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SteveG
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Topic: Tarkus: ELP Posted: February 03 2015 at 14:03 |
I think that the second best album cover for an ELP album (BSS is the first!) nicely wrapped a prog classic. What's your opinion of Tarkus?
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The Dark Elf
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Posted: February 03 2015 at 14:12 |
SteveG wrote:
I think that the second best album cover for an ELP album (BSS is the first!) nicely wrapped a prog classic. What's your opinion of Tarkus? |
It is no Love Beach.
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Moogtron III
Prog Reviewer
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Posted: February 03 2015 at 14:16 |
The best album cover! I much prefer it to BSS myself.
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SteveG
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Posted: February 03 2015 at 14:17 |
^See. There is a God.
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Moogtron III
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Posted: February 03 2015 at 14:23 |
^ Could have told you so. And the track "Tarkus" is in my top 5 of favorite tracks of any artist anytime. Side 2 also has a lot of great musical moments BTW.
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Blacksword
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Posted: February 03 2015 at 14:49 |
Good album. 3 stars, but only really for the Tarkus suite. The rest is a bit weak imo.
The only way is toe curling.
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Ultimately bored by endless ecstasy!
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Syzygy
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Posted: February 03 2015 at 14:53 |
Blacksword wrote:
Good album. 3 stars, but only really for the Tarkus suite. The rest is a bit weak imo.
The only way is toe curling. | Couldn't have put it better myself. Bitches Crystal is OK, though.
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richardh
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Posted: February 03 2015 at 14:58 |
Side One was something of a breakthrough at the time taking prog a further notch forward. Side Two is a bit of a mess though and represents the band's own uncertainties and divisions I believe. Jeremy Bender is a terrible track but I do have a soft spot for The Only Way and A Time and A Place. Are You Ready Eddy? is just a bit of fun while Bitches Crystal is an okay to middling ELP track. Overall it deserves its 4 star average rating on PA mainly for the suite.
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Rick Robson
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Posted: February 03 2015 at 16:22 |
The Only Way is a fabulous prog hymn! So glorious, rarely found with such passion in the prog world... Tarkus so well unleashes ELP's dynamic energy in such a fantastic composition, and incredible how so deep and complex melodies are played in such a bombastic way! No need to extend my impressions, this album is another ELP's gem.
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zravkapt
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Posted: February 03 2015 at 18:16 |
The first side is one of the defining moments of prog. The second side screams: "we don't have enough material for a second album!"
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micky
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Posted: February 03 2015 at 18:16 |
yeah the Tarkus suite is right there with Close to the Edge in terms of rightfully being considered THE definitive prog epic. Composition, classic prog lyrical lunacy, firery and challenging music played to perfection, bombast etc.
Brilliant and flawless. Deserving itself a 5 star album based on it alone. Half the album is pure prog perfection.
However there is, and always has been.. Side 2.
There was some definite, and intentional lightening of the mood on the 2nd side. I thought it worked. Very few albums (like YS) can really succeed in brutally beating a listener over the head musicially over the course of an ENTIRE 40 odd minute long album. It was a nice break, silly in some spots. but that was ELP. Far from being a completely overly serious, art is everything kind of band. They had a silly, humorous side and you really saw in on side 2. I liked them, more in the totality of the album.
Edited by micky - February 03 2015 at 18:17
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Dellinger
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Posted: February 03 2015 at 22:37 |
Of course I mainly like the epic title song, but there are a few song I do enjoy from side 2 too. Also, there are a few segments from the title suite that I rather dislike (mainly the Mass thing, which rather ruins the song as a whole for me).
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Flight123
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Posted: February 04 2015 at 03:49 |
This and 'Brain Salad Surgery' - the defining prog albums that pushed the boundaries. As for side 2, much maligned I know but it's a wonderful contrast to 'Tarkus' - for me 'Infinite Space' is one of my favourite ELP tracks and over too soon.
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Blacksword
Prog Reviewer
Joined: June 22 2004
Location: England
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Posted: February 04 2015 at 06:54 |
Rick Robson wrote:
The Only Way is a fabulous prog hymn! So glorious, rarely found with such passion in the prog world... Tarkus so well unleashes ELP's dynamic energy in such a fantastic composition, and incredible how so deep and complex melodies are played in such a bombastic way! No need to extend my impressions, this album is another ELP's gem. | The idea of an atheist hymn is an excellent one, but The Only Way is executed so badly imo. Lakes voice is unusually awful, with bum notes all over the place. It sounds like he's singing staggering home from the pub or in the shower...
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Ultimately bored by endless ecstasy!
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richardh
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Posted: February 04 2015 at 15:22 |
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KingCrInuYasha
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Posted: February 04 2015 at 23:35 |
Flight123 wrote:
This and 'Brain Salad Surgery' - the defining prog albums that pushed the boundaries. As for side 2, much maligned I know but it's a wonderful contrast to 'Tarkus' - for me 'Infinite Space' is one of my favourite ELP tracks and over too soon.
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Oh, definitely. Even without "The Only Way", I think it holds up very well on it's own and could have lasted another three minutes.
BTW, I remember listening to "Bitches Crystal" for the first time and the first thing that popped in my head was "Stephanie Knows Who" by Arthur Lee & Love.
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dr wu23
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Posted: February 05 2015 at 14:57 |
I quite like the title track .....the rest is just mediocre imo.
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Rick Robson
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Posted: February 06 2015 at 08:43 |
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"Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom and philosophy." LvB
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richardh
Prog Reviewer
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Posted: February 07 2015 at 03:11 |
For what its worth I also like Lake's singing on that track a lot.
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Rick Robson
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Posted: February 07 2015 at 06:25 |
yeah me too, but I was refering mainly to the sublime instrumental part of it. Well, one of the fantastic points in music is the diverse ways of feeling it, isn't it? Since recently I'm always trying the most to avoid saying the words "right" or "wrong" in this forum.
EDIT: Of course voice is also a instrumental part of the music, but you know well what I'm talking about.
Edited by Rick Robson - February 07 2015 at 06:30
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"Music is a higher revelation than all wisdom and philosophy." LvB
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