Endless Enigma: A Musical Biography of Emerson, Lake and Palmer

by Edward Macan

Throughout the 1970s, no style of pop music was more controversial than progressive rock, and no progressive rock band was more controversial than Emerson, Lake and Palmer. The group’s imaginative fusion of rock, jazz, and classical motifs with cutting-edge technology, breathtaking virtuosity, and monumental stage shows made them hugely popular on both sides of the Atlantic — and gave rise to a host of detractors. In Endless Enigma, Edward Macan argues that ELP was an important contributor not only to progressive rock, but to 1970s rock in general. Besides a magisterial band biography, Macan provides a comprehensive critical examination of the band’s music and, in particular, its best albums, such as Brain Salad Surgery, which addressed technology's role in fostering societal alienation and totalitarianism. His analyses are so perceptive, precise, and detailed, that listening to the recordings in conjunction with his comments opens new avenues of thought about the band and its music.

Genres: Music

704 pages, Paperback

First published July 17, 2006

Reviews

[Jim Mcmanus]

When you need a book as bloated and over the top as ELP then you won't go wrong with this.

[Elis Casado]

Edward Macan's Endless Enigma is not just another Emerson Lake & Palmer's book. It is the Bible on the titanic British trio. Nothing compares to this book. Outstanding from beginnig to end.