Pictures At An Exhibition

wow, i'm a little blown away by this one. i am familiar enough with ELP, but haven't listened to anything beyond a couple of albums and a compilation here and there. this album rules! the live energy adds something great to this recording, and everything on here is super cool. i love the prog treatment of some classical classics. the musicianship is incredible, but that goes without saying. hidden gem!

How do you describe an album as "It's a live album of a keyboard-driven progressive rock band covering a 150 year old Russian romantic composer, and it sounds like video game boss music" And then GIVE IT A TWO⭐??? Crazy work.

This is a really cool fusion of classical music, jazz fusion, and Prog. Reminds me a lot of Return to aforever (specifically Romantic Warrior). Favorite Track: Blues Variation

Cool

Uno de mis grupos de cabecera de adolescencia cuando descubrí el rock progresivo (sinfónico lo llamaban entonces) Justo cuando ya estaba en sus estertores. No sé si es uno de los 1001 álbumes que no te puedes perder puesto que es un cover, con algunos elementos originales de la banda. Sea como fuere, es un descomunal ejemplo de comunión entre música clásica y rock, tanto para introducir a amantes del rock a la música clásica como viceversa. “The Great Gates of Kiev” y su final es simplemente apoteósico y emocionante.

One great fantastic memory made me listen and enjoy the whole album

I love it! What an energy! Epic!

åh nej jeg elskede den. Måske det mest nørdede jeg endnu har givet 5/5. Mussorgskij værker spillet på et orgel, så det lyder lidt som den 3. Bowser bane i Super Mario 64. Lyder som om alle involverede havde det mega sjovt

Interesting. I mean, “Pictures at an Exhibition” is a classic. But there’s so many versions. I went in thinking do I really want to listen to another version of something I’ve already heard? “The Gnome” kicked that thought right out of my head. Oh man. The tones, sounds, atmosphere, just so big and punchy. Kicks you in the face in the way you want. Not forward like sometimes metal can be. Super proggy but still grounded. Just absolutely ripped the whole way through. I enjoyed this more than any other adaptation of “Pictures at an Exhibition.” Great idea, great execution. Standout(s): The Gnome The whole thing 9.5/10

a dramatic rock adaption of "pictures at an exhibition", a piano suite by modest mussorgsky that depicts an exhibition of illustrations and architectural works. those of you classical heads will already be VERY interested in this album, and i'm happy to report that this adaptation of mussorgsky's work is incredibly solid. the piece is already fantastic by itself, and emerson, lake and palmer translate the centuries old composition into a booming rock symphony. if you're a purist when it comes to classical, you'll either find this amazing or insulting to the original piece, but really... for me, this is a near-perfect translation of a classical piece made for a more modern time. try pulling up the matching pictures with each track!

This is the 158th album I’m rating. I saw classical crossover on the Wikipedia page and now I'm really interested. Adding to my Playlist - Promenade, The Gnome, Promenade, The Sage, The Old Castle, Blues Variation, Promenade, The Hut of Baba Yaga, The Curse of Baba Yaga, The Hut of Baba Yaga, The Great Gates of Kiev, and Nutrocker. Not Adding to my Playlist - Nothing. All in all I liked 12/12 songs. This is really cool. I wonder if the original Pictures at an Exhibition is better or worse. I imagine it's worse though because this is great.

Was not prepared for how much I would enjoy this absolute prog classical fuckery. Three incredibly talented musicians taking on classical music in the most prog rock fashion possible. Keith Emerson’s synths and organs are mind-blowing now, let alone when this got released in 1971. Greg Lake is keeping things moving in the background. And Carl Palmer is a fucking madman on the drums blasting away on the wild rhythmic changes, sounding both like a metronome AND Animal the Muppet at the same time. Maybe the only problem is the encore, “Nutrocker”, which doesn’t hold a candle to the majesty of the rest of the work, but it’s a nice fluffy dessert on top and doesn’t ruin a magical performance.

5 - mastapiece. Perfect prog performance

I loved it! It is one of the best live albums and one of the best art and progressive rock albums I ever heard. Masterpiece! Classics! Perfect sound, perfect themes, excellent vocal! Their adaptation is so much better than original Pictures at an Exhibition by Modest Mussorgsky. And this the best album by E.L.P., IMHO. However, "Mars, the Bringer of War" (adaptation of original suite from "The Palnets" by Gustav Holst) created by Emerson and Lake with Powell is a perfect hit too.

The skill with which many Prog Rock musicians played is incredible. Truly. ELP amongst the best if not THE best.

Glorious

One of my all time favorites

It's a live album of a keyboard-driven progressive rock band covering a 150 year old Russian romantic composer, and it sounds like video game boss music.

fuck yeah this album rocks. what a great find! modest mussorgsky (and tchaikovsky) reinvented in 70s prog rock? how does this have such low scores? pump promenade_ver_1, _2, and _3.mp3 directly into my veins favorites: literally every track. i liked them all on spotify. get rekt haters

This is a fantastic album and one of my all time favourites. Perhaps not my favourite ELP album but one which gives me some great memories particularly seeing ELP live. Those who complain about the sound quality of the album I do sympathise not because of the sound but because you were never fortunate enough to witness Pictures played live. I saw and heard it live 3 times. At Leeds Town Hall the static building organ was above stage level. When Keith Emerson said “I’m going to do some climbing “ everyone knew what was coming. He played the first few chords of Pictures, instantly recognisable and a beautiful tune, and everyone went wild. Keith was an amazing showman and just had to be seen live. As an explanation to those who think the sounds halfway through The Great Gates of Kiev are just random noise, Keith here was playing his Hammond either on top of him or with him sat on top rocking it around the stage. To see it was to believe it and I’m so glad that I did witness this as a testament to his superb musical ability. Shout out also to Greg Lake for his tender lyrics set to the original score. I know those words by heart and often sing them myself in any impromptu moment. I bought the album just prior to going on a 3 week outward bound course in the Yorkshire Dales where access to any news let alone music was forbidden. I was desperate to get home and to play this very disc. On the Friday night I arrived home I was exhausted due to exertions and lack of sleep. I went to bed early and listened to Pictures but did not get beyond Promenade before I was asleep and the needle was stuck on side one run off when I awoke 12 hours later. This is one abiding memory when I listen to this disc but it is the live performance which really does come to mind. One other important thing. Getting acquainted with this album encouraged me seek out the original Mussorgsky classical version of Pictures. As I had also done previously with other classic/rock crossover’s introduced to me by The Nice. Whilst I cannot be described as a classical music aficionado my knowledge and appreciation of that genre was gained entirely due to albums such as this and I think that was what ELP intended. 5/5 23/5/25

No tenía idea de la existencia de este álbum y me pareció una genialidad absoluta. Siempre me ha encantado la obra original de Mussorgsky, pero escucharla así, en versión rock psicodélico, me voló la mente. Por supuesto voy a escuchar mucho más de Emerson, Lake y Palmer. Aventarse a hacer algo como esto me parece de valientes, y que el resultado sea así de increíble, me parece casi milagroso. Una maravilla.

Promenade 1 & 2 did not feel necessary but anyway a very good concept album.

I really enjoy 70's prog rock. It was a great time for musicians making epic music. ELP were at the top of the heap. Fantastic band. Thoroughly enjoyable.

Thumbs up

Masterpiece! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Great music, even if it's prog at its most excessive.

didn't know what to expect from a live prog album based on a classical music suite but it was fantastic! there were some sections that leaned a little too heavy into the art rock side things to the point where it was almost just incomprehensible noise but it was for such a short duration i'll overlook it. the more annoying aspect of the album was the gratuitous amount of clapping left in on the last two songs which easily add 2 minutes to the runtime. despite that, i thoroughly enjoyed this album

"We're gonna give you Pictures at an Exhibition" (insane cheering). ELP was prog rock's first supergroup. All of the members of the band had been in successful early prog rock bands in the late 60s; All had been disatisfied with those groups. ELP would go on to become one of the best known prog rock (and classic rock) groups of the 1970s. Pictures at an Exhibition was recorded live at a Newcastle City Hall between their first and second albums. The sound is, by modern standards, crude. Crowd noises can be heard during the performance. At times the sound can be a bit muddy. These were due to the limitations of live recording systems at the time. And yet.... Keith Emerson's arrangement is spectacular. It is packed with energy and depth. The decision to have Greg Lake add lyrics and vocals to some of the movements was inspired, especially for the Great Gates of Kiev. A lot of rock adapations of classical music do not do justice to the source material. This is not one of those cases. ELP not only adapts this piece for more modern tastes but elevates into something new and different. It is Mussorsky, but not only Mussorsky. They never recorded Pictures at an Exhibition in the studio nor did they include any of it on subsequent live albums. This is the only version of this complete piece, in all of it's messy glory, that can be found on vinyl, tape, or CD. Excerpts are found on some of their later box sets including from an earlier Isle of Wight concert, but not the entire suite. I suggest listening to it on original vinyl if you can so that you hear it's original incarnation and can view the fold out album sleeve.

