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FULL ALBUM: Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Tarkus (Patreon)

Published:
2022-04-17 22:04:10
Edited:
2026-01-15 09:18:09
Imported:
2026-09
Tags:

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Content

Hey everyone!

Well... you voted, we listened!

Hope you enjoy this with us as much as we did and thank you again to all of those who voted! :)

With love, 

Nick, Lex and Marley

Files

Comments

B Mac

The should do "Pictures At An Exhibition" as a full album review. 👍

Doug Fenske

I've been thrilled by this album since it came out in 1971 when I was 7 years old. Every time I listen to it, I notice something different that I think is so cool, and I of course recognize a ton of things that I always love to hear again. SO fun. I'm so glad you two get into this, too!

Colin

Doug Johnson did Judas Priest album covers but not sure if he did all of them. The Tarkus album cover was done by a Scottish Artist William Neal. I know the later because I attended a Exhibition of his in Dumfries and the original drawings were on show.

Alan Walker

ELP should definitely get more attention as one of the greatest 3 piece bands ever. Every instrument on this album was played either Keith Emerson, Greg Lake, or Carl Palmer.

Mark Alexander

Definitely one of your best, thoughtful reactions! ELP will make more sense once you realize that Keith Emerson is the reincarnation of Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky. (And therefore their Pictures at an Exhibition is in your future… Honestly, who but Mussorgsky would even consider reworking that piece of music as a prg-rock piece.) Hope that Brain Salad Surgery appears on your poll later this year. You are ready!👍

Mark Alexander

Well said! Except Buck Dharma was Blue Oyster Cult.😀 Granted, they did play Born to be Wild live, so that may account for the crossover.

Wayne

As much as you may like this album, BSS took the band to an another level, one which they were not able to top. If you listen to any live versions of Tarkus pay attention to the tempo. Emerson would challenge Palmer and Lake to keep up with him on stage, so the tempo would be in 2x speed compared to the studio recording. If you decide to listen to Pictures at an Exhibition, remember it is a live recording as well and wonder how they can perform at that pace for an extended period of time.

Debra Brabenec

This was great to hear the whole album. I was familiar with at least the first few sections of the song "Tarkus" but not the rest. I only had the 1st album, Trilogy and Brain Salad Surgery. I really loved "The Only Way", especially the pipe organ. When I was 10 we drove from Michigan to Denver to visit my aunt and uncle and cousins. While we were there we drove to Colorado Springs to the Air Force Academy and saw an excellent organ concert at the gorgeous chapel there. I don't know if they still do such a thing anymore, but you would probably really enjoy it, as the pipe organ can be very powerful.

Franck Thibault

Well, for me, it's way too much for me... Just at the start, when Nick said "it's soothing". I was like really? Soothing? Not to me. But everyone is different. I prefer when there is signing, because it's slower and makes more sense in my brain... I am not a musician... And that's all I got to say about that

Franck Thibault

Ok, I wrote my comment after side A, side B, for me was much better :)

Michele

You got the battle references - the marching drums and the heralding. (Tarkus hatches then proceeds into a few battles). I like the sobering line: “Clear the battlefield and let me see, All the profit from our victory.”

Michele

Quite an ambitious piece - FULL, yes, but imo, it all makes musical sense - there are melodies and themes that ground you. Similar to a chaotic battlefield, there are drummers and gongs to keep you oriented in the seeming chaos of battle. Great job, NnL! 💙🌻🇺🇦💛

Michele

And supposedly Lake found the following joke amusing: “How do you spell ‘pretentious’? ELP !!”

So Many Shiny Objects

Check out Wikipedia for the explanation of the story Tarkus tells. It will make much more sense to you if you know what each track is all about.

