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‘Live at the Apollo’ by James Brown -

The "Hardest Working Man in Show Business" was known for his iconic performances, and this one almost didn't get recorded. The record company wasn't interested in a live album, but Brown believed in it. So much so that he self-financed the show and was ready to release the album himself. Though it was officially released in 1963 by King Records. And we're glad it was!

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‘Live at Leeds’ by The Who -

The first live album by the English rock band was recorded on Valentine's Day 1970 at the University of Leeds Refectory. The sound departed from their album and rock-opera show 'Tommy,' and the album captured the heavy rawness of the band live.

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‘Live at the Regal’ by B.B. King -

This performance was recorded in 1964 at the  Regal Theater in Chicago, and released a year later. Many new listeners (including a white audience) were introduced to the bluesman with this album, which is a true classic. It's also worth mentioning another iconic B.B. King live album: ‘Live in Cook County Jail’ (1970), which is also sublime.

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‘MTV Unplugged in New York’ by Nirvana -

There are many iconic 'MTV Unplugged' performances, but Nirvana's is as good as it gets. They played more obscure material, including several covers, such as Lead Belly's 1944 song 'Where Did You Sleep Last Night,' and songs by David Bowie, The Vaselines, and Meat Puppets. The performance was recorded in 1993 and released on November 1, 1994, seven months after the death of front man Kurt Cobain.

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‘Alive!’ by Kiss -

"You wanted the best, and you got it—the hottest band in the land!" The band's catchphrase said it all. Kiss' 1975 double LP was their first top 10 album, and one that really captured what Kiss was all about—amazing live performances. 'Alive II,' which came out in 1977, also deserves an honorable mention.

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‘Jimi Plays Monterey’ by Jimi Hendrix -

Hendrix's iconic performance at the Monterey International Pop Festival in 1967 was not officially released until 1986. The guitarist set his guitar on fire and smashed it during 'Wild Things,' and the moment is captured on the album.

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‘Live/Dead’ by Grateful Dead -

Grateful Dead were all about playing live, and this 1969 double album captured the magic of their shows with their classic lineup. ‘Europe ’72,’  the band's live triple album released in 1972, is yet another live masterpiece that's worth a listen to.

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‘Live at Fillmore West’ by Aretha Franklin -

"Does anybody feel like hearing the blues?" we can hear Aretha Franklin asking before playing 'Dr. Feelgood.' Ray Charles even appears on the album, which was unexpected, as he we only there to watch the show, according to Aretha Franklin. It's overall a magnificent live album.

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'Bob Dylan Live 1966, The “Royal Albert Hall" Concert' by Bob Dylan -

The 1966 famous live bootleg album was officially released in 1998. The album captured Dylan's shift from acoustic to electric, and features both his folk tunes and his rock and roll anthems.

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‘Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963’ by Sam Cooke -

Sam Cooke's performance was so visceral, and the connection with the audience was so authentic, that the album was not released by RCA Records in fear of it disrupting the artist's pop image. Thankfully, in 1985 the album was finally released.

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‘Stop Making Sense’ by Talking Heads -

Both a live album and a documentary film, 'Stop Making Sense' was recorded in three shows at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre. The album was on the Billboard 200 chart for over two years. And as Empire magazine described it, it's "a bona fide classic."

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‘Live/1975-85’ by Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band -

Springsteen is all about live shows. These 40 tracks were presented in a box set of five LPs, and it was all fans had hoped for. It remains the second best-selling live album in the US, according to the Recording Industry Association of America.

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‘Under a Blood Red Sky’ by U2 -

The Irish rockers captured the video and audio of their performance at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado, and released it in 1983. The performance is as powerful and passionate as it gets.

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‘Live!’ by Bob Marley and the Wailers -

Recorded in 1975 at the Lyceum Theatre in London, the iconic album contains the famous seven-minute version of 'No Woman, No Cry,' which reached the top 10 in the UK.

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‘No Sleep ‘Til Hammersmith’ by Motörhead -

Motörhead's 1981 live album reached number one on the UK albums chart. "It still sounds good to me… We were in the middle of a 53-show tour, so by that time we were on automatic. We were tight, and you can hear that on the record… There are mistakes on there. There are always mistakes on a live album… that's life. Life ain't perfect, and I'm no different. I think I overdubbed a couple of lines of vocals on 'Hammersmith,' but there's no false songs," said Lemmy about it.

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‘How the West Was Won’ by Led Zeppelin -

The 1976 album and film 'The Song Remains the Same' didn't quite capture what Led Zeppelin was all about back then. But guitarist Jimmy Page went through recordings of the band's 1972 tour, and put together a quite remarkable 18-track album in 2003. In Page's own words, "It's Zeppelin at its best."

