LOVE BEACH

Love Beach was produced to satisfy contractual obligations. Anytime I hear the words "contractual obligations" I have to wonder what I'm getting myself into by buying the album. Although I couldn't help myself in approaching this album negatively right from the start, it actually seems better to me than ELP's previous effort, Works Vol. II.

Although almost completely uninspired, the only track worth getting this album for is the 20-minute epic Memoirs of an Officer and a Gentleman. It's clearly nowhere near the level we expect from ELP considering some of the remarkable pieces they created in the past (like Karn Evil 9), but it's at the very least, passable. The other track worth noting is Emerson's take on Canario, an excerpt of Joaquín Rodrigo's Fantasía para un gentilhombre. Nicely done.

The rest of the album is plainly a mixture of pop and classic rock pieces, chiefly written by Lake and Sinfield. True, this album contains the usual ELP formula of an epic, a cover of some classical piece, Greg Lake ballads and filler rubbish. What it lacks is inspiration and some basic songwriting skills.

I'm going to lean towards the collectors/fans crowd and give this two stars, but please note that many of my fellow reviewers rate this even lower. So take that as a serious warning.