 "Photo: Courtesy Photo")
 "Photo: Courtesy Photo")
A few weeks ago it was announced that Robert Plant, Jimmy Page, and John Paul Jones would get back together with John Bonham's son Jason to, essentially, reform Led Zeppelin for a one-off concert in November. To honor the reunion of one of the greatest live rock groups of all time, I thought I'd present the 13 essential live rock albums of the "classic" era. Note that some albums have been omitted because they either don't really fit the genre (James Brown's Live at the Apollo), were heavily dubbed over in the studio (Neil Young's Rust Never Sleeps), done considerably in the studio (Jackson Browne's Running On Empty), or include an incredibly lame guitar talk-box (Peter Frampton's Frampton Comes Alive). So here they are, presented in a rough chronological order of when the concerts were recorded, with the dates of when they were recorded: The 13 essential live albums of rock 'n' roll.
The Yardbirds - Five Live Yardbirds (1964)
The first great live album in the classic, guitar-driven, rock sense, Five Live Yardbirds is particularly noteworthy because it was the first album the group ever released and established their place as one of the premier groups on the British blues scene. Not released in the U.S. for several decades, Five Live Yardbirds, to its advantage, is a very rough and raw listen, with the group absolutely plowing through, among its 10 numbers, Chuck Berry's "Too Much Monkey Business." This album also marks the first recording of a young guitar player by the name of Eric "Slowhand" Clapton.
Bob Dylan - Live 1966, The "Royal Albert Hall" Concert (1966)
Widely bootlegged and officially released in 1998, Live 1966 was the famous concert where a devout folkie yells "Judas" from the crowd, leading Dylan to tell The Band to "play f---ing loud" as they close out with an absolutely vicious version of "Like A Rolling Stone." The first half of the concert is just Dylan with his acoustic guitar and harmonica as he gives moving renditions of "Mr. Tambourine Man," "Visions of Johanna," and "Desolation Row" (which begs the question, how could Dylan remember all the words to that song?). The second half has his backing group, the group soon to be known as The Band (sans Levon Helm), come out and join him for an absolutely electric set that includes phenomenal versions of "Baby Let Me Follow You Down," "Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat," and "One Too Many Mornings." By the end of the concert, Dylan could easily notch a victory over the folkies.
Quicksilver Messenger Service - Happy Trails (1968)
Almost 18 of the album's 48 minutes were recorded in the studio. Nevertheless, Happy Trails serves as the perfect document of the San Francisco acid rock scene. Quicksilver extends Bo Diddley's "Who Do You Love?" into a 25 minute, 42 second jam that showcases the trademark of the group: legendary guitarist John Cipollina's prodigious fretwork and whammy bar blending together with Gary Duncan's stinging rhythm guitar, proving themselves to be America's answer to Keith Richards and Brian Jones. An absolute barnburner, Happy Trails shows that hippies could still kick your death in…ya dig?
Johnny Cash - Live at Folsom Prison (1968)
Dance halls, theaters, arenas-- none of these places can even come close to matching the atmosphere present on Live at Folsom Prison. The prisoners at Folsom County hang on every word as the man in black sings songs that could have very well been written about his audience with songs such as "I Got Stripes," "Busted," "25 Minutes To Go," and "The Long Black Veil," among others. Cash and his band, which includes Carl Perkins, knocks the songs "Cocaine Blues" and "Folsom Prison Blues" out of the park, with the latter getting a cheer after Cash sings that he "shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die." The loose atmosphere and sounds of the jail makes you feel more at this concert then any other live album out there, making it the closest you ever want to come to actually being in jail.
Cream - Live Cream, Volume 2 (1968)
In the history of rock and roll, there was never a more talented group than Cream. With Ginger Baker on drums, Jack Bruce on bass, and Eric Clapton on guitar all locked in, they could blow any other group out of the water on stage. Their ferocious sound and jazz-inspired jams completely changed the landscape of live rock performances. And while other groups have live albums that are superior to any that Cream has officially released, Live Cream, Volume 2 does a great job of portraying Cream's proficiency onstage. The trio delivers an intense "Tales of Brave Ulysses" and "White Room." Clapton plays an absurdly great solo on "Sunshine of Your Love," and the 13-and-a-half minute "Steppin' Out" demonstrates just how much these three really were the cream of the crop.
The Grateful Dead - Live/Dead (1969)
No group has staked its reputation on its live performances as much as The Grateful Dead. For a band whose studio album production was somewhat inconsistent, especially after 1970, yet remained one of the most popular touring acts through the early '90s tells you just how good the Dead were onstage. And while the Dead's live legacy has been preserved more extensively then any other group through the massive "Dick's Picks" catalogue, 1969's Live/Dead is the album that best demonstrates the Dead's onstage prowess in the midst of their heyday. The epic 23 minute-plus "Dark Star" from Live/Dead remains The Grateful Dead's signature song and "St. Stephen" takes its place as another signature of The Grateful Dead's live canon. For more live Dead, make sure to check out Europe '72 and Dick's Picks, Vol. 4, the best among all the Dick's Picks re-releases.
The Rolling Stones - Get Yer Ya Ya's Out (1969)
When you're The Rolling Stones, in the middle of one of the greatest runs in rock history, with your most talented lineup, playing on an on night, you know you're going to put out a great live album. And that's just what you get with Get Yer Ya Ya's Out. The Stones execute a great performance of Robert Johnson's "Love in Vain" and rework their own "Stray Cat Blues" to give it a different take. Mick Taylor shows how great of a guitar player he was in the Stones with his solos on "Sympathy for the Devil," "Street Fighting Man," and the nine-minute long "Midnight Rambler" is absolutely prolific. By this time the Stones were calling themselves, "The greatest rock 'n' roll group in the world;" Get Yer Ya-Ya's Out is the album that verified this statement.
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