Disco de Emerson, Lake & Palmer: “Pictures at an Exhibition [Video]”

This album is a masterpiece from start to finish. This was ELP's provocative take on Mussorgsky's famed classical piece, and it was performed live, with some extra makeovers. Of course, many classical purists are still having a fit, even after more than 30 years since this hit the shelves, but if you're a bit more open-minded, this may just be something of a treat. This peformance captures ELP mixing moments of refinement and explosive intensity combined with an ethereal rawness. Rarely have I heard this combination work well...especially in a LIVE performance.

It starts with the anthemic "Promenade" which leads to a bizarre intro of The Gnome, which then takes off as a synth-washed quirky jazz fest. "Promenade" (reprise) follows, this time with lyrics written and sung by Greg Lake. "The Sage" starts off softly then turns into an elegant classical guitar instrumental. "The Old Castle" starts with some synth/distortion feedback then kicks into a rocker. Next comes "Blues Variation" which is a beautifully crafted mix of well...jazz and blues. "Promenade" starts the second half of the disc. Unlike the previous two versions of "Promenade," this version features Greg Lake, Keith Emerson and Carl Palmer performing collectively with their instruments. "The Hut Of Baba Yaga" is frenzied up jazz rock. "The Curse Of Baba Yaga" continues as Keith Emerson is doing genuinely innovative stuff on his keyboard. It is also in this section that you will probably find the most explosive moment on the disc, as Carl Palmer and Keith Emerson are out of control on the drums and synths respectively, while Greg Lake is shouting passionately as he plucks his bass strings frenetically. "The Hut" is briefly reprised before the beautifully dark and haunting finale of "The Gates Of Kiev/The End." Just hearing Greg sing "They were sent from the gates" sends a chill down my whole body. It's very powerful.

For the encore, the bands rips out "The Nutrocker", a fun, rocked up take on Tchaikovsky.

Much has been said about how annoying those synth distortion noises, some off-key vocals and other things are repelling. To me, it is this very aspect, combined with technically brilliant instrumentation, much like some of Jimi Hendrix's live performances where it was a mix of premeditation, spontaneity, abstraction and technical ability that makes this the masterpiece that it is. This performance is on the same lines of Hendrix's performance of "Wild Thing" at the Monterey Pop Festival: Brilliant to shameful/ugly, magical to phenomenal. Think of this recording the same way.

In short, this is one of the singlemost mind-blowing things I have ever heard, and still shocks, scares, offends and delights me as much as it did when I first experienced this thing. Recommended to all that apply.

For a while ELP could do no wrong - up to Brain Salad Surgery and the superb Welcome Back my friends. After that we got diminishing returns, with the uninspired Works Vol I, the better but too-eclectic Works Vol II, and the embarrassing "Love Beach."

And anything later than "Love Beach" isn't really ELP at all...

But "Pictures" finds them in the middle of their awesome period. As a classical fan, I've always thought this is actually the best arrangement of Mussorgsky's piece. I much prefer the original piano version to any of the three orchestrations: the (sorry, this is heresy) banal Ravel version, the attempt by Stokowski, or even the Ashkanazi version, which is the best orchestrated arrangement.

The ELP version doesn't have the depth or the "Russianness" of Ashkanazi, but it wins out on sheer gusto, virtuoso musicianship and energy. Speaking as both a classical and a rock fan, this is one of the few rock/classical hybrids that actually add (rather than cancelling out) the virtues of each style.

And the Greg Lake contributions, interpolated songs musing on ideas from the music, are brilliant: the heart of the album in many ways.

(Just as Greg Lake was always the heart of the band, despite Emerson's greater showmanship. It needed Lake's voice and the humanistic side of his music. When Lake lost his voice, and seemingly the ability to write good songs, that was when ELP spun into its astonishingly rapid decline.)

Some people have criticised the sound quality. I can't say I've ever noticed that as an issue. On the other hand, Greg Lake had one of the greatest voices in rock when this was recorded. His pure tenor could be as angelic and beautiful as a choirboy, or it could do a powerful rock-shout for the thundering "Great Gates of Kiev" finale.

In the more recent studio recording, we have instead a hammy performance by a man with an ugly baritone he can barely control. They should indeed have recorded this in a studio, but the time when they had the ability to do so had past by about 1976.

But we do have this live document, and it's awesomely fine. Incredible band, brilliant playing and singing.

(One minor quibble; I don't know why they tacked on Kim Foley's "Nutrocker" at the end. It must have been fun and funny in the live show, but on CD or vinyl the joke gets old quickly. Anything else, surely, would have been better. Program your CD-player to skip this, once you've heard it once.)

Laon

Well, I rate it 4 stars for originality, quality of musicianship and the nerve to undertake the project. However, it gets a fifth star from me because, you see, I was actually at the concert at Newcastle City Hall in 1971 when it was recorded. I can still see Greg Lake to the left, Carl Palmer in the middle and Emerson to the left of the stage with a Moog synthesizer that looked like an old telephone exchange, there were so many wires coming out of it! He also had a couple of Hammonds and an electric piano on top of one which was used in 'Nutrocker' at the end. One of my mates whistled during one of Lake's bits (which is still on the album) and I think I've still got the ticket somewhere. On the original vinyl there was a blank picture frame on the inside of the cover and some of my mates stuck their tickets in there when they bought the album. Happy days....but it's an album still worth listening to.

I did not wait till this DVD arrived because the concert is all ready available in Holland on DVD. The concert contains good close-ups of all three musicians and especially the interaction between Palmer and Emmerson in the third number (the second “Promenade”) is a joy to watch. Later on the movie reflects the seventies when psychedelic images joins the number “Blues Variation” and hardly leaves till the end of the movie. Although my copy last only 41 minutes I am pretty sure this one will be the same concert. Hopefully the sound quality will improve because sometimes it sounds a little bit distorted when Emmerson creates an ‘overkill’ of sounds. Like all other DVD’s this video start with two sections you can not skip. They annoy me. .... I wonder if people share these thoughts.

If you're looking for a straight rendition of Mussorgsky's Pictures, this ain't it! What you get with this album is an amalgam: Some of it is Mussorgsky, some of it ELP, some of it is Mussourgsky as adapted by ELP. The result is one of the finest pieces of progressive rock ever pressed on black vinyl.

I've been a fan of ELP since I first heard Tarkus in the early '70s. Saber rattling, aggressive, over the top rock-n-roll. ELP was at the forefront of progressive rock, blending classical, jazz and rock in a frantic keyboard driven fusion. They are as dark as Pink Floyd could ever be and just a touch more complex and grand in scope than the best work by Yes. With this album, they just took it just a bit further.

ELP was critisized as pompus and pretentious. And with this album, they peaked in that regard. Ravel's orchestration of "Pictures" is one of those classical pieces which is perfect without any further adaptation. It is one thing to tackle great classical pieces such as Alberto Ginastera's 1st Piano Concerto ("Tocotta" on Brain Salad Surgery) or Bartok or Janacek ("The Barbarian" and "Knife Edge" on ELP's first album). But Mussourgsky! Glad ELP violated that holy cow! Rock-n-Roll!

If you have a good stereo and turntable, I highly recommend trying to find the audiophile half speed master pressing on the Mobile High Fidelity label. The fidelity is much better than with a CD, and this is one piece of music which is worth it!