Moody Blues or ELP

Rick Wakeman put out an album (strictly piano) It is called Country Airs. I thought it was very nice, nothing fancy, just pretty piano. I personally asked Rick about this album, you know his reply? (refering to your Emerson going classical) I needed the money. (Yes, my brother and I had about a 20 minute 2 on 1 with Mr. Wakeman.You were most fortunate to have this conversation and Wakeman be so candid with you.Thanks for sharing this story with me sincerely.

Rick Wakeman put out an album (strictly piano) It is called Country Airs. I thought it was very nice, nothing fancy, just pretty piano. I personally asked Rick about this album, you know his reply? (refering to your Emerson going classical) I needed the money. (Yes, my brother and I had about a 20 minute 2 on 1 with Mr. WakemanWakeman is just not the same as Emerson,other than they both had problems with alcohol for a time.Wakeman has put out about 100 solo cd's.But when you go to any cd shop,what do you find in the Wakeman section,maybe a Wakeman's greatest hits cd and his 1st 2 solo albums at most.Most all of those solo albums remained obscure and unknown and most have been out-of-print for a long time.Wakeman plays a much more pop style than Emerson,much of it he considered New Age,which Emerson won't touch.Every band or artist has a dominant creative period that usually lasts from 5 to 7 years where they put out their best work.Emerson's was a little longer starting with the Ars Longa album and ending with his Piano Concerto on Works vol.1(1968-1977) .On his 1977 Pirates Tour ,he took the orch. on the road with him stating that people should be able to hear the same music they hear on the album.The orch. was exclusively for the benefit of the music and paying their saleries is what bankrupted him,never to fully recover.He could have toured without the orch. and made a profit,but he was a musical idealist.Audiences got to hear works like Pictures at an Exhibition with a full orchestra making some of the music so full,rich,and emotional,it could put tingles up your spine witnessed by the recording of it on Works Live(1st released as the album ELP Live in 1979),a far cry from the 1st Pictures album recorded in 1970 using crude synthesizers that had just barely been invented.After Works vol.1,they could not afford to go back into the studio and record vol.2.There was no studio ,as they had lost everything from the financial debacle of the Pirates Tour and instead released an album using old already recorded reject tracks that weren't good enough to make it on any of their previous albums(Father Christmas the 1 exception).Then to further help pay for the debt. they had incurred,they made a contractual album with their former record company Atlantic,Love Beach,an album all 3 members confessed to hating.After disbanding Emerson went on to a successful career writing movie scores,the 1st being the movie track to Inferno and the 2nd being the highly sucessful movie Nighthawks among others.Then in 1992,Emerson decided to enlist the aid of his former band members on the movie soundtrack he was writing for,but instead they produced the comeback album Black Moon and a highly successful world tour followed.After this Emerson developed nerve damage in his right hand and has been unable to play up to his par since,but has yet continued a successful solo carreer and also periodically reunited with his former band and even recorded a triple cd set with The Nice.So you see ,Emerson and ELP are 1st rate phenominal musicians,not showy entertainers.