Great Scott

A few comments on the commentary -- Tarkus may be a "concept album", but I believe the concept part is only Side A, that is Tarkus as composed of its several subsections. Side B does not necessarily continue any 'concept', at least in my opinion, but they are good songs nonetheless. The last track, "Are You Ready Eddy?" is a tribute jam to their audio engineer Eddy Offord, who helped them on their first four albums. Eddy was also engineer to Yes. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddy_Offord And here's some good background on the album and songs: https://www.loudersound.com/features/elp-s-tarkus-the-story-behind-the-album I will also point you to Rachel Flowers performing all of Tarkus (well, as much as a single person can do without benefit of vocals, a bass and percussion), but using Keith Emerson's gear at EMEAPP: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMUEHiMNlBA Enjoy!

So Many Shiny Objects

I love that they call it a hymn and make it sound like one but then blow you away with the lyrics.

So Many Shiny Objects

Pictures at an Exhibition is a must, and I hope Nick and Alexia will react to it at some point. I'm a Trilogy lover, and I would love to see them react to the song, if not the entire album. If they did the album, though, they would get The Endless Enigma. The awe never ends with this band.

So Many Shiny Objects

He was referring to Lake's voice, which can be soothing. . . or not. Definitely soothing when we first hear him in Tarkus.

So Many Shiny Objects

Regarding other reactors: Many are musicians. I understand that you don't want to watch other reactors, but Doug Helvering (The Daily Doug) is a classical composer who reacts cold sometimes but also analyzes pieces he's heard. In this case, he has the score for Tarkus and plays it while walking us through the composition. (Nick is correct when he says this is composed.) It's a geekier angle, but you can't watch Doug without leaving with a deeper appreciation of the virtuosity and storytelling ability of this band. He also walks us through the Tarkus story, which is critical to understanding the sounds you're hearing. He has reacted to several other ELP masterpieces, and I recommend you watch him after you've already reacted. Here's Tarkus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_FMjCN6jEyY

Douglas Briscoe

Loved this reaction. I was introduced to ELP in 1971 when I was in high school and was immediately blown away. I saw them in the summer of 1972 and that concert changed my life. They played a 3 1/2 hour show and I was left speechless. I saw them 32 times over the years and to this day after over 2,000 concerts ELP and Pink Floyd are still the best concerts I ever saw. Seeing them do Tarkus live in its entirety was mind blowing. Keith Emerson was far and away the best keyboard player I ever saw and Carl Palmer is unreal on the drums. Always loved Greg Lake's vocals as well.

Douglas Briscoe

Was the restaurant you were talking about called Lamberts?

Kenneth r Barton

Now, for the live version, off of "Welcome back my friends..."

j3ffc

I was about 15 when I got this album in 1973, a couple of years after it came out. I was into more mainstream rock at the time (Chicago, Grand Funk, CSNY, Elton John) and this was the first prog album I bought. I liked it right away and ELP were among my favorite bands for quite a number of years. I preferred them to Yes in those years, although most of my friends were flipped on that. I probably didn’t “get”it on first listen, but I did enjoy it, especially the keyboard work and Greg Lake’s singing. I don’t think that there was so much of an OMG reaction from most rockers at the time, because prog and more blues/traditional rock moved in sort of orthogonal circles. I think most respected the musicianship, but most Stones fans, for example, probably didn’t buy a lot of ELP or Yes records. Oh, also remember that the Beatles were done by this point. I do think that if you liked classical or jazz music at the time this was more accessible and enjoyable. I mean, Keith didn’t invent dissonance or complex rhythmic structures, but he did help usher them into rock. I also remember reading more about groups like ELP (or Slade or Bowie or T Rex) in British music magazines as opposed to Rolling Stone or Creem.

j3ffc

I heard the whole Karn Evil 9 suite for the first time live. ELP put on one very entertaining show.

