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Live album
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A live album is a musical recording containing recorded concert performances.
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Many successful recording artists release at least one live album at some point during their career. Some live albums are seen as expendable parts of an artists’ catalogue, often failing to sell as well as studio albums. However, some pop and rock artists are known for live albums that are just as popular as some of their studio albums, including KISS, Bob Seger, Iron Maiden, Cheap Trick, James Brown, The Allman Brothers Band, MC5, Nirvana, Dave Matthews Band, Phish, Peter Frampton, The Grateful Dead, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Dream Theater and Thin Lizzy.
In jazz, live albums often stand beside studio efforts in terms of importance, as improvisation is such a major part of the genre. It is quite common for newly unearthed live recordings to be seen as vital, revelatory additions to a legendary artist's catalog, as with the release of Thelonious Monk Quartet with John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall in 2005.
Live recordings of classical music can be similar to non-classical albums in the sense that they can record an event (e.g. The Proms, Vienna New Year's Concert). However many artists prefer to record live than in the studio, with post-performance edits to correct any mistakes. Hence many 'live recordings' can be virtually indistinguishable from studio counterparts. Depending on the closeness of the miking, such recordings may have a stronger ambient effect than studio performances. The conductor Leonard Bernstein made virtually all of his later recordings from live performances rather than studio sessions.
Additionally, several classical artists and ensembles use empty venues to record what would otherwise be termed studio recordings. An example of this is Walthamstow Town Hall in London.