Incredible concert footage from a band so beyond its time.

One of ELP’s great strengths was their ability to perform classical pieces with great respect, while at the same time giving them a distinctly modern twist. This might be the greatest example, with Keith Emerson in particular a master of his instrument.

The top review at time of listening reads: "It's a live album of a keyboard-driven progressive rock band covering a 150 year old Russian romantic composer, and it sounds like video game boss music." ...which, yes, accurate - but then inexplicably they scored it 2!? Must have been a slip of the finger. 😏 This was great fun, and prompted me to listen to a performance of the original Modest Mussorgsky version. (And in a stroke of good fortune, the version I have tacks another track on the end, “Night on Bald Mountain”, which is one of those classical pieces I recognize but don’t know who did it. It’s the badass-demon-on-a-mountain bit of Fantasia!) It's very proggy, but at a tight 38 minutes it positively flies by - a great listen! Fave tracks - "The Gnome", "The Curse of Baba Yaga"

Great

Haven't heard this in a long time. Bought the studio album when it released originally because I was really into this band at the time. For a live recording it wasn't bad. Some criticise it for being pretentious, to the modern ear maybe it is, but progressive rock was innovative and exploratory. ELP were very different, there was nothing around like them. Emerson's keyboards and moog synthesiser sounds were set apart. This is a band that you either got or didn't and I got them, or at least I had an appreciation for the music they produced.

Complete and utter wizardry, I cannot even begin to imagine what it would have been like in that crowd experiencing this live!

This is one of those albums I had already heard before it came up through this generator. I already had a lot of respect for this album, mainly from the perspective of it being an early innovative progressive rock piece with heavy use of early synthesizers. Now that I’m looking deeper into it and learning that it’s really a progressive rock adaptation of a well-known classical suite, I have even more respect for their attempt to bridge classical music and early experimental progressive rock. It was a highly innovative endeavor for its time.

Very cool sounds. I like the amount of instrumentals and the tone. Interested in more.

One of my favorite live albums

Come back to this

Incredible album! I really need to listen to more of their music!

NO ONE beats the skins like Carl Palmer ....

I don’t really know why but i loved listing to that Album it’s weird but somehow perfect. The sound is extremely off and that makes it even better

LOVED IT!💖💖💖

Complete insanity.

So prog that it should come with a warning. The only thing wrong with Pictures At An Exhibition is that Lake doesn’t sing more than he does. Speaking of which… I would like to start a petition for Greg Lake to sing on every album on this list from here on out. Cool? Great!

Psychedelic.Folk.Rock.

I felt shock and awe when this first came out: classical music (that I was familiar with) played by rock musicians. A bit over the top? Sure, but I wonder how many listeners were turned on to the idea that maybe some of those classical composers had something to offer too. Glad this came up as a something one ought to listen to.

The first ELP album I bought as it satisfied my love of both classical and prog rock. It turned me into a vociferous advocate for future ELP offerings despite adverse reactions from all friends, family and even my favourite DJ. I don't care though - I love them! "Self-indulgent", "pretentious" - perhaps but with the keyboard skills of Keith Emerson and the inventive and comprehensive percussion efforts of Carl Palmer this was forgiven and in my case celebrated.

Okay I’m not a big fan of live albums but this was entertaining. Marking it to come back to in the future.

Tbd

This grew on me quick. Still need to finish it ! Tentative score strong 7. Need to revisit!!

The kids go crazy for “Nutrocker”

mais uma vez: quem não gosta de prog É PIRADO DA CABEÇA.

I'm a sucker for prog rock, and ELP is fantastic! While this is not my favorite album of theirs (hi Tarkus!!) I love this reimagining of classical works. Favorite song here is The Hut of Baba Yaga. I’ve listened to this many times and look forward to many more. 4⭐️

Una locura. No entiendo qué pasó pero genial. Podría ser malisimo pero a mi me encantó Nota: 3.9

This is insanity, I love it! Really creative & progressive. Won't become a regular listen, but i'm glad I've heard it, and will probably recommend to other musicians as something interesting.

Not at all as dreadful as I was expecting. Fun little moody piece.

Use of the synth in the '70? Great Live recording for the period

ELP have always been more symphonic than rock and this live album is proof of this. Covering Mussorgsky's multi suite Pictures at an exhibition, this live record really serves as a testament to how skilled these musicians are. What's most impressive to me is the bass playing and drumming. The organs are superb of course, but hearing electric bass and rock drums played so skillfully to this music was a real treat. The encore track "Nutrocker" shouldn't have worked, but damn like I said the bass and drums really really blew me away. A strange album all things considered but I did come away from this enjoying it.

So that was my first ELP album listen, probably a strange one to start on, but if the generator wills it, it shall be. It was a fun and zany fantasy-based prog rock listen, great first impressions here. Standouts are blues variation and the baba yaga portion.

Hard one to put words to, which in my estimation is in its favour. It has a very surreal feeling, punctuated by some excellent instrumental pieces My favourite song is probably "The Sage", but "Blues Variation" also has a wonderful feel to it Some of the weirder stuff like "The Curse of Baba Yaga" is cool but it's definitely less my vibe All this to say, I like bits and pieces of King Crimson, and so I also like bits and pieces of this

es en vivo, busque mas info sobre el album y q la idea sea caminar x una exhibicion y q cada tema represente una obra distinta me encanta; esa mezcla cinematografica, visual, musica clasica y rock

4.3 I dont know if that is the coolest thing I have ever listened to or the dorkiest. In any event, this really rips and ELP are supremely talented. The sound recording was pretty much perfect.

Best thing to happen to classical music since polyphony. Prog is the shit yo.

A great one from some of the architects of progrock.

weird and enjoyable but likely won’t listen again

Wow. Just wow.

Nervous about the global rating but I weirdly enjoyed this. Many parts were a bit avant-garde but the artistry in exploring many sides of the same song was interesting. And I kept wanting to hear more because I often had no clue what could be coming next! 3.5/5 interesting (and basically Animusic the album)

At the intro I totally turned it off at first because I heard him talking and was like NO MORE BRITISH POP ROCK RIGHT NOW. Then I came back to it because I like writing reviews for all the albums. If i'd have stuck around for more than those 5, pushing 10, seconds, I would have actually liked it and I do. It's like one whole long song. There is almost no gaps for people to clap which I really liked. I like that there's not a lot of singing. The singing is kinda weird and I like it. I don't really know if they're tryna to put across a story...? If I looked at the lyrics (cannot possibly begin to understand them just by listening) maybe I could piece together the story they're tryna put out, but honestly, I'm okay!

Wild to listen to. So much synth! I really enjoyed The Sage, and then The Old Castle was a wild switch. Track 8 sounds like Baba Yaga has gone off the rails. The last track being Nutcracker was an insane and unexpected surprise. I was listening while doing the dishes and was just like, "...is this Nutcracker?!"

Promenade, Part 1 - 3.5/5 The Gnome - 4/5 Promenade, Part 2 - 3.5/5 The Sage - 3.5/5 The Old Castle - 4.5/5 Blues Variation - 4.5/5 Promenade, Part 3 - 3.5/5 The Hut of Baba Yaga, Part 1 - 4/5 The Curse of Baba Yaga - 5/5 The Hut of Baba Yaga, Part 2 - 5/5 The Great Gates of Kiev - 4.5/5 Nutrocker - 4.5/5 A great re-imagining of classical musical that I feel gets better as the album goes on. The second half is killer, and their reworking of the Nutcracker suite as a "bonus" is also excellent. I'd rather listen to other prog stuff but this is still pretty good overall. Overall: 4/5 Favorites: The Hut of Baba Yaga, the Curse of Baba Yaga, Nutrocker

I wanted to badly to dislike this as it seemed so pretentious. But dammit, I love Mussorgsky and this was such a weird and loving version of the original piece.

Lots of proggy noodling but it works in the albums favour which is an expertly blended combination of prog rock and classical music. The trio are virtuoso players and that's all on display here.

