Live Albums

George Benson – Weekend in L.A.

More George Benson

More Jazz Recordings Featuring the Guitar

  • A Weekend in L.A. like you’ve never heard, with incredible Nearly Triple Plus (A++ to A+++) grades or close to them on all FOUR sides of these vintage Palm Tree pressings – just shy of our Shootout Winner
  • Some of the tubiest, biggest and richest guitar sonics you could ask for from a “modern” record – this is the sound of analog done right
  • Al Schmitt handled production here, and he did the same kind of bang-up job that earned him Grammy awards for his production on the Hatari soundtrack (a TAS list title) and his engineering on Steely Dan’s Aja, Toto IV, and more
  • Before our most recent shootout, it had been more than ten years since we last listed a pressing of this album, but now that we’ve “cracked the code” for the best sounding pressings, expect to see this one show up on the site regularly – live is the way to hear the man sing and play
  • 4 stars: “Recording live at Los Angeles’ Roxy club … was just the tonic that George Benson and his Breezin’ band needed on this often jumping album. [T]he band gets deep into the four-on-the-floor funk and Benson digs in hard, his rhythmic instincts on guitar sharp as ever.”

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Miles Davis / In Person – Friday Night on the 70s Label

More of the Music of Miles Davis

  • This vintage 70s reissue boasts very good Hot Stamper sound from first note to last – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • It’s rare for us to offer any Hot Stamper pressing on this label, but this one surprised us, sounding mostly tonally correct, with much of the richness and space we look for on this title
  • 4 1/2 stars: “The first of two sets recorded during a weekend in 1961 features the Miles Davis Quintet at a period of time when Hank Mobley was on tenor and the rhythm section was comprised of pianist Wynton Kelly, bassist Paul Chambers, and drummer Jimmy Cobb. This is an underappreciated group because of its relatively short life, but as evidenced here, the bandmembers swung fast and hard and never looked back.”

Reissues

There are some very good sounding reissues from the 70s, this being one of them. Again and again my notes made it clear that on these reissue pressings the sound could have used some tubes in the chain.

On this record, more than any other, the tubes potentially make all the difference.

Now keep in mind that we are talking only about 1961 tubes, not the stuff that engineers are using today to make “tube-mastered” records. Those modern records barely hint at the Tubey Magical sound of a record like this, if our experience with hundreds of them is any guide.

Unlike so many of the audiophile reviewers of today, we have a very hard time taking any of the new pressings seriously. We think our position is pretty clear in that regard.

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Paul McCartney & Wings – Wings Over America

More Paul McCartney

More of The Beatles

  • With excellent sound on all six sides, these vintage Capitol pressings will be very hard to beat
  • SIX sides of live Wings music, phew! As I’m sure you can imagine, this shootout was quite the undertaking
  • This copy was just BIGGER and RICHER than most others we played – it’s clean, clear and full-bodied with a solid bottom end, tons of energy and lots of space around all of the musicians
  • “… the Beatles mystique was still very much attached to record and artist alike… and it seemed like McCartney represented the part of the group’s legacy that came closest to living up to fans’ expectations. Thus the album ended up selling in numbers, rivaling the likes of Frampton Comes Alive and other mega-hits of the period, and rode the charts for months.”
  • If you’re a McCartney fan, this title from 1976 is surely of interest, assuming you already have the first album, Unplugged and Band on the Run, and maybe Ram – all Must Own Titles or something close to them

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The Allman Brothers – Eat a Peach

More Allman Brothers

More Southern Rock

  • With roughly Double Plus (A++) grades on all FOUR sides, this copy is guaranteed to blow the doors off any other Eat A Peach you’ve heard – fairly quiet vinyl too for early Capricorn pressings
  • Side one was sonically very close to our Shootout Winner – you will be shocked at how big and powerful the sound is
  • These pressings have the immediacy that will put these wild and crazy southern rockers right in your living room (particularly on sides one, two and three)
  • The heartfelt radio-friendly songs such as “Melissa” and “Little Martha” keep up the energy and kick the enjoyment factor up another level, maybe even two
  • 5 stars: “The record showcases the Allmans at their peak, and it’s hard not to feel sad as the acoustic guitars of ‘Little Martha’ conclude the record, since this tribute isn’t just heartfelt, it offers proof of Duane Allman’s immense talents and contribution to the band.”
  • If you’re a fan of the band, this title from 1972 is clearly one of their best
  • The complete list of titles from 1972 that we’ve reviewed to date can be found here.

