🎶 2022-03-11 15:57:22 – Paris/France.
Keith Emerson died on March 11, 2016bringing down the curtain on a career that has seen him recognized as one of the greatest keyboardists/synthesizers of all time.
In the days since his death, Keyboard Magazine's Jerry Kovarsky has put together a collection of tributes to the great man – memories from friends, family, colleagues and musicians. Six years later, we offer you a selection below…
The impact Keith Emerson has had on musicians and fans around the world is immeasurable. You could say that Keyboard magazine would have had a hard time getting started and surviving if Keith hadn't put keyboards at the forefront of the band. He has graced our coverage eight times and has also been the subject of several news stories.
We thought the best way to honor his memory was to hear from the many musicians and people who worked closely with him and knew him best. For them, he was Emo, Fingers, Keith… but above all he was a very dear friend.
Thanks to everyone for sharing, and to Ellie Schwartz and Jack Hotop for helping coordinate our discussions.
Keith: May your music and influence continue to be heard and felt for generations to come. Thank you for sharing your humble talent with us.
Carl Palmer (ELP, Asia, The Carl Palmer Band/ELP Legacy Band)
“I first met Keith in 1967; I was playing at Battersea Park College with Fleetwood Mac, replacing Mick Fleetwood. Top of the bill was The Nice. I had heard of them but had never seen the band in concert, and I have to say hello to them. to Keith after the show.
“He was a phenomenal player and I became an instant fan. So when I was contacted a few years later to audition for a new band he was forming, I had to go, even though I was doing really well with Atomic Rooster at the time.
“There were very few keyboardists of that caliber: he was incredibly inventive and his musical direction playing classical adaptations was pretty much what I always wanted to do. So there was an immediate synergy. You all know the rest of the story...
“Keith was the greatest musician I've ever played with. We spent 16 years together making music and it was a fantastic experience. Keith was a person who took his music seriously and tried to push everything he did to new heights. . »
Carl Palmer and Keith Emerson. (Image credit: 2013 Pilate)
Brian Auger (Trinidad, Oblivion Express)
“I first heard Keith and the Nices play at a gig we both did in Croydon. He played America' and I thought he was just amazing.
"Our paths didn't cross much at the time, but years later he told me that he had seen me play at the Marquee Club and that I was playing Rock Candy, by Jack McDuff, which was the one of his favorite songs. We shared a love for pianists like Hampton Hawes, Dave Brubeck and Oscar Peterson as well. So we both had the same influences, but took them in different directions. His technique was incredible, and his sense of orchestration in a rock context was something to behold.
“Fast forward a few decades and we find that we live only a few miles apart in California. We got on fabulously well and became close friends. I loved his sweet sense of humor and we shared so much in common, being from the same vintage.
“He was such a big star all over the world, but he had no sense of ego. We called each other and we went to dinner, and above all we went out to listen to music. I will miss these evenings and his company very much. »
Jeff “Skunk” Baxter (Guitarist – The Best, Steely Dan, Doobie Bros)
“I first met Keith at the China Club in LA in the 90s. I was in the house band, and Keith came to play all the time. The band included John Entwistle on bass and various guitarists, like Joe Walsh – lots of studio guys We had a lot of fun playing seriously, not just jamming.
“One night John and I were talking and thinking, 'This is so good, we should do something more serious. A well-known publicist, Michael Jensen, offered to do some gigs in Japan, so we solidified the band: Keith, John, Joe, Simon Phillips, and a singer buddy of mine, Rick Livingstone. We didn't know what to call each other, and being so shy, we chose The Best [laughs].
“We started rehearsing, and what was great was that everyone was a fan of each other's work and did their homework to make it sound good. Everyone brought their unique style to the band, and you might not think it would work, but it did.
“As an example of what Keith brought to the project, we cover one of John's tracks, Boris The Spider. It's not very complicated, but while we were playing, for fun, I started playing a bit of Jaws and Keith's music jumping on it, with the right French horn sound and stuff.
“I look at John, who was a classically trained French horn player, and start playing the intro to Mussorgsky's Night On Bald Mountain. He knew it, and again, Keith was right. From there we started quoting Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring and Keith could cover it all. many people could go to these places.
“I took my parents on this trip; my dad was a historian and was in WWII, and Keith was into those things, so they got on really well. We made a lot of money for concerts, so I asked Michael if he could find a group of kids from an orphanage and we took them to Disneyland, Tokyo, to give something back.
“I have two favorite images from that day. One was the 'Ox', John Entwistle, standing with six children crawling over him and loving it. And the same thing about Keith: he really spent time with the kids and you could see how much he wanted to make them happy.
