LIVE AT THE MAR Y SOL FESTIVAL '72

1972, Prog was just blasting away at unheard levels of innovation and energetic live performances, and that's exactly what you get here. Put simply, this is the best live recording of ELP's classic period (I don't count the Works era as a classic period). In terms of sound quality, I would rank this one only second to the Newcastle recording on the Pictures album. Unlike the poorly mixed Welcome Back album, Keith, Greg and Carl are right up front in your face in good balance with these newly found multi-track tapes.

As for the performance, what can you say? You're getting them at a time when they actually gave a rat's ass about their performance. Not like the "one-hand-in-their-pocket" performances they've done on the reunions for the past 20 years! Highlights are a full rendition of Tarkus with Keith doing some further off-the-cuff explorations with his Moog. Take A Pebble is pretty much the as on Welcome Back with Greg doing Lucky Man in mid- section. What surprises me with this. is this is a full band rendition of the song complete with Moog unlike the strictly Greg-on-a-stool-solo bit done on the BSS tour. Then Keith goes into his piano improvisation with a nice jazz trio segment (why the hell they don't do this kind of stuff anymore?) The rest is pretty much predictable but with so of the much the gusto they were known for during this time.

Shout Factory! has been somewhat lackluster in terms of re-releasing ELP's back catalog, Welcome Back still sounds lousy and needs a serious re-mixing. But here they have pulled off a real winner with these lost archival recordings. Definitely a must have for ELP fans.

4 stars for performance, 5 stars for sound quality 'nuff said