From The Beginning

by

Emerson, Lake & Palmer

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Not an essential set but a nice treat for diehard fans. As the previous reviewer noted the track listing here on Amazon is not completely accurate. However, the box itself does not contain these errors. As for the music, well most ELP fans will already have the remastered studio albums so the real treat here is a set of live tracks that are far superior than the offical "Bootleg" series and one truly previously unheard, unreleased track.

The new track "Oh My Father" by Lake is very interesting in that it was recorded during the Tarkus sessions but sounds nothing like that album. I don't know Lake's personal history but it seems to be a tribute to his late father. Did his father pass away at an early age? If so, it is a very personal song, otherwise it's just an ELP oddity. Still, it is a decent ballad with some tasty electric guitar.

The Holy Grail for fans is the complete Mar Y Sol concert recorded in Puerto Rico in 1972. An excerpt of Take A Pebble was the only offically released track from this festival that was included on an Atlantic Records compilation in the early '70's. The whole concert is fantastic with an amazing Tarkus, an exciting, truncated Pictures and a frantic Rondo for an encore. What I love about the Tarkus is the muscular bass by Lake that just propels the music along. Emerson and Palmer are their usual excellent selves.

So, you have remastered tracks, alternate or early mixes of some classic tunes and enough unreleased live tracks from their prime that you could build your own private concert with. For the casual fan? Nope. But for the diehard, it is big time fun.

First of all, let me say that I will almost always purchase anything related to ELP if it contains new or unreleased music regardless of how much duplication there might be. That being said, I was excited to see that the track listing had several tunes listed as being different versions than otherwise available. This is only somewhat the case. To my disappointment, "Man in the Long Black Coat" is the very same as released on "In the Hot Seat" instead of the extended version hardcore fans have wondered about since the release of that album. Indeed, the track listing on this site currently says (ext) beside this song.

Additionally, "Take a Pebble" is the original studio version, not the Lyceum live recording as advertised. Too bad. This is the one with Lake singing about a dog named Blue that was on the original "Pictures at an Exhibition" / "Rock and Roll Your Eyes" movie. Canario is also the original studio version and not the rehearsal (as noted here and on the picture of the back of the box). I am also rather sure that the alternative versions of "Jerusalem" and "Still...You Turn Me On" are the original ones used on "Brain Salad Surgery". What makes them alternative I suppose, is that they are different than the Sanctuary Remastered version of BSS.

Coincidentally, the track list was also very misleading on Emerson's "At the Movies" set which said it contained "Don't Be Cruel" which fortunately later showed up on "Off the Shelf". I will admit that there is usually a different mix for one or more songs not identified as such which sometimes mitigates the disappointment of not getting what you expect. Haven't yet discovered any of these here.

It truly puzzles me how poorly their later products have been produced and marketed. There are misspellings, omissions of/and incorrect detail related to this box set and other recent products. This promised to be a wonderful collection of rarities. Also, any real ELP fan (and less face it, who else would buy something like this) already has the Manticore Special (DVD-disc 6). Of course I am assuming this is what it is since it will not play on my DVD player. This could have been left out and the set could have been sold for less. For that matter, they only needed a couple of discs to house the unreleased product.

On the bright side, "Oh My Father" is a great tune albeit not as fully developed as it could have been. I wish there was more music during this time period (when Greg Lake's voice was so passionate). Despite the aforementioned absence of "Blue", the Lyceum tunes and the Mar Y Sol festival are very decent recordings displaying the raw energy evident within the band at that time. Different versions of "Father Christmas" and "C'est La Vie" are also worthy. The booklet has great pictures and interviews.

ELP will forever be my favorite band. I knew I was getting little new when I purchased this. I just didn't realize it was even less than advertised. All this said, and sadly, I would still buy it for what I did not already have. On 2nd thought, maybe the marketing was spot-on!

Cheers.