EMERSON LAKE & PALMER

Emerson, Lake and Palmer's eponymously named first album was a harbinger of things to come. From the opening notes of The Barbarian we know that we are facing something more than the sum of their parts - it's not the Nice, It's not King Crimson, it's not Atomic Rooster. Moving to the second track we get the ethereal Take A Pebble, which comes in like a light breeze blows through several changes and exits on a whisper, a great song.

Following that we are taken to the Knife Edge, a rollicking piece that is as sharp as anything ELP has ever done. The Three Fates come on the start of side two of the LP and it is one of my least favorite tracks by ELP.

Tank is an interesting cut as its power folls over you like thunder and showcases Palmer's percussive skills. Lucky Man, which closes the album proper was their first single, and it received quite a lot of airplay, even now on AOR or Classic Rock stations. Asigniture Lake tune.

The 2012 remastered edition features Rave Up and a Drum Solo not found on the original and they are wuite interesting, too. But the original album is something that is a must for prog collectors as it showcases what is to come from these Progressive Rock Giants.