Yeah this is cool. I think people forget the synth had only just come in. For example, the Beatles first used one for Abbey Road in 1969, so all this was brand new. Of course bands like this wanted to experiment with it, and for audiences, this would have been amazing to see live. I really like it as a funky take on classical music.

Popmuzikanten doen de Schilderijententoonstelling van Moessorgski. Een van de vele crossovers tussen pop en klassiek die door de decennia heen het daglicht hebben gezien, van 'In an eighteenth century drawing room' tot 'Mozart versus the rest' van (de voorgangers van) Deep purple. Het publiek gaat los, vooral bij de maffe experimenteersessies, die we ook wel kennen van het andere werk van de heren. Mooie mix van impro, herkenbare composities, virtuoos spel en af en toe wat zang tussendoor.

I bet this was a pretty fantastic concert to be at. So much of the music is truly beautiful. I loved the organ opening and the Nutcracker closing. The music was very diverse. I only wish had been a studio recording.

No idea what I expected but I need to listen to more of their non-live stuff. I actually quite enjoyed several tracks.

This is my first Emerson, Lake and Palmer experience. I'm impressed, I feel like they were ahead of their time. They incorporate sounds that reflect what I appreciate out of contemporary prog-rock bands. I think back on my last Yes experience through this generator, and it was missing the spark that made me want to revisit the effort. This recording has that spark. I started to consider the possibility that because this is their interpretation of a Russian masterpiece, that maybe that was the hook of this album and the reason the music has an air of timelessness to it, but the reality of this band is that they recognize the importance of melody and composition. Maybe falling down the ELP rabbit hole made me appreciate this effort more, I'm unsure because I insist it gets better after each listen. 5 or 6 listens later (to the original half hour project) and there are some lulls, some tracks that wouldn't work if not for the rest of the album, but I can't deny how much I enjoy hearing these instruments twist and turn into eachother. This is the type of effort that made me think so many years ago I was a prog-rock kind of person. 4.4/5

Definitely requires multiple listens.

Weird and i loved it. Instrumental. Symphony? Rock? Great.

Kind of a wild collection of songs. The instrumentation is all over the place but it all comes together and sounds good. Could do without the Nutrocker though.

Je suis rentré à reculons dans l’écoute, encore fâché que cet album a pris la place de mon cher Brain Salad Surgery, mais je dois avouer que c’était quand même bon, mais vraiment pas au niveau de BSS, CE QUI ME REND ENCORE PLUS FÂCHÉ

Instrumental that tells something without saying something

WOW

I am not a music critic by any means, but I believe this album is effective in its goal. It is very "in-your-face" with its experimentalism and raw technical skill from notable artists of the 70s. I found parts of this album to be harsh to listen to. This is thought-provoking due to the name of the album being "Pictures At An Exhibition." The album evokes the same feeling as being in an art exhibition, where, despite your desire to enter and see the art, your feelings are not accounted for, your previous expectations are not on the mind of the artist, and are effectively moot. I don't know if I will ever listen to this album again, but it did give me some things to think about in a way that no pop culture album ever has. My feelings may not correlate with the original goal of the album, but in a very "death of the author" way, I appreciate this album for being unique and thought-provoking on what art, raw skill, and broad appeal actually mean to the artist and the consumer.

I'll search for detailed information about this seminal progressive rock album. Let me search for more specific information about the recording details and production: I now have extensive information about this landmark album. Let me provide you with a comprehensive review. --- ## **In-Depth Review: Emerson, Lake & Palmer – *Pictures At An Exhibition* (1971)** ### **Overview** *Pictures At An Exhibition* represents one of the most audacious experiments in progressive rock history. Recorded live at Newcastle City Hall on March 26, 1971, this album captures ELP's rock reinterpretation of Modest Mussorgsky's 1874 piano suite—a piece originally composed as a memorial walk through an art exhibition by Mussorgsky's deceased friend, painter Viktor Hartmann. What makes this recording remarkable is that it was captured in a single night with no safety net; there was no studio version to fall back on, and the band paid for the production costs themselves to ensure complete creative control . --- ### **Music & Arrangement** **The Core Concept**: ELP adapted only four of Mussorgsky's ten original "pictures" plus the recurring "Promenade" theme that represents the visitor walking between artworks. Rather than a faithful transcription, this is a radical reimagining that transforms 19th-century Romantic piano music into a progressive rock juggernaut. **Keith Emerson's Dominance**: Make no mistake—this is primarily the Keith Emerson show. His arsenal includes the Hammond C3 and L100 organs (the latter subjected to his trademark physical abuse), a Minimoog synthesizer, Clavinet, and most dramatically, the massive pipe organ installed at Newcastle City Hall (built around 1928) . The opening "Promenade" begins with this pipe organ creating a sound so immense it requires serious stereo equipment to fully appreciate . Emerson's approach is characteristically aggressive: he takes Mussorgsky's melodies as launching pads for extended improvisations, keyboard gymnastics, and sonic experimentation that pushes the boundaries of good taste—sometimes intentionally, sometimes not. **Carl Palmer's Orchestral Drumming**: Palmer described this as the most challenging piece he ever played with ELP. Unlike conventional time-keeping, his role here is more akin to a "fourth melodic instrument"—playing in unison with keyboard lines, providing fills, and creating textural percussion rather than laying down a steady beat . On tracks like "The Gnome," his theatrical percussion creates genuine creepiness—what one reviewer described as "the musical twin of Lewis Carroll's *Jabberwocky*" . **Greg Lake's Supporting Role**: This is where the album becomes controversial. Lake functions primarily as bassist and occasional vocalist, with limited opportunities to shine. When he does appear—such as on the original composition "The Sage"—he provides crucial emotional relief from Emerson's assault. --- ### **Lyrics & Themes** The original Mussorgsky suite was programmatic—descriptive music without words. ELP's decision to add lyrics (written by Greg Lake with Richard Fraser) fundamentally alters the work's character: **"Promenade" (Part 2)**: Lake's lyrics transform the walking theme into a vocal ballad, adding a human narrative layer that doesn't exist in the original. **"The Sage"**: An entirely original Lake composition inserted into the suite, featuring medieval-style acoustic guitar and mystical lyrics. It serves as the emotional center of the album—a moment of genuine tenderness that critics consistently cite as one of the record's highest points . **"The Curse of Baba Yaga"**: Original group material that adds narrative drama to the witch's hut sequence. **"The Great Gates of Kiev"**: Lake's lyrics on the finale have divided critics—some find them uplifting and powerful, others strained and overly pompous . The thematic tension here is fascinating: Mussorgsky's original was about mourning and memory—walking through a dead friend's art. ELP's version is about *performance itself*—the audacity of three rock musicians tackling the classical canon. The lyrics reflect this meta-narrative, often feeling more about the experience of playing this music than the original paintings. --- ### **Production & Recording** **The Technical Achievement**: Engineer Eddie Offord captured this on mobile recording equipment with remarkable fidelity for 1971. Greg Lake served as producer, and while some tracks like "The Sage" sit low in the mix, the overall sound quality defies its live origins . **The Pipe Organ**: The Newcastle City Hall instrument adds genuine grandeur that separates this from cheesy "Switched-On Bach" style adaptations. However, legend holds that Emerson had to promise the Musician's Union he wouldn't stick knives in the console—a technique he developed with The Nice . **Live vs. Studio**: The band originally recorded and filmed the suite at London's Lyceum Theatre in December 1970 but were dissatisfied with the results. Palmer called the film "shocking" and noted the absence of Offord's engineering expertise . The Newcastle show was their deliberate second attempt to get it right. **Label Drama**: Atlantic Records initially wanted to release this on their classical imprint rather than their rock label, fearing it wouldn't sell. ELP held out, and after *Tarkus* became a hit, the label relented—though they released it as a budget-priced album on Island's HELP series . --- ### **Historical Significance & Influence** **A Watershed Moment**: This is arguably the first album to fully merge classical music with rock in a live setting—not as a novelty, but as a serious artistic statement. While The Nice (Emerson's previous band) had toyed with classical adaptations, and Procol Harum had recorded live with orchestras, *Pictures* was different: it claimed that three rock musicians could replace an entire orchestra and make the music *more* visceral . **The Gateway Drug Effect**: Countless listeners discovered Mussorgsky through this album. As one reviewer noted, it "made its way into the musical collections of high-school kids... who never heard anything about the classical composer Modest Mussorgsky" . For many, this was entry-level classical music dressed in rock clothing. **The Prog Template**: ELP established a formula here that would influence progressive rock for decades: classical adaptation + original interludes + instrumental virtuosity + conceptual unity. However, it also established the excesses that would eventually doom the genre—self-indulgence, pomposity, and technical display over emotional connection. **The Isle of Wight Legacy**: The suite debuted at the Isle of Wight Festival on August 29, 1970—ELP's second gig ever—where they performed alongside Jimi Hendrix and The Who. They rented two antique cannons loaded with gunpowder to fire during the climax, though they overloaded the charges and "it didn't go as planned" . --- ### **Pros** 1. **Unprecedented Audacity**: The sheer nerve of attempting this—and pulling it off live—is breathtaking. As one reviewer noted, "You need courage and an over-dimensioned ego to attempt recreating a Mussorgsky masterpiece... Emerson, Lake and Palmer have both" . 2. **Emerson at His Peak**: When he's focused, Emerson's keyboard work is genuinely transcendent. The Hammond organ runs on "The Hut of Baba Yaga" represent prog-rock at its most thrilling. 3. **Dynamic Architecture**: The album breathes. The transitions between bombastic instrumental sections and Lake's delicate acoustic moments create genuine dramatic tension. 4. **Historical Importance**: This is essential listening for understanding progressive rock's development. It proved that rock musicians could engage with the classical canon without dumbing it down. 5. **"The Sage"**: Lake's original composition stands as one of ELP's most beautiful moments—a medieval ballad that provides necessary emotional relief. 6. **"The Great Gates of Kiev"**: The finale successfully builds to a genuinely uplifting climax, with Lake's vocals soaring over Emerson's majestic organ. --- ### **Cons** 1. **Severe Imbalance**: This is not a trio effort—it's Emerson plus rhythm section. Lake and Palmer are underutilized, leading to criticisms that ELP was becoming "Emerson's backing band." 2. **Inconsistent Quality**: For every brilliant moment, there's a tedious one. "Blues Variation" degenerates into aimless keyboard noodling that wears out its welcome. "The Old Castle" feels like an exercise rather than a performance. 3. **The "Nutrocker" Problem**: The album closes with a honky-tonk adaptation of Tchaikovsky's *Nutcracker*—an encore piece that undercuts the preceding grandeur. Some find it fun; others find it "embarrassing, trivial, ridiculous" . 4. **Production Limitations**: Despite Offord's skill, 1971 live recording technology couldn't fully capture this music. The Mobile Fidelity remasters reveal details lost in original pressings, but some tracks remain muddy. 5. **Emerson's Excess**: His tendency toward "sound rather than music" (as one critic put it) results in sections where synthesizers produce noise rather than melody. The Moog occasionally hits wrong notes due to power supply issues . 6. **The P-Word**: It's pretentious. Deliberately, gloriously, unapologetically pretentious. As one defender admitted: "It's tasteless, it's ear-destructive... it bleeds white-bred anglophile academic pomposity throughout" . --- ### **Verdict** *Pictures At An Exhibition* is a flawed masterpiece—perhaps the definitive example of progressive rock's simultaneous brilliance and absurdity. It opened doors that allowed countless musicians to explore the classical-rock fusion, while also establishing the excesses that would eventually make prog-rock a target for punk's rejection. Is it faithful to Mussorgsky? No—and that's the point. As one reviewer observed, "covers must not be played like the author did it because it would be a simple copy... the adapter must recreate the whole work adding something of their own inspiration" . Is it consistently great? No. But when it works—as on "The Sage," sections of "Baba Yaga," and "The Great Gates of Kiev"—it achieves a unique synthesis of classical grandeur and rock power that remains thrilling over 50 years later. **Rating**: 4/5 stars—Essential for understanding progressive rock, intermittently brilliant, historically indispensable, and occasionally insufferable. As one critic summarized: "Very, very good live album. Probably the only live album that revolves around a single concept and wasn't already done in the studio" .

