50 best live acts according to Q

[AM]

Q just published the 50 best live acts ever. U2 comes second, right after The Hives. This is what?s said about u2:

Soul saving rock?n?roll from Dublin?s finest

IDEAL SETTING:
At some kind of open-air evangelical rally ? ideally at Slane Castle in Dublin.

WHAT TO EXPECT:
Connection with the audience, big time - Bono?s schtick has always been about his love for the crowd and vice versa. Plus, there?s the undoubted show-off element that began with the singer scaling speaker stacks, scaffolding and balconies in smaller venues and peaked with the multimedia extravaganza of Zoo TV, which saw Bono?s alter ego Macphisto calling up world leaders and taxi companies from the stage on a mobile phone. Last year?s Elevation tour was definitely back-to-basics after the excesses of Zoo TV and the Pop Mart outing - the giant mirrorballed lemon was put away and the band started the show with the house lights on. They could literally see the whites of the audience?s eyes. To their eternal credit, they didn?t flinch.

MUSTN?T MISS MOMENT:
Bono running round and round the walkway at the end of The Fly, before splatting himself on one of the huge monitors.

RECOMMENDED LISTENING:
Elevation Live From Boston (DVD, Island, 2001)

THE SONG TO TEXT YOUR MATES DURING:
One, while your other hand holds a lighter in the air.

 

[AM]

top 10

top 10:

1. The Hives
2. U2
3. The white stripes
4. Radiohead
5. Oasis
6. Rolling Stones
7. Coldplay
8. The Strokes
9. Stereophonics
10. The Datsuns


quite interesting list actually

 

[MrBrau1]

Shitty list. Hives, Strokes, White Stipes? Give me a break. I'm to believe that 3 of the best live acts ever broke big in the last year? This list is to fashionable. U2's rank is good, but where are The Who? Zeppelin? Bowie? Hendrix? Stereophonics blow live, the drummer can't keep time while he's twirling his sticks and blowing kisses to the crowd.

 

[Elvis Presley]

Shitty list. Hives, Strokes, White Stipes? Give me a break. I'm to believe that 3 of the best live acts ever broke big in the last year? This list is to fashionable. U2's rank is good, but where are The Who? Zeppelin? Bowie? Hendrix? Stereophonics blow live, the drummer can't keep time while he's twirling his sticks and blowing kisses to the crowd.

I agree, weak list......

 

[HelloAngel]

I think this list was published a few months ago.. it had Howlin Pelle on the cover.

 

[Hallelujah Here She Comes]

Shitty list. Hives, Strokes, White Stipes? Give me a break. I'm to believe that 3 of the best live acts ever broke big in the last year? This list is to fashionable. U2's rank is good, but where are The Who? Zeppelin? Bowie? Hendrix? Stereophonics blow live, the drummer can't keep time while he's twirling his sticks and blowing kisses to the crowd.

I think perhaps they were ranking the best current live acts, which would make the list make a bit more sense. Of course, that still doesn't mean it's accurate (I personally think boiling down all live acts to the "10 best" is a bit absurd anyway), but I don't think it's a ridiculous list.

 

[elevatedmole]

Yeah, I've had that issue for ages.

By the way, I was annoyed too, at first, because the list was so full of new acts. Then I realized they never said anywhere that it was the best live acts ever. The key word is "ever". It was just the 50 live acts you should see before you die. Sooo, yeah. I don't really have much of a problem with the list anymore -- because, after all, if they redid the list in a couple years, U2 could be #1. Or #2. Or whatever. What I'm trying to say is, it's not DEFINITIVE, and they're not trying to act like it is, so I don't have any problem with it.

 

[* MoFo *]

the hives totally rock on stage live. u2 have the emotion but the hives have comedy. COMEDY WINS ALL

 

[HelloAngel]

Heart and Soul win everytime for me. I choose depth over comedy when it comes to having a music experience.

Sitcoms and funny movies are where I enjoy my comedy, but not in a live musical experience.

 

[Zoomerang96]

brutal list.

the hives white stripes and strokes are all the same garbage. sure its fun to listen to once in a while, but that music is so uninovative and boring, for it to top a list like this is a shame.

i mean they dont even have sigur ros on there. bunch of losers.

radiohead u2 and sigur ros 1 2 3 for me, in any order.

 

[The_acrobat]

Now, compare U2's concerts to a concert with 5 guys screaming and hacking away aimlessly at their guitars. U2 kicks their ass. I saw the Hives last week actually in Columbus, as a friend pursuaded me with an extra ticket he had. I thought the Hives had some good songs, but believe me, they were no U2.

 

[madonna's child]

Yay, for U2. Though, I'm not sure if I agree with The Hives at number 1. I watched a live concert of them on a local music tv program, I wasn't that impressed.

 

[dizzy]

Srew the others. I don't get why U2 is only second to The Hives.

 

[Bonochick]

U2 at #2 would be fine with me...only if Rolling Stones were #1. That could be justified.

 

[bonoman]

I would be happy seeing U2 behind the Stones or maybe Petty or Pearl Jam or maybe maybe maybe Oasis, but the Hives?

