theboarddot's Favorite Live Albums of All Time- Discussion

[monasterymonochrome]

Sept 25, 2024 12:46:44 GMT -6 Tweet said:

Both are good, but I agree that San Quentin is a bit better

Damn I've never actually listened to San Quentin - too late for this project, but I'll check it out

[scoots]

Need more artists recording live shows at prisons.

[Tweet]

Sept 25, 2024 13:12:48 GMT -6 scoots said:

Need more artists recording live shows at prisons.

[monasterymonochrome]

And another batch before the end of work today: 71-80

71. The Band - The Last Waltz - 1976

• I love The Last Waltz the film, either the #1 or #2 concert film ever. But I merely really like the album, idk some of the magic is seeing these guys put up with each other and tap into that joy one last time. Plus the Neil Young cocaine booger. The actual album is remarkable, but I usual go to it for the guest spots, ya know Van Morrison, Staples, etc. For the Band itself, I either watch on Youtube, or I turn to Rock of Ages, which will appear much higher up my list.
• Best cut: Coyote - because it's the best way to listen to Joni Mitchell on Spotify at the moment

72. Grateful Dead - Wake Up To Find Out: Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, NY, 3/29/1990

• The first of five (I capped myself at 5) Dead entries! An all-time great show and highlight of the legendary Spring 1990 tour - perhaps the last consistently Great era of Jerry's life. Brent is a killer on this release, organ flying all over the place in S1 and his harmonies beautiful complimenting Jerry's surprisingly dulcet tones. But of course this is known primarily for Branford Marsalis' extended sit-in, bringing his sax work to everything from Bird Song through the close. He really lights a fire under the bands' ass and they play with their trademarked ramshackle beauty. Come for the Bird Song, stay for the Dark Star > Drums > Space > Wheel.
• Best cut: Bird Song - It just has to be this. Eyes is amazing. As is the Wheel and Dark Star. But it's Bird Song, period.

73. Brad Mehldau - Live in Tokyo - 2004

• The solo piano wizard of the 2000s, this album is sort of the pop version of Keith Jarrett's solo stuff - taking that deeply introspective and intricate approach to improvisation, and applying it to pop, rather than free, melodies. Seeing Brad play is a literally spellbinding experience, and this record is a great document of his powers.
• Best cut: River Man - Look, check out his 19-minute take on Paranoid Android immediately. That was my intro to Mehldau and it's amazing.
  But I prefer the more succinct cut of Nick Drake's "River Man." Lilting and profoundly haunted.

74. Howlin Rain - Under the Wheels Vol. 1 - 2019

• The best psych band out of California this last decade, Howlin' Rain is Ethan Miller's project from the ashes of the excellent 2000s group Comets on Fire. Their albums are deliciously proggy and jam-accented, but their live stuff turns up the furnace with explosive results. Epic swelling guitar playing that deserves to be heard in arenas. Instead I'll catch them next time with 60 other dudes at Union Pool.
• Best cut: Coming Down - The firework finale to this brief live compilation. Features some of Ethan's coolest playing and builds to a massive finish. Check out "Missouri" too for their best rock song. Or "Calling Lightning Pt 2" from the Vol 2 of this series for their best cut overall.

75. Robert Earl Keen - The Live Album - 1988

• Gets bonus points for being my introduction to Robbie Keen, and still his best release IMO. 1/2 of the Todd Snider blueprint clearly on display (the banter, the winking lyrics - just listen to Copenhagen), with some heartstoppingly thrilling moments (Going Down in Style) and heartachingly touching moments (If I Were King). One of my favorite 80s country records.
• Best cut: The Front Porch Song - A classic. Pickin' on the porch with Lyle Lovett, singing for the Presbyterians, and channeling a reckless but sweet spirit like few other songwriters can.

76. Charlie Christian / Dizzy Gillespie - After Hours - 1941

• History lesson time! Yup 1941. Charlie Christian functionally invented jazz electric guitar playing, and his signature licks and style (single note leads be-bopping around the scale) is still imitated today. His style is over 80 years old and still sounds fresh as shit. Sadly, Charlie died of TB in 1942 when he was just 25-years old, so there's not much a recorded legacy to his name. This is easily his best tho, IMO. You've got Dizzy leading the band, and Charlie tearing shit up on his solo moments. And the live recording - captured by bonafide Taper Legend, Columbia student Jerry Newman, a regular denizen of bebop hotspot Minton's Playhouse, does justice to the radical energy of Christian's playing.
• Best cut: Stompin' at the Savoy - My god his solos here absolutely fuck. Give this a listen - it's barrier breaking stuff.

77. Pat Martino - Live! - 1972

• I originally meant to give this spot to Phish's 1995 NYE show at the Garden, but I remembered that I left Martino off my master list. And given that Trey Anastasio was a vocal fan of the late jazz guitar legend, I figured this was a good spot to drop him into. I bought this record on a whim at my local shop a few years and have played it maybe more than anything in my jazz shelves? Perfect late night music, cooking music, rocking out music. The band is playing S-tier sleek fusion, and Pat's playing is laser quick and cool.
• Best cut: Sunny - Check out his solo that picks up before the 3-minute mark. Dude just punches you in the face - so good.

78. Bela Fleck and the Flecktones - Live Art - 1996

• The kind of record I would've fuckin' hated 6 years ago. Jamgrass with smooth saxophone over top? And yet I hit it at just the right time (my hackey-sack days somehow only came after college), and I love it. Goofy vibes, superb musicianship, and melodies that earnest search for overwhelming ecstatic beauty.
• Best cut: Stomping Grounds - a track that epitomizes everything I said above

79. Alice Coltrane - Transfiguration - 1978

• This live trio record (feat. Reggie Workman and Roy Haynes) was Alice's last in the jazz idiom, sort of a farewell to the genre. If you know Alice, you know what to expect: busy piano/keyboard lines over trance-like grooves that can reach the sublime through shear sound and beauty. I like this record a lot, but it's probably only my 5th or so favorite AC record. Maybe I prefer her on harp/piano than synth? But the highs here are more than worthy of a placement on this list.
• Best cut: Affinity - my favorite of the synth tunes here, tho I may prefer her piano cut "One for the Father," Affinity is more representative of the record as a whole.

80. John Coltrane - A Love Supreme: Live in Seattle - 1965 (2021)

• This would be so much higher if the saxophone was just a bit higher in the mix!!! One of the most frustrating production decisions I can recall, tho I'm sure it's due to limitations in the source audio. I mean, this is the goods. The Coltrane Quartet + Pharoah Sanders using the entirely of A Love Supreme as a launchpad to the stars. The piano and drums are often higher than the saxes in the mix, but what can ya do. Listen to it at home or someplace quiet and it'll blow you away.
• Best cut: Pt. III - Pursuance - The whole thing peaks right about here, I'd say. Trane and Pharoah are honkin' to their hearts' delight and McCoy drops one of my favorite solos as a member of the Quartet. Genius stuff.

[monasterymonochrome]

Haha this one was even longer (1200 words) - I need an editor

[nanatod]

monastery, I've only seen 15 1/2 out of the 30 of the artists you posted live, and it would be 16 1/2 if I could remember whether Charles Lloyd is in the tk. [the 1/2 is for 2 Dizzy Gillespie shows, both of which were of course without Charlie Christian].

[chvrchbarrel]

You should do a list.

[Tweet]

Sept 25, 2024 16:04:36 GMT -6 chvrchbarrel said:

You should do a list.

Nana did do a list tho

[chvrchbarrel]

Oh!

[monasterymonochrome]

Sept 25, 2024 15:44:51 GMT -6 nanatod said:

monastery, I've only seen 15 1/2 out of the 30 of the artists you posted live, and it would be 16 1/2 if I could remember whether Charles Lloyd is in the tk. [the 1/2 is for 2 Dizzy Gillespie shows, both of which were of course without Charlie Christian].

Dang that's awesome - how were the Dizzy shows?  