ELP often holds the reputation of being one of prog's campiest, most ridiculous bands...and in the case of this, they'd be right. But it's impressive and theatrical and so grand and dramatic that I can't bring myself to hate this. Although I will ask why this is in here and not Brain Salad Surgery or Welcome Back My Friends. There's two ELP records in here and neither one has "Karn Evil 9". What the hell man.

cool because i thought it would be boring butit wasnt!

Trots att jag älskar progrock har jag knappt lyssnat på ELP. Det här var ju svinkul! Pretto-britter som tolkar rysk 1800-talskompositör på konserthus är alltid ett lyckat recept. Blir varm i hjärtat av att ett sånt här album kunde hamna långt upp på topplistan 1971. Stark 4a.

För en gångs skull tog jag mig tillfälle. Eller var det snarare så att jag fick tillfälle? Vid närmare granskning syntes mig omständigheterna för dagens albumlyssning oklara. Klart var i alla fall att redaktör Åberg, det vill säga jag, satt fast i en stor förstärkare uppställd på familjens vardagsrumsbord. Inte med skägget, men en sladd från ett par hörlurar av skaplig kvalitet till nämnda förstärkare. Helt kopplad och halvt liggandes visades sig detta bli en upplevelse i stark kontrast med mitt tidigare möte med Emerson, Lake and Palmer. Den gången hittade jag skivan Brain Salad Surgery i min hylla, fick intresset väckt av det galna omslaget, men hann inte lyssna färdigt på första sidan förrän jag panikslaget försiktig lyfte nålen från skivan och bytte till något lugnare (läs: Steely Dan). Den här gången kanske det bara var skjutsen i ljudkvalitet och tryck som fick mig... eller var det bara ett jäkla fett drag?

Overall, an enjoyable listen. Excellent musicianship, good vocals, not too long an album. What keeps it from getting that last star from me is the keyboard/synthesizer. I know it was all the rage in 70's prog, but it's just overpowering too often.

Great to put on and just vibe. My expectations were wrong and I had a blast listening while I painted. The organ sound maybe isn't for everyone, but it sounded great in headphones

wow

I'm biased because I love Pictures an Exhibition in orchestral arrangement, for piano, and for ELP!

This could be the most potent example of how prog rock is just classical inspired rock. The fact that they were just a trio is so cool too they fill up the space so well. Slight Ben folds five vibes at times. Also adore Greg lake’s voice

I’m imagining that if all the guys were born in the 60s this is the concert we’d be going to in high school and we’d be going so fucking nuts. This is 70s black midi. I don’t think I latched onto any one song but this was an awesome and concise performance to a clearly big audience of ADORING fans. Love it.

‘Pictures at an Exhibition is an enjoyable live prog-rock opera, reimagining classical music through extraterrestrial funk and virtuosic synthesizer work

This fucking rules actually

Groovy. Though I could have done without the Nutcracker parody.

I enjoyed this but I think I need more time with it to decide if it's something I'd listen to again.

Finally, something interesting! Could've done without the addition of lyrics to well-known themes. Overall, silly and fun to listen to.

I’m sure this album is top of the list for people that think prog is awful. I played the original piece in several groups as a kid and hearing this was fun. Definitely an interesting listen. I could have done without nutrocker though.

did not expect a live album was very suprised

A bunch of dorks, playing music very well.

*Started slow but the last 2/3 of the album was great jazz rock *Impressive that it was live

Nice

Greg Lake was on fire on this particular day.

EL&P live always quite be like: "Oh, look at us and how we manage to jack off our instruments using this massive ten ton synthesizer" But taking that apart, it's wonderful music. 4 stars.

Weird but just great and partly hilarious!

Loved this. Interesting throughout, great classical twist and difficult believe it was live

Spannender, alter Synthisound, tut weh, wenn man sie zu lange hört :-;

This is so prog. I love it.

Despite several WTF moments, I enjoyed this a lot. I don’t know if British prog rock ever manifested itself more strongly and unashamedly than this. Great stuff! 4/5

Excellent for a live album.

It’s great but surprising what counted as entertainment back in the 70’s!

Претензионно, смело, нудно местами.

Early love 70s prog rock album, a cover of Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition classical piece. It's fun, eccentric, bold and ambitious, the organ played brilliantly by Emerson (who was a big admirer of classical music). It's really like at an exhibition - some songs are energetic and chaotic, some are quiet and slow. It's not everyone's cup of tea but I have always liked early 70s ELP (and late 60s stuff by Emerson).

Hell yeah, Мусоргский 🤘 Although nutcracker one was my favourite in the album

Surprisingly enjoyable

I don't think this kind of music works best as a live album, but this is a classic and I mostly love it.

