Disco de Emerson, Lake & Palmer: “Then & Now”

Emerson, Lake & Palmer consider themselves to be primarily a "live-performance" band, which probably accounts for the number of live albums they've released through the years (6). "Then & Now" shows that even in their later years, the trio has lost little of their energy. The CD cover art harks back to the band's "Brain Salad Surgery" days with a nicely-rendered Giger-esque painting. The "Then" portion on CD#1 contains material that differs little from the group's 1974 "Welcome Back My Friends..." release, save that the "Toccata" track on the current CD features only Carl Palmer's percussion solo and leaves out the rest of the song. The track is unfortunately abortive and should have been either expanded or left off. More satisfying is the "Now" portion of the CD, which yields live performances of "A Time and a Place," "From the Beginning" and "Bitches Crystal" that have never been released on any of the band's live CDs. These tracks alone are worth the price of the CD. "Then & Now" also features a complete live version of "Karn Evil 9, 1st Impression, Part 2" that has been sadly missing from the groups' other recent live releases, and it's nice to hear it once again. On the down side, some numbers -- particularly "Knife Edge" -- have been performed so many times before on previous live albums that the inclusion of this track seems utterly unnecessary, and seems intended to fill space rather than to contribute anything new or different. This is a pity, in that so little of ELP's recent studio material (particularly from their "Black Moon" release, but not forgetting their "In the Hot Seat" CD) has made it to live albums. Granted that the fans want to hear the classics, nevertheless some of the more recent studio material is equally exciting and deserves to be released live. Unfortunately the band has recently disbanded, so the possibility of this is more remote than ever. In any event, the two final tracks of "Then & Now" -- "Fanfare for the Common Man" and "21st Century Schizoid Man" -- manage to capture all of the power, drive and virtuosity that have been the hallmarks of this band since the early 1970s. "Fanfare" in particular showcases Emerson and Palmer at the top of their respective games. Though not without flaws, this album is a must for any ELP fan!

I don't know how this album got past ELP's Quality Control. I remember enjoying the '97-'98 shows that form the more recent part of this set, but I didn't enjoy these recordings. Greg Lake either had a cold when these recordings were made or else he is losing his voice. Either way, why put out an album to document the fact? The recent material also duplicates alot of the older material from the first part, which is performed alot better and with alot more energy and enthusiasm. So the newer stuff pales in comparison the the older stuff, even with the dodgy sound quality (it sounds like somebody put a cassette player up to the speaker of his/her TV in 1974 -- it's sound quality that I would expect on a bootleg) and bad edits.

So you have well-recorded but poorly performed material from 1997-8 and well-performed but poorly recorded material from 1974. I don't think anyone is well-served by this effort. No garlands of Martian fire flowers for anyone involved in the making of this ablum!

This CD captures two eras of Emerson, Lake & Palmer and their exceptional musical virtuosity. Disc One is comprised mostly of the "Then" portion; their 1974 performance at the nationally televised California Jam Festival. ELP were without doubt, at the pinnacle of their concert successes during this show. Performing much of their newly-released (at that time)"Brain Salad Surgery" album, the energy with which the group flawlessly races through its selections was simply amazing for its time. It's frightening to imagine how this trio would have sounded had MIDI technology had been available in the seventies. The remainder of Disc One and all of Disc Two is comprised of "Now" performances from their 1997 & 1998 World Tours. Though the energy level has slowed down a bit with middle age, ELP have lost little in the precision of their performance. Most spectacular are the more acoustical moments such as "Take A Pebble," "Honky Tonk Train Blues," "From The Beginning," and of course, "Lucky Man." But tracks such as "Karn Evil 9," "Hoedown," and "21st Century Schizoid Man," prove Emerson, Lake & Palmer can still rock with the best of them...

Main reason I'm giving this 2-CD release a five-star rating is because it was a but different than most other live ELP discs I've heard.Similar,you understand,but not 'the same'.Maybe one reason was that I thought they really kicked ass on "Touch And Go".Okay,disc one is a live archive performance from 1974 California Jam,in which the best tunes were "Karn Evil 9:First Impression,Part 2/Third Impression" and the beautifully penned "In The Beginning"(this tune DEFINES classic rock).Disc two are assorted cuts from the trio's 1997-98 world tour,in which I couldn't get enough of "Tiger In A Spotlight","Hoedown","Knife Edge" or "Lucky Man".A must-have for any and all fans of Emerson Lake and Palmer.Even new/er fans would likely get a lot from 'Then And Now'.Highly recommended.