Keith Emerson talks about The Moog, GX-1 and Future of ELP!

Here's another clip where Dave Kerzner of Sonic Reality interviews Keith Emerson October 15th, 2011 to discuss keyboards, ELP and use of the sample library he is creating with Sonic Reality. Here he talks about the incredible Moog Modular system, the amazing Yamaha GX-1 and some opinions about any potential future with ELP! Exclusively here with the Sonic Elements progressive rock project's "casual interview" series. Talking about some of the elements!

[@SynthMagic]

Comes across as such a kind and gentle soul. Such a shame what happened. R.I.P

[@sspbrazil]

Synth Magic he was, he was just suffering, I don’t blame him for taking his life, he had a lot of health issues to contend with and he felt he was unable to perform at his best anymore.

[@kenquinn7755]

@@sspbrazil Completely true, however, you add his depression with alcohol and in comes the suicide.

[@jeffdawson2786]

The Nice & ELP: Forces of nature & technology & virtuosity. Those crazy hands have spun & pounded out amazing stories.

[@luisalonsoecheverria]

Keith Emerson is one of the coolest people you'll ever meet. He's pretty down to earth and will answer whatever questions you ask. I've met him a couple of times, and I recently asked him where he got the idea to put knives in the organ, and he said that when he was touring with The Nice, there was a roadie by the name of LEMMY who gave him the idea to stick knives in the organ to sustain the organ sound.

[@bjornyesterday2562]

Had to look it up. That is awesome.

[@jonathanhanser5914]

Not the same Lemmy?

[@luisalonsoecheverria]

@@jonathanhanser5914 Yup! The same Lemmy. He used to work as a roadie for The Nice.

[@amosbarrow3802]

Keith Emerson and ELP need to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. If any one and group meets the criteria it is they!

[@LisaBellaDonnaMusic]

We miss you Keith. Sweet one. ❤️

[@maximilliancunningham6091]

Thanks Keith for sharing your God given talent, and making life richer, and better for so very many.

[@runawayushould]

Agreed!

[@delight7607]

Keith Emerson was a work of art unto himself.

[@paulgiaconi-bonaguro4055]

I have always regarded the moog as a living and breathing creature! As Keith stated, at the low bass end, it sounds like itz grumbling. Saw ELP IN 1971 and the intro of this creature. Nothing had EVER sounded like his moog. It blew everyone away! Still smitten to this day. R.I.P. Keith

[@edljnehan2811]

I loved that guy. Him along with Jeff Beck were my heroes since 1970

[@hubbsllc]

I did too. First time I ever broke down crying after learning of someone's death.

[@edljnehan2811]

@@hubbsllc ditto

[@TheDavepat7]

I LOVE that he called up Keyboard Magazine for the transcription of the MOOG solo from "Lucky Man"!

[@keymankeys1960]

ELP ..they were some of the very best musicians of the 1970's

[@swaggs]

No doubt about that.

[@Kohntarkosz]

Keith is absolutely right about the audience's reaction to the synth when they walk in. I remember when I saw ELP open for Jethro Tull back in 1996, that was absolutely my reaction: WOW, there it is!

[@Kohntarkosz]

jutubaeh ln what alternate universe is Jethro Tull a "one hit wonder"?! They did have any big hit singles, but then neither did a lot of other bands. Tull had a long string of great albums during the 70's and 80's. In fact one might argue Tull's classic era was a lot longer than ELP's.

[@WELLBRAN]

+Kohntarkosz that's what I was thinking ..what a stupid comment

[@blondego56]

jutubaeh i think you should salvage any shred of dignity & walk away now... Between your horrible spelling and absolutely insulting one of the best Long-time bands on the face of the planet , (and both are lifetime favorites of mine)... Jethro Tull and ELP are each in leagues of their own...decades of hard work and immense talent in both bands, admired and appreciated by countless people....

[@PetraKann]

ELP dont need to open for anyone (maybe Hendrix)

[@Kohntarkosz]

@@PetraKann Maybe not "need", but they did it in 1996.

