Palmer, Carl (March 2001)

Date of Performance: February 27, 2001
Venue: Teatro Sperimentale, Pesaro, IT

For a prog maniac there wouldn't be a better thing to have than a time machine to go back to the magical '70s, when the prog gods ruled the world - well, 'cause I know that this thing has a long way to go, I must say that we can only hope in miracles nowadays, such as the one that happened in my city (Pesaro) the 27th of February. Accompanied by two gifted Italian musicians donning the roles of Emerson and Lake, younger (the majority, to my surprise) and older fans had the opportunity and the privilege to see the mighty Carl Palmer playing the great songs of ELP once again (well, for me it was really the first time).

At 21:30, with a powerful and balanced sound coming straight to my ears, the gig started with "Hoedown;" followed by "The Barbarian'," and "Tarkus," with a wonderful jazzy interlude; and so on, for an hour and a half of virtuoso performances. For example, when "Blues Variations" took the stage, Luca (the keyboardist) tortured the Moog and Hammond like the good old days, giving me lot of chills for being able to listen live to those breathtaking and hypnotic notes. At this point the show was nearing the end, but there was still time for a great Palmer solo in the middle of "Tank" and also a mention of "Nutrocker." The dream ended with "Fanfare For The Common Man," but I wasn't satisfied yet, so I waited until I got Mr. Palmer's signature (along with those of the two Italian musicians) ... then I headed back home, thinking that at the same time the greater part of Italy had gone through another meaningless show of the Festival di Sanremo. Poor guys, poor guys...