ELP was the first prog band I got into and my initial opinion was that Keith Emerson was hands-down the greatest keyboard man in prog, with Wakeman, Moraz, Lord, Fritz distant top 5 candidates.  Keyboard Magazine and keyboard players I knew seemed to feel the same way.  I certainly think Emo was, in his prime, an original, genre-defining player in early prog.  His technical playing and showmanship originally led me to value him highly over, say, Rick Wakemen.  But, after BSS, ELP seemed to fizzle out and lose inspiration.  I've been listening to a lot of early Wakeman solo albums lately---Six Wives, Journey, King Arthur, etc. and have been struck by how well-composed they are.  Now, Emo could compose with the best of them early on...Tarkus, KE9, etc.---but he seemed to fade out and not produce much except the soundtracks and occasional ELP reunion album. 

But I'm almost struck by the feeling that Wakeman was a better---or at least equally as good of a---composer as Emo.  I haven't heard much past his early stuff and the Recollections anthology, but I know Wakeman has certainly put out a lot of solo material.  While I gather that some/a lot of it is sub-par to the early 70's solo albums, it seems like even if 10% of it was good, he's a more prolific composer than Emo.

I know personal preference plays into this tremendously, but---as objectively as you can make it---do you think Wakeman was the better composer of the two, even if Emerson was technically more skilled? 

            I must say that I like the playing and composing of Jurgen Fritz the most, though. Never a single banal note.

I always say I have four favorite keyboardists:

Rick Wakeman

Keith Emerson

Tony Banks

The guy from my avatar

Impossible to choose for me.

Maybe I should even add a nr. 5, since my love for Canterbury has grown through the years: Dave Stewart (Egg, Khan, Hatfield, National Health, Bruford etc.)

 

Wakeman pretty much jumped in and defined keyboard prog with Six Wives which is basically a perfect album technically and compositionally.

 

Emerson though is my long time hero. Tarkus..WOW! still remember playing that thing to death when I was 14 and still not bored zillion of plays later. When Emerson caught fire it was something else. I think a major part of his early success with ELP was down to Carl Palmer. Palmer pushed him to the absolute limit and I think one of the issues with Wakeman over the years is that he is not surrounding himself with stellar musicians like Palmer. I do like Out There though and the 2 Retro albums. Emerson though has produced some good solo albums with Marc Bonilla which should not be discounted.

 

I also love (Can't find the link) but in an online article, Keith was considered an influence on the creator of the soundtrack to the video game Final Fantasy VII, Nobuo Uematsu.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7wJ8pE2qKU This is from the final battle with the game boss and I think it's like something out of Tarkus between 2.14 and 3.22.

There's even an old thread on PA about the music from Final Fantasy and Keith Emerson's influence here:

http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=17714

And if you have ever played the game or lived with someone who has, make your Friday complete by bringing them to tears with this golden moment from the Final Fantasy VII soundtrack that if it appeared on an ELP album, wouldn't have seen them as easy to destroy when Punk broke!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgAhcIBgkfk

OH GOD! IT'S GOT TEARS IN MY EYES TOO! I FORGOT THE FEELS!!

 

agreed so I was really thinking more about his solo career . I would argue that Wakeman's best album with Yes was Going For The One probably because he gets to play pipe organ

 

"Parallels" and "Awaken" are two of Yes' finest songs, no debate required.

 

One thing to keep in mind is how much Emerson adapted (whether you want to say "plagiarized" is up to you) to a rock context for ELP. Some of this material was credited to the original composer, some it was solely credited to ELP, like Janacek's "Sinfonietta" for "Knife Edge." Other composers Emerson adapted or "borrowed" from are Ginastera, Bartok, Copland, Bach, and so on. Apart from Mussorgsky, I was unaware of this when I first started listening to ELP. After I learned of it, I was still alright with it, it didn't intervene in my enjoyment of the music to any degree.

 

I do have to admit being slightly disappointed when I learned Emerson didn't write the keyboard melody that anchors "Touch and Go," though.

 

Wakeman had to share the spotlight with three other writers in Yes. ELP is by and large the "Keith Emerson Show," except where they made room for Greg's ballads.

 

IMO, Emerson never recorded anything under his own name that can match Wakeman's Six Wives of Henry VIII or Criminal Record (which I think is even better).

 

 

Comparing the two keyboardists is really a case of apples and oranges - they are both top-flight virtuosos, but each has a completely different style. Wakeman was amazing to see solo during the mid '70s - his playing was so fluid and effortless, and the jokes and stories he told between pieces were a blast. Emerson was something completely different - controlled chaos, a Moog modular wired to blow, and that poor abused organ that got tossed all over the stage. 

Those were fun days, indeed, and each left me with vivid memories of their performances that I expect will stick with me for the rest of my life.

 

 

Sorry about that.

 

Night Airs (solo piano)

The Heritage Suite (solo piano)

No Expense Spared (2nd Wakeman with Wakeman album)

Official Bootleg Live (W w/ W live)

 

I understand and respect your opinion. I was mainly comparing solo works with solo works, as opposed to their bands. Yes and ELP both recorded such incredible music. The 1970s were an amazing time. Keith and Rick have recorded and released great music after the '70s, too. I think their film music is underrated. At the very least, Inferno and G'olé! deserve a listen.

 

It's been said that Rick couldn't play "a blue note" if his life depended on it, while Emerson has been stuck in a rut for decades. People say many things, but all I know is that "Close to the Edge," "Gates of Delirium," "Awaken," "The Endless Enigma," "Tarkus" and "Karn Evil 9," among others, were so bar-raising, so trail-blazing, it's no wonder they sound as vital today, four decades later.

 

That organ 'popping' was one of the things that excited me about ELP at first. SO original and only a very gifted organist could pull that off imo

 

However that section was smoothed out somewhat on the live version from the triple album and in fact just about all the live versions I've heard. I guess Emerson may have come to the same conclusion.

 

Back on the general subject ELP was Emersons band while Yes clearly wasn't Wakemans. I think this made a massive difference to the creative output where Emerson was able to express himself fully in ELP while Wakeman did it as a solo artist. I must admit Six Wives shocked me when I first heard it (because it was so good) and I've always wondered what Emerson thought of that album. Wakeman did steel Emerson's thunder but then future solo album never quite hit that level again (again imo). I would however favourably compare Judas Iscariot to Piano Concerto No 1 , both being highly accomplished classical works by super talented rock musicians. I wonder where can you go from there?

I think ultimately Wakeman shined on his earlier solo work which Emerson never seemed to achieve.