ELPowell Box Set

[Mt. Pleasant Farm]

I was lucky enough to see this lineup at MSG, NY on this tour, and, in all my years of seeing/hearing live performances at MSG, this was the best sounding one I was ever lucky enough to be in attendance for. Loge seats, 3rd row, amazing sound. Being my first live experience of any incarnation of ELP, the show literally blew me away!

Speaking of Emerson, Lake & Palmer at Madison Square Garden, I was very fortunate to see them at The Garden on December 17, 1973. Absolutely amazing show. If I recall correctly, a boy's choir came out and did Silent Night. Phenomenal. Stray Dog were the opening act.

[zeprogmeister]

I've always enjoyed this album. The last great ELP related release imo.

[zeprogmeister]

Just remembered that they did a guest vj bit on MTV back in 1986 as part of the promotion for this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prB8FIx3fj0

[yodathedog]

That was freakin' cool!!!

[per anporth]

Emerson's claymation impersonation of Gabriel is a moment of genius - a whole nother career, right there, for the taking!

(I've always felt, listening to Emerson, that there's a kind of discomfort in him - it's as if he's perpetually aware of himself speaking, like he can't stop hearing his voice when he's speaking...)

[Splicer]

I've always enjoyed this album. The last great ELP related release imo.

Truth. Lake's voice hadn't taken a turn for the worse yet and the songwriting was solid.

[Gravedigger]

Truth. Lake's voice hadn't taken a turn for the worse yet and the songwriting was solid.

I noticed that Lake started sliding down off sustained notes at the end of almost every line on this album.
His voice was still strong although he was moving toward lower registers.

[Skeptrick]

I had tickets to see ELPowell in Kansas City (I was in college in southern Missouri and could have gone to either KC or St. Louis), but both shows got cancelled allegedly due to low ticket sales...

[jefftiger]

I've watched a low-quality VHS bootleg video of their concert in Detroit's Cobo Hall several times. Even with the poor video quality, this looked like an excellent show. Are there any other videos available of their performances during this tour or a better version of the Detroit video floating around? I was living in England when the album was released, and they didn't tour there.

[Man In The Mountain]

Another sad reality was that soon after witnessing this glorious event, MTV had listed a Thursday night MTV concert to soon be aired was going to be ELPowell. ...but, unfortunately, someone changed the group performance that day to The Fabulous Thunderbirds instead.

It's truly sad to think that MTV has some professionally recorded footage of this tour, just sitting somewhere in their vaults, never to see the light of day

Yes, it was the Houston show.

[MudShark22]

I've watched a low-quality VHS bootleg video of their concert in Detroit's Cobo Hall several times. Even with the poor video quality, this looked like an excellent show. Are there any other videos available of their performances during this tour or a better version of the Detroit video floating around? I was living in England when the album was released, and they didn't tour there.

Never seen the Cobo show but there are some full MSG shows like this one floating around. Not perfect but perhaps better than what you saw?

https://youtu.be/Yv2WSIs7S6A?si=4ItKQgZ_l52UDcNF

[Dan Roth]

This is a short but fun read - an article about ELPowell and some Q&A from back then:

http://ladiesofthelake.com/cabinet/ELPow.html


"It's a drummer's dream to play this kind of stuff," says Cozy Powell. "To be honest, it really is. You can't fail. It's so expressive, the music has got so many changes in it-if you don't like it, you shouldn't be playing, really."


On Greg Lake singing in Asia: "That was a fairly unpleasant thing to be a part of, " recalls Lake, diplomatically


And the fun exchange about drummers whose last name starts with a "P":

Lake: "Actually, funnily enough, there's quite a few..."

Emerson: "There's Simon Phillips, there's Jeff Porcaro..."

Powell: "Neil Peart, Bernard Purdie..."

Emerson: "Yeah, but Bernard Purdie's a little bit old. He's getting on a bit now."

[jefftiger]

Never seen the Cobo show but there are some full MSG shows like this one floating around. Not perfect but perhaps better than what you saw?

https://youtu.be/Yv2WSIs7S6A?si=4ItKQgZ_l52UDcNF

Many thanks! It's a similar show to Cobo and maybe slightly better quality. The camera angle is different.

Also, thanks, Dan Roth, for the ELPowell interview. It's interesting to read some of the background about the formation of the group and their thoughts on early 80s music. Some of those "facts" have evolved over the past nearly 40 years. We now routinely read that Palmer was too busy with Asia to rejoin. There's a different sense to Emerson and Lake's statements here, presumably in 1986.

[Mister Triscuits]

Lake: "Actually, funnily enough, there's quite a few..."

