[www.bbc.com]

Is it time to proclaim the death of the live album?
Greg Kot


Live albums used to be big business in the recording industry – but then buyers lost interest. Greg Kot investigates what happened to a once-lucrative format.




This month, Madonna has a new album out and Nine Inch Nails have released their second volume of new material in two months. You might be thinking, ‘Wait, how come I didn’t know about this? Where’s the hype? The in-your-face promotion?’

Or maybe you’re not. But we’re talking about two of the biggest acts of the last three decades with new music to push: Madonna’s two-disc MDNA: World Tour and Nine Inch Nails’ four-track Live 2013 EP. Both are live recordings, and they join a parade of live releases by major acts in recent months: New Order, the Rolling Stones, Megadeth, Jane’s Addiction andthe first Beach Boys album with Brian Wilson in decades.

In the previous century, these might have been landmark events, the type of albums that mark key moments in celebrated careers. But not anymore. Nearly without exception, these albums have trickled into the marketplace barely noticed, except by the artists’ diehard fans. It’s not as though all the albums are unexceptional – the Beach Boys’ solid, two-disc 50th Anniversary Tour documents the 2012 tour that reunited Wilson with his original bandmates. It serves as a fine career overview, touching on not just the obvious hits but deep favourites such as Marcella and All This is That. Yet it barely caused a ripple on the charts and didn’t rate any high-profile reviews. Live albums might still work as souvenirs for some fans, and expedient contract-fulfilling product for some artists, but who’s using the format to make a statement anymore?

At one time, live albums were a big deal. James Brown hit another gear when he documented the greatest show on Earth in Live at the Apollo (1962). DJs would end up playing an entire album side as the songs bled one into the next, building excitement and spreading the gospel of Soul Brother No. 1. Johnny Cash’s At Folsom Prison (1968) saw the Man in Black walk among hardened convicts and win them over. At a time when psychedelic rock was ascendant, Cash’s no-nonsense songs turned him into a real voice of resilience and rebellion. The Who put Eddie Cochran (Summertime Blues) and Mose Allison (Young Man Blues) through their maximum R&B shredder on Live at Leeds (1970) with revelatory results.

Star vehicle

A more commercial role for the live album emerged in the ‘70s: they served as greatest-hits collections with audience applause. As cynical as that might sound, they often provided a mainstream introduction for relatively underappreciated artists with deep catalogues. The Allman Brothers established their jam-band bona fides on At Fillmore East (1971), and added a catchphrase to the concert lexicon: ‘Whipping Post!’ They were one-upped by their Southern brethren, Lynyrd Skynyrd, whose One More From the Road … (1976) turned the notion of a fan requesting “Free Bird!” into a concert cliché for decades afterward.

Bob Marley’s reputation had been building for years when he and the Wailers released Live! in 1975, which consolidated their best songs into one package, with the singer bringing a rapturous audience from a simmer to a boil. The next year, a journeyman guitarist, Peter Frampton, turned the double-live album into a mega business with Frampton Comes Alive! It sold an improbable six million copies in the US alone. With its sleeve folding out into a poster of the golden-haired singer, Comes Alive rehashed the best of the catchy but innocuous songs on his four previous studio albums, threw in a side-long jam (it was the ‘70s, after all), and mixed in what sounds like canned audience applause.

Other ‘70s road warriors like Bob Seger and Cheap Trick similarly transformed themselves into arena headliners from also-rans with live albums that repackaged their songs and jacked up the energy. Indeed, Cheap Trick is still riding the high provided by the 1979 At Budokan live album; the band is in the midst of preparing a 35th anniversary package. That might be overkill, but the original album not only did wonders for the band’s career when it sold more than three million copies, it also recontextualised its music. On its first three studio albums, Cheap Trick’s biting songs were watered down by conservative production. On At Budokan, the songs bristled, and a band that had been playing hundreds of shows a year for most of the ‘70s finally sounded like itself on record.

In the ‘90s, the MTV Unplugged format gave the live album fresh impetus, and produced key works from Eric Clapton, Nirvana and Jay-Z with the Roots. But it’s tough to come up with any live albums from the last decade that are truly must-owns. They sound like orphans at a time when shaky YouTube videos of just about every song spewed on every stage by every band around the world are just a mouse click away. High-fidelity Blu-Ray discs cater to the finicky home entertainment crowd. So who cares anymore about repackaged music from last summer’s stadium tour?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2013-10-01 15:46 by tatters.

How does he not even mention Frampton Comes Alive? Isn't that still the biggest selling live album of all time, or did something else eclipse it?

Maybe be because so many acts (Stones included) are more concerned with visuals than music.

Between the teenieboppers who lip synch, oldies gone Vegas, and the "country" acts who wouldn't know a cow from a horse, it's all became so plastic.

I think the downloading era killed the album format as such and the live album format even more. The attention span is getting shorter and shorter for recorded music.
In a way it's a step back to the times before the LP format. For better or for worse...

