Love Beach (Shout! Factory)

Performer: Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Distributor: Sony Music Distribution (

Notes: Emerson, Lake & Palmer: Keith Emerson (keyboards); Greg Lake (vocals, guitar, bass); Carl Palmer (drums, percussion). Recorded at Compass Point Studio, Nassau, Bahamas. Don't be fooled by the Bee Gees-esque cover photo, LOVE BEACH is not really ELP-gone-pop. True, many of the songs are more concise and accessible than those on previous albums, and there are a couple of Greg Lake-dominated "romantic" tunes, but those had always been part of the deal. They're still at their classical-rockin' best on "Canario," and half the album is dominated by the 20-minute epic "Memoirs of an Officer & a Gentleman," which stands up well alongside such long-form ELP classics as "Trilogy."

Emerson, Lake & Palmer were one of the most popular of the initial wave of 1970s British prog-rock bands. They sported post-British Invasion rock's first alternative to the guitar hero in Keith Emerson, whose outlandish keyboard antics rivaled the onstage pyrotechnics of Hendrix and Townshend. The group mixed heavy rock riffs with classical influences, relying equally on instrumental virtuosity and an epic sense of showmanship that won them countless fans in their '70s heyday.

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