The Best Live Recordings

[Durium]

In November 1985, 25 years ago, some great live concerts by Joe Henderson and his Trio were recorded at the Village Vanguard in New York City. Alfred Lion labeled it as the Best Blue Note date of all-times.
Do you agree about that? What's in your opinion, the best live recording date of all-times?

Joe Henderson at the Village Vanguard

Durium

[burning dog]

The Joe Henderson is excellent, but Sonny and Coltrane are the two I thought of straight away. I heard the Plugged Nickel after hearing a lot of Miles already, but I first listened to the Rollins and Coltrane much earlier in my jazz listening, The Coltrane was the first time I heard the band with Tyner & Elvin. It may have been the first time I ever heard Dolphy, so it left a greater impression.

Ornette Coleman at the Golden Circle is damned good.

[walto]

I might have to go with the Dunmall/Parker/Rogers/Levin Live in Birmingham. Thanks gnhrtg, wherever you are....

[burning dog]

Anything live by Max Roach with Clifford Brown

The DVD of Blakey live in Japan with Shorter and Morgan. Morgan was wonderful.

Dizzy and Bird at the Town Hall '45. I was never that mad about the Massey Hall gig.

[me wag]

I would go with either Sonny Rollin's Live at the Village Vanguard or Charles Mingus at Antibes but since Sonny's was listed, I went with that.

[stonemonkts]

I would go with either Sonny Rollin's Live at the Village Vanguard or Charles Mingus at Antibes but since Sonny's was listed, I went with that.

I voted thinking only one choice was allowed. I agree with you on both of those, and the only reason I chose Coltrane's 1961 gig over Miles Plugged Nickel is I know the best live Miles 2nd 5tet recordings are all European bootlegs from 1967. Think Plugged Nickel taken to the next level.

[Pete C]

John Handy at Monterey is one of my favorites.

[Steve Reynolds]

what I want to know is who and why is Herbie Brock on this list.

may great ones listed but I will be like Walter and mention maybe my favorite live recording that would never be listed - out of dozens of great jazz recordings - I go with The Two Seasons with Evan Parker, John Edwards and Mark Sanders from 1999 - Summer & Winter


and yes it is a jazz record

[Squaredancecalling Steve]

Personal favorites:

Cecil Taylor -- One Too Many Salty Swift And Not Goodbye

Duke Ellington -- Fargo

Billy Bang -- Commandment

Rahsaan Roland Kirk -- Bright Moments

Dizzy Gillespie/ Chano Pozo -- Live in Pasadena

[Brian L]

I voted for Coltrane's Vanguard recordings, but some other potential nominees might include:

Miles Davis -- the concerts that became Four and More and My Funny Valentine
Thelonious Monk -- Live at the It Club
Eric Dolphy and Booker Little at the Five Spot
Keith Jarrett's Koln Concert or perhaps some of his other solo records
Cecil Taylor Unit -- One Too Many Salty Swift and Not Goodbye

[Brian L]

I voted for Coltrane's Vanguard recordings, but some other potential nominees might include:

...and I forgot another one that should be obvious: the Bill Evans Trio at the Vanguard

[S.Eden]

No love for Wes Montgomery at the Half Note? Or at the Theatre des Champs Elysees, for that matter?

[Steve Reynolds]

other great ones that rarely get mentioned by those who really only mention the dead guys:

Peter Brotzmann Tentet: Stone/Water - live in Victoriaville from 1999 - under 40 minutes contains only the title track - it was the second set from the show - apparently the first set was even better according to some who attended

Parker-Guy-Lytton: At the Vortex from 1996 - especially the first set - 38 minutes with the trio at their most powerful - Lytton's best performance on record

Anthony Braxton Quartet - Dortmund 1976 - with George Lewis, Dave Holland & Barry Altschul - the most legendary of all Braxton live recordings - even moreso than the 1991 (Willsau) and 1993 (Santa Cruz) sets with the classic quartet (Crispell, Dresser & Hemingway)

Fred Anderson-Kidd Jordan-William Parker-Hamid Drake: 2 Days in April - the great recordings hit heights unseen in most straightish free jazz outings - from 1999

[Xavier]

How about "Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: A Night at Birdland." Two volumes. This is the band with a front line of Clifford Brown, Lou Donaldson (at his best), and Horace Silver. This is great jazz, up there with the best live recordings IMO.

[Pete C]

How about "Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers: A Night at Birdland." Two volumes. This is the band with a front line of Clifford Brown, Lou Donaldson (at his best), and Horace Silver. This is great jazz, up there with the best live recordings IMO.

That one is in the poll.

[walto]

How about Nailed?

[Uli]

That one is in the poll.

you're right when I was voting I didn't think too much and thought I voted for Ugetsu. Well, anotherone for the list.

[randalljazz]

diz @ juan-les-pins...

[bopgurl79]

Sonny Rollins - Live at the Village Vanguard
Greg Osby - Banned in New York
Joe Henderson - The State of the Tenor
Wynton Marsalis at Blues Alley
Lee Konitz - Motion
Mile Davis - Plugged Nickel, Jazz at the Plaza, Live at the Blackhawk

[steve(thelil)]

I've always enjoyed the live Canonball album with Mercy, Mercy, Mercy (maybe that's the name of the album too?). I'm not saying it's the greatest music (I'm not saying it isn't, it isn't fresh enough in my mind to remember), but I love the "liveness" of it; especially Canonball's spoken intro to Mercy, Mercy and some of the other songs.

[Robert de St. Loup]

Art Pepper's Vanguard recordings.

[Squaredancecalling Steve]

Lee Konitz - Motion

Definitely!

I've always enjoyed the live Canonball album with Mercy, Mercy, Mercy (maybe that's the name of the album too?).

The only album mentioned to include a top ten single! BUT, although the cover says Live At The Club and the liner notes talks about a live date at which it was supposedly recorded, it was actually a studio album!

[killenskillen]

I've always enjoyed the live Canonball album with Mercy, Mercy, Mercy (maybe that's the name of the album too?). I'm not saying it's the greatest music (I'm not saying it isn't, it isn't fresh enough in my mind to remember), but I love the "liveness" of it; especially Canonball's spoken intro to Mercy, Mercy and some of the other songs.

I think they called it a studio Jazz party. Live is Live. The audience is there. The energy is there. The immediacy is there. It works.

Maybe more artists could stand to adopt this practice today. It wouldn't hurt. Digital studio recordings tend to sound a little sterile sometimes.

[ran]

As far as Cannon goes I always loved his live one from San Francisco , with Bobby Timmoms. Its short but I've always loved that version of Dis here.

[rollhead]

No "Ellington at Newport 1956," or "Swiss Movement"?

[clinthopson]

Cal Tjader Monterey Concerts

Satchmo at Symphony Hall

[baksheesh]

I keep wondering how the hell did Chick get on that list. I mean he's good, but we're talking 'greatest' here.

[Xavier]

How about "People Time" with Stan Getz & Kenny Barron?

[Sergio Zamora]

Maybe the one I'm listening to right at this moment:

Adams-Pullen Quartet - Live at the Village Vanguard v1 and 2

[Squaredancecalling Steve]

Maybe the one I'm listening to right at this moment:

Adams-Pullen Quartet - Live at the Village Vanguard v1 and 2

or maybe: