The Dave Matthews Band is one of the most prolific live groups of all time. The group has sold more than 25 million concert tickets and that number is only rising. His shows are lively and have been destinations for years, a summer tradition for many.
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But while DMB is prolific on tour, they are also prolific when it comes to releasing live albums. The group has released dozens over the years, thanks to its Live Trax series, which is now up to No. 36 and counting.
Here, though, we wanted to dive into Dave’s five best live albums to date. Five early band live albums, as chance would have it, but five excellent ones nonetheless.
1. Listener Supported (1999)
An incredible turnaround—Listener Supported was recorded on September 11, 1999, and then released just two months later in November. But that’s not the only thing that makes this special. It’s Dave Matthews Band at the height of their game. The group had just put out its latest album, Before These Crowded Streets, and they had mastery of both their older songs and their newer hits like “Stone” and “Don’t Drink the Water.” This live album is also available in video format. It kicks off with so many great songs, from the bouncy “Rapunzel” to the drug-fueled “Rhyme & Reason”
2. Live at Luther College (1999)
A stripped-down double-live album from Matthews and his original music partner when he was bartending in Charlottesville, Virginia—Mr. Tim Reynolds. Again, given that this album came out in 1999, it shows just how tight Matthews and his crew were, what a crest they were riding. The concert was recorded in 1996 at the school in Iowa, right as DMB’s album Crash (their then-most recent LP) was about to drop. The album included smash songs like “So Much to Say,””#41” and “Crash into Me.” Dave and Tim released another live album several years later, Live at Radio City.
3. Live in Chicago (2001)
Live in Chicago was the first since DMB’s Remember Two Things to include their fan favorite, “Christmas Song.” The performance also features guests like the energetic bass player, Victor Wooten. The album includes hits like “Crash into Me,” a 12-minute “All Along the Watchtower” and a 12-minute version of “Lie in Our Graves.”
4. Live at Red Rocks (1997)
While not officially the band’s first live record, Live at Red Rocks was the first to get mainstream success. Recorded in 1995 and released in 1997, the album traveled between fans. Have you heard Live at Red Rocks? It helped build the band’s cult following. It was the culmination of the band’s first chapter before Crash, Listener Supported, and Live at Luther College thrust them into even bigger touring success.
5. Recently EP (1994)
While we could have put the band’s very first release here, the 1993 live album Remember Two Things, the art for which is a “magic eye painting,” we wanted to highlight this lesser-known DMB release from 1994. There are only five songs on the album but they are all band classics. One thing that makes it special is that the EP has one of the only recordings, especially early in the band’s career, of the song “Halloween,” one of Matthews’ darker tunes.
Photo by Danny Clinch/Shore Fire Media
