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  1. I suppose you are right Ed but I almost never listen to the studio version of ANY of the albums - not even the greats like Ten and Vs.
  2. I find myself listening to the first 3 studio albums and the last 3 studio albums.....but 90% of the time I listen to the live versions from PJ...same goes with DMB.
  3. Upon further reflection, I consider the songs themselves (music and lyrics) that define an album - not just the "performance" that was captured in the studio. For the reason, I feel "OK" about ranking the albums based on live performances.
  4. Originally posted by EDDMB:I find myself listening to the first 3 studio albums and the last 3 studio albums.....but 90% of the time I listen to the live versions from PJ...same goes with DMB.

    I've even made "live versions" of the studio albums.
  5. Not quite the ten minutes I said it was, but pretty darn close eh?

  6. It'd it would be nice if they started releasing those bootlegs again, no?
  7. they're waiting for The Boss to finish releasing his
    (i really hope not or we still have to wait for quite a while)
    kidding, anyway about the reasoning on which version to base judgement of an album.
    my opinion: studio .. i consider album that black circle where you put the needle down
    live version of the songs are another or a parallel issue .. 90% of the songs by real bands who do real concert are better live

    how do you judge I'll Go Crazy for No Line? by the couple performances done or by that crap remix? .. sorry for the example hehehe
  8. I appreciate what you are saying Ron but your example is a relatively extreme case. Most of Pearl Jam songs are performed in a similar manner that they were on their respective albums (although many of them seem to be "speeding up" as the years progress). In most circumstances, the live performances tends to give the songs more authenticity...more emotion...but since that is true in most cases (as opposed to some) I think the comparison is still okay.

    All this said, maybe I should go back and revisit the studio albums and see how they sound to me. I have a feeling it might be a bit of a let down, to be honest.
  9. i know i was quite extreme with the example hehe
    that's my view of a strict "album ranking" and the way i do it, of course others can judge them considering everything, live, studio, mixture of it, production, mixing and so on.
    luckily PJ offer a large variety of cases, playing almost whatever they wrote, everything in the albums anyway ...

    going back to studio albums you could have a let down but you could also, for example, discover Bugs is a great song and finally love it! .. as it should be hehe
  10. The other factor here is the "subjectivity factor." The first three albums (studio versions!) were released at a time when my love for new music was at its peak and very few post-1995 albums rate in my "top 20" of all time (save Radiohead's OK Computer, of course).

    As most PJ albums were released, I (obviously) listened to the studio versions and positioned each album in my own list as time went on. Right or wrong, I doubt much has or will change as the years progressed. I'm too set in my ways.
  11. I agree with Ron...Matt you have to separate live from studio..I understand what you are saying..live the songs on No Code , Yield and Binaural are great..but the fact is, the studio versions are the studio versions..and IMO they sound like cheap demos...

    The thing is , the first 3 studio albums (especially the first 2) were recorded very well....with that loud bombastic PJ sound that the world fell in love with....on Vitalogy EV got "weird'...the sound was still decent though...

    I wont go into one of my long rants here..but IMHO No Code and Yield were terribly recorded ..on purpose , at the inane insistence of EV.. hence the awful sales of both records... when I rate No Code I give it a 3 out of 5..same goes for Yield...the song quality is there , but the recordings are flat ..live is a whole different story..EV almost destroyed PJ in the mid 90s when he took over PJ.......no videos , the ticket master nonsense etc.....

    From Riot Act on , the sound is much more clear and crisp , like their first 2 records... .....I just don't care for the tunes on Riot Act....
  12. I'm okay with being in the minority. This said, I don't think my order would change whether or not I considered the studio or live version of each song.

    1. Ten - a great group of songs that mesh very well together
    2. Vs. - so many great styles that work well together
    3. Vitalogy - classic, classic tunes with some nonsense filler
    4. Yield - a whole whack of very good songs with one or two clunkers
    5. No Code - five great songs, a few okay songs, and two or three duds
    6. Binuaral - some great songs, some good songs, some crap songs
    7. Riot Act - no songs I hate but very few I love
    8. Lightning Bolt - still too new to rank any higher but definitely some gems here
    9. Avocado/Self-Titled - Three great tunes but most of the rest sound like a band trying to finds its way
    10. Backspacer - Too many disappointing songs that don't gel
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U2start is run by fans for fans. Help us reduce personal costs. Consider to make a donation to support us.
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