Top 5 Live Albums That Make You Jealous You Weren't There

The records where you can hear the sweat, the crowd and the exact moment the band realized it was having the night of its life.

1. 1

   Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963 — Sam Cooke

   The label shelved it for 22 years because it was too raw, and that rawness is why it beats every polished studio take he ever cut.

2. 2

   Stop Making Sense — Talking Heads

   A band that builds itself on stage one member at a time, and by "Burning Down the House" you would follow David Byrne's big suit anywhere.

3. 3

   At Folsom Prison — Johnny Cash

   The inmates cheer at all the wrong moments, and that dark, conspiratorial laughter does more for these songs than any producer could.

4. 4

   MTV Unplugged in New York — Nirvana

   Stargazer lilies, candles and a closing "Where Did You Sleep Last Night" scream that still makes a room go quiet decades later.

5. 5

   Live at Leeds — The Who

   Proof that four people can sound like a building falling down, with a "My Generation" that keeps mutating for a gleeful fifteen minutes.