Keith Emerson Interview: ELP Legendary Keyboard & Moog Synthesizer Wiz Releases Live CD with Greg Lake

By Ray Shasho

-Interviewed July 22nd 2014

KEITH EMERSON is an accomplished pianist, keyboardist, and master of the moog synthesizer, who contributed a unique styling of futuristic and intricate musical arrangements covering elements of classical, jazz, and progressive rock, with such notable bands as The Nice and legendary progressive rock trio Emerson Lake & Palmer.  

Cherry Red Records recently released the brand new CD entitled … Keith Emerson & Greg Lake –‘Live from Manticore Hall’ -Keith Emerson and Greg Lake, two of the founding members of progressive rock legends Emerson Lake & Palmer. The duo's forthcoming live album captures their unique two-man versions of a selection of well known material from ELP’s celebrated catalog, including the hit “Lucky Man”. These recordings were taken from a live show during their 2010 world tour and released now for the very first time! -Purchase at Cherry Red Records oramazon.com.

Keith Emerson’s early success began in the mid 60’s with The V.I.P’s which also featured singerMike Harrison, bassist Greg Ridley, drummer Mike Kellie, and guitarist Luther Grosvenorwho later formed the rock band Spooky Tooth.

The Nice: In 1967, Emerson formed the psychedelic/progressive rock group The Nice. The band featured Keith Emerson (organ, piano, vocals), Keith “Lee” Jackson (bass, guitar, vocals), David “Davy” O’ List (guitar, vocals), Ian Hague (drums -1967), and Brian “Blinky” Davison (drums).

Their debut album ‘The Thoughts of Emerlist Davjack’ (1967) received rave reviews. At the end of 1967 they were included in a tour with Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, The Move, and Amen Corner. “Lemmy” Kilmister (Hawkwind, Motӧrhead) became a roadie for ‘The Nice.’ In 1969, the band performed at the ‘Isle of Wight Festival’ to an estimated audience of 150,000 people.

Albums by The Nice … ‘The Thoughts of Emerlist Davjack’ (1967), Ars Longa Vita Brevis 1968, Nice (aka Everything As Nice As Mother Makes It) (1969), Five Bridges (1970),Elegy (1971).

The Nice disbanded in 1970 due to a lackluster of commercial success. The band briefly reformed in 2002 for a series of concerts.

ELP:  Keith Emerson (The Nice) and Greg Lake (King Crimson) first met at the Fillmore West in San Francisco while exploring alternative band options. After working together they realized they meshed musically well together. Impresario Robert Stigwood suggested that they hire drummerCarl Palmer (The Crazy World of Arthur Brown, Atomic Rooster) to join the band. The progressive rock supergroup morphed into Emerson Lake & Palmer with a lineup of … Keith Emerson (Piano, Hammond organ, moog synthesizer), Greg Lake (lead vocals, bass, and guitars), and Carl Palmer (drums and percussions).

Emerson Lake & Palmer’s self-titled debut album was released in 1970. The album featured, “Lucky Man” a medieval story penned by Greg Lake when he was only 12 years old. The song was originally used as filler on the album but surprised the group when hearing it being played on the radio. “Lucky Man” reached #48 on Billboard’s Hot 100. The song was re-released in 1973 hitting #51 on the charts. The track spotlighted an incredible moog synthesizer solo by Emerson at the end of the song. 

ELP’s electrifying performance at the Isle of Wight Festival delivered the band into superstardom.

‘Tarkus,’ the band’s first concept album was released in 1971, described as a story about “reverse evolution.” ‘Pictures at an Exhibition’ a live album recorded at Newcastle City Hall in England was also released that year. ELP’s third studio album, ‘Trilogy’ featured Greg Lake’s alluring acoustically performed composition, “From the Beginning.” The song became Emerson Lake & Palmer’s highest charting single #39 in U.S. The album also featured,“Hoedown” a live performance crowd pleaser.

In 1973, ELP released ‘Brain Salad Surgery.’ The album featured another Greg Lake acoustical classic, “Still… You Turn Me On” and “Karn Evil 9,” featuring their most noted opening lyric …“Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends.” Supposedly the title for  ‘Brain Salad Surgery’ came from the lyric ‘Just need a little brain salad surgery/Got to cure this insecurity’ from Dr. John’s Top 10 Hit (“Right Place Wrong Time).The album was also their first under the Manticore Records imprint.

