folks above have hit on a good point:
live albums tend to be dvds now rather than cds
most artists do continue to release live albums following each and every tour, to cut into the bootleg market, so theres more than ever before, but these usually come out as dvd first
only occasionally is there an accompanying soundtrack cd of exactly the same show
the dvd captures the live experience better than the cd so why not just get the dvd? if you want to listen to it on the move you can always rip the audio yourself

Last truly great general release live album IMHO was K’Naan’s “The Dusty Foot on the Road”. Which, I suspect, is indicative of the fact that for a live album to be taken seriously nowadays, the artist’s gotta be doing something radically different to his regular studio sound.

@ Ned Raggett: Yeah, I remember KTS. Great stuff, the top purveyor of quality boots throughout the 90s. People really oughtta spare a thought for the destructive effect downloading has had on the once-flourishing commercial bootlegging industry…

Yup that was the last one I bought too.

I have to admit, I can’t think of a single contemporary artist whose live work I’m dying to go out and buy. Very strange….

And as far as quality control goes… that’s definitely what prevents most bands, I’m sure, but (a.) for bands that already have the resources to do this and have been performing live forever, how bad is the average “off night” really? And (b.) the people you’re selling these recordings to aren’t impressionable types — they’re die-hards, the people who have already made up their mind to love the band. They’re not going to be all that disappointed; and if they are, hell, you’ve just built a new motivation to get better into how you do business. Time to schedule more rehearsal!

Now if Prince ever wanted to put out that AMAZING live set he did at Coachella, I’d pay through the nose for it. As is, I’ve got a decent soundboard recording. But man oh man, if he ever put out that set, maybe just maybe as a CD/DVD combo, I’d wet my pants.

My Morning Jacket’s Okonokos is, in my opinion, their best album. So much so that after hearing it a few times, the original studio versions of the songs didn’t sound anywhere near as good to me. I would say the same thing about Wilco’s Kicking Television: Live in Chicago. Although, to echo Rob Murphy’s point, Okonokos is also available as a DVD.

I think another thing to consider is the Live Session EPs that keep popping up on iTunes. To an artist who would have released a cash cow live album ten years ago, this sort of release makes a lot more sense, because it requires so much less investment and risk than a physical product.

A couple of live albums I’ve picked up in the last few years (either physically or digitally): Flickerstick, R.E.M., half a dozen live shows from Barenaked Ladies.

I wish Prince would release some of his concerts. The live at the Aladdin or Rave un2 the Year 2000 DVDs were OK, but there are DVDs circulating of some of his truly classic shows (some pro-shot) like Lovesexy Live 88 that really should be available through legit channels. Hell, I’ve got that show on CD, mp3, VHS, and DVD and I’d *STILL* buy it if he released it.

I agree being surprised that the “buy-the-show-you’ve-just-attended” thing hasn’t taken off more. The Pixies were going to do it when they first started their series of reunion tours, but it sorta faded away. They Might Be Giants do that with most of their shows.

I guess I’d rather pay $20 for a set of mp3s or physical CD of one of the relatively few shows I’m able to drag myself to these days than for a rock ‘n’ roll t-shirt since clearly I have passed the days where I heard of them first.

I wrote a long dissertation on the death of the live album a few years ago, cleverly disguised as a review of Lucinda Williams’ “Live at the Fillmore.” And, oh, hey, here it is: [tinyurl.com] (Please disregard the weird formatting typo in the last paragraph.)