Very Best of [Original recording remastered]

Emerson Lake & Palmer | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 17, 2001)
• Original Release Date: 1971
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Rhino / Wea
• ASIN: B00004YR27
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #91,397 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Lucky Man

2. Knife Edge

3. From the Beginning

4. Trilogy

5. Jerusalem

6. Toccata

7. Karn Evil 9: 1st Impression, Pt. 1

8. Still...You Turn Me On

9. Pirates

10. Fanfare for the Common Man

11. C'est la Vie [Live]

12. Peter Gunn Theme [Live]

13. The Hut of Baba Yaga/The Great Gates of Kiev [Live]

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great songs, but..., December 19, 2001

By 

David Hogan "Iron Horse" (Edison, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Very Best of (Audio CD)

If you are new to ELP, and insist on buying a "Best of" compilation, it would be better to buy the collection simply titled "Best of Emerson, Lake and Palmer" (as opposed to this, which is VERY best of ELP). "Best of" was released years ago, but is still available currently at most stores. That cd is better because it includes the entire Tarkus suite, and as any ELP fan well knows, it is ridiculous to call an ELP collection their "Very best" material if it excludes Tarkus. Also, the original "Best of" has Hoedown, an essential early instrumental hit.

However, it should be noted that because this Cd ("Very Best of ELP") excludes the Tarkus suite (20+ minutes), it includes a few songs the other collection does not..."Pirates", the full version of "Fanfare for the Common Man," the "Peter Gunn" theme, and snippets from the "Pictures at an Exhibition" album. All things considered though, I would consider the other collection to be a hell of a lot closer to "The best" of ELP than this one because of Tarkus.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Great Music, Lousy Mastering, April 4, 2004

By 

SAL (NY US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Very Best of (Audio CD)

This album is chock full of some classic music. A good selection overall that represents a fine cross section of the bands talents and evolutuion. Unfortunately, as any ELP fan can verify, the recordings leave a great deal to be desired. I find it odd that the best sound on the entire compilation is one of the live examples near the bottom of the track list. "C'est La Vie" is recorded live, but somehow outshines all of the studio material as far as Clarity, Depth of Image, Ambiance and Frequency Response. Almost all of the studio tracks sound flat and very scewed toward the high end. I am a fan from way back but have always been dissappointed with ELP's recordings and purchased this compilation hoping for some noticeable improvements from the mastering engineers at Rhino. Needless to say, I am not impressed.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Decent but lacking, June 10, 2004

By 

Keith Tyler (Seattle, WA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Very Best of (Audio CD)

There are some very good songs on this compilation. Focusing on ELP's progressive rock sensibilities, a lot of classic moments in early electronica and electronic rock are showcased. But can an album be considered a collection of the Very Best of ELP without what are perhaps the groups most well-known tracks, Hoedown and Nutrocker? The album provides a decent sampling of the groups range, but this leaves it promoting some work that is more the exception than the rule of ELP music.