A classic take on a classic. Would be 5 stars if it were all instrumental, but they went and put silly lyrics on it.

This was a fun change of pace. Without this experiment I would have never of found this. My biggest critique is that the album was live, and even that element wasn’t as awful as most other live albums.

sounds fun, this is a better live album than most bands just playing their hits Will I listen to again: 25%

This sounds like Jenova's boss themes from Final Fantasy 7 on crack. Absolutely fantastic listen. Too bad it's only a live album though.

I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would.

Long before Alyson Hannigan became the world's most famous Freaky Band Kid, these psychos were at it, with Keith Emerson doing in his own way for the Hammond organ (heheh, he said "organ") what Cage and Branca were doing for the piano and guitar. Be patient with the slow start; once you hit "The Old Castle" it's nothing but speed and power and virtuosity from there on out. The encore turns the Nutcracker March into a demented dancehall tune for good measure.

3.5

Recuerdos

excêntrico...

Weird but I dig it. Need to give that one another listen.

Hell yea. Thats a fun album.

This is pretty cool - a rock band doing a live show of an old orchestral piece.

Dad- 6 Mom- 8 Mike- 7.5 Lori- 7.5 Michael- 8 Miles-NA Cole- NA Avg- 7.4

nice

Det her stikker i alle retninger, og helt af. 1800-tals klaver musik fortolket og videreudviklet med orgel og Moog Synthesizer. Modsat progrockerne Yes, Genesis og Pink Floyd så lyder ELP faktisk som nogle der kaster alt over bords og udfordrer rockens konventioner. Det veksler mellem at være smukt og smadret. Mest smadret. Nogen gange sjovt. 3 stjerne for musikken. 1 ekstra for oplevelsen.

I love this goofy bullshit, reminds me of my dad.

what a concert i wish it was all just one song that's the only thing that would make it better. 9/10

I actually fucked with this in high regard. Quite a surprisingly weird live performance

Unusual but good

En del sjovere end det lige lyder på papiret!

Serious prog, but still fun somehow.

An excellent composition played with excellent musicianship. I find it funny the difference in opinions on this album, as some people would dread a live album of a prog rock adaptation of a classical piano suite, but I, as a massive nerd, was actually excited. I was not disappointed. All the playing was spectacular and the material was strong. The synths sound cheesy and dated, just the way I like them. It is amazing hearing the audience going wild for Nut Rocker of all things. 4/5

Pretty cool ngl

Highly experimental with a weird energy I didn’t expect. Very arty and out there. Must’ve been a very early use of synthesizers. Wish I had more time with it because I think there’s a lot here.

I liked some of the Promenade pieces and the Baba Yaga section was great!

Interesting choice. It's a good album, I've got it but very rarely listen to it. The bonus tracks on the cd are very welcome.

Deberia grabar mi reaccion cada vez que sale un disco prog. La superiorida estética y moral del trio. Es increible que esto haya sido "popular" en los 70s. Fue realmente muy osado lo de los chicos de ELP, tendría que escuchar la suite original.4.5

mystic trip

Have to say I love the concept here, take a long dead composer's music and play it like gremlins who stumbled across a bunch of meth and a synthesiser. Wasn't too sure about it at first, first few songs are lackluster, but from Blues Variation on I was into it, a lot of fun to listen to. Will be checking out more ELP and Modest Mussorgsky, who I'd never heard of.

This group's style is just so fun and ridiculous, even if this isn't their greatest work it's still entertaining to hear those organs get absolutely shredded

Started off slow and melodic then just started rippin

I’m pretty familiar with Tarkus and Brain Salad Surgery, both of which I love, but I’ve never listened to this live album. It was for the most part what I expected yet there were some moments that really caught me off guard. I would imagine seeing this live would’ve been mind blowing. Overall I loved this experience, easy 4.5 for me!

Whoa, this one is crazy. I had to crank it up to hear it properly. These blokes are going apeshit on their instruments. Sounds like some Mars Volta. I love it. I'm giving this a 4.

pretty good actually

I liked it, classical music in a prog manner. Some interesting things happening.

Prog rock album! Thought it reminded me of king crimson; turns out it's a supergroup containing a member of king crimson. Parts seem like a random amalgamation of noise often, but imagining being in the crowd and the atmosphere at those parts justify it. Especially considering this is a live album recording. It's hard to imagine how special this would sound compared to most other music made at the time - otherworldly. Perhaps not my go to easy listen, but undeniably great.

I liked it, I'm just not sure who I'd recommend it to.

Great concept!

A rock adaptation of a classical piece? Fascinating. Would listen again.

prog rock con tastiere incalzanti, da rivisitare

ngl, this goes hard. ridiculous in all the best ways

Wtf

I'm over 900 albums in at this point and this was one of the most unique albums I've come across on the list. Not something I'd put on everyday, but an enjoyable listen.

Fairytales like keyboard driven English prog. Can definitely hear that one of the band members are from King Crimson. Cool listen, but a bit much at times. The changes in volume in the mix is annoying.

Maybe it’s because I love prog, but I loved how all over the place this was, so I def understand the lower rating on this album, but this was just a lot of fun overall

PROG ROCK! PROG ROCK! PROG ROCK! Emerson, Lake, & Palmer are one of the most legendary groups in prog rock history. As a supergroup, the band was sure to produce some great works of art, right? Well, I'm sure they did at some point. Pictures at an Exhibition is close to this, but I can't say that this gripped me as much as I'd hoped it would. This is still a good listen though. This is a pretty unique album as far as this list is concerned. It's a live album rendition of a Mussorgsky piano suite. How cool! That's such a unique concept and I kind of love it. Apparently the classical influence is a big part of ELP's core identity. I can respect that. Given the exclusion of classical music from this list, it's nice to get something adjacent to it as part of an album like this. As this is a rendition of a full suite, Pictures at an Exhibition is definitely one of those albums that's greater than the sum of its parts. The songs are good on their own, yes, but the whole album experience is definitely where most of my appreciation lies. ELP's style is cool. I mean, they're prog rock. What else did I expect? The bass and keyboards especially stand out to me. The writing has that sort of fantasy-type thing that I like about bands like Yes. The interpretation of the suite is fun. This is far from my favorite prog rock album of all time. However, I still enjoyed. Even the weaker prog rock albums of the project are still good times for me! Low 4/5. Maybe Tarkus will be better.

Not related to the review of this album, but what is up with these English prog rock bands that just have names that sound like a law firm? There was a Yes related band with a similar law firm style name too. Anyway, time to settle in for a prog rock adaptation of a Russian composer's "piano suite". Ok then... The Promenade pieces do sound familiar but I can't really say where I've heard it before. I like the piano and organ work here. I enjoyed the slow play of The Sage before things open up with the heavy organ work in Blues Variation. Loved all the instrumentation here. Maybe the live component made this sound wild, but I'm not sure I liked the Curse piece of this album. Same with Great Gates of Kiev, or at least a couple of portions in the song. The Nutrocker was kind of fun, but I have no idea why it's included in this album. Kind of agree with the others that while I enjoyed this, I probably won't come back soon. Still, I'd give this a low 4.

Love a live album. Love the keyboard jamming. Would have enjoyed being at this show.

Was hoping for a little more from a Live EL&P album since the couple albums we have had from them were awesome. Still ultra proggy and synthy which I like, just didn't live up to my expectations. Nutrocker at the end was pretty fun. Low 4

Nice some more ELP. Damn that synth that came in on The Gnome was sick. The Promenade songs sound so familiar but not sure where from. All pretty solid stuff. Not sure I'm going to come back to this one. I much preferred Tarkus but there were still a ton of fun parts to this. Ending with Nutrocker was weird. Low 4.

This was pretty unique and interesting.

remarkable

I know the name, doubt I could name anything else of theirs I may have heard, and I enjoyed this. Really nothing else to say about that.

On first listen I thought this was phenomenal and was gonna be a 5/5. But something was off, I enjoyed it but when I went back to my liked songs there were massive gaps and I was like what??? Since it plays like one continuous track clearly i thought the songs were longer than the reality. On a second listen the flaws stuck out a lot more. On the songs I didn't particularly care for some of the stuff they were doing with synthesisers end up sounding like they're looping a royalty free sample on some music software. There highs are still very high though. Blues Variation, and that entire back portion from the Baba Yaga through to The great gates of Kiev, even the nutcracker are all killer. Very polarising in quality imo though. Still enjoyed quite a bit however. 8/10

Nisam znala da mi u životu trebaju prog rock aranžmani klasične muzike ali očito trebaju, ovo je genijalno urađeno.

actually in awe that they made a prog rock adaptation of pictures at an exhibition 💀 the nutcracker adaptation was also really good. this album felt inherently wrong but i liked it. it made me laugh! 4/5!