[monasterymonochrome]

Okay a few more of these today hopefully! #61-70 first:

61. Agitation Free - Live 1974

• I've almost certainly repped for these guys here before, but in case you haven't heard; Agitation Free was a German jazz-rock group riding the kosmische / krautrock wave of the mid-70s. Super inspired by the Dead's 72 tour and avowed Allmans fans - both influences you can hear loud and clear on these tunes. Nothing but pure flowing cosmic rock. Lysergic and melodic - and they even throw a little Stockhausen electronic weirdness too for the heads.
• Best cut: Laila - this is their signature song, basically "Jessica" routed through a Feelin' Groovy jam. And if that sentence is at all comprehensible to you, you need to listen to this ASAP.

62. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Live Seeds - 1993

• Released in the wake of 1992's Henry's Dream, one of my fave Seeds records - this one, according to Nick, more fully realizes the vision of those tracks. It ratchets up the stakes - you can hear the desperation in the narrator's voice in "John Finn's Wife" and "Brother My Cup Is Empty," but I also adore the elegiac beauty of "New Morning," foreshadowing some of their coming work.
• Best cut: The Good Son - I mean, yes. Cave at his best.

63. AC/DC - If You Want Blood You've Got It - 1978

• I don't think anyone on this Board needs a descriptor of an AC/DC record. It rules - maybe the band at the height of its powers, absolutely fucked up that Bon Scott was gone just two years later. I love that the tracklist here isn't just a rundown of their biggest hits to date, the variety makes it a record I'm inclined to throw on more often.
• Best cut: Let There Be Rock - It's the obvious pick, but sometimes the obvious pick is correct. 8 and 1/2 minutes of the crowd eating out of their hand. Angus is on another planet here.

64. Ichiko Aoba - “Windswept Adan” Concert at Bunkamura Orchard Hall - 2021

• A live performance of Windswept Adan, one of my favorite albums of the 2020s, s/o to Big Ears for putting her on my radar. Her music - beautiful orchestral folk - feels like the soundtrack to a daydream. Transportative in the sense that her songs take you - not necessarily into the concerthall - but off into some other dimension. Only knock here is that her renditions stay fairly faithful to the studio LP, but I slightly prefer this version.
• Best cut: Porcelain - Probably the most melodically striking song here, give it a try and, if you like it, I guarantee you'll like the rest.

65. Built to Spill - LIVE - 2000

• Possibly the best live album of the canonical 90s indie bands - tho I'm open to any other suggestions! Doug here is just in full resplendent guitar god mode. He basically caps off one of the GOAT indie rock runs of all time here, and even tosses in a 20-minute take on Cortez that rivals even Neil's best versions. The only thing keeping it from being much higher on my list is that I often get fatigued after Cortez and don't make it through the end of the record. But that's really my problem, not Doug's.
• Best cut: Virginia Reel Around the Fountain - Fuck yes, I adore the Halo Benders original and though I miss Calvin Johnson's goofy verses, hearing Doug shred over such a great melody is practically life-affirming.

66. Screaming Females - Live at the Hideout - 2014

• It hasn't even been a year, but damn I miss this band. Marissa Paternoster is the best shredder of the 2010s / late 2000s, and it's not particularly close. This record is a non-stop ripper - an hour of power. Love the soaring hooks and leads of "Pretty Okay," and the cathartic howling of "Boyfriend," not to mention the dozens of jaw-droppingly cool solos throughout. Maaaaan. I gotta check out her new group.
• Best cut: Buried in the Nude - One of my favorite Screamales tracks, done justice here. Tempted to put the MC's intro lmaoo - be sure to give that a listen too.

67. Thelonious Monk - Monk in Tokyo - 1963

• Uncontroversial statement, but probably jazz's best pianist. On a technical level? Nah, but on an emotional level? Absolutely. Dude waved the avant-garde flag high even BEFORE bebop was a thing, then carried that energy well through the 60s. But also performed the devious trick of pairing his innovations with melodies and tunes so fuckin' sublime that damn near half his catalogue became standards. Monk in Tokyo was a high point in his career, he was received like a god there - a refreshing change of pace from his seesawing reputation in the States.
  The music shows that spirit - playful, energetic, and triumphantly off-kilter. One of the bests entries to his work.
• Best cut: Evidence (Justice) - The Blue Monk here is wonderful, but I prefer this succincter number for Monk's less-is-more solo.

68. Cheap Trick - At Budokan - 1978

• And speaking of folks who got big in Japan, how tf did this happen? Always my favorite thing to wonder when listening to this record. Like, they barely even charted in the States but were touring in Japan to adoring masses, and then that live record finally breaks them in the States? How can you not be romantic about baseball Cheap Trick? I'm not the world's biggest power pop guy, but you can't deny the pull of this record. Hook after hook after hook, and crowd energy so high that you get swept into the fervor too.
• Best cut: Ain't That A Shame - Just because I Want You > Surrender has been done a million times before. The solos on this one are super fun and it's probably my favorite Cheap Trick song other than, ya know, those other two. I'd have been screaming in the aisles too.

69. Charlie Parker - Jazz at the Philharmonic - 1949

• The Zeus of Bebop, playing here with an all-star band (Buddy Rich! Lester Young! Ella Fitzgerald! Hank Jones! Roy Eldridge!) at Philharmonic hall. I love Bird's studio recordings, but something about hearing 40s bebop performed live in reasonably high-fidelity just floors me. You can really feel the energy in the room, the palpable feeling that something is happening; things are changing.
  This record encapsulates that perfectly, IMO.
• Best cut: Lester Leaps In - That said, the major highlight comes from Lester "Pres" Young, more often associated with Count Basie and Billie Holliday than bebop and Charlie Parker. But his solo on this one? Fuuuuck that is cool.

70. Otis Redding - Live in Europe - 1967

• I've gone too long again and I'm tired of typing, so I'll be brief. It's Otis! Backed by Booker T and the MGs! Of course it's excellent. Lacks the environmental feel of similar records by Sam Cooke or James Brown, but the performance is just absurd.
• Best cut: (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction - Singing this one the way Mick could only dream of. I love how Otis rips off incredible Stones AND Beatles covers here (Day Tripper). Both crush.

[monasterymonochrome]

Another one today - prolly the last for now, and gonna try and keep these actually brief-ish: #51-60

51. Neil Young - Citizen Kane Junior Blues - 1974

• Arguably the most revered bootleg among Neil Young freaks, this is a semi-surprise acoustic set at the Bottom Line, a 400-cap club that's now some NYU buildings. Neil came armed with a collection of tunes soon to become the bulk of On the Beach, and delivers wrenching versions of some rarities and unreleased tracks (Pushed It Over the End, Greensleeves, Long May You Run). This was the first Neil Young bootleg passed along to me, in CD form by my old coworker Steve. It's truly a gem.
• Best cut: Motion Pictures w/ Honeyslides banter - Okay, the song itself is excellent, one of the best from On the Beach. But this show is also (in?)famous for Neil's casual bantering between near every song. Here he treats us to his personal recipe for Honeyslides - the ditchweed laced concoction that fueled the On the Beach sessions. Neil edited this part out of his official release of the tapes, but it lives on in the bootleg.
  Thank your local taper.

52. Albert Ayler - Nuits de la Fondation Maeght 1970

• One of the Holy Ghost's final performances before his untimely death 4 months later, and some of the finest playing of Ayler's career. Look, Ayler is not for the faint of heart. Dude blows like a fuckin' hurricane, torrents of tones more than sheets of sound. He pinballs between recognizable catchy melodies inspired by military marches and spirituals, and then wrings them dry until nothing is left but their absolute essence. The band here is kinda mid (drummer is barely hanging on), but the piano keeps up with him and all sounds like a celebration.
• Best cut: Spirits - One of his classic melodies, a good example of the description above. Dude is an absolute firebrand.