In 1974, ELP was top billing for California Jam I. The concert featured Rare Earth, Earth Wind and Fire, Eagles, Seals and Crofts, Black Oak Arkansas, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple and Emerson Lake & Palmer. The most memorable highlight of the concert was Keith Emerson performing on his Grand Piano while spinning (flying) end-over-end fifty feet in midair. The concert attracted over 250,000 music fans and was broadcasted on the ABC television network.

The album’s ‘Works 1’ and ‘Works 2’ were released in 1977. 

Emerson Lake & Palmer disbanded in 1979 but reformed in 1985 with ex-Rainbow drummer Cozy Powell. In 1991, ELP rejoined forces once again issuing the comeback album, ‘Black Moon’ and began touring again in 1996.

After more than a decade, Emerson Lake & Palmer embarked on a North American tour in 2010. ELP celebrated their 40th anniversary by headlining The High Voltage Festival at Victoria Park in London.

Keith Emerson solo releases: Inferno - soundtrack (1980), Nighthawks - soundtrack (1981), Honky (1982), Best Revenge - soundtrack (1985), Murder Rock - soundtrack (1986) , The Emerson Collection (1986), Harmageddon/China Free Fall (1987), The Christmas Album (1988) , Changing States (aka Cream of Emerson Soup) (1995), Emerson Plays Emerson (2002), La Chiesa - soundtrack (2002), Godzilla: Final Wars - soundtrack (2004) , At the Movies (2005), Hammer It Out (anthology) (2005), Off the Shelf (2006), Keith Emerson Band featuring Marc Bonilla (2008), "Moscow" - live album CD & DVD (2010), The Three Fates Project (The Keith Emerson Band) (2012).

Most Recently:  Keith Emerson was elected into the Hammond Hall of Fame (2014).

Emerson will also be honored for a 70th birthday tribute concert presented by the South Shore Symphony Orchestra. The tribute will be held at The Madison Theatre at Malloy College -Rockville Centre, Long Island, New York on October 10th &11th. You can purchase tickets[HERE] or got to www.keithemerson.com/#2014-SouthShoreSymphony  for more information.

Keith’s Band, The Keith Emerson Band is also busier than ever. The Band’s lineup is …Keith Emerson (Keyboards), Marc Bonilla (guitars and vocals), Travis Davis (Bass), and Joe Travers(drums).

I had the rare privilege of chatting with Keith Emerson recently about … The brand new Keith Emerson & Greg Lake –‘Live From Manticore Hall’CD …The legend of the spinning piano… A longtime friendship with Dr. Robert Moog …ELP ….Future projects … Carl Palmer… And much-much more!

Here’s my interview with pianist/ keyboardist/ moog synthesizer extraordinaire - composer/songwriter & legendary founding member of ‘The Nice’ and ‘Emerson Lake & Palmer’ … KEITH EMERSON.

Ray Shasho: Hi Keith, it’s still early morning here in the states, so what part of England am I calling?

Keith Emerson: “Hi Ray, I’m in the southern part of England right on the Sussex coast.

Ray Shasho:  Keith, let’s first talk about your latest release … Keith Emerson & Greg Lake 'Live From Manticore Hall,' recorded from the 2010 world tour. The CD was officially released on July 14th. I liked the intimate setting of the show and the concept of sort of bringing the audience into the recording studio.

Keith Emerson: “The idea was put to me by Martin Darvill back in 2010. Martin plays a part in helping Emerson Lake and Palmer individually in their different exploits and also to a degree   ELP as a band. He called me up, I was in California, and he wanted me to meet with an agent who I later had lunch with in LA, and they put the idea to me. They said, what about starting with a duo tour with you and Greg. He said, I think it would be a great help for Greg because he hasn’t done an awful lot of touring and I think Greg wanted to get warmed-up. So that was one of the reasons put to me that it would make sense to do a duo tour. Meanwhile Carl Palmer was playing with Asia and with his trio as well. What we were aiming at or what Martin was aiming at… if Greg and I did a duo we could do a big concert at the High Voltage Festival in London which was later on in the year, and it would be a great sort of warm-up. So I thought about it and thought, well actually the ELP repertoire is pretty huge, and as much as I played acoustic gigs with my own band which features …Marc Bonilla (guitar/vocals), Travis Davis (bass) and Joe Travers (drums), and have done duo gigs with Marc Bonilla with some degree of success, so I thought there’s no reason why I shouldn’t be able to do the same thing with Greg.”