“After that tour, Keith and I were hanging out together, and we did some recordings. He did a brilliant arrangement of People Are Strange for a Doors tribute CD, on which he had me play Django-style guitar. I really adored this man: he was unique: an immense talent, with great emotional depth. He was constantly thinking about the music, and I think he was composing in his head. I remember looking at him one day and saying, “Man, your brain is loud today! And Keith just smiled back and said, "Yeah, I know." »
Marc André Berthiaume (tour technician, stage manager):
"We first met in 1978. I was in the nosebleed section of the Olympic Stadium concert, didn't smoke, but still got high contact from the 58+ fans present. Later I'll tell Keith I was at that show, 000th from left, seat 5 – remember me? And he would say, “Of course, I even looked you straight in the eye,” the same phrase he would throw at anyone who asked the same question.
“Flash-forward to 1997. ELP is gearing up for another world tour. Through a series of events, I ended up being the sound engineer. Hundreds of shows with him, and he never lost it. You gave him his mix, and that was about it, with a few tweaks here and there.
“In 2005, I get a call: 'Hey, it's Keith Emerson. Do you want to be my keyboard technician?' I gratefully accepted. "Hey Keith, do you remember me?" I was the guy sitting in seat 503 at the Olympic Stadium. "Of course I do, you were wearing that thing," was the reply.
“I worked with Keith from 2005 to the last ELP show of 2012 at the High Voltage festival in London. A fitting ending to ELP. I suggested throwing knives at the pile of Marshalls: he liked the idea, but was worried that Carl might be too close. And he told me how they were on tour with the Jimi Hendrix Experience. As he looked towards his Leslie to throw his knives, he spotted a guy crouching down and filming with a Super 8 camera. And how this guy's eyes widened when he saw the knives flying in his direction. was Hendrix.
(Image credit: Tony Ortiz)
“I became the band's technician during the tours of the Keith Emerson Band. Some great shows, and some transcendental ones. I would sit on stage, fiddling with patch changes doing white wine sprays, and watch this genius work.
“My favorite memories are whenever there was an acoustic piano around: Keith would gravitate to it and really play. Mostly blues and jazz. He was in the moment.
“Now I find myself here with fond memories of Keith NOT on stage. That smile and the quick puns. And his big laugh. Sitting on his terraced terrace, watching the sunset over a few glasses of Pinot Grigio. We'd talk about life, women, music, women, new keyboard gear, women, Robert Moog and…women. I'm sitting here writing this, looking at a limited edition LP of the Keith Emerson Band's debut album, with its inscription: 'To Kirky, a man who dares to go where no one has gone before.'
Well I did and enjoyed the ride. I will miss you, my brother.
Marc Bonilla (Guitarist, Producer – Keith Emerson Band)
“My first encounter with Keith was in 1973 at the Oakland Civic Center during ELP's Brain Salad Surgery tour. He jumped off the stage with his Moog Ribbon Controller during Tarkus and landed right in front of me. He gave me this curious look and smiled as if to say, 'See you in 16 years, man, maybe we'll do something.'
“In 1989, I was playing in a pub in San Jose, California, when this person arrives who starts studying us. I thought, 'This guy looks like Keith Emerson', but I quickly shrugged my shoulders, finished the track and took a break.
"As he approached me, I thought, 'It's Keith Emerson!' He introduces himself and asks me the name of the last song we played, and if we intended to record it. I said yes. He said, 'Do you mind if I play the piano on it?' All I could think of to say in my shock and bewilderment was, “Well, what have you done? And without flinching, he begins to calmly list his resume, starting with The Nice and moving on to ELP before I can stop him and tell him it was just a joke.
“We started touring in 1998 with The Boys Club (with Glenn Hughes and Ronnie Montrose) and then as The Keith Emerson Band in 2006. He loved reworking ELP tunes to exploit the guitar, and was always open to anything the ideas that came to him. He was also very keen on improvisation during the show and taking stakes and turning left at all times, which kept us all on our toes and gave the audience something special and unique.
“When Keith suggested that I produce the Keith Emerson Band album, I was honored and a little apprehensive about the idea. He was one of my heroes and I was going to tell him what to do and how to play? It was a difficult obstacle to overcome. pass but once we did it was worth it.
“The first time this happened was during Hammond's solo at Marche Train. Keith had shaved off a handful of passes and I could tell he was a little frustrated that he wasn't giving me what this 'producer' wanted. Then he said, 'Well, run it again'. And he cut five or six incredible takes, keyboard gymnastics! After that, we knew there was a hurdle we had to overcome before all ideas accelerated into “flow mode,” and we always found ourselves with an embarrassment of riches.
“Keith's ambition has always been to conduct his own compositions. The opportunity presented itself with Maestro Terje Mikkelsen in 2010. We went to Munich, Germany to record the Three Fates Project, which was a high point for Keith as well as the rest of us. We had re-orchestrated some of his ELP compositions and when you hear him in that context, you realize that he was a composer of the highest stature.
“When the orchestra was rehearsing, Keith was at the back of the room, sitting alone. I came back to see...
SOURCE: Reviews News
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