53. Richard and Linda Thompson - In Concert November 1975

• My faves. I'd put this a little higher, but the standard sized tracks here generally don't quite live up to their studio versions - tho I love hearing anything from I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight. But the setpieces? Hooooly shit nobody was playing like Richard Thompson in the mid-70s. A Heart Needs a Home and For Shame of Doing Wrong are excellent, and...
• Best cut: Calvary Cross - Yeah, this is among the best jam-vehicle of the 70s. I mean that. Many days I'll take a mid-70s Calvary Cross over a Scarlet > Fire or a Cortez. At their best (which this one is), Richard reconstructs everything I thought I knew about electric guitar playing. Fraught with drama, heavy as lead at times, but then soaring, searing, exploding with Hendrixian aplomb. I'll take that any day.

54. Jimmy Smith - Root Down - 1972

• A jazz-funk diamond. I feel like everyone loves Jimmy Smith; he's gotta be the best hammond organ player in the jazz idiom. But he doesn't seem to have that same respect or allure around his name as his contemporaries. Shit, I can still find most of his records pretty cheap in used stores. But he can do it all. Hard bop, Nola swing, and blistering, swaggering funk. Root Down is the epitome of the latter, and it only takes about 2-3 minutes of runtime to claim that belt and drape it out of reach of any challengers.
• Best cut: Sagg Shootin' His Arrow - That aforementioned opening number. Fuckin' mean as hell.

55. Phil Ochs - In Concert - 1966

• The champion of topical folk songs throughout the 60s playing Carnegie Hall and making it feel as intimate as your living room. Aside: I DJ'd my college radio show like 2 days after the 2016 election and was playing a bunch of pissed off music (i.e, Avengers - American in Me). Someone called in to compliment the show and to request Phil's "Love Me I'm a Liberal." I played it but have spent the last 8 years wondering if they were poking fun at me or not. I'm leaning yes, but it is what it is.
• Best cut: When I'm Gone - On the nose? Maybe, but it gives me goosebumps every time I hear it. A challenge and an epitaph. RIP Phil.

56. Sufjan Stevens - Carrie and Lowell Live - 2017

• I'm gonna be partial to any of these I was alive + lucky enough to see, and I caught the C&L tour both nights at Chicago Theater. Some of the most moving concert experiences I'd had yet and have had since. I can't say I play this recording more than the studio LP, but I'm happy it exists as a gorgeous document of those shows. I hope Sufjan's doing better.
• Best cut: Blue Bucket of Gold - Not my favorite on the record, but the climax and easy highlight of the show. A massive build of sound that culminated in disco strobe lights whirring circles around the theater while the 12-minute noise outro unfurled. Felt like being shot into space, a truly unforgettable moment.

57. Duke Ellington - Ellington at Newport - 1956

• A seminal live album in the jazz canon, documenting the Duke's headlining performance at the Newport Jazz Fest of 1956. It's pretty jampacked with hits and the band is tight, but the major highlight comes at the end, when Paul Gonsalves ripped off a 27-bar saxophone solo during "Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue." The crowd goes apeshit - which you can gloriously hear on the following track, titled "Announcements, Pandemonium" and the band returns for encore after encore. The album was a huge hit, sounds amazing, and was considered a major moment revitalizing the Duke's career.
• Best cut: Diminuendo in Blue - It's really something to hear. I would've been hootin and hollerin if I were there too.

58. Kentucky Colonels - Long Journey Home - 1964

• And we're still at Newport for the Colonels' bluegrass showcase at 1964's Folk Fest. This was one of my entryway albums into bluegrass and is one I return to frequently when I'm in the mood. Good vibes, great harmonies, and unreal picking. I mean, it's Clarence White - the guitarist so good that a young Jerry Garcia fanboyed the band around the country! Anything Clarence touched turned to gold, and this record is no exception.
• Best cut: Footprints in the Snow - The whole set is full of little ditties like this, but this one's my fave. Gorgeous guitar playing.

59. Frank Zappa - Waka/Wazoo (Winterland Ballroom 1972)

• I've gotten kinda heavy into Zappa over the last year, and this set is one of my favorite finds. It's buried at the back of a compilation release feat. mostly studio stuff so I didn't want to put it in the Top 50, but I feel it deserves a mention somewhere. I love Zappa most when he's in cosmic jazz mode, and this is right in my Q zone for that. Song after song of jagged, liquid-toned explorations. It rules.
• Best cut: Little Dots - My reaction to this is basically 18 straight minutes of stankface. (Warning, Dead terminology ahead) - It's like an MLB jam that never ends. Dude was on another level that night.

60. Ornette Coleman - Friends and Neighbors - 1970

• I've heard this described as the Free Jazz Sesame Street theme, and that about captured why I love it. There's a communal feel to these proceedings, a warmth and playfulness that many people ignore when they talk about free jazz. At its best, it's a joyful noise - a celebration of life. And with Ornette at the helm, you can count on the music being "at its best."
• Best cut: Friends and Neighbors - Vocal Version - Just so much fun. I heard an ensemble led by William Parker and Che Chen of 75 Dollar Bill do this and it lit up the whole room. The rest of the record is great too, absolutely stick around for longer excursions "Long Time No See" and "Tomorrow."

[monasterymonochrome]

Okay maybe I can squeeze one more in today. If this is worth it / if anyone's enjoying these lemme know. I'm mainly just bored and enjoy talking about music, but this is a bit more time consuming than I anticipated. Okay! #41-50:

41. Waylon Jennings - Waylon Live - 1974 (1976)

• Waylon MF'in Jennings. My first favorite classic country singer, I devoured damn near all his 60s-70s records in college. This collection is essentially a Greatest Hits and gives me incredible FOMO that I never got to see him. My mom always talks about catching him at the county fair and makes me so jealous. Anyways, Waylon is the GOAT country singer in my book, I love this record, hit after hit after hit with a razor-sharp band feat. some of the best steel guitar ever put to tape. Ralph Mooney was an absolute monster. Dig it.
• Best cut: Never Been To Spain - Not usually among my fave Waylon tracks, but the take here is a loose and cosmic joy. Ralph Mooney, take a bow.

42. MJ Lenderman - And the Wind (Live and Loose!) - 2023

• Idgaf about recency bias, this belongs on these lists already, and would probably rank even higher if I was re-doing this in a couple years.
  Boat Songs is one of the 2-3 records I've listened to most in the 2020s, and the live versions are even better? I love the scuzzy energy of You Are Every Girl to Me, the stomping "You Have Bought Yourself a Boat," and the wistful melancholy of "Someone Get the Grill" and "TLC Cagematch."
  Live and loose indeed.
• Best cut: Rudolph > Toontown - And there's a genuine jamband moment with this extended solo and segue! I can't wait to see these guys again next spring.

43. Neil Young - ROXY: Tonight’s the Night Live - 1973

• God bless Neil for letting this one get official released. An artifact from one of his greatest and most shambolic tours. Swilling tequila and reeling from losing Danny Whitten and Bruce Berry, Neil and the Santa Monica Flyers are deep in the ditch here. The crowd knew absolutely nothing of what was going on, but if they were tuned-up right, got to witness some of the starkest, fragile, beautiful rock music of the era. Party time at Miami Beach. Everything is cheaper than it looks.
• Best cut: Tired Eyes - This track shines on every bootleg I've heard from this tour and the Roxy's version is no exception. Heartbreaking and thrilling. A singer out on the wire.

44. Aretha Franklin - Amazing Grace - 1972

• Aretha was just unfair. How was it possible for someone to sing like that? This whole record is just song after song, moment after moment of utter awe. Again, I think it's benefitted by the film accompaniment, but the album itself is a marvel. Almost makes me want to go to church, even.
  
• Best cut: Amazing Grace - Again, don't overthink some of these highlight picks. She draws this out for 10 glorious minutes - what other answer could there be?

45. Taj Mahal - The Real Thing - 1971

• I've written about this one here before, but I just adore it. Taj in total control, leading a band of 4 tuba players (plus a rock band), and the results are joyous. Even though half the songs are blues, it's impossible to listen without smiling. Seriously, check out the first track, "Fishing Blues" and tell me you didn't love it. Also, again, another major blueprint for Todd Snider and others from the 80s-90s.
• Best cut: Ain't Gwine to Whistle Dixie (Any Mo') - A 9-minute workout that highlights everything I love about this record.

