The definitive live hair band album?

[DonJuanDeMarco]

Another vote for Tesla. The arrangements of their own songs plus their choice of covers and releasing "Signs" as a single really helped make them to look more like a 70's classic rock band.

Poison would have to get some credit for releasing a true live album at the height of their success (maybe not the height, but still in their prime at least). Pretty much every 80's band has released a live album since then though. GNR, Motley, Def Leppard, Warrant, Winger, Trixter, Firehouse, etc... but I don't think any of them are definitive.

On a side note...were the Kiss, Frampton and Thin Lizzy live albums so popular because their studio albums were not so great? With Thin Lizzy at least, I think the live versions are all better. They have more energy and are fuller sounding. I don't think that's true for any of the 80's rock bands. They all had big production records, so the live albums were always a bit of a letdown.

[Mister Freeze]

I'm a little surprised no one's mentioned this one yet...



Yeah, I know. It's not really live. But then again, neither is KISS Alive.

Which makes me wonder about this candidate...



Either way, it's pretty great.

[GoodJudge]

I love old Hanoi and most of the later offshoots but the Cherry Bombz were not a high point. That live album is a sloppy mess and not in a good way.

Obviously I'm going to answer the original question with Hanoi's 'All Those Wasted Years'.

Fair point. Check this out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqADnzKmmH4

Anita has aged well and I'll give her credit for still wanting to perform but one thing she hasn't done in the last 35 years is take singing lessons. Some of that was painful! I did make it most of the way through but had to cut the karaoke massacre of House of the Rising Sun.

[Love_Industry]

On a side note...were the Kiss, Frampton and Thin Lizzy live albums so popular because their studio albums were not so great? With Thin Lizzy at least, I think the live versions are all better. They have more energy and are fuller sounding.

Priest's Unleashed supports your theory. The songs off SWOD and SAS were almost different songs live, while the songs from the better produced Stained Class didn't gain much in the live versions. Exciter is actually better in the studio.

[BDG135]

People are picking an acoustic album to define hair bands?

[SchenkerFan]

People are picking an acoustic album to define hair bands?

Yeah I thought of Five Men Acoustic Jam but I don't consider it to be a good representation of their studio albums.

[Nobodyspecial]

Beast from the East

[DonJuanDeMarco]

People are picking an acoustic album to define hair bands?

Yeah I thought of Five Men Acoustic Jam but I don't consider it to be a good representation of their studio albums.

Agreed. I think we mean it's just the best live album in general. Seems there are no "definitive" live albums. We're just going to have to stick with Kiss, Frampton Comes Alive and Thin Lizzy! Let's try this again in another 40 years.

[DemonFilth2001]

Beast from the East

Rough Cutt Live

[BDG135]

And how is Judas Priest a hair band? How big was their hair? The youngsters would say they were Nowabhm.

[Love_Industry]

And how is Judas Priest a hair band? How big was their hair? The youngsters would say they were Nowabhm.

KK's perm was pretty big and neither Priest nor Motörhead (another mislabeled band) were NWOBHM.
Can understand "the youngsters" though, they are British and if you were born in the 90s or 00s, 1974-5 and 1980-82 are almost the same era.

[Vince Neil Eats]

It’s worth mentioning Hanoi Rocks All Those Wasted Years.

[Anthrax442]

My choice is Swallow This Live, as good as Five Man Acoustical Jam is, it's not really representative of what a "normal" Tesla show would be.

Beast From The East is good too, but with the CD release, unless you get the Japanese version, they ended up cutting 3 tracks (Standing in the Shadows, Sleepless NIght, and Turn on the Action) to make it fit on one disc, which is a bummer.