Det svänger som fan, men ingen låt sticker ut. Bättre live antagligen. Fyra

88/1089 - I prefer the Ravel orchestration. The Tchaikovsky "Nut Rocker" song kinda reminded me of "Cliffs of Dover" at parts.

you know when that well-meaning lady "restored" that fresco of Jesus in Spain? That

i loved speeding to this!! scratches all the brain itches, def would've loved. this in the 70s

This is very silly, but the weird keyboard tangents are out of this world.

I know i have been giving out 4s like I'm Oprah Winfrey giving out cars lately but that's just because these albums have been so good and Pictures At An Exhibition is one of those albums. This album genuinely shocked me with how not only good, but weird it is. Each of the songs had a very different vibe from each other (except for the ones with the same name) and each of them had quite a lot of quirkiness to them from the bleeps and bloops of some songs to the heavily blues inspired songs. The sound quality was also very good and it never at any point got tedious. This is just another album i really like. Best Song: The Old Castle Worst Song: The Sage

Hey let's make an instrumental album with classics done in a slight proggy way.

fuckin nerds

Genius!

Never heard this before, but it was pretty freakin' cool! At album #424, it's another that I find myself wishing I'd known sooner. Definitely going back for another, deeper listen.

3.75 funky bluesy renn faire? Sign me up.

Interesting, worth a second listen

A fun little prog album, feels a little aimless but doesn't run on for too long, so it's not much of an issue.

ELP is my least favorite of the big prog bands... Definitely more into Yes, Genesis, King Crimson and Moody Blues. I'm not sure I even have a fiver for ELP. Of all the albums I've heard, they've topped out at a strong four. They have genuine five star material, but their albums as a whole don't take me to that next level. I'm not really certain why as I think all three are phenomenal musicians on par and possibly even better than their contemporaries. My only guess is their approach is not 100% in my lane. As for this album it might be one of my favorites definitely. Having Modest Mussorgsky as the main composer really helps a lot. Keith is on absolute fire on some of the solos. However, I feel at arms length with the material as a whole. I can admire it's beauty and technicalities, but it really doesn't give me all the feels. (8.45) ★★★★

A fantastic mix of rock and classical music. Love the musicianship. 4.5 stars

Classic classical prog. The fact that this does sound like video game boss music makes it all the better. Definite shades of Star Fox, Final Fantasy and Ganon’s Tower from Legend Of Zelda if they all became 70s versions. Lot of cool variety from the regal earwormy Promenade theme, spindly graceful guitar workout and balladry of The Sage, oogly woogly spasmodic space synth and Hammond blues detours plus the ultra anthemic climax of Great Gates Of Kiev as well as the absolute powerhouse drumming throughout. Nutrocker is a bit more like ice cream van chase music though.

I don't know why but I seemed to like this one

It's pretty outstanding, actually. It's not normally my thing, but it's incredibly ambitious. I don't normally look into the albums until after I listen, but I took a peek at this because it is so unique and weird in a really cool way. Turns out it's a rock interpretation of a piano suite by a Russian composer. I'd say there's a little too much 60s rock organ in this, but overall, it's really quite cool. I won't listen to it on repeat, but I'd definitely listen again for fun, and I'm pleased that I had the chance to hear it. Bonus points: it's a tight, 38 minutes.

Diese Platte von ELP hatte meine Freundin auch. Hat mir klassische Musik und Kandinsky näher gebracht. Schon allein aus nostalgischen Gründen gibt es 4*.

I am usually pretty cold on British prog rock, but this album rips. The virtuosic Hammond and somehow-not-annoying use of the synth are great here. Sprinkle in some traditional British vocalizing and ripping drums and base and you’ve got some magic. This outshines other prog rock I’ve had so far.

Thought this was going to be more classic rock but it was actually really off the wall electronic stuff, to me a bit like non instrumental sigur Ross or something like that. Was fun.

I own this.

ah fuck i've been gnomed

From a gentle guitar driven ballad to synth heavy video game boss music, this album has everything including the kitchen sink and for me at least… it worked? What a trip.

4/5

Wasn’t what I expected from ELP but it was fun listening to in the bath!

i dont know what i heared

Classical music and progressive rock had been approaching something close to a collision for some time before Emerson, Lake & Palmer's variation of Modest Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition. Why wouldn't it? The two genres had plenty in common: extravagance, pomp and circumstance, gravitas, you name it. All of that is captured here in this compact collection that sprawls in sound but never in structure. ELP being rather new to the scene and still coming in clutch with the interpretation is rather surprising when thought about but what isn't is the belief that anything is possible, especially when two such distinct genres come together. Favorites: The Gnome, The Sage, Blues Variation, The Curse of Baba Yaga, The Great Gates of Kiev, Nut Rocker.

Enjoyed this.

I love this. I grew up listening to this. I think Mr. Mussorgsky would approve.

När jag tog upp denna sida igår var jag trött. Jag hade lastat av möbler och åkt bil i sex timmar. Jag var också väldigt nikotinberusad och ville nu lägga mig men denna dagliga grej innebar att jag behövde lyssna ett 40 minuter livealbum av progs tolkning av klassisk musik, fan va hemskt. Men detta album hade en fantastisk egenskap, jag satte mig i sängen blundades med lurarna. Det var lätt för mig att bli lätt sovandes men musiken hörde jag fortfarande. Den som drömmar visade mig bilder i huvudet. Det fortsatte till dens slut när den sista låten ”Nutrocker” en energifylld jullåt väckte mig. Var detta album gjort för detta? Det verkade som det men nej folk bevittnade detta och på detts album hör man att de bemöter dessa grabbar som att de var punkrockare. På vissa sätt kan jag höra det men att detta album fick mig att dra mig genom denna nästan psykideliska hypnos gör introt på detta albumet komiskt för mig, folket som skriker för ”Pictures at an exhibition”

Хорошая музыка, классика с интересным оттенком. Хорошо, что и такое есть в списке

Interesting album. A bit simple to repeat the same part of Mussorgskys "Pictures At An Exhibition" but as a complete album quite good.

A classic live album blending ELP's Prog-Rock with Mussorgsky's piano suite "Pictures at an Exhibition", with the added bonus of a live version of "Nut Rocker" - a take on the march from Tchaikovsky's "The Nutcracker" ballet (and originally a hit in 1962 for B. Bumble and the Stingers).

Couldn't access the album. Listened to their best of instead. I tell ya, I like my prog like my women. Deeply weird and a touch too long in the back end.

Looking at my previous review of this band I mentioned that it sounds like these guys were having fun, and this album just reinforces that view. Concept and deliver. Great work. Faves: The Hut, and The Curse, Of Baba Yaga

Ok baby lets strap in for some early 70's drug fueled prog rock. The concept is totally bananas. The Sage is probably the least unhinged, but the crowd going nuts for The Old Castle is just so crazy to me. This is the soundtrack to a mad scientist lair, especially The Hut of Baba Yaga. What is with this crowd?! The Nutcracker track at the end is fucking awesome. What am I supposed to do with this album?

Idk if it's cause I was super high when I was listening to this, but I surprisingly really liked it!

Pretty cool!

I loved this album and everything Emerson, Lake & Palmer did with it. Repurposing a piano suite from the Romantic period to become progressive rock is SO cool. Pictures is full of creativity, due to ELP's work, and is often quite beautiful, owing to the source material. Unsurprisingly, because the suite was crafted to be one piece, each movement/song flows beautifully into one another. ELP still make this their own, sometimes with lyrics or electronic music. Live albums are hit or miss. Often I'm flummoxed as to why a live album is on this list, but the content of this album sets my mind at east. ELP never recorded a studio album with this material, at least. Does the live aspect add anything for me? Perhaps not, but perhaps their best bet for this music to be published was through a live album. Since piano suites are made to be performed live, I will allow this live album.

This album was wild. I liked the sounds and the musicianship. I can't imagine what it would have been like to have been there and seen this performed live.

nice.

Quite enjoyed the wacky noodle was mixed with some classical. Gotta check out some more E & also P.

The 3 Promenade songs I didn’t care about but the rest is good. This live is tolerable because it’s only 38 minutes long.

