Ten brilliant live albums from the 1980s

Two more brilliant live albums from the 1980s

Depeche Mode – 101

An absolutely brilliant live album will give you that feeling of being in the crowd. You’ll imagine you were there or at the very least really want to have been. That's the case with 101 from Depeche Mode. The 1989 album is paired with a documentary which focuses on their June 1988 concert at the LA Rose Bowl. It was the final night of the band's Music For The Masses tour, gig number 101 in fact!

The crowd that night was an amazing 60,000 sell out, very strong for a band that was still finding their feet in the US. Depeche Mode, though, had plenty of hits behind them and always put on a super live show. This night was no different. Have a listen to the album, and you'll easily get a buzz from the crowd enjoying themselves. If you want a flavor of the show and the album, then zoom in on the final few tracks which are outstanding live. Especially  “Everything Counts” with the way the crowd takes over at the end. You'll want to have been there. 

Siouxsie And The Banshees - Nocturne

Here's one that many people might have missed. Apart from an excellent set of songs from a lively Siouxsie And The Banshees, Nocturne has the added bonus of including brilliant guitar work from Robert Smith of The Cure. Smith had been playing with Siouxsie And The Banshees on tour for a couple of years and became an official band member just before this album was recorded over two nights at the Royal Albert Hall in London in 1983. 

Nocturne was released a few weeks later in November 1983 as a double album. Yet again, we can hear a band at a real peak, and in this case, that's enhanced by Smith's additional presence and exceptional guitar playing. It's a greatest hits and best songs event with some superb raw and stripped-back live versions of those. It is not to be missed and a must-listen if you haven't heard it or played much of this band before now.