Jack Engard

Keith Emerson was a classically trained pianist and I know you have no trouble seeing that. He was a very early adopter of the Moog synthesizer which was totally new at that time. ELP literally chased people away with Keith's great Scorpio dark complicated emotional intensity. As a result, this album was viewed with very mixed opinions. Whereas Yes had no problem getting intense, their music went straight to the heart which made the public love them. As you might imagine, hearing ELP in concert would just blow heads off and you didn't have to be tripping for that effect. Keith was an absolute virtuoso and carried the band through it's very many musical twists and turns. The real question is beyond liking and appreciating what your hearing, did you love it?! Could you handle all that serious heavy intensity however insanely brilliant? Some people were really repelled by them when they came out with this release. If you took classical music and added a rock and jazz improvisation feel to it, it would be something like this. If this strikes you as Bach, Scarlatti and Keith Jarrett, you're not wrong. Both ELP at this time and Grateful Dead famously chased people away who just didn't get it. Whereas you can listen to Steely for instance all the time, this album may be one that's not in your steady rotation until your right mood comes along and you select it. The critical review was that it wasn't a cohesive whole, but a slew of different things which was good approach for The Beatles White Album and yet not so much for Tarkus.

Jim Reeves

"Are You Ready Eddie" was a playful tribute to ELP's sound engineer, Eddie Offord. He was also the engineer for YES and many other prog bands.

Mike Nichols

Lots of fun! I first heard ELP when I was 14 and everybody was talking about them as an amazing live band. I bought all their records in short order. Their live version of the TARKUS suite from "Welcome Back My Friends..." is incredible, topping the studio version (which was recorded quickly after writing it between tours). The live version kicks ass and includes an extended Aquatarkus section. A must hear! Live with no overdubs will help you hear exactly what everyone is playing. Video of them performing this live in any quality, only came later, when, sadly, Emerson's right hand nerve damage and operation reduced his facility, and Lake's voice was not as good (the 90's and later). So I think you should stick with the above mentioned earlier audio-only performance.. From '70 to '74 Keith, Greg, and Carl played an average of something like 200 shows a year and put out 6 awesome albums. True trailblazers and the kings of prog along with Yes, Crimson, Genesis, Tull, and Gentle Giant. They all showed that with music anything is possible and influenced and inspired many who came after. Thanks for this reaction. 🌞

Walter Gill

Hey Guys, Hoped that you had a blessed Easter with your family & friends and yes I'd heard the whole epic side before and that was my first time hearing it and it was a trip let me tell you!! Here's the complete story of the track and I hope that you'll find this helpful!! Side one is taken up by "Tarkus", a 20-minute piece in seven parts written by Emerson, with Lake credited for the "Battlefield" section and contributions to "Stones of Years" and "Mass". It is a conceptual piece in which its narrative remains ambiguous and open to interpretation, but the artwork depicts the Tarkus character in the form of an armadillo-like tank who is born and loses a fight with a manticore, which concludes with the appearance of an aquatic version of Tarkus named Aquatarkus.[4] The track was written in six days and the band rehearsed it for another six, after which they put it to tape. Lake said the song is about "the futility of conflict, expressed in this context in terms of soldiers and war — but it's broader than that. The words are about revolution, the revolution that's gone, that has happened. Where has it got anybody? Nowhere."[5] He went on to describe the track, which opens "in frustration" with the "Eruption" section, an instrumental in a 5/4 time signature which he considered a "frustrating" meter. The lyrical songs that follow concern "the hypocrisy of it all" and noted the closing march at the end "a joke".[5] The group would not record a longer piece in the studio until 1973, with the 29-minute "Karn Evil 9". Side 2 is just short songs and it didn't has to do with the story and I'm glad that you're enjoying this album and can't wait to hear from you soon!! Thanks & Keep Rockin'!! - <3 <3

Douglas Briscoe

I heartily disagree with them not being able to play Tarkus live. I saw them perform it a number of times in concert with ease.

Jim Wilde

Just an FYI. Eddy, (“Are You Ready, Eddie”), Is Eddie Offord, the producer and sound engineer of this, and most of the seminal ELP and Yes albums of that era. He was truly a fourth member of ELP and sixth of Yes for what most consider the pinnacle albums of both bands. Its why those of us who revere both bands from that era do NOT like the Wilson remixes of those albums. The bands worked with Offord on his mixes, and approved his work. Wilson didnt just remaster the tracks for the digital age, but he changed the balance that Offord and the bands originally intended. Its the equivalent of somebody changing the colors of the Mona Lisa because they thought their sense of the colors was superior to DaVinci’s.