“When I spoke to Greg about doing a duo tour he wanted it bigger, let’s take around on the tour our own setup and build a recording studio onstage so it looks like you’re in an actual recording studio. You can see the engineer behind the mixing desk, and when we’re ready to do a song, our engineer in this case Keith Wechsler, who has been with us for a very long time, he would issue all the instructions and then the red light would go on, record, and then we would do the concert. We did have a record label called Manticore so the idea was to recreate a fantasia of what Manticore Hall would actually look like, and of course it was an expensive trip, whenever ELP or E & L get together it does turn out to be that way, it does get very expensive in production.”

“Greg and I had a rehearsal period in Santa Monica and then our first gig was in Cleveland which got off to a rocky start. Greg’s rig was still being adjusted and I had no time to tune the moog up and do my soundcheck which was frustrating to say the least. There’s no doubt that the concert would have been a shambles so we postponed it till later. But these things happen; the sad thing was that Greg put up on his Facebook that I had stage fright. I mean he couldn’t be further from the truth. I’m sometimes prone to apprehension but not to a degree of stage fright. I don’t know why he had to say that. The reason for the first night being poor was as I said, and if you were to ask any of the road crew they would say exactly the same thing. So you can’t make these sorts of things up. But I’m really pleased to say, after we overcame the first two gigs, and it was unusual, if you’re going onstage with like a larger unit, say four or five people, there are ways if you’re apprehensive about the show, you lookout and cover for each other and that’s the great thing about large bands. But when there are just two of you everything is quite focused and the magnifying glass comes out, you can’t get away with too much.”

Ray Shasho: ELP music is quite complex so it was amazing how you and Greg pulled it off successfully and intimately in front of a smaller audience.

Keith Emerson: “It was enjoyable for me and I said to Greg, if we do some of these arrangements just as a duo, I would like to change a few things. I said, I wasn’t going to change anything of yours, what I would like to do in certain cases is do an extended introduction, introducing the piece and things that we normally play like “Lucky Man” and maybe extend the moog solo at the end and maybe improvise something at the beginning. I’m not sure if Greg was that happy about it but he said let’s give it a try. So I went over to his house and got on the keyboard and I came up with an arrangement of “Lucky Man” with different chords and I think it made it sort of semi-classical but still in a romantic era, and I just played it as keyboard solo. I asked Greg, so what do you think of this? Greg listened and said …what is that? … who wrote that? I said you did! (All laughing) He obviously didn’t recognize it but I think it was totally recognizable.”

“In the middle of the show we had a question and answer thing with the audience which went down really well, and there was one night when we had a lady from the audience put a hand up and a guy in the audience went up to her with a microphone and she said, “You know one of my wishes has always been to sit under the piano while Keith Emerson is playing. So Greg called her up onstage and this young lady lay under the piano while I played solo. (All laughing)”

Ray Shasho: Besides keyboard and moog synthesizer … I’ve really enjoyed your piano playing, and especially on “Bitches Crystal” it sort of had a Ragtime feel.

Keith Emerson: “I was a big fan of Scott Joplin, but if there was any influence on “Bitches Crystal” …I remember Dave Brubeck did a piece called “Countdown” and it was a boogie-woogie piece in 10/8, and I thought I’d do the same idea but in 6/8, so that was the idea behind that.”

Ray Shasho: How was Moogfest 2014 this year?