Emerson: "There's Simon Phillips, there's Jeff Porcaro..."

Powell: "Neil Peart, Bernard Purdie..."

Emerson: "Yeah, but Bernard Purdie's a little bit old. He's getting on a bit now."

On a radio interview they kidded about considering Ringo Parr or Charlie Potts.

[Myried]

I've watched a low-quality VHS bootleg video of their concert in Detroit's Cobo Hall several times. Even with the poor video quality, this looked like an excellent show. Are there any other videos available of their performances during this tour or a better version of the Detroit video floating around? I was living in England when the album was released, and they didn't tour there.

Yes, the audio on that particular video, which is a complete show, is very, very good. Unfortunately, the video is pretty grainy, but, fully watchable (once you get used to viewing it). I wish there was a way to enhance the video quality of this show. It would be a great representation for all to enjoy of the ELPowell era, especially since that MTV Houston show will most likely never see the light of day. I've owned this on a VHS tape since it originally surfaced soon after the actual show back in 1986.

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[Bytor]

The live production will probably sound less 80s particularly on the drum sound. I'm interested. It's really not a bad album (outside the 80s production) and I'll take it over 3, Black Moon and ITHS everyday.

[Rufus]

The live production will probably sound less 80s particularly on the drum sound. I'm interested. It's really not a bad album (outside the 80s production) and I'll take it over 3, Black Moon and ITHS everyday.

Absolutely! Some great tracks on EL&Powell. Sound better played live!

[roylayer]

I've watched a low-quality VHS bootleg video of their concert in Detroit's Cobo Hall several times. Even with the poor video quality, this looked like an excellent show. Are there any other videos available of their performances during this tour or a better version of the Detroit video floating around? I was living in England when the album was released, and they didn't tour there.

I have a copy of a Detroit show from 1986-10-17 Detroit, but it is listed as at the Fox Theater. I can't imagine that there was more than 1 show in Detroit. https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/emers...-53d7b7b1.html.

Comments from the guy who made the DVD from a generated VHS tape: "This is a single camera audience recording, shot from the balcony. There are good closeups, but the taper did this annoying (to me anyway) quick zoom in and out anytime he changed the subject. Quality is O.K., but not great."

The show is 1 hour, 50 minutes long.

[noisynoise]

ELPowell was a really solid album IMO, especially considering the other prog reunions/supergroups of the time (Asia, GTR, 3, etc), and has also aged the best. Will likely pick up this box set.

[Dan Roth]

Interesting interview from 1996 with Cozy:

https://www.joegeesin.com/cozy-powell.htm

Cozy talked a bit about his time in ELP:

Joe: You've been in a lot of bands. Have you ever left any after a massive argument?

Cozy: No. I left Rainbow after 5 years, it'd kind of run its course. I didn't think that Ritchie was believing in the band any more. Although they had success after I left, I didn't think Ritchie was playing any way like he could of done.

I just thought I needed the change. The Michael Schenker Group I left because they were going through a real drug problem at the time which I didn't want to get into. I was being drawn in and was getting silly and the management was putting the band through some terrible things, we were doing some awful dates. We were killing each other. Going from that to Whitesnake was a much better move. Whitesnake I left due to the contractual dispute. ELP fizzled out under its own steam. Lake and Emerson blew up for the nth millionth time and unfortunately we had been signed to do two albums and tours. We'd taken advances on those 2 albums and when they've had argument no. 575 and decide they can't work together again there's me in the middle thinking we've just signed these contracts…

Joe: And the tour never made this country.

Cozy: It was a great tour, and possibly the most challenging for me musically that I've ever done. I really enjoyed the tour, and being in that band, but due to Greg and Keith it was never going to work. They've reformed since then, but how can you work with people you can't stand? Well, of course you can, they got back together because they were offered such a lot of money. They were all in financial hardship they had to do it. Keith's a great musician, inspired me a bit and with Greg, he's his own worst enemy in some respects, but a great musician and a fine singer.

I don't like to see such musicians, no matter how much grief they've given me, go down the pan.

[Myried]

I have a copy of a Detroit show from 1986-10-17 Detroit, but it is listed as at the Fox Theater. I can't imagine that there was more than 1 show in Detroit. https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/emers...-53d7b7b1.html.

Comments from the guy who made the DVD from a generated VHS tape: "This is a single camera audience recording, shot from the balcony. There are good closeups, but the taper did this annoying (to me anyway) quick zoom in and out anytime he changed the subject. Quality is O.K., but not great."

The show is 1 hour, 50 minutes long.

