Art Rock is clever music where the musicians are trying to do something different by combining various art forms and musical styles. It’s not prog rock but it may be close, it’s not normally a big commercial success although some artists like David Bowie and Peter Gabriel are the exceptions.
Wikipedia says “Art rock was a form of music which wanted to “extend the limits of rock & roll”, and opted for a more experimental and conceptual outlook on music. Art rock took influences from several genres, notably classical music, as well as experimental rock, psychedelia, avant garde, folk, baroque pop, and, in later compositions, jazz.” I’d add in the influences of world music as well.
Art Rock Live Albums Recorded In The 1980s
Barclay James Harvest Berlin A Concert for the People 1980
David Bowie Glass Spider Live 1987
Deaf School Second Coming 1988
Peter Gabriel Plays Live 1982
Peter Hammill The Margin
King Crimson Absent Lovers Live In Montreal 1984
Roxy Music Heart Still Beating 1982
Roxy Music The High Road
Supertramp Live 1988
Talking Heads The Name of This Band Is Talking Heads
Talking Heads Stop Making Sense 1983
Talking Heads Saratoga Psycho 1983
Talking Heads Still Don’t Make No Sense 1983
Tom Verlaine Live At The Venue 1982
Frank Zappa You Can’t Do That On Stage Anymore Vol 1 – 1969 to 1984
Frank Zappa You Can’t Do That On Stage Anymore Vol 3
Frank Zappa You Can’t Do That On Stage Anymore Vol 4 1969 to 1988
Frank Zappa Buffalo 1980
Frank Zappa Broadway the Hard Way 1988
Frank Zappa The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life 1988
You can get these albums from Amazon.com – Amazon.co.uk
The All Time Best Live Art Rock Albums
I don’t have a poll to find the best art rock live albums of the decade but I do have a poll for the all time best art rock live albums which will help guide you:
Loading ...You can get these albums from Amazon.com – Amazon.co.uk
Art Rock Live Albums By Decade – 1960s – 1970s – 1980s – http://www.bestlivealbums.com/tag/1990s-art-rock/ – 2000s – 2010s
Glasnost is a live album by Barclay James Harvest.
It was recorded at Treptower Park, East Berlin on 14th July 1987. In 2013 the album was remastered and more tracks were included.
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Still Don’t Make No Sense is a live recording by Talking Heads.
This was originally a radio broadcast from 1983 while the band were on their Stop Making Sense tour. It has been released on the FM In Concert label.
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The High Road is a live EP and a different DVD by Roxy Music
The EP was recorded at the Apollo in Glasgow, Scotland on 30 August 1982 while the DVd came from the concert at Frejus, France on 27 August 1982 which was later released on CD as Heart Still Beating.
Buffalo is a live album by Frank Zappa.
It was recorded at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo, New York on October 25, 1980.
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The Margin is a live album by Peter Hammill and The K Group.
It was recorded in 1982 and 1983 with Guy Evans, Nic Potter (drums and bass for VDGG) and John Ellis on guitar (ex The Vibrators).
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Saratoga Psycho is a live recording by Talking Heads.
It was recordedat the Saratoga Springs Performance Center in the Saratoga Spa State Park in New York State during the summer of 1983.
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You Can’t Do That On Stage Anymore Vol 4 is another compilation of live recordings featuring Frank Zappa and his various bands. This was mostly recorded in the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Full recording details are available at Discogs
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You Can’t Do That On Stage Anymore Vol 3 is a collection of live recordings by Frank Zappa.
Unlike vol2 which was based on gigs at a single venue (Helsinki in 1974), this goes back to the format of vol 1 and collects together tracks from 1971 through to 1984.
While this loses the feel of one concert and opens up the issue of different members in the supporting band, it means that you get some of Zappa’s favourite versions of the songs. Of course, some fans disagree as the early 1980s weren’t his strongest period.
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Continue reading Frank Zappa You Can’t Do That On Stage Anymore Vol 3 1971 to 1984
Heart Still Beating is a live album by Roxy Music.
It was recorded at a concert in Fréjus, France in 1982.
Roxy Music are a band I have a strong bias towards even if I much prefer the 1973 to 1975 band that gave us the four studio albums. I didn’t have a problem with Brian Eno leaving but I wasn’t so keen on the softer side that was developing on Siren.
This live album comes from their classy smooth pop period that they had after their comeback in 1979. Early Roxy had gone but this band still had plenty to offer.
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Live At The Venue is a live album by Tom Verlaine.
It was recorded in London on 3rd June 1982.
The live recording has been released as a digital download but it has previously been an important part of the Tom Verlaine compilation, The Miller’s Tale. I didn’t realise originally and bought the digital download as soon as I saw it without checking.