Gazza

Hi Guys, so glad you're really getting into ELP. Tarkus is a superb album and the title track is their most popular epic work and arguably their greatest. IMO though my favorite and their best album is "Brain Salad Surgery" I think you've only reacted to "Still you turn me on" from that album which is sublime. I strongly recommend it for your next ELP full album reaction. "Jerusalem" and "Tocatta" are phenomenal tracks and their other great epic, the dystopic "Karn evil 9" I consider their greatest piece and a work of incredible intensity and virtuosic and imaginative genius. I love their self titled debut album, but I think you've reacted to 3 or 4 tracks off it already. "Trilogy" , "Pictures at an exhibition" and "Works volume 1" are also superb albums and well worthy of full album reactions. Cheers

Murdock Moriarty

Great to see you back for a full album reaction. Of the first classic ELP albums (up to works vol.1) this, I have to admit, is my least favourite of theirs. That being said, the title suite is a fantastic example of classic prog rock!

Jim Hagen

So happy to finally see you guys react to this!! Also, this is my first Patreon subscription. You guys are definitely worth it!!

Jim Hagen

Halfway through and you guys brought up Dream Theater…Jordan Rudess has an incredible version of this song…ok..back to listening

Arnie Porter

ELP, KC and Yes were my introduction to Prog Rock music back in the early 70’s. I had heard Moody Blues but this three person band took things to a new level. My friends and I would discuss who was a better keyboard player, Keith Emerson or Rick Wakeman from Yes.

Great Scott

As to which is [was] better, the only reasonable answer is that they're both tied for best. In their own ways, each is better than the other, but in different things, so they can balance each other out. Alas, only Rick is still around to carry on. However I believe Rick's son Oliver is quite good, and there's also Rachel Flowers who can masterfully cover almost anything Emerson ever did. Long live the next generation!

Lee Haskin

So happy you finally got to check out this album. It truly is a masterpiece! Thanks so much for this, brings back so many memories for me.

Scott Anderson

I had this on an 8 track quadraphonic tape. It was really cool to be able to isolate the tracks. I saw them a few years later live. Great memories thanks for the reaction. 😎

JEFF JERDON

You guys need to get back to more ELP!!!!!!! Finish out the tracks from the debut album that you didn't cover. Then move on to "Pictures At An Exhibition", follow that with the other tracks from "Trilogy" that you didn't cover, then onto "Brain Salad Surgery" which is what I think is their definitive album!!!!!! You also need to cover "Works Volume 1" in it's entirety!!!!!!!!!

Mark A Haus

Nick, You said you can't Imagine anyone listening to this in 1971 but me and my friends did. Went to see ELP on their BRAIN SALAD SURGERY tour and they were magnificent!!. I'll be 65 in 1 week so I've seen a lot. ELP to this day is one of the greatest concerts I ever attended. Love you guys! Have a great day!! Oh!! we also had 2 albums by YES in 1971. The YES ALBUM and FRAGILE. It was a great time for Prog.

John Blanchette

Your listeners have great taste! The last track "Are You Ready Eddy" is a fun tribute song to the sound engineer on the album...Eddy Offord. As a note, side A is the Tarkus "theme" song, side B is just a collection of various songs. Sound quality of your channel is awesome! Keep up the good work. Love ya

So Many Shiny Objects

Keith was not classically trained, but that's a common misconception.

So Many Shiny Objects

Carl Palmer says the difference between Keith and all the other contenders is that Keith plays with both hands. He has an excellent point. I don't think it's even close to a tie.

B Mac

Never get tired of Tarkus, never.

ROBERT CRAWFORD

Thanks for that. I became an ELP fan at aged 15 (I'm 65 now) and was really into glam rock as I was a T.Rex fan but after a friend lent me Pictures At An Exhibition my loyalty changed overnight!