I enjoyed this a lot. Definitely the good side of prog. Totally pretentious, overblown and unnecessary, but still very enjoyable despite, or perhaps because of that. This album felt a bit like a rich dessert, too much would make you feel sick, but in smallish amounts (which is why I avoided the extended edition like the plague) it's very enjoyable. A high 4.

++: Promenade, The Gnome, Blues Variation, Promenade, The Hut of Baba Yaga, The Curse of Baba Yaga, The Hut of Baba Yaga, The Curse of Baba Yaga, The Great Gates of Kiev +: Promenade, The Sage, Nutrocker 9,4/10

Cool live performance. It was like medieval rock, jazz, and a little bit of electronic music mixed together. I can’t remember the lyrics, but the vibe was good. Standouts: The Gnome, The Sage, The Curse of Baba Yaga, and The Great Gates of Kiev.

I played this a second time, so I have to rate it at least a 4/5. There's some cheesy "futuristic" keyboard sounds and a bit of cringey singing, but there's also a lot of really cool stuff and really impressive technical playing. Yeah, I like this pretty well. Best track: The Old Castle

An amazing piece done with an interesting interpretation. I prefer the modern studio version that came out in 1994, but it is ELP doing what they know best.

Very good.

This is a wild thing to listen to but is so good to have on the list. You had three stellar musicians who decided they wanted to get really experimental on everything they did and one of their albums is just a classical work in a prog style. The encore is the nut cracker suite. This barely makes sense and it's great.

I have never listened to ELP, so this might be a kind of insane way to start. I can see why this would be polarizing in the mainstream. Cool concept. I do look forward to hearing more of them. I like what prog brings to the table, it activates my synapses. They play like they never stop playing. The recording is so good. The sound of the strings is perfect. I need more time with this in the future. Needs a trumpet or french horn.

one or two were nice.

First listen it didn't click. Second listen I was blown away. 4/5 only because I can't see myself listening all the time, but a great prog rock/classical fusion live album!

A weak four because even though I usually dislike masturbatory rock music like this, I'm a slut for old synths.

I was never a big fan of ELP. I tend to find them a bit too much showmanship and theatrics, and light on actual music. I did enjoy this album very much though. It is incredibly overblown and pretentious, but that's almost part of the charm.

Groupe connu, par contre album inconnu. J'adore les longues plages instrumentales, les impros, comme dans les autres albums, en particulier Trilogy qui m'a fait découvrir le groupe, et ... qui reste mon préféré. Dons pas la note max mais pas loin ! =>4.5/5

It’s commonly accepted that 1986’s Dragon Quest was the first role playing game to feature distinct boss music when fighting The Dragonlord, but most people don’t know the genre was accidentally invented 15 years earlier when ELP performed a prog interpretation of Mussorgsky’s Pictures At An Exhibition

Yes, I'm probably a weirdo, but I'm a big ELP fan. Not necessarily of Emerson's treatment of his instruments, and I laughed at the conditions placed on him for using the pipe organ at Newcastle, but I actually had this album (CD) in college.

I was ready to dislike this. Pictures At An Exhibition is one of my favorite classical suites and it’s a live album, so I figured it would just be odd and sound like shit. I was right about it sounding a bit like shit (though not anywhere near as bad as it could have) but the interpretation of the work is really quite good. Adding lyrics and singing is always a risk when you’re using someone else’s music but it’s kept to a minimum and the singing is good, which I should’ve expected. There is a bit of what I would consider an overuse of the piano/synth/organ but you can’t just do everything on a guitar as much as I would like that to be the case. That said, the organ in the various calls to the promenade theme get more powerful as the album goes on (as it does in the original piano composition) as they go on and by the last one in the beginning of “The Great Gate of Kiev” brings it all home beautifully. The three part interpretation of “The Dancing Hut of Baba Yaga” is a highlight of this for me. All three of them shine technically throughout it and the timing of such a technical piece is constructed incredibly well without sounding robotic. The dissonance at the end of the middle section matches the original which is cool. I never knew this existed before today and I’m glad I got to hear it. What a turnaround from expectation to reality. Bit of a laugh at the last track which is not part of the suite but is another (goofier) interpretation of Russian classical music. I wouldn’t have put this on the album but otherwise it would’ve been really short so I get it.

Pretty unique piece of art, it does have a young adult white girl vibe, but I'd recommend everyone to give it a try. Favorite track: The Hut of Baba Yaga

Very cool live album. It is mostly instrumental, but the synth on it is super cool.

Spennende

I like it It's not like songs It's very "look at us doing weird shit with instruments". But they're having fun. You can feel it. I disagree with the notion of it being pretentious. I don't think they're showing off for showing offs sake. It was the early 70s. There was a lot of drugs around man. Several tracks on this I could listen to over and over. It brings me joy in dark places. I'm glad I found this.

perfect huwelijk tussen klassiek en rock...

Enjoyed this. Wonderful concept executed flawlessly

This is badass. Carl Palmer is among the great drummers in rock, he's got chops for days but doesn't overdo it — he always plays in service of the music. And while the music here is ambitious, he's just so tasty. Greg Lake was also a force, and it was nice to hear some of the various timbres of his vocals in this live performance — not to mention his mean bass tone. And Keith Emerson ... one of a kind. Clearly, this material speaks to his classical inclinations, and he handles it all with mastery.

Very rock opera

A curious album, at times engaging and at times tedious. Thumbs up to The Sage, Blues Variation, and The Hut of Baba Yaga.

Classical

Not a whole lot of percussion, but this one undoubtedly goes to the beat of its own drum. A compelling combo of orchestral arrangements and acoustic ballads. There are some very pretty guitar passages infused with a Basque flair. Wild instrumentation to the point where it gets difficult to venture a guess at what’s making a certain sound. Great quality for a live recording from the 70s. Listened to: walking around holy cross cemetery. Favorite tracks: The Gnome, The Hut of Baba Yaga, The Curse of Baba Yaga

Música clásica tocada como rock progresivo con teclados. Curioso. Un 4.

more Yes vibes than the last ELP album on here but still super good. definitely an album where you listen to the whole thing rather than single songs though

I like the original a lot, so it was a surprise to see there was a prog rock version. And it was actually good, it was a nice cover with the same feeling as the original while giving its own spin. Point docked for the singing, though. Did not add anything.

Mix of classical and rock! Pretty cool!

A non-trivial look at Mussorgsky. Great ideas and unprecedented quality of execution.

I'm giving this a 4 because I appreciate the attempt, and it made me laugh, and it didn't last all that long. Also because I suspect if I were on acid it might have blown my mind.

Live interpretation of Mussorgsky's piece. The band and audience sound like they are having a good time. My father, a classical music enthusiast, would hate this. I like it.

I love ELP. Such a fantastic and fascinating band, and how they managed to create all that sound as a trio is mind-blowing.

Clearly this is a hot take on this website but I actually really liked this

Pictures At An Exhibition by Mussorgsky, arranged by Ravel, is one of my favorite classical pieces of all time. I saw it performed live by the Colorado Symphony a few years back and it was mesmerizing. Hearing a prog-rock cover of it hear was surprising and very entertaining! Loved recognizing portions of the original piece along with some wild interpretation and improvisation. Talk about technical mastery of instruments- these guys are very skilled musicians. What a hidden gem- Four stars.

Wow, they went crazy with the keyboards on this one and the album flew by. I was a little disappointed that I could only find a live album but the band did not hold back. Very enjoyable up beat keyboards. I cant find a reason not to give it at least 4 stars.

Really enjoyed the composition and prog rock sound that sounds familiar.

Amazing! A Classic of Classics!

Very musically impressive album. Enjoyed listening to this one.

If it wasn't for the audience cheering I would never have guessed this was a live album. It was a sonic journey, extremely well recorded, the musicianship was on point and the vocals were stellar. Musically it was solidly put together which sometimes can be a struggle with prog rock

Wow, wow, wow. I was not expecting this to be as good as it was, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but it had my attention the whole way through. I’m also just so happy that it was only 35 minutes long. For a live album, that’s quite short. Makes me want to both listen to more ELP (this is the first of their albums I’ve ever heard) and listen to the original by Modest Mussorgsky. I’d listen again. One of the best albums I’ve heard so far. 8/10 Top 4: 1. The Sage 2. The Great Gates of Kiev 3. Promenade (Pt. 2) 4. Promenade (Pt. 1)

Electric Classical Music. Dig it.