Its all those damned overdubs that did it...its not a live album at all...its a...THING

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Munichhilton
Its all those damned overdubs that did it...its not a live album at all...its a...THING

I think it's pronounced, THANG.

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treaclefingers

Quote
Munichhilton
Its all those damned overdubs that did it...its not a live album at all...its a...THING

I think it's pronounced, THANG.

Definitely pronounced that way...but I got the spelling right...

Quote
Munichhilton

Quote
treaclefingers

Quote
Munichhilton
Its all those damned overdubs that did it...its not a live album at all...its a...THING

I think it's pronounced, THANG.

Definitely pronounced that way...but I got the spelling right...

In a way yes, but ALL CAPITALS would technically be incorrect...and you spelled it's incorrectly. Not that I care, but as you brought up spelling.

Remember, I'm here to help.

Quote
treaclefingers

Quote
Munichhilton

Quote
treaclefingers

Quote
Munichhilton
Its all those damned overdubs that did it...its not a live album at all...its a...THING

I think it's pronounced, THANG.

Definitely pronounced that way...but I got the spelling right...

In a way yes, but ALL CAPITALS would technically be incorrect...and you spelled it's incorrectly. Not that I care, but as you brought up spelling.

Remember, I'm here to help.

There is a long tradition of capitalized THINGS in entertainment that you slander ...are you sure you're here to help ...or just here too often like most of us...

Quote
Munichhilton

Quote
treaclefingers

Quote
Munichhilton

Quote
treaclefingers

Quote
Munichhilton
Its all those damned overdubs that did it...its not a live album at all...its a...THING

I think it's pronounced, THANG.

Definitely pronounced that way...but I got the spelling right...

In a way yes, but ALL CAPITALS would technically be incorrect...and you spelled it's incorrectly. Not that I care, but as you brought up spelling.

Remember, I'm here to help.

There is a long tradition of capitalized THINGS in entertainment that you slander ...are you sure you're here to help ...or just here too often like most of us...

I feel like we're about to begin a 'flame war'...we should consider laying down our weapons.

The government is shut down and there is no one to complain to.

Quote
treaclefingers

Quote
Munichhilton

Quote
treaclefingers

Quote
Munichhilton

Quote
treaclefingers

Quote
Munichhilton
Its all those damned overdubs that did it...its not a live album at all...its a...THING

I think it's pronounced, THANG.

Definitely pronounced that way...but I got the spelling right...

In a way yes, but ALL CAPITALS would technically be incorrect...and you spelled it's incorrectly. Not that I care, but as you brought up spelling.

Remember, I'm here to help.

There is a long tradition of capitalized THINGS in entertainment that you slander ...are you sure you're here to help ...or just here too often like most of us...

I feel like we're about to begin a 'flame war'...we should consider laying down our weapons.

The government is shut down and there is no one to complain to.

Very good sir. Your refund should arrive in 6-8 weeks less shipping...thank you for your business

The live album might be dying, I don't know, but those two aren't very good examples.

Haven't live albums almost always been for "die-hard fans"? Aside from the classics like Frampton Comes Alive, Before The Flood or whatever. I never knew anybody who started to delve into a band's live discography without first becoming fans of the studio work.

I'm guessing Madonna's live album isn't making waves because since 2006 she's released 4 live albums to 2 studio albums. Also, just reading about this release, it might not be selling because it's completely screwed up. The vocals have been altered and supposedly sound bad, and they don't sync with her lips. Madonna has said she's going to get with her label and fix the issue, so that means even die-hard Madonna fans probably aren't buying it because they're supposed to release a fixed version. Besides, pop music isn't really a "live album" market to begin with is it? They tend to not come up with new arrangements or expand the music, they usually just recreate the studio track (or just play the studio track) while the singer either sings or lip syncs depending on the artist. Bits of Madonna concerts I saw didn't bring anything new to the music, other than seeing her dance to it. Which is fine, but it makes a live release kind of pointless except to see the stage show, but given that she's been putting out live material at a rate of 1 every other year, the novelty of that has probably worn off.

As for the NIN live release, I think it's marketed towards die-hard fans only on purpose. There aren't any "hits" on that EP. It's 3 songs from the new album, and one song off the first album, and not one of the two songs you hear on the radio. I don't think it was meant to "make waves", just put out there for the fans.

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treaclefingers
How does he not even mention Frampton Comes Alive? Isn't that still the biggest selling live album of all time, or did something else eclipse it?

Check paragraph 6.

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loog droog

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treaclefingers
How does he not even mention Frampton Comes Alive? Isn't that still the biggest selling live album of all time, or did something else eclipse it?

Check paragraph 6.

I'm more concerned that he doesn't mention Ya Yas which surely must be the greatest live album ever. Well, either that or The Who Live At Leeds.