46. Creedence Clearwater Revival - Live at Woodstock - 1969

• Y'all know I'm a huge Deadhead, but no band on earth was firing harder than CCR in 1969. They put out 3 killer records (Bayou Country, Green River, Willy and the Poor Boys), and actually crushed at their Woodstock set (unlike Garcia & Co). This hourlong set is about as good as it can get. Fogerty wrasslin' the boys together for tight takes on new hits (Green River, Bad Moon Rising), R&B classics (99 1/2, I Put A Spell on You), and then closes with two monster jam numbers that only Hendrix could top in intensity that weekend. Essential listening.
• Best cut: Keep on Chooglin - The first and my favorite of those jammy cuts. Pure swamp rock (via SF) - perfect for a sea of muddy hippies.

47. Lou Reed - Rock and Roll Animal - 1974

• I still can't believe Lou consented to this record. It's basically a jam band record! Lou is flanked by two hotshot guitarists (who would later back Alice Cooper's first solo band), and the results are a direct mix of Allmans and Velvets. It's also curiously mostly Velvets tracks, even though Lou's solo career had taken off with Transformer a few years earlier. Trying to reclaim the catalogue? The 13-minute version of Heroin doesn't reach the - ahem - highs of the original, but it sure is interesting (the rave-up closing section!). And the twin guitar attack on Sweet Jane and Rock and Roll is just fuckin' fun. 16 months later Lou released Metal Machine Music, so clearly the pendulum had swung a liiitle too far, but at least to great results.
• Best cut: Rock and Roll - the 10-minute closer, you can practically see teenage Trey Anastasio beaming upon hearing this.

48. Dave Matthews Band - Live in Chicago at the United Center - 12/19/98

• Check out chvrch's writeup for the definitive review on this one! I'll just say this has been on fairly regular rotation since getting into DMB earlier this winter - has everything I look for in his music, a perfect show.
• Best cut: Lie in Our Graves - Everyone in the band is cooking on this one. Dave's vocals! Carter during the middle sections! The violin solo during the last section! One of my favorite DMB finds so far.

49. Charley Crockett - Live from the Ryman - 2023

• Charley Crockett is another 2024 favorite of mine. Emulates the classic artists of the 60s-70s by putting out a shitload of albums that all have 3-5 amazing songs on them and 3-5 songs that're just kinda there. But this live set plucks the best of the best, sprinkles in Charley's undeniable stage charisma, and produces the first perfect album of his career. It's super new, I know, but I really think it has the intangibles to last the test of time.
• Best cut: Midnight / Lesson in Depression - A pair of tracks from Charley's mentor James Hand; a pair of perfect country songs.

50. Can - Live in Paris 1973 (2024)

• Can has been pumping out archival live records the last few years, and they've all been a blessing. Not to mention a testament to Can being one of the coolest bands of all time. These dudes are perfectly in sync, floating around various tempos, rhythms, melody, and discord. It's all here.
  This release is the first (so far) from the Damo Suzuki era; it's a long listen, and largely free-form, but deeply enthralling.
• Best cut: Paris 73 Funf - All the tracks on these releases are merely numbered, but this one is a 13-minute workout of "Vitamin C." Look, fuck Consequence of Sound. Jaki Leibezeit is the greatest drummer of all time.

[krentist]

That MJ album would be in my top 30 probably lol. Tastes Just Like It Costs-> Long Black Veil is psychotic.

[monasterymonochrome]

Back at it again for another batch! #31-40:

31. Bob Marley - Live! - 1975

• This summer was year #3 that I fell into an obsession with this record. Walkin' around in the afternoon? Bob Marley Live! Lazy Sunday morning? Bob Marley Live! Waiting for the 2 train in a 100 degree subway station? Bob Marley Live! You get the idea. It's just a perfect collection of tracks, particularly the tight 8-song original version. Everyone knows the canonical take on No Woman No Cry, but the Wailers' incisive funk shines all over this record, just check out "Them Belly Full" or "Get Up Stand Up" for a taste of that. Or just queue the whole thing.
• Best cut: Trenchtown Rock - My favorite Marley song. Honestly one of my favorite songs ever. "One good thing about music, when it hits you feel no pain" is easily my favorite lyric about music.
  I get goosebumps hearing the crowd roar after that line. Brutalize me with music.

32. Grateful Dead - Cornell 5/8/77

• You know I had to do it to 'em. For the uninitiated, this show was wiiidely traded on tape back in the day and eventually gained a reputation as the "perfect show" of sorts. The band was ripping through their tightest tour in years (ever?) and were basically crafting a Disco Americana hybrid in real time. Most Heads have a different favorite show from May 77 (rn mine is 5/17 in Tuscaloosa), but Cornell is the tentpole. It's a show that I'd reckon every Head (at least of my generation) has a personal connection to, or features somewhat prominently in their conversion. For me, it was the first "real" show I'd ever heard. I knew about a dozen studio cuts from the radio, and was intrigued by the Day of the Dead project. Then Pitchfork dropped a review for the band's official release of the May 77 boxset and I gave Cornell a spin. First I was grabbed by the country leaning numbers like "Brown Eyed Women," "Mama Tried," and "Jack Straw." Then I started to find myself returning to the extended epics like 14-minutes of "Morning Dew" or even the 11-minute "Row Jimmy." But once Scarlet > Fire clicked for me? It was all over.
• Best cut: Scarlet Begonias > Fire on the Mountain - Featuring the most famous game of Take a Step Back! I mean, this is the one. Bouncy, fiery, delicate, and thrilling. Heads will bicker on whether it's the best version, and I could throw 3-4 other contenders up with it. But sometimes you just have to shut up and let the music play.

33. Pharoah Sanders - Live at the East - 1971

• Ok. Gotta scale it back a little on these write-ups, but can't do my guy Pharoah dirty. This is peak Pharoah, peak spiritual jazz, peak cosmic jazz, peak jazz. Idk theory but he does this thing where the rhythm locks into a groove for ages and ages until it feels trancelike. And first Pharoah picks around the corners of the groove, but then he'll explode into a gorgeous swell of sound. Praise music. Beauty music. It's unlike anything I've ever heard before and he nails it on pretty much every record from this era. Also don't miss the middle piece, a 12-minute drone / free-association vocal jam in memory of John Coltrane. It's weird as hell but it works, just don't play it on the aux.
• Best cut: Healing Song - The track I was describing up top. 21 minutes of ecstatic groove.

34. Miles Davis - Live-Evil - 1971

• One of the great jazz albums to lose yourself in. The four main pieces here range from 15 to 26 minutes long, and they're all pretty similar.
  White-hot shredding from one of the greatest bands ever assembled (Miles, Gary Bartz, John McLaughlin, Keith Jarrett, Jack DeJohnette, Airto Moreira - it's just not fair). Do these songs have melodies - I guess? That's not super important. They have an impeccable vibe. A moltenous dimension. A sound so complete and awe-some that has yet to be replicated since. If anything it's almost too overwhelming. But dig into it, if you dare.
• Best cut: What I Say - Because of John fuckin' McLaughlin, that's why.

35. Phish - Amsterdam - 1997

• Whew lord. This was a pivotal Phish release for me, one that I listened to over and over when discovering the band. It covers three complete shows in Amsterdam in 97, 2/17, 7/1, and 7/2. They're all minor miracles, if you ask me. 7/1 has a killer Bathtub Gin > slowed down Cities > Loving Cup run. And 7/2 features arguably the best Stash ever, plus the fever dream "Wormtown Jam." But 2/17 was and is my favorite of the bunch. For starters, it was the first time I heard "Divided Sky," which - as at least 3-4 of you here know - is a major eye-opening moment. But the second set Down With Disease sandwich is what cemented this show in my memory. Dark, rollicking, gorgeous, and triumphant. I'd honestly rank this set higher if it was just 2/17. Not a knock on the other shows, but putting an 8-hour multishow collection feels a bit like cheating. But if you're at all Phish-curious, give it a spin. Just maybe skip past the fuckin' Soul Shakedown opener.
• Best cut: Down With Disease - Especially if you stick around for the reprise about 45-minutes into the sequence. Stellar.

