Carl Palmer's ELP Legacy Celebrates Emerson, Lake & Palmer

Legendary drummer Carl Palmer of Emerson, Lake & Palmer (ELP) is doing much more than paying tribute to the iconic 1970s progressive rock outfit with his show, “Carl Palmer’s ELP Legacy.” The inventive, virtuoso drummer is also reimagining the music of himself, the late keyboardist Keith Emerson and the late bassist/vocalist Greg Lake.

Carl Palmer's ELP Legacy features Palmer, guitarist/vocalist Paul Bielatowicz and bassist Simon Fitzpatrick, giving a traditional guitar-bass-drums power trio treatment to the group's vast and eclectic repertoire that touches on everything from jazz to rock to folk and, of course, ELP’s famed arrangements and adaptions of classical compositions such as “Toccata,” "Knife-Edge" and "Fanfare for the Common Man."

The show comes to the South Orange Performing Arts Center on Sunday, Nov. 17, followed by two nights at the Iridium in New York City Nov. 19-20.

Palmer’s innovative, non-traditional, complex, challenging and rhythmic drumming played a vital role in ELP’s music. Part of Palmer’s genius is his unique ability to play with clinical precision while not sounding sterile.

To the contrary, Palmer brings emotional heft and atmospherics to the music while incorporating the latest technology.

Look no further than the ELP masterpiece “Toccata,” a reworking of Argentine composer Alberto Ginastera's Piano Concerto No. 1 from the band’s classic 1973 album, “Brain Salad Surgery.” On the track, Palmer employs a then-cutting edge acoustic drum kit with pick-ups to trigger synthesized percussion.

Beyond ELP, Palmer also enjoyed success with the 1980s supergroup Asia and as a solo artist. In the solo realm he’s best known for the stunning epic, "Concerto for Percussion," originally recorded in the mid-1970s but not released until 20 years later.

So welcome back to the show that not only never ends but continues to resonate with older fans and new generations alike.

We recently spoke with Carl Palmer

What inspired you to have Carl Palmer's ELP Legacy feature a guitarist as opposed to a keyboardist?

The music is being presented in a different way and it should be because Emerson, Lake & Palmer's music is extremely versatile. It's been played by classical orchestras and jazz bands and string quartets, you name it. Now it's being presented in the prog-rock, heavy metal guitar trio, high-energy format. For me it just shows you how in-depth the music is and how far it can go.

It was very simple deciding to go this way. Emerson, Lake & Palmer possibly would have had a lead guitar player if we could've found one. During the 70s the guitar players were very blues-based. There were far more great keyboard players in the 70s and now there are more great guitar players than keyboard players. There are still great keyboard players, don't get me wrong. I just thought naturally if I could transpose or have transposed for me a piano part and stick it on a fretboard we're going to have a different sound. We have the same material and we're just going to present it differently. If you come out to the show you'll see some remarkable musicians in Paul Bielatowicz (guitars/vocals) and Simon Fitzpatrick (bass). They are just phenomenal players.

Why do you think prog-rock, specifically ELP, still resonates with fans and draws new followers nearly 50 years after the release of the band's first album?

Prog-rock is definitely an art form that has stood the test of time. Our music and prog-rock music overall was quite involved and it wasn't just verse-chorus-verse. There were concept albums and a lot of meaning to it. There are people who didn't like it then who now see the beauty in it. It's also extremely eclectic. We play classical adaptions as well as jazz and folk and rock. There's always a big variety in the structure of the music and that gives the music more chance of lasting and crossing over into the generations. I see three generations at my concerts. There are guys my age, their sons in their late thirties and their kids. It's an amazing experience. I enjoy the music so much and I love the reaction. It's quite rewarding when you see it cross over into different generations like that. That is a huge pat on the back

Another thing which prog-rock always had which is very interesting is that it was always connected to technology and it still is today. When you're using technology musically and visually you can make things sound very fresh and you are cutting-edge. Even if the music is old the sound and visual side of it is cutting-edge. That's one thing prog has always had in its favor.

How have your ambitions and goals changed from when you first started out compared to today?

My ambitions have always the same. I come from a large family of professional working musicians. My grandfather was a professor at the Royal Academy of Music, my great-great grandmother was a classical guitar player, my brothers were drummers and guitar players. It just goes on and on and on. I sort of entered the world of music to learn how to play as well as I possibly could and if I could make a living at it then wow. Never did I want to be famous or rock star. Fortunately enough all of that came along but my main goal was to be the best possible player I could be and keep on learning. Even today I'm still learning. It's a great way to be.

Next year marks the 50th anniversary of ELP. Do you have anything special lined up to celebrate the milestone?

Yes, we're planning on doing something a bit different next year involving an orchestra and live film of Keith and Greg and see if I can play along with them along with Paul and Simon and possibly holograms as well. It's all still up for discussion. The Lake family and the Emerson family are happy to use holograms if we decide to go that way. It's a very exciting period.