Interview with Keith Emerson
september 2002

Re-Works is probably one of the most radical reworkings of anybody's repertoire. Producer Mike Bennett has worked alongside Keith Emerson and others to create a new piece of work. Mike Bennett describes the album thus:

"Whilst maintaining it's originality the album embraces Chill Out, post modern Drum 'n' Bass and Jazz. The additional programming has been minimal in order to make the live performance of that band the major component."

Mike Bennett has worked with artists as diverse as Wishbone Ash, The Fall, Bob Marley, The Specials and former Stone Roses frontman Ian Brown. To date he has produced 192 albums generating sales of six million, and ten gold discs.

Keith Emerson has most famously been a member of The Nice and saw a phenomenal worldwide success for almost thirty years with Emerson Lake & Palmer. In addition to working alongside Mike Bennett on Re-Works, in early 2002 he released a solo album (Emerson Plays Emerson) and has recently reformed The Nice with his former colleagues Lee Jackson and Brian Davidson. The following interview too place just prior to the release of Re-Works in mid September 2002.

JON KIRKMAN: These reworkings of original Emerson Lake & Palmer material sound pretty radical and I'm sure the long-time ELP fans will be interested to know how you came to be involved with the album.

KEITH EMERSON: About two years ago I received a tape from my friend and associate Bruce Pilato. It was a remix of my arrangement of Fanfare For The Common Man, produced by a guy called Mike Bennett. I called upon my sons for their opinion, hoping that their youthfulness would throw some light on it. "It's a trance mix, Dad. It's all the thing. You should get into it."

Well, to me it sounded like John Cage on acid - sulphuric acid. I decided I'd better check on remixes by other artists. Some had been quite successful combining samples with hip hop / rap originality.

JK: What was the thinking behind the particular pieces that you worked on, how did you put the track together and how much of the original track did you want to keep?

KE: When I came back to England for Christmas 2000 I read of the Golden Jubilee being planned. As ELP's Fanfare had been the number one single for the Queen's Silver Jubilee in 1977, it made sense for a rerelease to celebrate, with new versions. So, I called Pilato. "Who was the guy that sent a mix of Fanfare a year ago?" "Mike Bennett - he's good." "Got his number?" And so it came to be. A lot of hard work was done by Mike, his girlfriend Tacye, and Graham Pilgrim. I'd usually get too bored, reading a magazine until I heard something that interested me enough and deserved my attention, and go for the hands-on approach with whatever keyboard was available. A great gem for Fanfare was that I had an original recording of Aaron Copland being interviewed where is very complimentary about my original arrangement of his composition and I used an edit of this throughout.

JK: ELP themselves of course reworked a number of classical pieces including Fanfare For The Common Man. These songs or arrangements ultimately took on a life of their own. Do you hope that these particular reworkings will have a similar effect on the fans and also attract a new audience?

KE: I would hope so, in the same way that musicologists and teachers, in order to maintain their pupils' attention, use my arrangements as a template to appreciate the original versions. This is a fact told to me by everyone from Julliard to Berkley and back to the UK. That's not bragging, it's a fact.

JK: Most fans of ELP may well be surprised that you got involved in this project as Drum 'n' Bass is not perhaps a musical genre that most people associate with you.

KE: Well, they might as well get used to it, like they did when I presented the new Moog Synthesizer for the first time back in 1968.

JK: Have Greg or Carl heard the album and if so, what do they think about it, and were they given the opportunity to get involved?

KE: I know Carl heard Mike's original dance mixes two years ago which used ELP samples, and he phoned me to tell me that he thought this was a good way to go.

JK: ELP were originally concerned that Aaron Copland would block a release of Fanfare For The Common Man when it was recorded for Works, and yet he loved your arrangement. What do you think he would have made of this recording?

KE: Well, as his publishers told me in 1977, "Copland is a ten year old at heart."

JK: How do you think ELP fans will react to these Re-Works?

KE: Probably the same way as the London Philharmonic but without the bureaucracy and all the humour.

JK: In terms of the release of Re-Works, what are your expectations for this album?

KE: Just go and have a good time.

JK: This genre of music is not what would normally be considered the sort of music that works in a concert situation. Would you ever consider taking part in a performance featuring music and arrangements from Re-Works or fo you only see it as a studio project?

KE: These remixing ideas are still in the generating process and the right environments for listening to the results are still being established. Phillip Glass somehow found his way onto the concert platform so I don't see why Reworks shouldn't. Althought I think it works for a good club atmosphere.

JK: WHat was your favourite moment working on this album and do you have a favourite track on the finished album?

KE: Reworks 7.

JK: Will this be a one-off project or experiment, or will it develop into perhaps another album album utilising ELP music or even some original material in the future?

KE: I'd like to see how this goes and maybe incorporate some of the ideas into new material.

JK: Finally, do you foresee a time when you will work with Greg or Carl again, either on a project like this or maybe even a traditional ELP album?

KE: Although I don't rule out ever working with Greg and Carl again, I have many other projects now, including The Nice.

© Jon Kirkman 2002

Jon Kirkman is a freelance radio presenter based in the United Kingdom

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