Sage is probably my favourite song except it isnt representative of the rest of the album. "There is no end to my life, no beginning to my death. Death is life."

i love that its super weird but i prob wouldnt listen to most of it again

A fun live album. Nice prog rock with heavy synth usage. Not my preferred album and definitely not something you have to listen to before you die.

Love ELP - this show was probably extremely badass to be at

I've always loved Mussorgsky's Pictures. Hearing it with synths is even more fun! Neat.

Great live album.

Promenade Pt. 1 - sounds very holy with the organ. Weird that the only version of the album is live. The Gnome - can’t imagine myself listening to this in any circumstance really, but sounds like a video game so far which is cool. Promenade Pt. 2 - i actually like the sacred vibe of this one, sounds more Eastern. The vocals really add to the song. The Sage - cool intro. I like this one a bit more as well, the vocals and guitar instrumental sound nice. The Old Castle - the song literally passed by without me noticing. Blues variation - funky and jazzy, absolutely love this one. Promenade Pt. 3 - very triumphant, like it. The hut of Baba Yaga Pt. 1 - very chaotic and fun, I’m starting to see why people liked this. The curse of Baba Yaga - genuinely might listen to this again at some point, when I’m playing a game or something. It just sounds fun. The hut of Baba Yaga Pt. 2 - even more chaotic, even more fun. The Great Gates of Kiev - an interesting one, can’t hack the long songs personally but it’s alright. Nutrocker - I like this one, sounds kind of blues-y in parts. Fun with lots of energy.

Definitely weird but I fuck with it. Love the proggy and the keys. Conceptually reminds me of Ulver's William Blake album. 4/5.

what i expected from it, and i was excited for it

First, love the cover. So pretentious! I trust we'll have some wandering noodly progressive rock to illustrate these pictures for us. Ok reading what this is and getting started I am optimistic. Who doesn't love some Russian classical music? I know I do. Even so, I'm still a bit surprised that I recognize some of it. The pieces move along in a much more sprightly manner than I anticipated. It isn't all I hoped it would be but it was still pretty good. An interesting enough idea with adequate execution to belong on this list.

A little too much organ for me but I would still put it on any day.

I like this album except the arbitrary synth screaming. WEEEEooooWEEEEEEEEEEEOoooooWEEE-EE-EEEEEE!!

A prog rock behemoth performing music written and inspired by a 19th century Russian composer? Naturally. I've heard this before but didn't really know the background. If you compare alongside the original work, ELP takes some creative liberty but captures the tone fairly well, and surprising to me, Greg Lake slips a few original songs in. Ranking this among their other albums of this period, it feels a little odd, almost more of a novelty than anything else. I wouldn't suggest this to anyone new to ELP or wanting to get their feet wet into the world of prog rock, but firm fans will find a lot to enjoy here. Several moments throughout I caught myself laughing at the absurdity of it while at the same time getting caught up in it's exuberance. Carl Palmer seems completely unhinged and I forgot just how goofy Nutrocker was. 3.8

Took me a bit to get the concept but it grew on me throughout the album.

7/10. Sounded good, but not especially memorable on a first listen, but also maybe I was just getting distracted by work.

Rating: 7/10

This was a surprise, never listened to before but I enjoyed it a lot. Highlights were 'The Gnome' and 'Nutcracker'

I like it. It's mostly instrumental. So ideal to have on in the background while working.

Really didn’t know what to expect but came away impressed

excelente

On the road so not the most critical listen, but then again, very familiar with this record, own the vinyl from years and years ago. Interesting cross pollination of prog rock with classical. There are other ELP albums I like more, the live albums or Brain Salad Surgery, but this one is entertaining and a good performance.

eu gosto de rock progressivo mas emerson lake and palmer é bom demais pra mim, mesmo assim, muito foda. o mais incrivel é que o greg lake toca baixo e guitarra ao mesmo tempo. os tres são inacreditaveis na verdade, emerson tem as loucuras de teclas dele e o palmer consegue manter tudo em tempo com os ritmos quase melodicos dele.

I never thought that I'd enjoy a progressive rock live album but here we are. I love the keyboard fiddlings fueled with drums and other instruments. I also like how the songs are loosely wrapped in some sort of a plot. These guys can probably make a fire video game soundtrack.

Always loved this album

A bluesy take on a long-dead Russian composer's work... Yep, that's prog alright. As far as introductions to ELP, it's a strong choice, but I enjoyed it. It's played solidly, and it's fun to see which winding path it takes you down. Favorite tracks: "Blues Variation", "The Hut of Baba Yaga (Part 2)"

Synths cover of Modest Mussorgsky. Came out 1971 and sounds exactly like 90s jrpg fight music, chef's kiss no notes

organ/piano(?) player go brrrrrrrrr. really liked the recurring melody throughout the album, it sounded familiar but idk what from

Indulgent yes, bombastic yes, unnecessary drum solo yes, but still a really good listen. I never got into ELP at the time but I imagine they would have been good fun to watch live, and this album captures something of that spirit

I liked this take on a favorite classical work, performed live.

I think a lot about how the way I grew up interacting with music (in the 1970s and 80s) is so different than how folks interact with it now (in the 2020s). In my day, I'd hear a song on the radio several times. If I liked it, then I might call the radio station to request it and then wait around until they played it. If I really liked it and had baby-sitting money, then I might buy the 45 (rpm vinyl record of the single). If I really liked it and had no cash but I did have a blank tape, I'd hold my tape recorder up to the radio speaker and record it, mildly cursing the DJ for talking over the intro and/or the fade-out. I wouldn't buy a whole album unless there were at least two singles I liked on it AND I had money. Further, there was virtually no way to listen to an album that you did not yourself own or have access to via a friend or sibling. So it was extremely rare to hear an album just once. If you heard an album, you'd hear it over and over again. And if you'd spent money on it, you'd do that even if you didn't particularly like it beyond the hit singles that brought you to it. But there was a sense of ownership of a song --- "I had that on 45" --- ownership that made the song a part of you. From LPs, we moved to cassettes and to CDs. When iTunes came along, I ripped my CDs to mp3s, at first just the good songs and then, as I got bigger and bigger hard drives, the rest of the albums. (I still have all those CDs. I don't know how to get rid of them.) I also paid for songs and albums on iTunes for a long time. I feel a sense of ownership of all of those songs. Now I subscribe to a streaming service and I haven't really figured out a way to curate the songs that I want to "own" because in some sense I own them all. Whenever I want, I can listen to a whole album once and feel no obligation to ever listen again. Often in this project I base my rating at least in part on whether or not I want to hear the record again. I think that's partly due to this training in my formative years. Loving an album, or even liking it, means having it and listening to it again and again. But maybe that's not necessary any more. Anyway...I did not know of ELP's Pictures at an Exhibition before today. I liked it just fine and I appreciate it as part of the culture but I don't particularly want to hear it again, so I think I'm going to give it 4 stars. But I also think, if I'd heard it live, without the question of whether or not I'd even have the option to experience it again, I might give it 5.

Greg Lake has a beautiful voice. His singing on “The Sage” is gorgeous. Damn those drums that come in half way through “The Old Castle” have power! I almost wasn’t into this. But this is actually pretty sweet. That bass line riff is really hooking me. I was skeptical about this album at first -- I thought it might be a little pretentious or something. But I ended up enjoying a bunch of songs. It definitely feels a little dated in parts and some of the synth solos can be a tad grating but these guys can really rock when they all groove together! Track 8, “The Hut of Baba Yaga,” really captured that energy for me. Some head banging jamming there.

ELP have an unmistakable sound. I always liked that the psychedelic sounds were still present in the prog rock. I liked parts of this album less than other parts. I fully appreciate their musicianship and experimentation. They put out sounds that no others were making

Gripping. I don't understand some of the decisions, but I like this album more than I dislike it

I’m not sure whether to classify this album as a classical, symphonic rock, or progressive rock album. Several classics snippets are played straight while other songs are fusions of style. Having said that, this album is a bit over ambitious and I’m not sure it totally succeeds at what it’s trying to do whatever that is. It’s not great as a classical album but does have some really great progressive jazz moments. I’ll give it a four for sheer uniqueness.

Quite brilliant

Classical prog rock was a huge surprise. Consider me shocked and a fan

I'm not a big fan of live recordings of this sort, but as someone who likes psychedelic and progressive rock this is a pretty fun one nonetheless. Saved tracks: The Curse of Baba Yaga, The Hut of Baba Yaga - Pt. 2, The Great Gates of Kiev