The best ever would easily see U2 near the bottom of the top ten behind the likes of Zepplin, Stones, Pink Floyd, Elivis, the Who, Jimi, Bob Marely, maybe Pearl Jam or Nirvana. Though i love them live some older bands are the best.

 

[Salome]

oh my
whenever I see a top 10 list like that I can't help but wonder what on earth a "worst of" list would have to look like

 

[STING2]

AM,

If you get the chance could post the entire top 50. THANKS!

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Um... I think I know why Elvis, Hendrix, Marley, Nirvana etc. aren't on the list... it's a list of the best live acts today, and, well, I'm sorry to have to be the one to break the news to ya, but Jimi, Bobby, Kurt and the King are all dead, thus haven't been out on the road lately. We're all still waiting for that Traveling Wilbury-esque mega group of Elvis, Jimi, Jerry Garcia and TuPac... I'll be out in the golden circle for that one.

 

[gherman]

The HIVES fuckin' rule but there not U2

 

[bonoman]

Read my post carefully i said if they had a best ever list...

 

[Headache in a Suitcase]

Good for you... you're not the only one replying to this post and a lot of the other people DIDN'T put that, but thanks for making it clear to all of us that you weren't one of them.

 

[Vox02]

The Top 50 :

1. The Hives
2. U2
3. The white stripes
4. Radiohead
5. Oasis
6. Rolling Stones
7. Coldplay
8. The Strokes
9. Stereophonics
10. The Datsuns
11. The Coral
12. REM
13. Ryan Adams
14. Muse
15. Queens Of The Stone Age
16. Feeder
17. David Bowie
18. AC/DC
19. Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
20. The Von Bondies
21. Ash
22. Badly Drawn Boy
23. Primal Scream
24. Pink Floyd
25. The Vines
26. The Who
27. Madonna
28. Red Hot Chili Peppers
29. Kraftwerk
30. New Order
31. Orbital
32. Bob Dylan
33. The Pogues
34. The Beta Man
35. Hundred Reasons
36. Neil Young
37. The Fall
38. The Prodigy
39. Kylie Minogue
40. Slipknot
41. Paul Oakenfold
42. Fatboy Slim
43. The Flaming Lips
44. PJ Harvey
45. Idlewild
46. Guns n' Roses
47. The Soundtrack Of Our Lives
48. Outkast
49. Ian Brown
50. The Polyphonic Spree

Vox

 

[bonoman]

Good for you... you're not the only one replying to this post and a lot of the other people DIDN'T put that, but thanks for making it clear to all of us that you weren't one of them.

Breathe in breathe out...relax and count to ten...

 

[sindaddy]

Bruce Springsteen and Pearl Jam didnt even make the top 50? That's not right.

 

[STING2]

Thanks VOX! PJ HARVEY should be toward the top of the list! A lot and I mean a lot of artist missing from this list.

 

[sv]

Leaving Springsteen out invalidates the entire list. Even in their current condition, which is awful by their standards, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are better live than at least 80% of the acts listed.

I've seen the Stones only twice, but they really never struck me as a great LIVE band by top-of-the-industry standards. Plenty of action and running around, but not much power compared to other great rock bands. They have an amazing catalog of songs, but Mick's voice doesn't PROJECT power and emotion the way other bands' singers do. For instance, U2, the Who, Springsteen, and even Journey blow them off the stage by a mile. The Huey Lewis and the News concert I saw in 1987 was far better than either of the Stones shows I saw. Maybe the two nights I saw the Stones were off-nights, but that was my impression.

Obviously it is impossible to create an "unbiased" list. Especially when it's coming from music industry magazines heavily dependent upon advertising from record companies and other commercial interests. Springsteen doesn't move records or sell out concerts the way he used to, but the power of his live show still lives.

 

[AM]

Obviously it is impossible to create an "unbiased" list. Especially when it's coming from music industry magazines heavily dependent upon advertising from record companies and other commercial interests. Springsteen doesn't move records or sell out concerts the way he used to, but the power of his live show still lives.

true!

 

[HolyJoe914]

Uh, well, "The Rising" did go to Number One on the charts, which I believe ATYCLB did not do.

I love these "rankings" where everybody sets it up like a boxing match. Just because you like U2 doesn't mean you can't like Bruce Springsteen or the Hives or whoever. And in fact, many do.

I've seen every Bruce Springsteen tour since 1978, and to say the current tour is "awful" is absurd - it's not the greatest thing he's ever done, but it is very, very good.

Very comparable, in fact, to the Elevation Tour. Not their greatest ever, but still damn good.

Guns N' Roses isn't even a functioning band. Kylie Minogue is Britney Spears' older sister. Half of The Who is dead. This list is a joke.

 

[STING2]

But did the Rising sell as many copies its first week as ATYCLB? Going to #1 in any given week is often more dependent on who else is releasing an album that week. The less competition there is, the more likely you'll hit #1. The 5 Elevation shows I saw were better than most of the shows I saw on ZOO TV or POPMART. U2 also played the biggest selection of songs on Elevation than on any other tour.

 

[bonoman]

Is that true Sting; they played the biggest selection of music?

What i found is that lot of the Elevtaion tour was the same playlist with a few different songs a night. But considering that Elevaton has the most songs to choose from would probably give them the most options. I would think that alot of other bands play alot different playlists, especially Bruce.