Emerson, Lake & Palmer defined an era. Between 1970 and their eventual dissolution, the trio of Keith Emerson, Greg Lake, and Carl Palmer built a body of work that remains without peer in progressive rock: Tarkus, Brain Salad Surgery, Pictures at an Exhibition — records that treated the rock concert as a serious artistic event and pulled it off. That catalog is the subject of this September evening at Penn’s Peak.
Billed as “An Evening with Emerson, Lake & Palmer,” the show is a concert presentation of the ELP songbook. What that means in practice — in terms of lineup and approach — is best confirmed directly with Penn’s Peak closer to the date. What’s certain is the music: “Karn Evil 9,” “Lucky Man,” “From the Beginning,” “Fanfare for the Common Man” — pieces that changed what a three-piece band could do and have never stopped sounding remarkable.
Penn’s Peak in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania is a well-regarded mid-size room in the Poconos that handles this kind of show with care. The crowd that gathers for a night like this tends to be serious about the music — people who own the records, who know the running order, who will appreciate every arrangement choice.
Tickets are on sale via Ticketmaster. If the ELP catalog has any claim on you, this is a rare chance to hear it in a room built for listening.