Keith Emerson: “Like any festival … pretty crazy, lots of places to go and I got dragged from one event to the other. They had shipped my moog modular system to North Carolina but during its hiatus it was spending its time with a very technically minded moog guy called Gene Stopp. He actually had it at his house and spent quite a lot of time going over it and servicing it because there were always occasions with ELP when the oscillators would drift and you find yourself having to tune the thing onstage. It was a very sensitive keyboard; if it got hot inside the studio or the building the oscillators would rise and pitch and you’d have to try and tune it while you were still playing. Anyway, what Gene Stopp would do is stabilize the oscillators a little bit better, clean all the contacts, and to my delight it was very reliable. When I was over Gene Stopp’s place, he lives in California not very far from me, and he said the moog company is looking at copying your big moog modular system exactly like it is, would you mind? He said just to put your interest at heart, the moog company wanted to kind of clone it and they want to call it ‘The Keith Emerson Moog Synthesizer.’  I said wow, sure, are you sure anybody is going to buy one of these things, I’m sure it’s going to be quite costly. He said, well, we’ve got a few offers already from Japan, Germany, and Italy. So I said okay. I suppose at first I was like, well, I’ve got the only one, but then thought, yes this is great there are so many young players who really want the real thing, they want a moog synthesizer.”

“I got to North Carolina and went around the moog plants and I walked into this room and I’ve got to tell you… there were two huge identical moog modular systems side by side and I had to say to the people who were showing me around…wow, which one is mine? (All laughing) I really didn’t know until I felt the scuff marks on the side of the casing. I said how does it play? They said exactly like yours … I said bloody hell!” 

Ray Shasho:  Keith, you were good friends with Dr. Robert Moog … did you work together on inventing new things?  

Keith Emerson:  “I was friendly with him since 1969. At that particular point he had a plant and factory in New York and I used to fly over there a lot in the early 70’s, I’d fly from England because I wasn’t in California at that time, but I’d see what other tricks he had going. He said to me, the moog modular system you’ve got is just beyond the capabilities of the normal garage band musician. I think he was under pressure to get something which was more of a production line instrument and so he came up with the minimoog. Obviously Chick Corea had one and made it his own the way he could use the modulating wheel so you can get vibrato and stuff like that going on. He really got the most out of the minimoog as far as I’m concerned.”

Ray Shasho: The most amazing thing I ever saw … and maybe it should be added to the list of ‘The Seven Wonders of the World’ … was you spinning (flying) around while playing the grand piano at California Jam I. What was that adrenaline rush experience like?

Keith Emerson:  “I think having a pilot’s license helped a little bit. One of my road crew said we found this guy that used to work in the circus and he does a lot of things for TV and special effects and he’s made something that might interest you, it’s a piano that spins round, and I immediately responded, oh that sounds interesting. I happened to be within the New York area and I was driven over to Long Island to a guy called Bob McCarthy, and there in the background he had this piano situated. So he called his wife down from upstairs and said, darling could you demonstrate this for Keith? I looked on, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. His wife comes down and sits on the seat and up she goes in the air and proceeds to spin around. I thought, well that’s great! Then Bob asked me, do you want to have a go at it? …Yea, okay. You need to understand, below the keyboard there’s an inverted-tee, like a bar. You wrap your legs around the down pipe and put your heels under the inverted-tee. Then you go up in the air and try and do your best to play. It was a little difficult to play at first because of the centrifugal force, so it wasn’t easy.”

“I think we actually used it for the first time at Madison Square Garden, it was a Christmas concert. I think people in the audience were so astounded they couldn’t quite believe what they were seeing. Later on that coming year the California Jam came up and I said we have to do that there. Bob drove the whole contraption down to the California Jam and there was very little space to set it up. There were loads of bands up on that stage, all having to do their set and then getting their equipment off.  Now, with the moog, the Hammonds, Carl’s gongs and everything, it was hard enough to just get that off stage. We had the spinning piano and everything that went along with it and we tried to find a place to situate it. It ended up going just at the end of the stage, so when the piano went up it was literally over the heads of the audience. After that every TV show I did came the question … Keith, how do you spin around on that piano? I’d say what about my music? (All laughing) When I had the honor of meeting the great jazz pianist Dave Brubeck just before he died, he said, Keith you’ve got to tell me how do you spin around on that piano? Dave Brubeck was 90 years old then and I said Dave, don’t try it! (All laughing)”

“When I did the ‘High Voltage Festival’ with ELP in 2010 I really wanted to reintroduce the spinning piano. Immediately the authorities wanted to see the plans and said outright no way, this would never pass health and safety. So I couldn’t use it.”

