PICTURES AT AN EXHIBITION

I bought this on 180g vinyl recently and, on first playing, enjoyed it a lot. However, subsequent replays have revealed far too many mistakes and technical flaws in Emerson's playing and has led me to downgrade it somewhat. Most of the music is adapted froml Mussorgsky's masterpiece, although Greg Lake contributes some fine original material as well as singing extremely well at times. Kim Fowley's Nutrocker is seemingly attached on the end to make the album a suitable length, though it bears little relation to the overall concept; they recorded the album live (hence Emerson's errors) and I believe that this was the encore. The Sage is the highlight; just Greg Lake and an acoustic guitar. Some of the synth work sounds OK over 30 years on but some is very dated. Palmer's drumming and Lake's bass playing are excellent throughout. The Great Gates of Kiev and Blues Variation are fine pieces, but some of the rest is overindulgent. What it does show beyond doubt is that Emerson is nowhere near as good as many would have you believe. It also shows the real talent of Lake, often ignored in the company of his peers. Overall, worth a listen, not worth buying.