"Nine Inch Nails have released their second volume of new material in two months"

What?

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dcba
"Nine Inch Nails have released their second volume of new material in two months"

What?

I think they worded it wrong. They probably mean two new releases, Hesitation Marks and the live EP, not two releases of new material.

Looked on Madonna's site out of curiosity, they say this about the new live release...

Interscope Records would like to make consumers of Madonna's MDNA World Tour Blu-ray disc aware that the concert will be seen at its most optimal quality by properly adjusting the settings on your television to "Normal/Movie" mode rather than "Dynamic/Enhanced" mode.

Older Blu-ray players or those without a firmware upgrade may experience glitches when navigating the Blu-ray menu. Follow the manufacturer's instructions to upgrade firmware.

Due to an error in manufacturing that has compromised the 5.1 audio in the US, a full recall of the Blu-ray disc will be issued in the US. No other markets will be affected.

We apologize for this inconvenience.

I'm sure a defective release with a full on recall doesn't help sales.

To me the greatest Live album of all time is Band of Gypsys. Completely new material delivered by the all time greatest rock musician at his zenith. And Buddy and Billy Cox weren't bad either. Those songs weren't re-recorded in the studio and exist only as live cuts.

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24FPS
To me the greatest Live album of all time is Band of Gypsys. Completely new material delivered by the all time greatest rock musician at his zenith. And Buddy and Billy Cox weren't bad either. Those songs weren't re-recorded in the studio and exist only as live cuts.

I always find it kind of interesting when bands do that. Hasn't Neil Young also released a live album of all original material? Or he took live songs and removed the crowd noise and released it as a studio album? Something like that, I can't remember.

Also interesting, when bands like MC5, Primus, Jane's Addiction and some other have a live debut album.

I remember reading somewhere that Radiohead and R.E.M. both have a studio album that was mostly recorded during soundchecks before concerts. I can't remember which ones. I thought for R.E.M. it was Monster but glancing at the Wikipedia page I didn't see anything about it there.

J. Geils Band is a good example of a band who hit it big with a Live album, the smoking 'Full House'. They actually had hit records later.

I think the only thing that really affected the live album was the introduction of the home video. Instead of just an audio document, you got to see the show too in the comfort of your own home. The live album was bound to lose some of it's appeal after this.

Ironic, considering that playing live is the only way for an artist to turn a profit these days. There's just no profit in recording what you play live. Maybe it will mean the rise of the live single instead.

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24FPS
To me the greatest Live album of all time is Band of Gypsys. Completely new material delivered by the all time greatest rock musician at his zenith. And Buddy and Billy Cox weren't bad either. Those songs weren't re-recorded in the studio and exist only as live cuts.

Actually many of those songs from the orginal Band of Gypsy's live album were recorded in the studio but were never released officially until recently. You can even buy one on the Hendrix website. There are also bootlegs of studio outtakes that have some of those songs.

[www.authentichendrix.com]

And here is a bootleg where many of the songs were recorded at numerous rehearsals and studio sessions

[www.giginjapan.com]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2013-10-01 22:20 by oldschool.

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vudicus
I think the only thing that really affected the live album was the introduction of the home video. Instead of just an audio document, you got to see the show too in the comfort of your own home. The live album was bound to lose some of it's appeal after this.

Well, sure. I have a lot of DVDs now that would be considered Greatest Hits done live. But, with the economy tanking, the DVD concert itself as a seller has gone down considerably. I much prefer a combo visual/audio experience. I can't wait for the Stones to figure out how to release Live In LA 1975 on a DVD format.

In the 70's live albums help break a lot of bands or were one of there biggest sellers. Of the top of my head

Allman Bros.- Fillmore
Humble Pie- Rocking the Fillmore
Deep Purple-Made in Japan
Johnny Winter And Live

Better add the aforementioned

J. Geils - Blow Your Face Out
Bob Seger - Live Bullet

also

Skynyrd - One More From The Road
REO Speedwagon - You Get What You Play For (back when they rocked)
Kiss - Alive
Neil Diamond - Hot August Night
Wings Over America
etc

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24FPS

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vudicus
I think the only thing that really affected the live album was the introduction of the home video. Instead of just an audio document, you got to see the show too in the comfort of your own home. The live album was bound to lose some of it's appeal after this.

Well, sure. I have a lot of DVDs now that would be considered Greatest Hits done live. But, with the economy tanking, the DVD concert itself as a seller has gone down considerably. I much prefer a combo visual/audio experience. I can't wait for the Stones to figure out how to release Live In LA 1975 on a DVD format.

You and me both!
I know the show from the 11th is considered pretty average, I still think it is an incredible document that needs a proper release!

Good post since I just listened to 30 minutes of Get Ready by Rare Earth on You Tube. All of this is changing and the recording industry really missed the boat due to technology.

The REM album with soundcheck recordings is New Adventures In Hi-Fi.