Ray Shasho:  Keith, here’s a question that I ask everyone that I interview. If you had a ‘Field of Dreams’ wish like the movie, to play or collaborate with anyone from the past or present, who would that be?

Keith Emerson: “Maybe John Cage … I’d also say quite a lot of guys from the jazz era like Coltrane, Miles Davis …that would have been pretty cool.”

Ray Shasho:  “Wasn’t jazz music really big in England before rock and roll?

Keith Emerson: “Not really, it was very difficult to buy jazz albums in England. You had to order them in and not like America. A lot of jazz albums were like imports. There were a few jazz musicians and one who was a great friend of mine, Ronnie Scott, who actually formed a jazz club in London. It’s still going actually although Ronnie is no longer here. I think that was the only way that lovers of jazz in England could actually get to see live jazz at that time. Ronnie would have people like Zoot Sims, Stan Getz, Thelonious Monk, the Buddy Rich Big Band, Oscar Peterson … he used to get them in and there would be wall to wall people, always sold-out. It was the only opportunity that musicians in England could get to actually see the real thing. But a lot of musicians like Ronnie Scott used to play on the cruise ships back and forth to New York. Once they were in New York of course they went down 52nd street and saw all of their heroes while learning quite a lot. They even took lessons from some of them while in New York. Then they would come back to England and really show off while all the English would go, wow, that’s the real thing!”

Ray Shasho: Keith, have you recorded an all-jazz album?

Keith Emerson: “I’ve done a few pieces on some of my solo albums like ‘Off the Shelf’ but not an entire jazz album. I have been in talks with a guy called Bruce Lofgren who lives in California and he said do you fancy doing one? I don’t know how far it’s gone with the arrangements, but I’m not sure there would be a big call for it.”

Ray Shasho: So what’s next for Keith Emerson?

Keith Emerson: “I’m hoping to get a lot of my piano stuff published and working on that at the moment. I had quite a lot of fun working with the guys at Cleopatra Records. I contributed to ‘Light My Fire- A Classic Rock Salute to The Door’s,’ a tribute album which had other players on it like …Rick Wakeman, Patrick Moraz … and it’s had great reviews. I performed on the intro for “People Are Strange,” and did my bit much in the style of Django Reinhardt and Stéphane Grappelli and kept it very acoustic. Jeff Skunk Baxter performed acoustic guitar on it. I think Cleopatra Records has another project which is orchestral with The London Symphony Orchestra and so they just asked me if I’d be interested in that one, and I said yes.”

Ray Shasho: Keith, are you utilizing the latest cutting-edge equipment?

Keith Emerson: “Yes, I’m always keen to learn what I can do with what I have. I’m quite happy with the piano, the Hammond organ and the moog synthesizer. I was at the NAMM show and being elected into the Hammond Hall of Fame. While I was there I looked around at what they’ve got and I tried the Hammond Suzuki keyboard. I stuck the headphones on and just played the piano sound and thought …this is cool, I like that. Before I left I asked …any chance of getting one of those? They said, don’t worry we’ll see what we can do. (All laughing) I’ve got one now and I’m really pleased with it.”

Ray Shasho: I can’t even imagine how much equipment you must have.

Keith Emerson: “Well, I’ve got a fair bit yea …plus two Steinway Grand Pianos which I have absolutely no room for at the moment, but I suppose I’m going to have to sell those at some point.”

Ray Shasho: Keith, of course I’ve got to ask this one … any future plans for another ELP reunion?

Keith Emerson: “Oh that one …I think it’s highly unlikely, after the High Voltage Festival, Carl made some kind of comment to the press saying … that was it for him. I realized during rehearsals that Carl was not entirely happy with certain individuals, without getting into any sort of detail, but I could see his point. It came as no surprise after the High Voltage Festival, Carl was seen getting into his car and just driving off. So that was it really. I’ve heard certain stories that Carl is off with management and certainly with Greg. He doesn’t really work very well and it’s not a very professional way to go about things, I think it’s a little unnecessary really. It’s really typical isn’t it … you read about The Who, The Beatles … and it seems almost impossible to have a really good social relationship and a good musical relationship with everybody. The only thing I can say is I’ve never had so much fun playing with Marc Bonilla and my band. I don’t think Marc and I have ever had one argument. We may say… okay I kind of disagree with that so what else do you suggest? It’s the best professional way to go about it. Plus the fact that last year was an incredible year for me knowing that the Tokyo Philharmonic were performing ‘Tarkus,’ one that I’ve had a hand in arranging with the Japanese arranger by the name of Takashi Yoshimatsu and they were performing at the Tokyo Opera House … I flew over just to see the concert. I never thought I’d witness something as spectacular as that. There’s no doubt that the Japanese musicians are heads up above everybody else.”