36. Jerry Garcia Band - After Midnight: Kean College, 2/28/80

• This is basically the Cornell 77 of JGB shows, and for good reason. Jerry was in fine form in 1980. My friend says it was his best year vocally, and the JGB shows from that winter (peep the 3/1/80 at the Cap) bolster his point. His voice is a little gravely, but just enough to lend him extra pathos without killing his angelic pure tone. Check out "I'll Take A Melody" for an example there. And the playing? *chef's kiss* It's wonderful. Jerry flitting up and down the frets like a dove, or some other graceful bird, idk. For my money, his solo on "Sugaree" is maybe better than any Dead version. Plus we get a goofy Robert Hunter cameo. "Promontory Rider" is a hoot. My friends and I karaoke'd that at our campsite pre-show at Mondegreen. STEP OFF!
• Best cut: Mission in the Rain - It's my favorite JGB song and this version kills. Stick around for Midnight Moonlight!

37. Jimi Hendrix - Band of Gypsys - 1970

• I did a long writeup for this earlier in this thread, so check that out if, for some reason, you're craving more effusive prose. It rocks! People always talk about Jimi's "National Anthem" but they should talk more about "Machine Gun" ! It's his most evocative, powerful playing.
• Best cut: Machine Gun - See above

38. Les McCann - Swiss Movement - 1969

• The definitive text of soul jazz. 10/10 no notes - the complete mastery of one's craft. Les McCann had a huge hit here thanks to breakout single "Compared to What," but the whole thing sparkles. Eddie Harris rips up his own composition "Cold Duck Time," "You Got It In Your Soulness" feels like the rave-upped answer to Mingus Ah Um, "Kaftan" closes the record with a light-as-air rhythmic workout. And the whole time Les's piano floats weightless above the tracks, only the pounce with ferocity when the moment calls for it. If there's any knock on this record, it's that it's almost too perfect. But that's kinda lame to say. I'm just gonna get lifted with the music instead.
• Best cut: Compared to What - Yup. It was a hit for a reason.

39. Little Feat - Waiting for Columbus - 1978

• I miss David Crosby. I only got into Little Feat thanks to how breathlessly he was always hyping them up on Twitter. You may have hated Titus Andronicus, but thanks for that, Croz! This record is a legendary summer soundtrack. Makes me want to buy a grill and smoke some shit up, but I just renewed my lease and don't feel like getting evicted at the moment. Groovy, bombastic, always in the pocket. They can jam when they wanna (Dixie Chicken > Triple Face Boogie) and rip off southern/country-rock with charming ease (Oh Atlanta, Fat Man in the Bathtub). Sadly, it's Fall now and there's a chill in the air. So thank you for your service, Lowell and Co. I'll see you in June.
  
• Best cut: Time Loves A Hero > Day or Night - Does everything I love in a Little Feat song. Solos, harmonies, infectious grooves, and even tosses in a segue for good measure.

40. Bob Dylan - Live 1975: The Rolling Thunder Revue

• This one blew my mind when I first heard it. Dylan radically reframing and sending up his old catalogue in the wake of his best album. Largely a collection of Bad Times songs set to the tune of a rambunctious party. Bob was on his Brat summer shit damn near 50 years ago.
• Best cut: A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall - Oh to be in the room when they first cooked up this arrangement. An absolutely batshit idea, and even more batshit that they 100% pull it off.

[monasterymonochrome]

Finished my actual list, but wanna get through the rest of these blurbs before the deadline too, so here's another ten. #21-30:

21. Television - Live at the Old Waldorf - 1978

• Also did a write-up for this bad boy a few months ago. If you like Marquee Moon at all, you owe it to yourself to hear this one. The solos and interplay are mind-melting, and the energy is just so wiry and cool. And as I wrote back then, Television would break up just a few months later.
• Best cut: Little Johnny Jewel - Marquee Moon gets a ton of deserved love, but LJJ might be the quintessential Television track, IMO. Brings that sneering CBGB energy to the table, and then explodes it in a hail of twin guitar fireworks. /li]
  

22. My Morning Jacket - Okonokos - 2006

• An underrated aspect of live albums is when in artist's career they were made. Okonokos is a case of perfect timing; MMJ was fresh off of Z and had spent a few years refining the tracks from It Still Moves and At Dawn. The latter half of their career has had some great music too, but this was the absolute height of their powers, and fuuuuuuck were they on one in '06. Listening to this makes you feel massive, hopeful, wistful? It kinda changes every time. But something in Jim's vulnerable vox, drowned in backing choruses and herculean riffs, manages to stir the emotions with each listen. Honestly, it's super fucked up that I haven't seen this band yet.
• Best cut: I Will Sing You Songs - Lol the description above was basically just a live recap of me listening to this track.

23. The War on Drugs - Live Drugs - 2020

• There's been a lot of WoD discourse here this week, and I just wanna say once and for all: I think they're great! This album hit at a perfect time. We were deep into 2020, everything sucked, I'd lost friends, would lose family. Idk. It's trite, but I kept coming back to this record again and again, until it felt like an embrace. Musically, it's terrific. Adam sounded shrouded in a mist, almost perfectly evokes the feeling of being in a slightly too-hot, too-humid packed room. Maybe there's some haze or smoke in the air. And the band is just radiating from the stage - transcending the conditions and creating something truly communal and Great. Also, those sax solos? Yes yes yes, please.
• Best cut: Eyes to the Wind - The best track from one of the 5 best records of the 2010s. Yeah, it's my fave cut.

24. Bill Evans Trio - Sunday at the Village Vanguard - 1961

• All-time great jazz record. One of the first LPs I'd recommend to anyone interested in the genre. Basically a perfection of the piano trio, the delicate runs and melodies, the subtle brushwork on drums, and the curious, idiosyncratic work of Scott Lafaro, who was tragically killed in a car accident just 11 days after that famous Sunday. It's one of the all-time great In The Room live albums too, truly putting your ass in a seat in the Vanguard itself with every listen. Maybe you're upfront? I usually sit in the booths next to stage left. I'd probably be getting annoyed with all the chatty folks you can hear in the back of the room. But it's best not to linger. Onstage the Trio is playing some of the prettiest, most peaceful and lovely music I'll ever hear. And for one day, that Sunday, everything seems alright.
• Best cut: Alice in Wonderland - I love the melody, I love the Lafaro embellishments. It's wonderful.

25. Thin Lizzy - Live and Dangerous - 1976

• Let's get a party going. Let's get a party going. Let's get a party going. I fuckin' LOVE this record. The patron saints of Dudes Rock. The greatest Irish rockers of all time, and I actually don't mean that with any disrespect. Thin Lizzy is just so cool. Most bands need three guitarists. Most bands need to write cooler fuckin' riffs. Most bands need a little more Irish in 'em.
• Best cut: Rosalie / Cowgirl's Song - A ripping Seger cover leading perfectly into a tease of Cowgirl's - makes me smile every time. But also don't skip the Cowgirl's > Boys are Back later on. Arguably the best segue in rock history.

26. Mahlathini & Mahotella Queens - Music Inferno: The Indestructible Beat Tour, 1988-89

• One of the live albums I've visited most in the last year or two. Mahlathini was known as "The Lion of Soweto" and it takes approximately 5 seconds of hearing him sing to know why. His resonant, gravely roar makes him one of my favorite vocalists of all time. Quick contextual storytime: Like many white boys, my first exposure to South African music was from Paul Simon's Graceland. I loved the circular rhythms and high-pitched chiming guitars. Looking for more, I landed on the Indestructible Beat of Soweto comp, which gained some popularity in Graceland's wake. It's basically a primer on the bands and styles Simon was umm cribbing from in 1986. Mahlathini appears several times on that record. He was from the thriving mbaqanga scene, of which he and the Mahotella Queens were at the forefront. Their songs were eminently danceable, featuring ecstatic and furious call-and-response vocals, plus the amazing, irresistible lead guitar playing of Marks Mankwane. This record, Music Inferno captures them in brilliant form. It will get you moving your ass and awing at the crazy guitar interplay. It rules, and it's fucked up how few streams it has, so please check it out!
• Best cut: Jive Makonga - The distillation of everything above.