Correct. I was under the impression it was/is the Fox Theater as well, but, it was referred here as Cobo Hall. At least it is intact as a complete show (track wise, that is), for the most part. For what it is, it will have to do. As I stated earlier, I wish there was a proper way to enhance the quality of this performance. C'est La Vie...

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[JJ88]

The live production will probably sound less 80s particularly on the drum sound. I'm interested. It's really not a bad album (outside the 80s production) and I'll take it over 3, Black Moon and ITHS everyday.

It's the heavy reverb more than anything. Powell thankfully kept away from syn-drums, as far as I remember. And Lake sounded good on ELPowell, far better than on the 90s albums. Listen to something like 'Affairs Of The Heart' and it's night and day. Or the heavy downtuning of 'Touch And Go' in the 90s- from the original C minor to G minor in the 90s!

I tend to think ELPowell falls away somewhat, though. I'm not over-fond of that 'Mars' reworking and the CD bonus tracks are duds IMHO. That awful cover of 'Locomotion', WTF was that about?

3 has its moments. I was surprised by that one (given how awful its reputation is) that I liked a fair bit of it. Granted the 'Eight Miles High' cover is abominable though.

Black Moon is solid but again, the sound is questionable (and Palmer's drum sound is IMHO bad).

In The Hot Seat...an album too many. Other than 'Hand Of Truth', 'One By One' and the '...Long Black Coat' cover, there's nothing much doing. I do at least like those three tracks.

[Drake]

Enjoying what seems to be Powell’s favorite fill. Listen to the soft (and great) middle section of the Miracle and also in the beginning of Learning to Fly :-)

[Bytor]

It's the heavy reverb more than anything. Powell thankfully kept away from syn-drums, as far as I remember. And Lake sounded good on ELPowell, far better than on the 90s albums. Listen to something like 'Affairs Of The Heart' and it's night and day. Or the heavy downtuning of 'Touch And Go' in the 90s- from the original C minor to G minor in the 90s!

I tend to think ELPowell falls away somewhat, though. I'm not over-fond of that 'Mars' reworking and the CD bonus tracks are duds IMHO. That awful cover of 'Locomotion', WTF was that about?

3 has its moments. I was surprised by that one (given how awful its reputation is) that I liked a fair bit of it. Granted the 'Eight Miles High' cover is abominable though.

Black Moon is solid but again, the sound is questionable (and Palmer's drum sound is IMHO bad).

In The Hot Seat...an album too many. Other than 'Hand Of Truth', 'One By One' and the '...Long Black Coat' cover, there's nothing much doing. I do at least like those three tracks.

Mars is the least interesting song on the album I find. It's just a, nearly, note for note recreation. It lacks the ELP touch they were so good to inject before in their classical reinterpretation.

I have to give another listen, but I remember it sounding even more 80 than ELPowell

Black Moon, for multiple reasons, I can't get into that album and Carl is one of them. His drumming has no energy at all mixed with an awful awful drum production with the electronic drums/pads.

Hand Of Truth is not that bad, indeed. Can't even really remember the other ones.

I listen to Love Beach more than 3, BM and HITS

[dropforge]

It's the heavy reverb more than anything. Powell thankfully kept away from syn-drums, as far as I remember. And Lake sounded good on ELPowell, far better than on the 90s albums. Listen to something like 'Affairs Of The Heart' and it's night and day. Or the heavy downtuning of 'Touch And Go' in the 90s- from the original C minor to G minor in the 90s!

I like the sound of ELPowell, reverb and all. Cozy's drums sound thunderous. Keith used the Kurzweil K250 extensively and had some great sounds on hand. I even like "Love Blind" and "Step Aside"!

As for the bonus tracks, I don't consider them part of the album proper, so they don't bug me. "Vacant Possession" isn't bad. It's just too bad Keith and Greg got into it again, because ELPowell was under contract for a follow-up (which would've been preferable to the formation of 3).

3 has its moments. I was surprised by that one (given how awful its reputation is) that I liked a fair bit of it. Granted the 'Eight Miles High' cover is abominable though.

I find that album nigh unlistenable. It's just, I don't know, not very interesting to me. Keith's synth sounds are underwhelming, too. Whatever he had, it doesn't sound like his ELPowell rig.

Black Moon is solid but again, the sound is questionable (and Palmer's drum sound is IMHO bad).

After 3, Black Moon was a return to form. Some strong songs, some not so strong, but nothing I'd skip.

In The Hot Seat...an album too many. Other than 'Hand Of Truth', 'One By One' and the '...Long Black Coat' cover, there's nothing much doing. I do at least like those three tracks.

"The Hand of Truth" is cool, but I never spin that one. It's been a long, long time.