“I’ll be at Rockville Centre, Long Island, New York October 10th &11th. They’re doing a 70th birthday tribute concert for me presented by the South Shore Symphony Orchestra.”

Ray Shasho: Keith, thank you for being on the call today but more importantly for all the incredible music you’ve given us with ‘The Nice’ and ‘Emerson Lake & Palmer’ and the music you continue to bring.

Keith Emerson: “Thanks Ray, it’s been enjoyable talking with you … all the best, bye.”

Purchase the amazing new CD By Keith Emerson & Greg Lake –‘Live From Manticore Hall’Keith Emerson and Greg Lake, two of the founding members of progressive rock legends Emerson Lake & Palmer, recently released their highly anticipated CD 'Live From Manticore Hall' – Officially released July 14, 2014 on Manticore Records, via Cherry Red. The duo's forthcoming live album captures their unique two-man versions of a selection of well known material from ELP’s celebrated catalog, including the hit “Lucky Man”. These recordings were taken from a live show during their 2010 world tour and released now for the very first time! -Purchase now at amazon.com.

Track Listing 1) FROM THE BEGINNING, 2) INTRODUCTION 3) I TALK TO THE WIND, 4) BITCHES CRYSTAL, 5) THE BARBARIAN, 6)TAKE A PEBBLE, 7)TARKUS, 8) C’EST LE VIE, 9) PIRATES,10) MOOG SOLO / LUCKY MAN

Purchase Keith Emerson’s re-mastered solo releases… ‘At the Movies' (3CD Box Set), ‘Changing States,’ and ‘Honky’ at Cherry Red Records

Keith Emerson official website

Keith Emerson on Facebook

Keith Emerson on Twitter

Keith Emerson on Myspace

Greg Lake official website

Very special thanks to ‘the great’ Billy James of Glass Onyon PR

COMING UP NEXT … Robin Trower (legendary guitarist and songwriter) … Don Wilson guitarist, pioneer, and co-founder of ‘The Ventures.’ … Country Music’s shining new star -19 year old Mary Sarah … And Folk/Rock singer & songwriter Jonathan Edwards (“Sunshine”).

Contact music journalist Ray Shasho at rockraymond.shasho@gmail.com

Purchase Ray’s very special memoir called ‘Check the Gs’ -The True Story of an Eclectic American Family and Their Wacky Family Business … You’ll LIVE IT! Also available for download on NOOK or KINDLE edition for JUST .99 CENTS at amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com   - Please support Ray by purchasing his book so he can continue to bring you quality classic rock music reporting.

 “Check the Gs is just a really cool story ... and it’s real. I’d like to see the kid on the front cover telling his story in a motion picture, TV sitcom or animated series. The characters in the story definitely jump out of the book and come to life. Very funny and scary moments throughout the story and I just love the way Ray timeline’s historical events during his lifetime. Ray’s love of rock music was evident throughout the book and it generates extra enthusiasm when I read his on-line classic rock music column. It’s a wonderful read for everyone!”    …stillerb47@gmail.com   

COMING SOON… Ray’s exciting new book project entitled...

                                     ‘SAVING ROCK AND ROLL’

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PATRICK MORAZ: An Extraordinary Keyboardist & Composer/ Prior Member of ‘YES’ & ‘The Moody Blues’ -Interview

By Ray Shasho

-Interviewed June 24th 2014

Swiss native Patrick Moraz is the extraordinary keyboardist and composer for no less than two legendary rock groups … ‘YES’ (1974-76) and ‘The Moody Blues’ (1978-1991). His first solo album entitled ‘The Story of i’ was hailed by many critics as a musical masterpiece.