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Art Pepper – Art Lives

More Art Pepper

More Jazz Recordings Featuring the Saxophone

  • An original Galaxy pressing with INCREDIBLE Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) sound or close to it on both sides
  • You’d be hard-pressed to find a copy that’s this well balanced, big and lively, with wonderful clarity in the mids and highs
  • This live album features music from Pepper’s 1981 engagement at the Maiden Voyage club in Los Angeles
  • 4 stars: “Pepper, pianist George Cables, bassist David Williams, and drummer Carl Burnett are heard at their best on ‘Allen’s Alley’ and ‘Samba Mom Mom.'”
  • Here are some other reviews for the better live jazz club recordings we’ve auditioned over the years

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Shelly Manne and His Men / At The Blackhawk Vol. 1 – Live West Coast Jazz in 1960 Is Hard to Beat

More Shelly Manne

More Contemporary Label Jazz

  • Boasting two solid Double Plus (A++) or BETTER sides, this vintage stereo pressing will be very hard to beat – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
  • Side one has the best condition grade we give out, Mint Minus – there may not be another record on the site with vinyl that quiet!
  • This is West Coast Jazz at its best, and if anyone can capture the realism of a live jazz club, it’s the engineers and producers at Contemporary
  • Each instrument here sounds right – the piano is weighty and percussive; the drums are punchy, and the brass has lovely leading edge transients
  • We were surprised that Volumes One and Four had much better sound than Two and Three
  • Until we can crack the code for those other two titles, don’t expect to see them on the site
  • If you’re a fan of live jazz, this Contemporary from 1960 belongs in your collection.
  • The complete list of titles from 1960 that we’ve reviewed to date can be found here.

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Various Artists – The Concert for Bangla Desh

More George Harrison

More Beatles

    • The Concert for Bangla Desh debuts on the site with STUNNING Shootout Winning Triple Plus (A+++) grades or close to them on all SIX sides of these early British Apple pressings – exceptionally quiet vinyl too
    • Big and rich, with great space and energy, this copy has exactly the right sound for this epic live album from 1971
    • Our notes for our Shootout Winner again and again mention the Tubey Magic, wieght, body, spaciousness, the silky and breathy vocals, the lack of hardness, the solid kick drum – all the stuff we look for in a great sounding album seem to be here
    • “The…band was loaded with rock luminaries — including Beatles alumnus Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, Badfinger, and two who became stars as a result of their electric performances here, Leon Russell (“Jumpin’ Jack Flash”/”Youngblood”) and Billy Preston (“That’s the Way God Planned It”).” – All Music
    • “The high point of the concert is the surprise appearance of Bob Dylan — at this reclusive time in his life, every Dylan sighting made headlines — and he read the tea leaves perfectly by performing five of his most powerful, meaningful songs from the 60s.”
    • 4 1/2 stars: “Hands down, this epochal concert at New York’s Madison Square Garden…was the crowning event of George Harrison’s public life, a gesture of great goodwill that captured the moment in history and, not incidentally, produced some rousing music as a permanent legacy.”

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Miles Davis – In Person: Saturday Night At The Blackhawk, Volume II

More of the Music of Miles Davis

  • This superb 6-Eye Stereo pressing boasts relaxed, full bodied, three-dimensional Double Plus (A++) sound or BETTER from start to finish
  • Both of these sides are huge, spacious, lively, transparent and above all real – you won’t believe how good the live sonics captured on this album is (until you play it anyway)
  • 4 1/2 stars: “Davis himself has never played with more intensity and muscularity on record than he does here. Miles fans will need both [sets] to fully appreciate how special this engagement with this particular band was.”

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Albert King – Live Wire – Blues Power

  • A superb pressing of this Must Own Live Blues Album with Double Plus (A++) sound throughout – remarkably quiet vinyl too
  • Accept no substitutes – no reissue of the album can ever give you the energy, size and you-are-there presence that’s on this disc
  • Finding originals with sound this good and surfaces this quiet is quite a feat, but here is a knockout one
  • 4 1/2 stars: “Live Wire / Blues Power is one of Albert King’s definitive albums. Recorded live at the Fillmore Auditorium in 1968, the guitarist is at the top of his form throughout the record — his solos are intense and piercing… he makes Herbie Hancock’s ‘Watermelon Man’ dirty and funky and wrings out all the emotion from ‘Blues at Sunrise.'”

This is one of the all time great live Blues albums. This Is Blues Power!

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Jimi Hendrix – Band of Gypsys

More Jimi Hendrix

  • A Band of Gypsys like you’ve never heard, with solid Double Plus (A++) grades or BETTER throughout this original pressing – fairly quiet vinyl too
  • Huge amounts of bass; rich, smooth vocals; here is the big, bold sound that we’re pretty sure you had no idea the album could have
  • Wonderful clarity and freedom from distortion characterize the overall sound of both sides, and that’s unusual because there are a lot of dreadful sounding copies floating around
  • These Robert Ludwig-mastered Capitol pressings are the only ones good enough to be called Hot Stampers – accept no substitutes!
  • Trust us on this one – you’re going to have a difficult (and expensive!) adventure finding a copy that sounds as good as this one on your own
  • We have a staff of ten and even we have a hard time with Classic Rock titles like these — people loved this album and played it to death on their shitty turntables, leaving few copies in clean condition for us audiophiles to enjoy 54 years later [see below]
  • 4 1/2 stars: “Although he could be an erratic live performer, for these shows, Hendrix was on — perhaps his finest performances… not only an important part of the Hendrix legacy, but one of the greatest live albums ever.”
  • If you’re a fan of Jimi’s, this 1970 release belongs in your collection.
  • When it comes to rock and pop music in 1970, our picks for the best of the best, numbering less than 30 titles, can be found here.

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