What are the best live acts?

Re The Stones: I am of the opinion that their live shows for the past close to 20 years now have been prefunctory money-extracting operations of the most hollow sort. Pay your hundreds, see the legends. True, they do empty professionalism as well or better than anybody - and of course they have a huge advantage in material over the competition - but that's still all it is.

Duane: The Mentors were about a hundred times better live than they were on record!

Random thoughts, very incomplete:
Highest, most concentrated live energy ever released on a stage: The Bad Brains, circa late 70's - early 80's.

Bands I most wish I'd seen live: MC5, New York Dolls, Jimi Hendrix Experience, the original James Brown revue, and of course, The Beatles.

Bands I danced the most to: C.J. Chenier and his Red Hot Louisiana Band, Trouble Funk.

Band that meant the most to me to see live (many times): The Replacements.

For a good time, bands you should see live the next time they come to your town: The Dictators, The Flaming Lips, NRBQ, The Soft Boys (back from the grave), Sloan, The Fleshtones, The Swingin' Neckbreakers, Oxes.

Keb Mo, James Taylor.

While you still can, you should go see Otis Clay. That is, if real soul music is your thang. Here in Chicago, he gets booked into blues bars occasionally. His live shows are invariably better than those of the more common formulaic blues acts.

Not that it will do anybody any good now, but I should share my observation that The Minutemen always rocked the house in a most profound way.

Tweakgeek, speaking of Otis Clay, did you catch the TV news feature (can't remember if was network or cable) last week about the resurrected career of Howard Tate?

Talking Heads and Thomas Dolby really shine when appearing live. Most of their recorded music lacks the emotion.