Glenside, PA 4/19/12
Greg Lake is an important figure in the history of rock music. He was part of
the genesis of the mysterious, powerful King Crimson, then starred as a member
of the hugely popular supergroup Emerson, Lake and Palmer (ELP for short) and
then went on to solo success in subsequent years.
Lake is about to release his autobiography and was on a solo storytelling tour called
"Songs of a Lifetime" when I caught his show in the beautiful Keswick Theatre in
Glenside, PA
Lake was a veritable one man band, playing bass, acoustic and electric guitar or keyboards depending on what instrument was needed to bring each song to life the best. He spent a lot of time talking to the crowd between songs about what influenced their creation.
He played a first set, heavy on material from the first King Crimson album, then had a Question and Answer session taking random questions from the audience, then finishing off with a second set heavy on ELP material.
I won't spoil all the surprises in case you get to see the show in person. But I will tell you the highlight of the first set was an epic medley of "Epitaph/In the Court of the Crimson King", Lake's rendition of these two songs from 1969's In the Court of the Crimson King is truly stunning and worth the price of admission alone. The highlight of the second set was a beautiful "C'est La Vie", as years of life and experience brought a gravity to the song changing it forever - no longer a young man's shrug but now an older man's lament.
The Question and Answer segment was fascinating, Lake took questions from the audience for about 20 minutes, covering every part of his career. The discussion was funny, touching and informative and helped make the event unique; no night's questions would be the same, so those present might be the only one to hear certain stories or answers.
Besides his own music, the night was also a history of rock and roll. Lake talked about some of the universal influences - Elvis, The Beatles, Hendrix - covering a song by each of them and explaining how he had crossed paths with them during his life or career.
Lake was the ultimate host; humorous, sharing, open. He seemed to truly love connecting with the audience in a small and intimate place and the crowd hung on his every word. I hope he continues this tour in some form and that if you are a fan of his music or rock in general you get to see it.
See more of my pics here
Check out Greg Lake's site and merchandise
Buy his solo music here, ELP here, In the Court of the Crimson King here
Check out the historic Keswick Theatre
