1. Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Morrison, CO

Nestled 15 miles west of Denver within Red Rocks Park, Red Rocks Amphitheatre is renowned for both its gorgeous aesthetics and its near-perfect acoustics, both stemming from the venue’s high altitude and outdoor setting. First opened in 1906, Red Rocks has become a landmark for both high-profile tours and notable concert recordings, including U2’s Live Under A Blood Red Sky and Dave Matthews Band’s Live At Red Rocks 8.15.95 and Weekend On The Rocks. Its capacity (just under 9,500) and setting inside the park also make Red Rocks a favorite for a number of multi-day outdoor festivals, such as Monolith and Bisco Inferno.

2. Radio City Music Hall, New York, NY

Best known for the Rockettes’ annual dance revue, Radio City Music Hall at Rockefeller Center has long been synonymous with distinguished success and elaborate stage production. Its 6,000 seats make it the biggest such theater in the world, and has provided a sort of pinnacle venue for many musical acts to perform special concerts, such as the 2008 Elton John fundraiser for Hillary Clinton, or the 2009 onstage reunion of Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr. Radio City Music Hall has also served as the home for numerous awards shows, and since 2006 has also played host to the NFL Draft.

3. Metro, Chicago, IL

There are certainly bigger venues in Chicago, and better-sounding venues as well, but none that hit the sweet spot between acoustic precision and cavernous crowd space better than Metro. Although Chicago has launched very few major bands in the history of popular music, anyone to make a name for themselves since 1992 have found the road to fame leads through Metro: Smashing Pumpkins, Urge Overkill, and Fall Out Boy are but three examples. Metro has also become the de facto stop for bands with the credibility to fill major venues but not necessarily the audience, such as The New Pornographers, Alkaline Trio, and The Frames.

4. Madison Square Garden, New York, NY

It’s what Sinatra meant when he sang “If I can make it here, I can make it anywhere.” To every musician in America, selling out Madison Square Garden is the last stop before reaching the top of the mountain, whether your name is Jay-Z, Pearl Jam, or Iron Maiden. Numerous acts have in turn released shows from “The World’s Most Famous Arena” not just as souvenirs of concerts from the 20,000-seat arena, but as postcards from the highest heights of success.

5. Hollywood Palladium, Los Angeles, CA

The Palladium’s art deco exterior stands as a perfect reflection of the time it was built, and of the city in which it resides: gaudy, excessive, and sunny. With room for 4,000, the Palladium has hosted not just huge rock acts such as Led Zeppelin and Nirvana, and not just pop acts like James Brown and Madonna, but also an exhaustive list of awards shows: the Emmys, the Grammys, and the Golden Globes, to name a few. In the early to mid-1980s, the Palladium was also one of the few venues that would host large-crowd punk shows, including The Ramones and Black Flag.

6. Emo’s, Austin, TX

In a city noted for its countless live music venues, Emo’s stands out in Austin’s crowded scene not only for its four stages (sometimes hosting different bands under the same roof simultaneously), but its impeccable roster of musicians who play there on their way through town: Queens of the Stone Age, TV On The Radio, De La Soul, Kings Of Leon, and Fugazi all graced Emo’s stage long after attaining major levels of success. Even when they have a choice of venue, major acts still choose to play Emo’s.

7. Fox Theatre, Atlanta, GA

Although the South is known more for its clubs than its theaters, this 4,700-seat Atlanta gem had been a distinguished landmark since its opening in 1929. Based in Middle Eastern architecture, the Fox is noted for its opulent appointments and extravagantly spacious interior, as well as its use of trompe l’oeil (visual tricks played on viewers by the hall’s design). Although usually host to musicals, such as The Lion King and Miss Saigon, the Fox is also a favorite stop of major acts coming through Atlanta during winter months (or those not quite up to filling the Georgia Dome).

8. Aladdin Theater, Portland, OR

Its 620 seats make it a physically small space, but that’s also the secret of the Aladdin’s appeal. Besides providing fantastic acoustics, the Aladdin’s purposefully small quarters eliminate many of the barriers between audience and performer, thus creating a doubly intimate setting. While other venues in the city (and other cities in the region) provide larger settings for shows, the Aladdin continues to be a favorite of bands passing through, traveling concertgoers, and locals alike.

9. T.T. The Bears Place, Boston, MA

It’s tiny. It’s caked in spilled beer. It’s next door to countless tacky Boston bars. Yet the continually sharp taste of its booking team and the tininess of the space make T.T.’s Boston’s premier venue, if only for its willingness to gamble on up-and-coming bands and to provide a much-needed tour stop for bands heading into town from far-flung places. Other places in town may be cleaner or nicer or newer, but for pure, booze-soaked rock swagger, The Bear stands a notch above the rest.

10. Alpine Valley Music Theatre, East Troy, WI

Yes, it’s a ski resort in the wintertime, but in those few months Wisconsin isn’t under snow and ice, Alpine Valley creates an outdoor concert setting to stand up to the best of them. By building the stage at the foot of a hill, rather than in the side of one, Alpine Valley’s sound is allowed to reverberate upwards into the sky, running perfectly parallel to the 40,000 in attendance. On a map, Alpine Valley might be located in the middle of nowhere, but you’d have a hard time convincing any in attendance that it mattered.

Source:Top Venues