BRAIN SALAD SURGERY

If I could only have one ELP, this would be the one. They travelled into musical territory in this album that I've never heard anyone else achieve, and the attention to detail is extraordinary. There are moments of melody and harmony throughout the work that transcend their own form, e.g., spots during the middle section of Karnevil9 where the energy level changes like a racecar shifting gears. The fact that they got Giger to do their cover should be endorsement enough in itself. Brain Salad Surgery, Close to the Edge and Dark Side of the Moon, each went far beyond the form.