Trilogy

Emerson, Lake & Palmer: Keith Emerson (keyboards); Greg Lake (vocals, guitar, bass); Carl Palmer (drums, percussion).
For an album that begins with an extended two-part piece called "The Endless Enigma" (bifurcated by something called "Fugue") and closes with a rock bolero, TRILOGY is surprisingly song-oriented and accessible. As usual, the long instrumental sections are dominated by Emerson's madman organ work and monophonic synth lines. These are interspersed, however with strong melodic/lyrical statements from Greg Lake, making the whole thing cohere more than anyone had any right to expect. The light-hearted Old West motif of "The Sheriff" (complete with honky tonk piano) and an Emersonized version of Copland's "Hoedown" add valuable humor. The ominous "Living Sin" features one of Lake's nastiest vocals, and the title cut ranks among ELP's finest pseudo-classical moments.