A good live recording captures something a studio take cannot: the room, the crowd, the version of a song that only exists on stage. It is also easy to get wrong. Releasing a live recording means the sound has to hold up next to studio releases, everyone who played has to agree, and the labelling has to make clear what listeners are getting.
Plan the recording before the show
Most disappointing live releases were never planned as releases. Someone recorded the desk mix on a phone, and later it seemed too good to waste. By then it is usually too late. If a show might be worth releasing, decide before the soundcheck.
- Record multitrack. Every microphone and line input on its own track, so you can mix later. Many digital desks can record all channels to a laptop or a drive. Ask the venue's engineer in advance.
- Add audience microphones. A pair of microphones facing the room captures applause, singing along and the sound of the space. Without them a desk recording sounds dry and strangely empty.
- Run a backup. A second recorder on the stereo mix, in case the main one fails.
- Record the soundcheck. It helps you check levels and sometimes gives you a safety take of a song.
- Keep settings consistent. One sample rate for the whole night, set before the first note.
Permissions: venue, musicians, crew
A live recording involves more people than a studio track, and you need permission from all of them.
- The venue. Some venues have rules about recording or filming, and some expect a credit or a fee when a recording is released. Ask in writing.
- The musicians. Every performer on the recording has rights in their performance. Band members and hired players should agree in writing to the release and to how they will be paid or credited.
- Guests. A guest singer who joined for one song has to agree too, and needs to be credited correctly.
- The engineers. Agree on how the recording and mix engineers will be credited and whether they are paid a fee.
If you film the show, people in the audience may be visible. Many venues display a notice about filming. For close-ups of individual fans, ask them.
Mixing: polish, but keep it live
Mixing live audio is about balance, not perfection. Microphones pick up neighbouring instruments, drums leak into the vocal mic, and the crowd is louder in some moments than others.
- Decide how present the crowd should be. Usually the audience sits lower during songs and comes up between them.
- Fix what distracts, such as a cracked note or a burst of feedback. Small edits are normal.
- Do not rebuild the performance in the studio. If you re-record most of the vocals and instruments, it is no longer honestly a live recording, and listeners can tell.
- Think about the gaps between songs: applause, a few words to the crowd, tuning. Keep what adds atmosphere and trim the rest.
- For a full live album, master the tracks together and place the track boundaries so applause flows naturally from one song into the next.
Labelling: make it clear it is live
Listeners should see at once that this is a live version. The usual approach:
- Put "Live" in the version field of each track, or a more specific version such as "Live at Riverside Hall". Keep the title itself identical to the studio original.
- Use one style across the whole release. Do not write "Live" on some tracks and "Live Version" on others.
- A live album can say so in its title, for example "Live in Baku".
- Each live track is a new recording, so it needs its own ISRC, even if the same song is already out in a studio version.
- Never label a studio take with added applause as live, and never leave the version tag off a live track. Both mislead listeners and can get the release sent back for changes.
Platforms display versions slightly differently, so check your distributor's guidelines as you fill in the form.
Covers played live still need rights
Playing someone else's song at a concert is one thing. Releasing a recording of it is another. The live recording is your master, but the song itself still belongs to its writers and publishers.
A cover on a live release needs the same clearance as a studio cover, typically a mechanical licence for the countries where it will be available, with the original writers credited correctly. Medleys and a chorus of another song slipped into your own count as well. If you cannot clear a cover, leave that track off.
The same goes for anything played through the speakers during the show, such as an intro tape or a sample triggered from a laptop. If it is audible on the recording, you need the rights to release it.
Daria Holt, a singer-songwriter, recorded her album launch with a multitrack setup and two room microphones. She left out the one cover she had played, because the licence would not be ready in time, and released it separately a month later once it was cleared. The live album went out on schedule, labelled consistently and with every musician credited.