The Smiley Smile Message Board

Who has been the greatest live act ever?

The Stones, U2, Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, Queen, Pink Floyd, Bowie, Nirvana or someone else?

This Day in Music have just started a poll to find out. If you fancy voting for who you think should win go to http://www.thisdayinmusic.com

From mid-1967 to mid-1968 anyway, ladies and gentlemen, The Doors!

For me it's The Who (the original lineup of course).

Van Morrison, and Brian Wilson.

1970-74 era Beach Boys!

The Who, hands down. Especially circa 1969 to 1971.

It's hard to say going off old video, which is all I can do for the bands that seem to me to be the best. But Led Zeppelin and Queen seem right up there. And Prince, whom I have seen live several times in different size venues, has to be right up there.

Elvis Presley

On the whole, I prefer El Vez.

The Who 69-71 original line up.  I saw them all of those years ago and of the scores of acts I have seen before and since, nothing has topped that show.  Burned into my memory.

I put in the fourth vote for The Who, can't match that energy

Springsteen

The Who, Van, and the rest are (or were) right there at their best but they have not always at their best.  Springsteen consistently has been for so many years.  Certainly I've seen  the Who do a stellar show but also a (not terrible but) less-than-stellar one (Quadropenia tour Los Angeles).  Townsend even said they stunk the next day blaming it on the sound system (which  may well have been right).   

You're talking about the 90's Quadrophenia performance?


That wouild be the Moonless Who.

No, I am talking about the original Quadrophenia tour,  Los Angeles Nov. 22, 1973 (on the 10th aniversary of the assasination of President Kennedy).  They were flat.  It did get a lot better at the end of the show and they did an (apparently rare for that time) encore.  Townsend was unhappy with the performance and to his credit (and to some success) tried to fire things up near the end of the show. 

While I've seen some great individual shows in my life, The Stones in 72 and 89, The Airplane in 70, Zeppelin in 73, The Beach Boys from 72-77, Brian playing SMiLE @ Carnegie Hall, Springsteen, The Who in 79 (without Moon) etc...  The band that I found to be the most interesting, innovative, sometimes reaching out for some sort of cosmic goal and getting there, and sometimes falling flat on their faces, you always wanted to come back for more, The Grateful Dead.  I saw them play about 100 plus times from 79 till Garcia died in 95.

The Grateful Dead, like the Who were certainly first rate at their best.  However, over the years the quality of their performances was inconsistant.   While a little bit of that might be due to the risks the Dead took in on improvisation, I would say that the main reason was drug abuse and that this was true for the Who also.   I suspect that abstinence from the use of drugs greatly helped Springsteen (and Zappa for that matter) to maintain an impeccably consistent level of high performance over their careers.  Zappa was addicted to tobacco but  avoided all illegal drugs and tried to see that the rest of his bands members did also.             

But the Dead, the Who, or Springsteen didn't have Carl or Dennis Wilson in their bands, did they? Who needs Jer-Bear, Pete Townshend, or The Boss when you've got the Wilson Bros.?

It seems like Zappa gets overlooked when this question comes up. I should have nominated Frank, ... so I do.  He always had an amazing lineup.  Great musicians, recognizing the level and of his music, gravitated to him.   They had to be good since among his works are some of the most challenging pieces to perform in music history (and not just rock music history).  His bands were able to perform  consistently at an amazingly high level because Frank rehearsed them 6-12 hours a day - 5 days a week.  Some of the musicians complained it was like having a regular job but it was a mandated commitment to excellence that yielded great musical rewards.  A key to his live performances were the complicated series of hand signals Frank utilized.  If they ever had a bad night, it probably had nothing to due with the level of performance. 
Of course anyones choice of "greatest" is generally limited to those artists that they like the best. You would be hard pressed, though,  to find another artist who gave himself a more difficult challenge on stage and was able to meet it's requirements so impeccably.
         

Yeah, that was the tour with the malfunctioning synth tapes and the songs necessitating  - I think - 22 guitar changes. Worked in the studio, not so much live. At their 1969-1971 peak though, they are untouchable.

Genesis: 1972-1975 Gabriel era. 1976-1980 early Collins era!

Genesis during that period consistently put on some of the Greatest Live shows ever!!!! Be it with Gabriel fronting
or when Phil took over.IMHO after Duke tour 1980 they stopped being a great live band.

Big Bri

Elvis Presley any concert through 70
Jerry Lee any concert through 73
The Who 65-72
James Brown 59-74