Patrick Moraz is busier than ever these days. He was recently featured on the new CD ‘Light My Fire-A Classic Rock Salute to The Doors,’ Moraz performed on the opening track … “L.A. Woman” with the late Jimi Jamison (Survivor) and Ted Turner (Wishbone Ash).  

Moraz was also one of the performers on the recent ‘Cruise to the Edge’ which also featured … ‘YES,’ Steve Hackett, UK, Queensryche, Tangerine Dream, Renaissance, Strawbs, Tony Levin and a host of other progressive rockers.

Patrick Moraz has several upcoming and surprising releases to watch out for including … “The M.A.P.” ("The Moraz - Alban Project”)which will feature Lenny Castro on percussion and John Avila from ‘Oingo Boingo’ on bass, Patrick Perrier, and Matt Malley. A CD entitled… ‘A way to Freedom’ due in the very near future, and a Cantata in the final works for SATB Choirs in 7 movements, paying homage to ‘Our Planet.’

PATRICK MORAZ: began his fascination with the keyboards at a very young age. He attentively watched and listened to Romanian concert pianist Clara Haskil while living at the same house in Vevey, Switzerland. Moraz attended the Conservatory of Lausanne and studied Harmony and Counterpoint (the Art of the fugue). Patrick’s father managed restaurants which included theaters and stages, and Patrick was able to meet such music luminaries as … Louis Armstrong, Maurice Chevalier, Lionel Hampton, Count Basie, and Duke Ellington.

In 1964, Moraz was contracted to be a scuba diving instructor and an organizer of shows and concerts at Cadaqués, and the village of Port Lligat in Spain, which was where surrealist painterSalvador Dali was living at the time. Moraz was able to go on the property of Salvador Dali and organize parties. Patrick became friends with Dali and his wife Gala. He also had the rare opportunity to be in Dali’s studios to watch him work.

At the age of 16, Patrick Moraz became the youngest person to win the prestigious “Best Soloist Award” at The Zurich Jazz Festival. A few years later he opened concerts for jazz legend John Coltrane in Europe.

Over the years … Moraz perfected his proficient musical skills and embarked on a longtime journey of composing scores for Motion Pictures and Television including … (1969- Long Live Death, 1971- The Salamander,1971- Supergirl - Das Mädchen von den Sternen (TV Movie), 1973- The Awful Manners, 1973- The Invitation, 1974- The Middle of the World, 1975- The Wonderful Crook, 1980- The Lost Way, 1987- The Stepfather (music composed by), 1990- In the Eye of the Snake ).

In 1973, Patrick moved to London and formed the rock trio ‘Refugee’ with Lee Jackson (The Nice) and Brian Davison (The Nice). After releasing their critically-acclaimed debut album and a successful tour of Europe, the band split-up.

In 1974, Patrick Moraz was invited to join ‘YES’ as their keyboardist. Moraz was an essential factor to the success of their masterpiece release ‘Relayer’ which many ‘YES’ faithful consider to be their best album to date. The classic ‘YES’ lineup of …Jon Anderson (Vocals), Chris Squire(Bass), Steve Howe (Guitars), Patrick Moraz (Keyboards), and Alan White (Drums) toured extensively and worldwide for the ‘Relayer’ Tour while performing to some of the largest audiences in the bands history… including 135,000 ‘YES’ fans at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia on June 12th 1976. ‘YES’ members were encouraged to release solo projects which led to Patrick’s debut solo album ‘The Story of i’ (1976).

Keyboardist Rick Wakeman returned to ‘YES’ while Patrick Moraz was asked to depart the band prematurely. Moraz released his second solo album ‘Out in the Sun’ featuring singer and songwriter John McBurnie in 1977.

In 1978, Moraz was hired by THE MOODY BLUES to take part in a promotional world tour for their comeback album ‘Octave.’ After contributing to ‘Octave,’ original keyboardist, singer, songwriter, and founder of The Moody Blues, Michael Pinder, left the group. Patrick Moraz officially became the new keyboardist and full-time member of The Moody Blues in 1980.

During his stint with The Moody Blues, Moraz recorded two acclaimed solo albums with original ‘YES’ drummer Bill Bruford … (‘Music for Piano and Drums,’ and ‘Flags’).