[@user-oe7us3zd9g]

Love this interview. And he was a gentleman as was Greg as well, when it comes to speak about ELP. When was this interview done?? Because he says like "never say never" about ELP, as so did Greg, after the High Voltage Festival. But Carl Palmer ruined everything when he said he admitted he stopped an ELP reunion after High Voltage. Both Keith and Greg were open to it back then, if the opportunity came, but Palmer said "no". Wait, if a band breaks, shouldn't be a group decision, not just one person?? Keith is being so polite on the matter here. He almost said the same as Greg in those days. "open to it", that's it. But beyond all that, I love Keith very much and I miss him. The man was a genious; he managed to play amazingly brilliant despite the pain on his right hand and the effort he did was remarkable. The greatest keyboard player ever as well as a musician as a whole. ❤

[@Kohntarkosz]

Just for the record, the two keyboards Keith is talking about that Moog prototyped when Dave mentions the GX-1, were the Apollo (the polyphonic instrument) and the Lyra (monophonic). The idea Moog had was they'd have something called The Constellation, which would be three instruments: those two plus the Taurus bass pedals. The Taurus was the only one that came out with the Constellation name. The Apollo eventually evolved into the Polymoog, and the Lyra eventually evolved into the Multimoog

[@orgue2999]

+Kohntarkosz Keith had the prototype of the Apollo and the Lyra, you can hear them in Karn Evil 9 Impression 3 ;)

[@Poopaloo55]

I grew up next door to Keith's Grandmother, Mrs. H. When he visited as a boy we could hear him playing the piano and he was brilliant even then. I used to sit on our front wall and listen. Mrs.H. had one of his (gold or silver?) albums in her front room. I hope Keith is well.

[@mikewest1542]

I saw the last time Queen played and also ELP, so very privileged!

[@dnashofficial]

i was at Rush's last concert. i know what you mean ;-)

[@danwentz]

Keith, I still have that same issue from Keyboard Magazine just in case. You were the first inspiration in my small world, thank you!

[@urmo345]

gx-1 was really ahead of its time

[@Thomas1954]

Good to hear him explain the ways and the times.

[@Vasily_dont_be_silly]

For me Keith Emerson is comparable to Bach in terms of innovativeness. I can't express how much I admire this man. May he rest in peace, and his music live forever

[@jeffryphillipsburns]

Actually, Bach is not regarded as an innovator. He was a consolidator. He summed up and refined the existing Baroque style which was out of fashion by the time he died in 1750. .

[@TRextasyOfficial]

I saw ELP in Germany in the 1970s. A great live band. Exciting and amazing. One of my fave albums of all time is still BSS.

[@pamelasnow1004]

such an excellent interview ~ great questions that Keith enjoyed answering. Love this talented man! Love ELP!! thoroughly enjoyed their huge God given talents.... and the creativity they brought to the 70's. Love knowing how down to earth they were and didn't succumb to the craziness of many rock groups. Their music will never fade!

[@constantinkostenczyk5045]

Thanks to this Great Musician , a Lucky Man that learns us about this wonderfull music , to believe in music ...A point of me for a great Man of the Moog ....god bless him , a gorgeous teacher , the best one .....greatfull thoughts for him and for the ones who was learning from him , the Master ....to Sir with love ....Doamne adihneasca in pace liniste ! .....so to listen him for ever /asa sa-l ascultam pt totdeauna ...k i t...tschuß/seevus

[@damnyankeefl]

what a brilliant man

[@joselares9031]

Stunning interview...¡¡¡ YEAH...

[@TimeTraveler651]

We miss you Maestro...come out to play....

[@mikewhite9717]

one of the coolest dudes ever.

[@scotty]

VERY cute and funny the story about keyboard mag and getting the solo transcription. Wow

[@CC-Rider]

A close friend of mine who was Front of House Engineer for several venues with ELP, reminiscing, remembers many a driver, both high frequency and low frequency that ELP totally crisped up using the Moog. He said it kept his equipment fresh and current. LMAO. Live forever Keith in our hearts and memories.

[@hubbsllc]

I remember reading somewhere that those oscillators were making content out to 100kHz.

[@MothershipOracle]

keith is a complete one-off genious! i tend to get influenced by many prog keys players, but keith is very unique! unbelievable player, and the original pioneer of the moog modular ofcourse. its interesting, to play my own mini moog....and find some of the sounds he used with ELP .

[@americanrides]

Damn that sounds painful. Glad to hear your up and playing again! Dave the guitar guy

[@Dolores5000]

Love you Keith miss you

[@fredfontes3116]

GENIUS FOREVER

[@simonjoelwarkentin7087]

RIP Keith Emerson

[@BarryWarne]

nice. Would have loved to personally chatted to Mr. Emerson about GX-1

[@gabetvc]

Viva Emerson,!!

[@KeyboardKing5000]

wow cool!

[@luisalonsoecheverria]

The very same LEMMY who was in both Hawkwind and Motorhead!

[@mjtgough]

@paperpichu I hear "Hall of the Mountain King", but not "Night on Bald Mountain". At any rate, awesome channel!

[@rareform6747]

That is !