27. Spiritualized - Royal Albert Hall October 10, 1997

• Strapped for time, so these will be micro-reviews. This record is like going to church for me, even more so than Aretha's Amazing Grace.
  I first came to this record because it was the only place I could stream a good version of "Walkin With Jesus," then I came back to this record after seeing J & Co. play "Oh Happy Day" live. Finally I listened to the whole thing and had to physically pick my jaw up off the floor. Astounding, Total Music.
• Best track: Shine a Light > Electric Mainline - This fucker should've been knighted immediately following this performance. Sir Spaceman.

28. Doc & Merle Watson - Never the Same Way Once - 1974

• One of my favorite feel-good records. Doc and his son Merle pickin' over 30 tracks in 90 minutes. It's a serious challenge to listen to the warmth in Doc's voice, the sunshine in Merle's guitar, and not be in a good mood. Or at least crack a big ol' smile every time Doc encourages Merle to "Pick it, son!" A real treasure, and shout-out to Owsley "Bear" Stanley himself for getting it on tape.
• Best cut: Mama Don't Allow - This one's four minutes of pure fun.

29. Willie Nelson - Willie and Family Live - 1978

• Another 90 minute record jampacked with 30 songs - listening to this one is just as much about falling in love with Willie's charm than the (GOAT-tier) songs themselves. He just holds you in the palm of his hand, a consummate storyteller.
• Best cut: Night Life - I got so hype seeing Willie back in 2022 when he busted out this 50s-60s medley feat. Crazy and Night Life. So iconic, and I swear I can hear a little Bill Callahan in the spoken asides of the latter. Listen to what the blues are saying.

30. Neil Young - Live Rust - 1981

• The defining document of another of Neil's legendary tours. Shakey emphasized how fuckin' loud these shows were, and that gloriously bleeds through onto wax here. Powderfinger > Cortez > Cinnamon Girl > Like a Hurricane > Hey Hey. I would gladly take a time machine to get severe tinnitus at these shows. For now, I'll have to settle for this mere, epic recording.
• Best cut: Hey Hey, My My (Into the Black) - The biggest Neil song from this era, and maybe an obvious choice, but c'mon - listen to that guitar tone! That shit is PHAT! You simply cannot deny.

[Tweet]

Voting will remain open until I post a review of Rainbow Stew

[monasterymonochrome]

Okay now time for #11-20, getting into the stretch run here. Gonna break with format and start counting backwards, as I maybe should've done from the start.

20. Bob Dylan - The Real Royal Albert Hall Concert - 1966

• Ah, the infamous Dylan Goes Electric tour. Some housekeeping, the more well known "Royal Albert Hall" bootleg, featuring the iconic "Judas!" interjection leading to Dylan telling the Band to "Play it fucking loud" before Rolling Stone was actually during the Free Trade Hall show in Manchester. But regrettably, that officially released version omits the crowd jeers / Dylan's reactions. Therefore, I actually prefer the "Real Albert Hall" version, of the two on streaming. The setlist is virtually identical, and you still get the Band's rollicking takes on some of Dylan's finest tunes. And we get a taste of the confrontational crowds - peep Bob yelling "They're all protest songs!" before "Tom Thumb's Blues." The air is tense, the tunes are charged, and Dylan still plays it fuckin' loud.
• Best cut: One Too Many Mornings - I just love the backing vocals during the chorus. Anyone know who it is - maybe Danko or Robbie?

19. The Band - Rock of Ages - 1972

• I mentioned before that this is the Band's superior live album, and here it is. They're doing a NYE show here at the dawn of 1972, still a semi-functioning unit and easily one of the best rock outfits in the world. The versions here swing so effortlessly, locked in like a puzzle box. You don't need an accompanying film to feel the joy on stage here. America's best Canadian band were - at least for one last night as the calendar turned.- atop the mountain.
• Best cut: King Harvest (Has Surely Come) - For my money, this was the Band's best live song. In-the-pocket funk grooves from Rick and Levon,a scorching Robbie solo, multiple dudes singing lead, and gorgeous, earthy harmonies. Everything you'd want from the Band and more.

18. Ahmad Jamal Trio - At the Pershing: But Not For Me - 1958

• I know I just said that Bill Evans perfected the piano trio, but Ahmad Jamal and him are really a 1a/1b situation here. Love love love how playful and fun his solos are. It's like if Count Basie was less percussive and was trying to soundtrack Peanuts or something. Rhythmically grooving, acrobatically graceful, and pretty as hell.
• Best cut: Surrey With the Fringe at the Top - Perfect ice-skating music!

17. Wilco - Kicking Television: Live in Chicago - 2005

• Another example of a live record made at the absolute perfect time! Fresh off the heels of A Ghost is Born comes the greatest live album of indie rock. This is essentially a greatest hits collection, with banger after banger from their previous four records. The YHF tunes feel remarkably realized in the live setting (maybe less remarkable to anyone whose seen Wilco live), the band rocks out, gets chaotic, and scales back exactly when they need to. And good lord does Nels Cline flex here. "Misunderstood" is simply a clinic in relentless live dynamics, and the show keeps getting better from there.
• Best cut: Ashes of American Flags - The definitive version of this track. Almost brings me to tears every time.

16. Prince - Prince and the Revolution: Live - 1985

• Oh to live in Western NY in the mid-80s and have one of the greatest shows in music history sweep into your town. Prince ought to have rode into Syracuse like Hannibal on an elephant. The city ought to have gathered at the proverbial gates and part for his arrival. And then perhaps flee in terror before Prince & the Revolution burned the whole fuckin' place to the ground in less than 2 hours. My GOD does this thing crackle with energy. Nonstop, frenetic performances from pop's GOAT figure at the absolute apex of his star. Just listening to this thing feels like burning 3,000 calories. And then just when you can't be worked into a fever any longer, he hits you with 18-minutes of glorious, miraculous, magnaminous Purple Rain. Hallelujah.
• Best cut: Purple Rain - Duh.

Aaaand my time ran short tonight, so stopping here for now. More to come tomorrow!

[monasterymonochrome]

Okay gonna try and get a few more in this morning:

15. Allman Brothers Band - At Fillmore East - 1971

• Now we're getting into the territory of legendary live records that somehow exceed their sterling reputations. At Fillmore East is the culminating document of the Allmans twin-guitar southern blues years. The improv sections here are scorching. I mean, good lord even if the last two songs - Elizabeth Reed and Whipping Post - were a single LP, it'd still crack the top 50 of this list. Still fucks me up to think that Duane only had 7 months left when they recorded this, but he shows here why he deserves his spot in the Guitar Hero pantheon. C'mon just give "You Don't Love Me" a listen. Dudes shifts the mood of the song like 4 times, and shreds like doesn't seem humanly possible. Truly awe-inspiring.
• Best cut: You Don't Love Me - The deserved centerpiece of this record. Though I'd recommend any Duane-heads to check out the live take on "BLue Sky" from the 9/19/71 show in Stonybrook, NY. Easily my two favorite live Duane tracks (with Mountain Jam a close third).

14. Eric Dolphy - At the Five Spot, Vol. 1 - 1961

• Damn, this really is the "died too young" section of the list, huh? Not to be macabre, but I feel like that knowledge can augment listening to this one. Eric Dolphy, free/avant-jazz saxophone pioneer, was the bandleader on this date. Next to him was young upstart trumpeter Booker Little, a member of Max Roach's group and a rising star. Sadly, Booker would pass away from uremia just four months after this gig. He was only 23. Dolphy himself passed three years later, at the age of 36. But for this night, at the House that Monk Built, Little and Dolphy were eternal. Like honestly, it's such a blessing that we have this document, preserving some of the most incisive, cutting edge jazz and capturing that lightning in a bottle before it was too late. Now I don't mean to scare people off - these songs are pretty tuneful, all things considered. But the playing is profound and sharp as hell. Every solo feels like it's balancing on a knife's edge, and the results are electrifying. All told, one of my favorite jazz records period.
• Best cut: Fire Waltz - The opener and great showing for the band, which also - as I neglected to mention - includes Mal Waldron on piano, Richard Davis on bass, and Eddie Blackwell on drums. Stacked!

