EMERSON LAKE & PALMER IN CONCERT

Actually I'm not a big fan of live records. The possibilities for them to be good is in my opinion smaller than usually. One thing that could go wrong of course is the sound quality. The audience's noise could be a nice background but the music most be heard. My biggest problem though with live record is that I often don't find any particular meaning with them. Often the band just plays the music as on the record, but probably not as good. I often hope that live recordings should be a little bit altered or at least with an almost touchable feeling of living music.

That is some of my problems with this record "Emerson, Lake & Palmer in Concert" from 1979. I would have loved hearing them experiement more or, more prefarably perform something totally new. To just hear old "hits" really don't get me on it, then I'd rather listen to the original Lp's. This music is though essentially good. I have my biggest doubts about the three first tracks "Introductory Fanfare", "Peter Gunn" and "Tiger in a spotlight". It sounds like they are played just as they should be played but without the true feeling. Especially the last of those, a song I otherwise really enjoy, feels a bit "dead" in this version. The rest of the record is great. "C'est La Vie" sounds fantastic, with the acoustic guitar and Lake's strong vocals. "The Enemy God Dances With Black Spirets" then is a fantastic track but the sound isn't so good. The part of the "Piano Concerto No.1" is very fine, I like the melody and all of the fantasies there and this version is perfect, there I don't have to look for the original. Finally the "Pictures....'part" also is very well performed and the feeling is strong and true about this magnificent work of art, which I though rather listen to on the record with the same name.

Even if the music, almost everything is very good, will I give this record a quite low rating. That is because of my general opinion of live records. I don't know any particular reasons to listen to this insted of the studio albums and parts of this record don't feel enough vital. Three stars!