Nirvana - From The Muddy Banks Of The Wishkah
This live album from Nirvana came just a couple of years after their MTV Unplugged success. There had been a plan to combine the unplugged recordings with other live sets, but that all got too overwhelming and difficult to pull together after Cobain’s tragic suicide. So they became separate releases instead. Nirvana released this album in October 1996, a couple of years after the unplugged one.
This release focuses on other live recordings from concerts of the MTV set. I’ll be honest and say it’s not a favorite by any means. It’s got some dodgy vocals, a few piercing screams, some bum notes, and a lot of feedback and amp noise. So it’s not a beautiful musical sound. But it is one of the limited number of live number-one albums.
Fleetwood Mac – The Dance
The Dance was pretty remarkable from Fleetwood Mac. It saw the return of their classic lineup with Lindsey Buckingham, Mick Fleetwood, Christine McVie, John McVie, and Stevie Nicks all in place again. This 1997 live album would be their first release together since Tango In The Night in 1987. That's quite a gap.
Originally recorded for another of those MTV Unplugged specials, it featured many of their best songs but also had a slightly riskier twist. The band included a few new songs on there too. Perhaps that was a contractual element as it gave space for all the main songwriters to showcase new work. It’s likely the whole show and album were financially driven to secure the agreement for the band to reunite.
Whatever the reasons, it was a successful album. Over six million copies were sold worldwide. The Dance also went straight in at number one on the Billboard 200 when released. That was their first top spot since 1982 with Mirage, another very long gap and remarkable achievement.
Garth Brooks – Double Live
There’s not been much in the way of country music in the top live albums, but this variation on the genre bursts its way in as a high seller with close to 11 million copies sold. It also topped the Billboard 200 in November 1998. Another new release that went straight in at the top of the charts. It was the final live album to make number one in the 1990s.
Recorded on his tour between 1996 and 1998 a live album made absolute sense for Garth Brooks. He’s known for being an outstanding performer on stage. A point that comes across well in this album. He lets his personality, style, and great sound shine through on the record. As do many of his top songs up to 1998.