questions → what's your take on live albums?

vote-for14vote-against

What's your take on live albums?

Jan 21, 2013 8:27 PM

I'm generally not a huge fan but sometimes you get things that you'd never hear in a studio album, like interesting interaction with the audience or funny sounds. Case in point, I'm listening to a jazz album right now and you can hear plates and glasses being cleared from people's tables. It's actually kind of hilarious. What say you, yea or nay?

zuiquan zuiquan

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vote-for8vote-against

Depends on the group. Some groups just can't recreate their studio albums when performing live. However, I actually prefer live performances from groups like Little Feat and Grateful Dead.

tbgolladay tbgolladay
vote-for6vote-against

Is there a "live" album after "Frampton Comes Alive"?

Sorry.

All told.

jumbowoot jumbowoot
vote-for4vote-against

Regina Spektor Live in London became my favorite RS album as soon as I heard it.

I don't usually go looking for live albums, but some artists are so good that the commercial studio process takes away from the music instead of improving on it.

samstag samstag
vote-for3vote-against

I'm really enjoying some live Pearl Jam right now. I also enjoy live Phish and Grateful Dead.

benyust2 benyust2
vote-for1vote-against

@jumbowoot: Yes, but not many worth even listening to let alone buying...all told.

mtm2 mtm2
vote-for3vote-against

I usually prefer live albums. The ones where the sound from the crowd overpowers the band, not so much.

rprebel rprebel
vote-for2vote-against

@jumbowoot: I think that was the first album I ever bought. Pretty hard to top that.

pitamuffin pitamuffin
vote-for7vote-against

i find myself skipping them whenever they come on, i dislike hearing the crowd screaming

drsilentg drsilentg
vote-for4vote-against

I think it really depends on the artist. There are some great live artists as @benyust2 mentioned, but other musicians/genres are better left in the studio. Example:

coondogg97 coondogg97
vote-for2vote-against

@coondogg97: It's so distorted from over driving the recording device it's anyone's guess how that actually sounded live.

samstag samstag
vote-for4vote-against

@samstag: Is it really anyones guess how a live Katy Perry concert would sound?

coondogg97 coondogg97
vote-for4vote-against

Comedians? Live. Musicians? Studio.

jsimsace jsimsace
vote-for3vote-against

@coondogg97: When I've seen her live on TV it seems like she has a decent voice. She just sings some really awful songs.

samstag samstag
vote-for4vote-against

@jumbowoot: I logged on in my cell phone to answer Peter Frampton is the best estimate live album ever. then I saw your post.

I love live bootlegs soundboard or mic if they are good and an artist I truly love. I I love hearing all the changes artists have made since they released their songs originally. I if the artist plays exactly like it was on the album why are you even paying to see them

cowboydann cowboydann
vote-for4vote-against

I've never been a huge "live album" fan, but given the right band...

tsfisch tsfisch
vote-for3vote-against

Not a fan, in general. It's amazing how many "musicians" actually can not stay in tune when they're singing live, or just have no voice at all. Drives me crazy and I always avoid them, with the exception of some old jazz singers on their older albums - Nina Simone, Billy Holiday, Etta James, etc. I like to hear all of the improvising they used to do, hear them interacting with the crowd, and as someone else mentioned, it's cool to hear the bar noise in the background.

raijen raijen
vote-for1vote-against

The Springsteen 3 CD live set released in about 1985 is pretty awesome. Why doesn't Amazon have it in the mp3 store?

One favorite live song worth having is the Stones doing Midnight Rambler. The video is also a kick.

f00l f00l
vote-for2vote-against

@raijen: Now concerts are about the technology blast and visual overload as much as anything. Which is a reason not to go, IMHO.

After the Beyonce "performance" at the. wearing-in, and the news that Whitney Houston's Superbowl performance may also have been non-live ... both singers clearly have the pipes. Why do they have to cheat the audience with something that's "perfect" and canned instead of real? If the singer wants to offer a recording, then I want to see a video of the recording, not a fake "live" offering.

I don't mind canned performances that are obviously canned, such as amusing music videos a la Gangnam Style. Those are fun.

But vocal artists from the past had the courage to put it all on the line live. I hear the Judy Garland was an ultimate live performer, as were so many other great singers from that time.

f00l f00l

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Jan 21, 2013 8:27 PM
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