’t made much impression on me or most other people in the UK. I have one of their live albums.
Thanks brother… Big love!