[@onsesejoo2605]

They were (Moog) Lyra and Apollo. Lyra was the monophonic and Apollo polyphonic. They were part of the intended ensemble called Constellation, which also included Taurus bass pedals. Lyra was not developed for production unlike Apollo which became the Polymoog and obviously Taurus bass pedals.

[@level2442]

The Man from Mars.............

[@wilecuyote]

i agree with Kieth. the gear is part of the attraction and you just can't top that Moog : )

[@NoahtheEpicGuy]

well, he DID top that moog. and rocked it across stage while chasing someone. I REALLY wish there was a video of that. There might be, but I can't find it.

[@BarryWarne]

Interesting. Lots of water under the bridge, sounds like. Anyway, Keith did so much amazing stuff early on as one of the two main keyboard, synth and progressive pioneers. From his eyes in your video, looks like a lot more stories back in his brain. a pity he doesn't write a book. Ah well ...

[@socalltd]

Kieth is asking about the Apollo poly from 73?

[@TKMajorWebWorks]

On the Moog Modular: "It looks great at live concerts... all twinkling... " 'Nuff said. About Emerson, anyhow.

[@BarryWarne]

I think (from what I have read - correct me if I am wrong) there were some pretty dark years for Keith, lots of bad personal issues. That saw him basically selling off pretty much all his gear and (not sure if I have this right) he now he doesn't really own his Modular Moog or his Hammond .. some company owns those, and basically leases them back to Keith for tours. Hence his reluctance to disclose a lot of details - - - which tie directly back to those "not so fun" years.

[@amarok5048]

The watch looks like a Rolex Submariner. Though for taste, I would've bought a Tudor and sent the difference to charity. x

[@kenquinn7755]

Personal taste but I didn't care for the digital sound of the GX-1, I don't know all the equipment Emerson had on the Brain Salad Surgery tour but I thought the sound of the analog was far superior. In my opinion the BSS Tour was ELPs Zenith.

[@DivineMisterAdVentures]

I couldn't find the Moog version of Lucky Man, (quite a few are acoustic only - how it started.) But I managed to find the solo on some newer keyboards. They had the patched-up Moog on the stage but it was just a prop. Keith in the day looked like a famous comedian actor from SNL: Emerson Lake & Palmer “Lucky Man” Live At Montreux 1997 - KZbin, kzbin.info/www/bejne/aJCZpHudbqiDopo

[@jehosh5577]

Let's hope ELP gets together for one last (world) tour in the next few years before they get too tired to tour anymore. We and they deserve it!

[@KeyboardKing5000]

How did you meet him???

[@luisalonsoecheverria]

I first met him when I went to go see Asia featuring John Payne at the Canyon Club in Agoura Hills, CA. He was in the audience. The second time I met him I went to the Hollywood Show in Burbank where a bunch of older actors, actresses and musicians meet up and do signings and take pictures. I do no that he sometimes visits the Typhoon restaurant in Santa Monica at LAX.

[@nellynuz42069]

This is Hilarious!

[@alessandroalessandro1554]

tarkus... tarkus.... tarkus... tarkus..... what else??

[@LoyalOpposition]

They never played again.

[@MegaJohnhammond]

it's hard to believe they're the same guy

[@Shred_The_Weapon]

I hope that Keith doesn't have to tell this story of "Lucky Man" again - but knowing that he'll be telling it until the day he dies.

[@safeandsound2653]

Hendrix Emerson Lake Palmer Imagine only if it were True..

[@BetamaxFlippy]

goddamnit Keith, didn't even give me the time to meet you :(((

[@KyleWhitlock-Music]

Hey GoodOmenMusic- Please spell Keith's name correctly!

[@BarryWarne]

cool. I did not know all that. Most keyboard players don't get any endorsements. Typical : )

[@alessandroalessandro1554]

perché hai fatto quel gesto Keith... perche?????????

[@katiaorsini1263]

Già chissà....

[@paulsimmons5726]

"Never say never..." 2016 sucked on so many levels!

[@chipurBillWhite]

Such a complex man. Seems very depressed to me, as though he’s trying so hard to participate, but it’s just forced.

[@alfching2499]

He must have had a load of bad reasons to kill himself,we don’t know,we only think we know what these people are really thinking he was great a tremendous loss. RIP .

[@entwistle4ever]

Looks good. Men age so much better than women. Talented musician to be sure. Can do it LIVE. Not tapes. The real deal Holyfield.

[@NuntiusLegis]

Stupid sexist remark. I see lots of gorgeous women in all ages all the time.

[@derhandtrommler]

His enthusiasm for resurrecting ELP is underwhelming. Sounded like he felt obligated more than he felt excited. Ah well, it's all moot, now, unfortunately.

[@DamianTangram]

Great interview with Kieth Emerson