Are there any well-known "Live" albums without overdubs?

I wish it would become a pervasive trend to let live albums be 100% live. I'm always disappointed when I discover that one of my favorite live albums has been heavily overdubbed (like Harry Chapin's Greatest Stories Live and even the completely solo acoustic Phil Ochs In Concert (Only the applause and monologues are live). The only problem I have with the great Bill Withers At Carnegie Hall is the overdubbed strings and horns. They sound OK, but they're superfluous. Bill and his band were cookin' just fine without them. If you want to record it live, let it sound live, warts and all. If you want studio quality, record it in a studio and don't try to pass it off as live. If you want a creative pastiche of both (like Quicksilver's Happy Trails and the Dead's Anthem of the Sun), be honest and upfront about it, like Zappa. He usually stated on the cover which parts were overdubbed or simply that there were some overdubs.

 

Not exactly for everyone, but Mayhem's Live in Leipzig. Recorded with a potato during some German show. The drummer even drops a stick at one point. Probably counts as famous due to the fact it's one of the only recordings with their best vocalist.

 

Are the live albums by the Isley Brothers and Curtis Mayfield recorded at the bitter end free of overdubs? I hope so, because I really like them.

 

Is this one overdubbed?

Rory Gallagher Live in Europe;


Aaaaaaaah

 

Disappointing as it is, it's extensively documented; which is possible because of the existing bootlegs of those shows. These comprise Decca/Stones early mixes and audience tapes. Overdubs are absent on them. Then there is "performance practice." For example, nowhere did the Stones, on that tour, attempt harmony vocals on "Jumpin' Jack Flash".

In the outtake footage on the Criterion DVD of Gimme Shelter you can actually watch an overdubbing session for "Little Queenie" from this album.

 

I wonder if either of the Pat Metheny Group live albums are 100% live - Travels, The Road to you; superlative musicans don't overdub do they ?

 

Would also be interesting to know what studio albums have been recorded without any overdubs in popular music.

I believe that Todd Rundgren's Second Wind (and perhaps side 4 of Something/Anything, but maybe not) and Joe Jackson's Big World may count.

Maybe Let It Be . . . Naked as well?
Perhaps some Dylan?

 

Bowie - Santa Monica '72

 

Maybe it's not well-known, but the first one that crossed my mind is:

 

But they never fixed Bill's bass parts, you can hear the mistakes on Jumping Jack.

 

ok, that sounds right to me. thanks mark..

 

That's the nice thing about posthumous archival live releases--they almost never had the opportunity to futz with them after the fact, barring a few exceptions (i.e. Genesis Archives).

 

This one was warts and all - no overdubs because it wasn't prepared for release until recently. When they did "ABBA The Movie" in 1977, the original "Live at Whembley 1979" video released in 1980, and "Dick Cavett Meets ABBA" , those live performances had some vocals overdubbed before release.

 

Ten Years After's Recorded Live claims "no overdubs or additives" and says it's an "official bootleg" in response to "inferior live recordings sold illegally."

 

Re: Live After Death - listen to Revelations from about 1:00 onwards, there's two guitars playing the harmony lead part and a third guitar playing the clean rhythm part in the background. Who was playing what

Edit: i am an idiot. Bruce is playing the clean part. Just checked a video. Had no idea he played guitar

 

Nope, that was Maiden Japan. As a sidenote, there's also a live version of Remember Tomorrow released as a B-side that was taken from the same show, but with vocals overdubbed by Bruce Dickinson.

 

I believe it has no overdubs

 

That's a good one, the original Japanese CD is excellent

 

Chicago At Carnegie Hall - I don't believe there were any overdubs on this (although some of the band may have wished otherwise). I think this remains the biggest selling 4-album set by a rock band, however, I'm not sure how many others there have been...

 

King Crimson - Absent Lovers
BTO - Japan Tour
UFO - Strangers in the night (except for the two studio recorded tracks)
Bad Company - Live 1977 & 1979
Blackfoot - Highway Song Live

 

Grateful Dead Live/Dead

 

Hendrix's Band Of Gypsys and Historic Performances Recorded At Monterey Pop Festival been mentioned?
Those were the only live recordings released in his lifetime and contain no overdubs.

 

All great albums. It must be harder to find live jazz albums that are with overdubs, though! I can only recall Jazz At Massey Hall, the Charlie Parker/Dizzy Gillespie album with bass overdubs by Mingus.

 

I think there are no overdubs on Travels. For The Road to You there may also not be overdubs but some tracks are edited between different shows.

 

Fleetwood Mac - Live In Boston vols 1-3.