13. Grateful Dead - Europe 72

• Oh yes. The Dead's most well-known and well-worn live release. Europe 72 was my first stop along my journey after Cornell 77, and basically guaranteed that I was gonna be a freak for life. I still remember texting my college Deadhead friend during my first listen something to the effect of, "Wow that transition from China Cat Sunflower into I Know You Rider was really cool!" Aww I was such a wee babe. If anyone wants to dip their toes in the tie-dyed waters, this is almost assuredly the place to start. It's impeccably recorded, features the band with Pigpen still in tow, has some of their most palatable songs and singalongs (Cumberland Blues, Ramble on Rose, Sugar Mag), while also including a few big jams (Truckin), iconic segues (China > Rider), and at least one massive, all-time Great track (Morning Dew). It's the Dead at their most approachable, while almost maintaining ample replay value for all the Old Heads among us. A real treat.
• Best track: Morning Dew - Have to include this here. Stately, gorgeous, haunting, and then almost terrifying huge.

Okay, that's all for now. Be back later!

[monasterymonochrome]

12. Nirvana - MTV Unplugged in New York - 1994

• If memory serves, this was my first real live album. Came across snippets of this on TV, then knew I needed the CD. I think I even owned a copy of Unplugged before Nevermind. And to this day it's still my favorite Nirvana album. Kurt at his most compelling, vulnerable, and pretty. And I was always taken by his humor and casualness during the interstitial moments, plus his willingness and enthusiasm to share the spotlight (Meat Puppets cameo, Vaselines cover). Much has been said about the funereal aspects of this record, and that certainly lends it an emotional heft. But it's also just a gorgeous collection of songs from one of music's greatest voices. An all-time classic.

• Best cut: Jesus Doesn't Want Me For A Sunbeam - I could go with literally any of them on here, but this was my first favorite when I was 14, so that's what I'm picking.

[monasterymonochrome]

11. Phish - A Live One - 1994

• Baby's first Phish record <3 Well, actually I had a CD of Billy Breathes in high school that I loved, but - for whatever reason - never ventured beyond it. I remember being at home over the holidays in 2019 and hearing on Twitter about the 12/30/19 Tweezer. I barely knew what that meant, but enough of the Heads I followed were excited about it, that I got some major FOMO and resolved to finally listen to more Phish. So I flew back home on New Year's Day and queued up A Live One for my flight. I was smiling by the end of "Bouncing" and was already sold on the band by the peak of the "Stash" jam. Somewhere around the conclusion of "Slave to the Traffic Light" I resolved to see this band at least once in the coming year. Unfortunately, a pandemic throttled those plans, but I'd have plenty of time to practically memorize A Live One by the time my first show finally rolled around in April 2022. ALO still holds up to my thoroughly Phish-pilled ears, 16 shows and hundreds (thousands?) of listening hours later. It's not my favorite live release (that would be 4/3/98 or 2/28/03), but it best accomplishes the aims of this list, IMO. It's the ultimate gateway drug: a carefully curated best-of grabbed from over 6 months' worth of shows. It's the album you recommend to a friend (like I did for my buddy Adam, who's even more addicted than me now), the one that hooks you in, the one maybe safest to play in polite company? And the one that keeps rewarding you, even dozens of listens later.

• Best cut: The Squirming Coil - One of my all-time favorite Phish songs + paired with a flat-out beautiful extended piano outro reminiscent of another record that'll appear in my top 5.

[monasterymonochrome]

10. Grateful Dead - Live/Dead - 1969

• The Dead's first officially release live record, and arguably the most important document of their early career. The group was obviously developing an enthusiastic live reputation, but their studio LPs, while solid (and underrated!), didn't hold a candle to their concerts. So the group's soundman / acid chemist Owsley Stanley dragged a shit-ton of recording equipment up the stairs of SF's Fillmore West and created the first ever 16-tracked live album. The shows were pristine, some of the best of that era, and for the first time the group's fans and new initiates could have their minds blown by a 20-minute supernova Dark Star from the comfort of their bedroom. It's 80 minutes of intense, nearly uninterrupted, uninhibited psych rock. And it truly encapsulates those early years, known affectionately by fans as the "Primal Dead" era. You have: deep improvisational excursions (Dark Star), psych-pop ditties (St. Stephen), carnival-esque ragers (The Eleven), Pigpen-led rave-ups (Lovelight), ghoulishly dark blues (Death Don't Have No Mercy), and even 8 minutes of Sonic Youth-esque feedback. So many times I've been fatigued and this record reignited my love for the Dead. If it was the last thing they ever put out, it'd still inspire adoration. But - given the vibe and ferocity on display - their fans would be decked more in black than tie-dye.

• Best cut: Dark Star - But really it must be paired with the propulsive drop into St. Stephen. Must-hear stuff.

[monasterymonochrome]

9. Todd Snider - Near Truths and Hotel Rooms - 2003

• I've been thinking a lot during this project about what is necessary for a truly Great live album. I'll talk about that more when I cover my #1 choice sometime tomorrow morning, but one of those criteria is personality/presence. You want to feel like you're in the presence of the show - of their artists themselves. And if they manage to make the listener, from the folks in the room to the folks listening 10-60 years later, feel engaged, entertained, and invited into the music? Then you have something special. Anyways, Todd Snider is the king of that, and this record is something of a crowd-work sacred text. His inter-song stories and ramblings are notorious, and they're preserved here in all their glory. And if you're unfamiliar with what I'm talking about, Todd Snider is funny as hell. Like, half this record could double as a stand-up album without too much alteration. I've seriously laughed harder at this album than literally any other album I've ever heard. But this isn't like Relaxation of the Asshole or whatever. What makes this record truly special and puts it in my top 10 is the songs that follow Todd's musings. A collection of wry, heartfelt, hilarious, and occasionally crushing songs. You could drop all the exposition and just include stuff like "Tension," "DB Cooper," "I Can't Complain," Statistician's Blues," "I Spoke as a Child," and "Broke," and you'd end up with one of the best songwriter records on any shelf. Idk. This record just makes me happy. I hope it can do that for you too.

• Best cut: I Can't Complain - What did I say up there, "wry, heartfelt, hilarious, and occasionally crushing?" Yeah, that's this right here.

[krentist]

Sept 29, 2024 19:33:29 GMT -6 monasterymonochrome said:

9. Todd Snider - Near Truths and Hotel Rooms - 2003

• I've been thinking a lot during this project about what is necessary for a truly Great live album. I'll talk about that more when I cover my #1 choice sometime tomorrow morning, but one of those criteria is personality/presence. You want to feel like you're in the presence of the show - of their artists themselves. And if they manage to make the listener, from the folks in the room to the folks listening 10-60 years later, feel engaged, entertained, and invited into the music? Then you have something special. Anyways, Todd Snider is the king of that, and this record is something of a crowd-work sacred text. His inter-song stories and ramblings are notorious, and they're preserved here in all their glory. And if you're unfamiliar with what I'm talking about, Todd Snider is funny as hell. Like, half this record could double as a stand-up album without too much alteration. I've seriously laughed harder at this album than literally any other album I've ever heard. But this isn't like Relaxation of the Asshole or whatever. What makes this record truly special and puts it in my top 10 is the songs that follow Todd's musings. A collection of wry, heartfelt, hilarious, and occasionally crushing songs. You could drop all the exposition and just include stuff like "Tension," "DB Cooper," "I Can't Complain," Statistician's Blues," "I Spoke as a Child," and "Broke," and you'd end up with one of the best songwriter records on any shelf. Idk. This record just makes me happy. I hope it can do that for you too.