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‘It’s Alive’ by Ramones -

No other album captures the raw punk rock energy of the Ramones quite like this one. The double LP was recorded over four nights in 1977 at London's Rainbow Theater and released in 1979.

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‘Made in Japan’ by Deep Purple -

Recorded over three nights in Osaka and Tokyo, this 1972 album is one of the English rockers' finest works. "We were all so unconcerned about the whole thing that nobody was actually aware of being recorded. There was no diminution of the interplay, spontaneity and feeling that we usually got onstage," said late keyboardist Jon Lord.

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‘At Folsom Prison’ by Johnny Cash -

In 1968, the "Man in Black" recorded a live performance at the site that inspired his 1955 hit single 'Folsom Prison Blues,' and it's as good and iconic as one would expect it to be, and then some.

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‘Ellington at Newport’ by Duke Ellington -

This 1956 album is often quoted as the legendary jazz pianist's greatest performance. The crowd can be heard going completely wild on the album. One month later, Duke Ellington was on the cover of Time magazine.

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‘The Complete Live at the Plugged Nickel 1965’ by Miles Davis -

The Miles Davis Quintet didn't know label reps were recording the show when they got to the Chicago club. Over two nights, Davis, saxophonist Wayne Shorter, pianist Herbie Hancock, bassist Ron Carter, and drummer Tony Williams did what they did best. The CD box set was released in 1995.

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'Get Yer Ya-Ya’s Out!' by The Rolling Stones -

Guitarist Mick Taylor joined the band in 1969 and took the Stones' sound to a whole new level. "The Stones were a better live band then any other band at that time…. Me and Charlie were really always on the ball, always straight, always together and had it down. If we had our s*** together we got it right," said bass player Bill Wyman.

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‘Live at the Star Club, Hamburg’ by Jerry Lee Lewis -

This 1964 album captures how electrifying Jerry Lee Lewis' performances were back then. An urgent 'Great Balls of Fire,' to an energetic 'Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On,' as well as covers of songs such as 'Hound Dog,' make this a truly remarkable live album.

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‘Live! At the Village Vanguard’ by John Coltrane -

The album was recorded over four nights in November 1961, at famed New York jazz club the Village Vanguard. At the time, Coltrane's innovative and extended soloing divided critics, and this album did get some bad reviews. Though as the man himself explained: "The main thing a musician would like to do is to give a picture to the listener of the many wonderful things he knows of and senses in the universe."

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‘Live Bullet’ by Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band -

This album was recorded at Detroit's Cobo Hall on September 4, 1974, and released in 1976. Seger and his band had been touring extensively, and that shows in how great the performance, and subsequently the album, was.

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‘At Newport 1960’ by Muddy Waters -

Muddy Waters' electrifying performance at the Newport Jazz Festival went on to inspire a whole generation of blues-rock aficionados and influence artists such as The Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin. Poet Langston Hughes wrote the closing song 'Goodbye Newport Blues' on the spot, but Waters was too exhausted to perform it, so pianist Otis Spann sang it instead.

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‘At Fillmore East’ by The Allman Brothers Band -

One highlight includes a nearly 23-minute 'Whipping Post' with amazing guitar work. "It's like what B.B. King did on 'Live at the Regal,' which is just like one big long song, a giant medley. He never stopped. He just slammed it," said Gregg Allman about his brother's performance.

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‘At Budokan’ by Cheap Trick -

The 1979 album recorded at Tokyo's Nippon Budokan helped the band reach a much wider audience. The live version of 'I Want You to Want Me' started to get airplay on American radio stations, and when the album came out, the song went straight to number seven on the Hot 100 chart.

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‘The Last Waltz’ by The Band -

The Band's farewell show in 1976 was turned into a record. But this was no ordinary show, with appearances by the likes of Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Eric Clapton, Joni Mitchell, and Van Morrison. Martin Scorsese famously made a documentary about it. The Band does have another great (if not greater) live album called ‘Rock of Ages,’ which was recorded in 1972, when the group was at their peak.

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‘Frampton Comes Alive!’ by Peter Frampton -

'Frampton Comes Alive!' is one of the biggest-selling albums of all time. Released in 1976, it sold an estimated 11 million copies worldwide. It was absolutely huge at the time, and it's definitely worth a spot on this list.

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‘Kick Out the Jams’ by MC5 -

Michigan proto-punk rockers MC5 were not about "flower power," and you can feel that when you listen to this album. "I wanna hear some revolution out there," screams singer Rob Tyner. ‘Kick Out the Jams’ captures the urgency and energy of their raw garage rock sound.

Sources: (Rolling Stone) (Yardbarker) 

See also: The biggest concerts of all time

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