Top five live albums?

And yes, live albums later to be found out weren't really live albums count too...

Mine would be, in no particular order;

Rush, Exit Stage Left.
Deep Purple, Made in Japan
Led Zeppelin, The Song Remains the Same
Slayer, Decade of Aggression
Ozzy Osbourne, Tribute

I could easily make this top twenty, because I like live albums but it's harder this way. Really hard leaving off Pulse, but I've heard Dark side so many times I get tired of it. Anyways, what's some of your guy's favorites?

P.S. could find this topic anywhere, so sue me if it's already been done lol

I don't like live albums and only own three of them, the 3 KISS Alive albums (mainly due to my KISS fandom). So I'll list them.

007 wrote:

I don't like live albums and only own three of them, the 3 KISS Alive albums (mainly due to my KISS fandom). So I'll list them.

I like them a lot, but mainly the old 70's stuff. I love it when bands go off and do some improve and jam out for ten minutes, then come back to the song. Nobody really does that stuff anymore, which I think is sad. I also love guitar and drum solos, another lost part of today's concert scene.

Alive in Athens (Iced Earth)
- great set, great performance

Double Live Annihilation (Annihilator)
- what can I say, I love Joe Comeau era Annihilator

Double Live Gonzo (Ted Nugent)
- just so good, and I'm not even the biggest Nuge fan

Unleashed in the East (Judas Priest)
- no need to explain this

Ghost in the Ruins (Savatage)
- Criss Oliva was always my top favourite guitarist, ever since I first heard him

Many honourable mentions, but maybe I should not list them to keep the list pure.

Argh, just one more - Strangers in the Night (UFO)! It's Michael Motherf*'n Schenker in all his prime glory.

Edit:language

I've never been a particularly huge live-album fan either (I prefer studio recordings) but there are always exceptions....

Raven - Live At The Inferno
Savatage - Ghost In The Ruins (three of the songs on this were taped at a show I was at)
KISS - MTV Unplugged
Halford Live Insurrection
Dokken - One Live Night

Honorable Mentions:

Judas Priest - Unleashed in the East
Overkill - Live In Overhausen
Die Happy - Intense Live Series Vol. I
Helloween - I Want Out Live (aka Live In The UK)
Ramones - It's Alive
W.A.S.P. - Double Live Assassins

007 wrote:

I don't like live albums and only own three of them, the 3 KISS Alive albums (mainly due to my KISS fandom). So I'll list them.

I'm not really into live albums either but there are a few rare times where the live versions of songs sound superior to the studio versions. A couple live albums I can think of off the top of my head:

UFO - Strangers In The Night
This was the first album I thought of after I read the title of this thread. Such a GREAT album! And many of the songs included sound much better on this album than they do on their studio counterparts.

Bob Seger - Live Bullet
Let's face it, the live version of "Turn The Page" is waaaaaay better than the studio version

Peter Frampton - Frampton Comes Alive
OK, I actually HATED this album back in the day but let's be honest, how many Frampton studio albums did any of us own before this live classic came out? Right, none, 'nuff said.

Not including boots -

Metal-ish:
Iron Maiden - Maiden Japan
Saxon - The Eagle has Landed
WASP - Double Live Assassins
King's X - Live All Over the Place
Twisted Sister - Live at the Marquee
Raven - Live at the Inferno
[oops - was that 6?]

Kinda Live:
Y&T - Open Fire

Not Metal-ish:
Jellyfish - Socrates, Paste, and Plato
Bob Marley - Live!
Fugazi - Live Volume
Dramarama - Live at the China Club
Eddy Grant - Live at Notting Hill

I need to check out that live WASP as I'm late to the WASP party. For some reason I just never investigated the band until recently; no real reason, I just never bothered with the band.

Saw em with Metallica opening [! Yes! Found them in the hotel, which was not hard to do. Got my Creeping Death Vinyl signed in silver sharpie], when WASP were in their small club gory glory [First Ave]. Life changing stuff! And they transfer that experience fairly well digitally.

The top two are far and away my all time faves for Live:

Iron Maiden - Live After Death
W.A.S.P. - Live...In the Raw

I played the shit out of those two back in Junior High. Like all of you, I even sang along to the crowd banter from Bruce and Blackie. Ha.

Judas Priest - Priest...Live! narrowly edging out "Unleashed" for sentimental reasons.

Also, of course, got tons of spins

The rest are kind of all equal in awesomeness:

MSG - Budokhan
Thin Lizzy - Live and Dangerous
Kiss - Alive
Ozzy - Speak of the Devil

These two would probably be 4 and 5 as I played them a ton also, but they are Ep's and so I didn't feel right about including them:

Dio - Intermission
Helloween - Live In the U.K.

the sentinel wrote:

The top two are far and away my all time faves for Live:

Iron Maiden - Live After Death
W.A.S.P. - Live...In the Raw

I played the shit out of those two back in Junior High. Like all of you, I even sang along to the crowd banter from Bruce and Blackie. Ha.

Judas Priest - Priest...Live! narrowly edging out "Unleashed" for sentimental reasons.

Also, of course, got tons of spins

The rest are kind of all equal in awesomeness:

MSG - Budokhan
Thin Lizzy - Live and Dangerous
Kiss - Alive
Ozzy - Speak of the Devil

These two would probably be 4 and 5 as I played them a ton also, but they are Ep's and so I didn't feel right about including them:

Dio - Intermission
Helloween - Live In the U.K.

lol This is why it's so hard for these lists, I could easily use most of yours in my top 5 also. That Speak of the Devil is probably my most listened to live album, and I still love it to this day. Went with tribute by a very slim margin.

Black Sabbath - Past Lives
Judas Priest - Unleashed in the East
Wasp - Live in the Raw
Ozzy - Tribute
AC/DC - Live

Some honorable mentions:

Morbid Angel - Entangled in Chaos
Unleashed - Hail to Poland
Iron Maiden - Live After Death
Judas Priest - Priest...Live
Motorhead - No Sleep At All
Venom - Ein Kleine Nachtmusik

MSG - One Night in Budokan
Ozzy - Speak of the Devil
Scorpions - Tokyo Tapes
Motorhead - No Sleep Till Hammersmith
Rainbow - On Stage

Wrecked Neck wrote:

the sentinel wrote:

The top two are far and away my all time faves for Live:

Iron Maiden - Live After Death
W.A.S.P. - Live...In the Raw

I played the shit out of those two back in Junior High. Like all of you, I even sang along to the crowd banter from Bruce and Blackie. Ha.

Judas Priest - Priest...Live! narrowly edging out "Unleashed" for sentimental reasons.

Also, of course, got tons of spins

The rest are kind of all equal in awesomeness:

MSG - Budokhan
Thin Lizzy - Live and Dangerous
Kiss - Alive
Ozzy - Speak of the Devil

These two would probably be 4 and 5 as I played them a ton also, but they are Ep's and so I didn't feel right about including them:

Dio - Intermission
Helloween - Live In the U.K.

lol This is why it's so hard for these lists, I could easily use most of yours in my top 5 also. That Speak of the Devil is probably my most listened to live album, and I still love it to this day. Went with tribute by a very slim margin.

Haha. No doubt. I wanted to do a few "honorable mentions" to put in albums that get tons of playtime but it's so hard to limit to just 5. I would add:

Dokken - Beast from the East
Raven - Live at the Inferno
Ozzy - Tribute
Maiden - Rock In Rio
Rainbow - Live in Munich/ Germany
Queensryche - Livecrime
Motorhead - Hammersmith
Leatherwolf - Wide Open

Plus a shit ton of boots by Ratt, VH, Whitesnake, Dio, Leppard, etc.

KISS - Alive
Thin Lizzy - Live & Dangerous
UFO - Strangers In The Night
Cheap Trick - At Budokan
Motorhead - No Sleep Til Hammersmith

Santana-Lotus
J. Geils Band-Live Blow Your Face Out
SRV & Double Trouble-In The Beginning
AC/DC-If You Want Blood
Blue Öyster Cult-On Your Feet Or On Your Knees

So many to mention but two others have already listed come to mind (Live Bullet & KISS MTV Unplugged).

Unleashed in the East - Judas Priest
Tokyo Tapes - Scorpions
Live After Death - Iron Maiden
Reunion - Black Sabbath
Live Planitarium - Mortification

Allman Brothers Band- At Fillmore East
Humble Pie- Performance: Rockin The Fillmore
Mahavishnu Orchestra-Between Nothingness & Eternity
The Outlaws- Bring Em Back Alive
Band Of Gypsys

Here's mine (at least for today):

Judas Priest - Unleashed In The East - my all time favorite
Kiss - Alive!
Motorhead - No Sleep 'Til Hammersmith
Slayer - Live Undead
Iron Maiden - Maiden Japan

Metal Church - Live
U.K. - Night after Night
Iron Maiden - Live after Death
Queensryche - Livecrime
Savatage - Japan '94

Temple of Blood wrote:

Metal Church - Live

Maybe it was just my copy, but that Metal Church had awful production. I got rid of my copy.

"Live" is an interesting term as weren't a good many older "live" albums overdubbed studio recordings anyways?

For me and these are ones I cut my teeth on and are band fave's as well so the "best"???

1. Lizzy Borden-Murderous Metal Roadshow
2. Riot-"Riot Live"
3. Kings X-Live All Over The Place
4. Dan Reed Network-Live At Last! Halfway Around The World.
5. Saxon-Greatest Hits Live
5. Y&T- Open Fire (Yes "live"...)

As mentioned I am certain there are others in the hopper that are equally awesome and worthy of mentions in everyone's lists, IE: Kiss Alive 1&2, Frampton Comes Alive, Priests-Unleashed In The East, Junkyards Shut Up We're Trying To Practice, Scorpions-World Wide Live, Maiden Japan, Slayer-Live Undead, Rush-Exit Stage Left, Kix-Live, Dio-Intermission......

Without question GIRLSCHOOL live. Great vibe - every tune.
They opened up for Aerosmith - and used their equipment - in Nashville
KISS Alive - ( esp. 100,000 years - over the top )
Double Live Gonzo - ( esp Hibernation the verbal intro - )
WASP -
Motörhead - No Sleep

I was reading " BON - 'The last Highway'.

In the book they say that there were MANY overdubs / additions on their live album - If You Want Blood.
I was somewhat disappointed in reading that, if truth be told.

Probably my favorite live album is Jimi Hendrix Live at Monterey. I also wish there was a CD of 80 minutes of Jimi's stage banter. It is very calming.

My oldest son is 8 and really getting into music, specifically KISS, but a few others. One thing I find fascinating is how much he likes listening to the live stuff over studio stuff. As a kid getting into music, I was not interested in live albums at all, and was not really until I was in my 30s.

But him, if I'm playing a song he likes, he asks if there is an Alive version.