• Best cut: I Can't Complain - What did I say up there, "wry, heartfelt, hilarious, and occasionally crushing?" Yeah, that's this right here.

Gonna make a post like this but about the 35 minute Let Me Lick Your Pussy from Ween Live at Stubb's

[monasterymonochrome]

Ok need to get through this, so gonna steamroll through the final entries this morning:

8. Nina Simone - Emergency Ward - 1972

• I wrote about this one when I placed it in my Top 20 of the 70s list, and I can't recommend it enough. Most people associate Nina with her late 50s and early 60s work, but I honestly love her 70s albums, where she was stretching out into longer funk tunes, just as much. This one sort of straddles the line, with a pair of heavily elongated tracks, but more in a gospel vein. Also both are George Harrison tunes! The former, "My Sweet Lord," is interspersed with "Today is a Killer," a Last Poets' piece, into a alternatively raved-up and stripped back medley. A radical re-situation of Harrison's then-contemporary hit, and yet it makes total sense. The latter cover though is my favorite. Nina's 11+ minute reading of "Isn't It A Pity." A stunner. The fullest possible realization of that song's emotional impact, and - as I wrote last year - my favorite cover song of all time.
• Best cut: Isn't It A Pity - If you listen to anything from these write-ups, make it this track.

7. Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense - 1984

• Without looking at the data, I'd guess this one will top the Board's list, and I'd be shocked if anyone here hasn't heard it yet. A document of one of rock's best tours, from both a musical and staging perspective. I work all day on Byrne-related materials, and I still don't get sick of hearing cuts from SMS. The secret sauce to me is the sequencing. Doing the David solo > David + Tina > David + Tina + Chris > Full band run at the front of the show is genius and gives the show a sense of unshakeable momentum. Plus it doesn't hurt that DB delivers stunning performances of "Psycho Killer" (better than the original, IMO) and "Heaven" (the best TH track). By the time the souped-up funk band + choir comes in, the vibes and music are simply impeccable for 60+ minutes straight.
• Best cut: Crosseyed and Painless - The band operating at 110% capacity, so busy but so sleek. "This Must Be The Place" is def more iconic (and the definitive version), but I can't ignore how killer the C&P solos are.

6. Neil Young & Crazy Horse - Live at the Fillmore East 1970

• My favorite Neil live release (not counting the still bootleg-only Chicago Hurricane tape). It features the 1.0 iteration of Crazy Horse, alighting into NYC with the doomed Danny Whitten in the band, and pulverizing the city with their brand of caveman-meets-Michelangelo rock. It always cracks me up that Miles Davis (!) opened (!!!) this show. Like, how long do you think he stuck around? Did he make it halfway through Ralph Molina's in-and-out-of-the-pocket fills in "Everybody Knows..." before turning away in disgust? Did he stick around long enough to hear Neil go dumb and play several sound-system shatteringly fierce solos on "Down By The River" while the band vamped on Canadian blues? John McGlaughlin was more of a Santana guy, did the "This solo could be your life" high-wire shredding of "Cowgirl in the Sand" move the needle for him? It's interesting to think about, but ultimately I don't really give a shit what Miles thought. If I was there I would've lost my fuckin' mind. This is the height of Primal Horse, bashing and smashing their way into creating some of the heaviest, purest rock music of this, or any, era.
• Best cut: Cowgirl in the Sand - My favorite Neil solo. Stick around for Sweet Baby James playing on the venue PA after the show.

[nanatod]

Sept 30, 2024 9:37:47 GMT -6 monasterymonochrome said:

7. Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense - 1984

• Best cut: Crosseyed and Painless - The band operating at 110% capacity, so busy but so sleek. 

this wasn't on the 9 song LP that I bought when this record was more or less a current release, so I am unfamiliar with it.

[monasterymonochrome]

Sept 30, 2024 9:45:04 GMT -6 nanatod said:

Sept 30, 2024 9:37:47 GMT -6 monasterymonochrome said:

7. Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense - 1984

• Best cut: Crosseyed and Painless - The band operating at 110% capacity, so busy but so sleek. 

this wasn't on the 9 song LP that I bought when this record was more or less a current release, so I am unfamiliar with it.

Always frustrated me how they picked that original tracklist.  I bought it on CD at Reckless and couldn't believe they didn't include "This Could Be The Place," like, wtf?

[monasterymonochrome]

5. Sam Cooke - One Night Stand - Sam Cooke Live at the Harlem Square - 1963

• Only came across this a year or two ago, and couldn't believe what I was hearing. How did they record this so well in 1963? How was this not released until the mid-80s? And honestly shout-the-fuck-out to the engineers who jacked up the crowd-noise in the mix. Bar none, One Night Stand has the best crowd energy of any record I've ever heard. They're singing along, hollering requests, and generally freaking the fuck out. Meanwhile, Sam sounds perfect and immediate. The fidelity on this thing is so insane it's like he's standing 5 feet away from you. And jeeez this dude is so damn charismatic. The way he effortlessly switches between chatting, goading the crowd, crooning, then wailing and pitching the notes? Sam regularly has me swooning along with the audience by the close of "Having a Party." Sam Cooke is my favorite singer of all time, and this record is Exhibit A as to why.
• Best cut: Bring it on Home to Me - The definition of powerhouse.

4. John Coltrane - Live at the Village Vanguard Again! - 1966

• This might be a crazy thing to say, but sometimes this is my favorite Coltrane record, period. I know it's not the classic quartet, but my taste in jazz has always leaned toward the free-form, cosmic, and exploratory. Thus, it's no surprise that I gravitate toward the Alice Coltrane / Pharoah Sanders / Rashied Ali version of Trane's band. And it's such a genius entry in his catalogue, released after Ascension, New Thing at Newport, and Meditations placed John firmly at the front of the typically uncompromising free jazz scene. His older fans, I imagine, hated this new iteration of the great saxophonist's career (and some still do!). This record, then, represented something of a rare compromise, and to brilliant effect. John selected two of his classic crowd pleasers, gorgeous love ballad "Naima" and his hit soprano arrangement of "My Favorite Things." This gave his old fans something to latch onto - a feeling of tethered-ness, of familiar melody. And then John & the band teased them out, pulling the songs further and further away from their starting points until they more closely resembled the free-flying lava of Meditations than Rodgers & Hammerstein. And right when they've gone full-tilt, committing entirely to the New Style? They pull it back in, safely returning the listener home after displaying how the full range of the cosmos exist within what we already know. It's a beautiful, bold move. To me, the most genius thing John Coltrane ever did.
• Best cut: My Favorite Things - Hard to choose between the two, but Pharoah just goes so hard on this one that I had to pick it.

[monasterymonochrome]

3. Grateful Dead - Veneta, OR 8/27/72: The Complete Sunshine Daydream Concert

• I have a lot of contenders for favorite Dead show. 11/11/73, 5/2/70, 1/22/78 all immediately come to mind. But when push comes to shove, I dont know if I could dethrone Veneta 72. Everything I could want is here. There's lore (playing a rando benefit to save Ken Kesey's yogurt farm in the dog days of summer), there's an all-time Evil Jazz version of Dark Star, there's peak Billy Kreutzmann playing (and it's amazing the sound he was getting from such a tiny drum kit - dude was an Octopus during 72-74). We get maybe the best vocal performance in the history of the band (Sing Me Back Home). We get a contender for Greatest Song the band ever played (Bird Song). We get maybe the most baffling setlist choice the band ever made (Dark Star > El Paso). Even their more common, straightforward songs pop in the mid-August heat (Promised Land, Black Throated Wind, Bertha, Greatest Story, Sugar Mag). And that doesn't even mention the day's biggest icons: Naked Pole Guy (google at your own discretion) and all those wayward kids stuck in the lost kids tent. I listen to this show every August 27th, and you should too.

• Best cut: Bird Song - The best version ever. Likely only behind the "Beautiful Jam" Dark Star > Wharf Rat and the 11/11/73 Dark Star for favorite Dead cut ever.

[chvrchbarrel]

i wanna do the board's top 100 u2 bootlegs