Who is the greatest live performer in music history?

Stadium theatre on one side, a voice and a microphone on the other. These are careers made on the night rather than in the studio.

1

Michael Jackson

Turned stadium pop into choreographed theatre across the Bad, Dangerous and HIStory tours.

2

Freddie Mercury

Queen's frontman, whose 21 minutes at Live Aid in 1985 are the benchmark for a festival set.

3

James Brown

Billed as the hardest-working man in show business, and priced accordingly by his band.

4

Prince

Guitarist, dancer and bandleader who could improvise a two-hour aftershow past 3am.

5

Tina Turner

Ran a stadium show on stamina and legs into her sixties, with a voice that never thinned.

6

Elvis Presley

Made the concert a spectacle first in 1950s theatres, then in Las Vegas showrooms.

7

Beyonce

Built Coachella 2018 as a full marching-band production and toured it as Renaissance.

8

Bruce Springsteen

Known for three-hour-plus shows with the E Street Band, still running past 70.

9

David Bowie

Toured as a rotating cast of characters, from Ziggy Stardust to the Thin White Duke.

10

Mick Jagger

Has covered several miles a night on Rolling Stones stages for six decades.

11

Jimi Hendrix

Rewrote what a guitar could do live at Monterey and Woodstock.

12

Whitney Houston

Sang the 1991 Super Bowl anthem live in a single take that became a charting single.

13

Bob Marley

Carried reggae worldwide with the Wailers, including the 1978 One Love Peace Concert.

14

Madonna

Made the pop tour a staged narrative with Blond Ambition in 1990.

15

Little Richard

Played standing up, hammering the piano, and set the template every rock frontman copied.

16

Lady Gaga

Combines pop staging with live piano sets and a Super Bowl roof jump.

17

Taylor Swift

The Eras Tour ran three hours a night and became the first tour to gross over a billion dollars.

18

Aretha Franklin

Her 1972 Amazing Grace church recordings remain the best-selling live gospel album.