It's a good point about bands not releasing live records, though:

Winger - No live album until 2007
Warrant - No live album until 1997 (contractual obligation to CMC)
Ratt - No live album
Guns N Roses - Only a compilation
Bon Jovi - Only compilations and This House is Not for Sale Live
Whitesnake - No "modern" live album until 2003
Motley Crue - No cohesive live album until 2006
Van Halen (Dave) - No live album from classic era
Megadeth - No live album until 2002
Metallica - No true live album until 2009 (S&M not standard set, Binge & Purge boxed set and not album)
Skid Row - No live album

[Mister Freeze]

I'm 75% certain this is an official release and not a bootleg...

[Anthrax442]

I'm 75% certain this is an official release and not a bootleg...

It's as official as a Deadline/Cleopatra release can be!

[bill_kir]

Hanoi Rocks - All Those Waster Years

[daveg]

I'm 75% certain this is an official release and not a bootleg...

It's as official as a Deadline/Cleopatra release can be!

This is probably my favorite of the albums listed so far. Problem is, no one really knows about it, it may or may not be a bootleg...and was released 10 years after their prime.

I actually think Tesla might be the correct answer here. Had a legit hit that wasn't on any studio album and still gets played on classic rock radio. Went Platinum.

Poison second
Operation Livecrime 3rd

[GreatWhiteSnake]

Tesla and Ozzy not hair metal. Especially acoustic Tesla. Poison sucks balls. Beast From The East is the winner by process of elimination and not sucking...

[Mister Freeze]

And how is Judas Priest a hair band? How big was their hair?

Then why are we talking about the Scorpions? (Excuse me, I mean... why are we talking about Scorpions?)

I don't exactly associate "hair" with Klaus Meine.

[Anthrax442]

And how is Judas Priest a hair band? How big was their hair?

Then why are we talking about the Scorpions? (Excuse me, I mean... why are we talking about Scorpions?)

I don't exactly associate "hair" with Klaus Meine.

Ouch. Klaus is just going to have to comfort himself with those gold toilets they have on their rider.

In all seriousness though, growing up I thought World Wide Live and Live Bites would have made the perfect Scorpions double live album if it was packaged together (I didn't know about Tokyo Tapes at the time).

[kanister]

I love old Hanoi and most of the later offshoots but the Cherry Bombz were not a high point. That live album is a sloppy mess and not in a good way.

Obviously I'm going to answer the original question with Hanoi's 'All Those Wasted Years'.

Fair point. Check this out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BqADnzKmmH4

No offence but that sounded pretty bad considering they had good musicians like Dave Tregunna and Timo Caltio (R.I.P. ) in the band. Wonder if they rehearsed much. Love that bar / venue though, Hope & Anchor.

Not sure if many actual hair metal bands were good enough for live albums. I like the classics already mentioned, but they aren`t exactly hair metal (The Scorps, Maiden, Kiss and Tesla unplugged).

Hanoi Rocks` live album is up there of course - good energy and great songs! They get my vote.

[whiteowl yesterday]

another vote for the scorpions and dokken.

[Chip Z'Hoy]

This would be my pick.

Let's make it a Trinity with Priest...Live and World Wide Live.

[SeniorGrande]

Or any other truck-top-only exclusive "Extended Versions" series

[diablomozart]

I'm 75% certain this is an official release and not a bootleg...

It's as official as a Deadline/Cleopatra release can be!

This is probably my favorite of the albums listed so far. Problem is, no one really knows about it, it may or may not be a bootleg...and was released 10 years after their prime.

I actually think Tesla might be the correct answer here. Had a legit hit that wasn't on any studio album and still gets played on classic rock radio. Went Platinum.

Poison second
Operation Livecrime 3rd

i have to admit...i'm not the biggest cinderella fan but when i saw them on the long cold winter tour they sounded awesome...d.m.

[Mister Freeze]

I'd like to buy this. Which gas station should I go to?

[DrumminAway]

I'd like to buy this. Which gas station should I go to?

Chevron Extra Mile

[Ryan81]

If Scorpions are eligible then it is World Wide Live.

If they're not, but W.A.S.P. is then Live...In The Raw.