ELP Digest    Vol. 22 #02
            15 April 2012

The "They All Stand Alone" Edition

Hi.

Just wanted to send out a quick Digest to all of you who have been patiently waiting for it. I still realize that the Google Groups experiment isn't working well. I am posting things there for safekeepiung but will continue to send out the Digest as an edited 'Greatest Hits' of the information there that I think most of you want.

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So, I'll spare you the details of the ruckus that got stirred up when Greg Lake said in an interview in Montreal that was reported at examiner.com:

"Speaking to the Montreal Gazette, Lake disparaged the musical value of punk. "The punk thing wasn't a musical movement," he said. "It was a fashion movement. It was a hyping, marketing movement. There was no real music there, no cultural revolution there."

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But anyway, the big news is that, for the first time in a LONG time, Keith, Greg, and Carl are all actively pursuing new things. Greg and Carl and touring. And Keith has been working with the people doing the 'Pictures of an Exhibitionist" movie to get it distributed!

Here's my post (with some additional info) from the Google Group about these activities:

"The most concurrent ELP action in quite a while: Carl's European Tour has started; Greg's North American Tour has started, Keith's Pictures at an Exhibitionist film is progressing toward its release. Wow!"

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Carl's touring Europe with The Carl Palmer Band.

Here's the latest list of tour dates from CarlPalmer.com:

2012 Europe Spring Tour (Date, City, Venue)

Carl Palmer Band
'Pictures at an Exhibition' Tour
UK Spring 2012

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Greg's Touring with his 'Songs of a Lifetime' show in North America. Here are the dates that are currently posted on GregLake.com:

and later this year in the United Kingdom

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More info about the 'Pictures of an Exhibitionist' film can be found at emerson-picturesofanexhibitionist.blogspot.com

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And here's one more item posted by me that I hope you find interesting...

Recent reading: I recently got a copy of William Neal's book 'Watching Paint Dry' (Site and Book) and am enjoying it immensely.

Note the Armadillo on the home page image! In case you don't recall, William is the artist behind the Tarkus and Pictures At An Exhibition album covers.

The 'story' part of the book is a fascinating journey through the eyes of someone very much at the heart of the growth of album cover as art form in the 1970s. It includes some images and stories I'd never seen or read before. The 'art' part of the book shows some of William's latest work: depicting much more pastoral scenes than you'd think would have evolved from the hands (and airbrush) that brought us so many great album covers. The paintings show colors, arrangements, and visions that I really like.

The book is highly recommended by me. And here's what Keith has to say about it (in a quote William shared with me):

"Real artists struggle but they don't moan about it; they use their accomplishments so that others benefit from the results. William Neal is a true example of the dedication in all the fields of "Watching Paint Dry" while the tranquility of his recent works make for a great counterpoint to his earlier masterpieces"

Keith Emerson.

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I'll be at the Greg Lake show at the Wilbur Theater in Boston tonight. Hope to see some of you there!

Till next time,

- John -