Patrick Moraz left The Moody Blues in 1991 to pursue a solo career.

The Moody Blues releases w/ Patrick Moraz …

1980/81 Long Distance Voyager, 1982/83 The Present, 1985/86 The Other Side of Life, 1987/88 Sur la Mer,1990/ Keys of the Kingdom

‘Long Distance Voyager’ spawned the Top 20 singles … “Gemini Dream” (#12 U.S. Hit in 1981) and “The Voice” (#15 U.S. Hit in 1981).

‘The Other Side of Life’ spawned the Top 10 single …“Your Wildest Dreams” (#9 U.S. Hit on Billboard Hot 100 in 1986).

‘Sur La Mer’ spawned the Top 30 single … “I Know You’re Out There Somewhere” (#30 U.S. Hit on Billboard Hot 100 in 1988).

Patrick Moraz solo releases …1976 - (The Story of I, 1977 - Out in the Sun, 1978 - Patrick Moraz, 1979 - Future Memories Live On TV, 1980 – Coexistence, 1983 - Music for Piano and Drums (with Bill Bruford), 1984 –Timecode, 1984 - Future Memories II, 1985 - Future Memories I & II, 1985 - Flags (with Bill Bruford),1987 - Human Interface,1987 - Les musiques de la Première,1989 - Libertate (re-issue of Coexistence),1994 - Windows of Time,1995 - PM in Princeton, 2000 – Resonance, 2003 – ESP, 2009 - Change of Space, 2012 – PianissiMoraz (compilation from Windows Of Time, Resonance and ESP), 2012 - Live At Abbey Road (1987 "live"), 2012 - Music for Piano and Drums: Live in Maryland (11/9/1984 live with Bill Bruford))

I had the rare and wonderful pleasure of chatting with Patrick Moraz on his birthday. We talked about ….Patrick’s exciting new music projects … ‘Light My Fire-A Classic Rock Salute to The Doors’… Being a member of ‘YES’…  The ‘Relayer’ album … Being a member of ‘The Moody Blues’ … Predator’… ‘Cruise to the Edge’…‘The Story of i’ album …Salvador Dali …And much-much more!

Here’s my interview with legendary band member of ‘YES’ & ‘The Moody Blues,’ progressive rock & classical keyboardist/pianist/composer/songwriter … PATRICK MORAZ

Ray Shasho: Hello Patrick …Happy Birthday!

Patrick Moraz:  “Thank you so much!”

Ray Shasho:  Are you in Los Angeles today?

Patrick Moraz: “Yes, my wife and I have been here in California for the past month and a half working on several productions in a very good studio. It’s a lot of work because I’ve just been asked to potentially participate in the recording of a piece with The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London. So everything is good!”

Ray Shasho: Patrick, when do you expect to release these current productions you’re talking about?

Patrick Moraz: “The current production that I am finishing should be released by the beginning of the fall. We’re finishing it this week and putting on the finishing touches. It’s a project for a really-really good friend of mine who is also an excellent drummer. I composed all of the music and the arrangements. There are also some luminaries like Lenny Castro on percussion and John Avila from ‘Oingo Boingo’ on bass, and of course I do all the keyboards and music.”

“But today it’s the release of the classic tribute to ‘The Doors’ for which I participated. I play on “L.A. Woman” and the CD is entitled ‘Light My Fire-A Classic Rock Salute to The Doors.’ It’s an extraordinary release with a fantastic lineup of legendary musicians. Personally I think you will be in for a pleasant surprise … a fantastic array of keyboard players, drummers, singers, guitarists, and so on… to celebrate and pay a true musical homage to The Doors. The tune I was associated with… “L.A. Woman,” was chosen by the record company to be the first on the CD and that was a very good surprise for me. I performed on the track with Ted Turner of Wishbone Ash and Jimi Jamison of Survivor (RIP 1951-2014). I think he portrayed the best Jim Morrison voice on the whole album.”

Ray Shasho: Patrick you’ve always been one of my favorite keyboardists so I was naturally disappointed when you departed YES. I’ve always believed that the YES lineup during ‘Relayer’ was magical … instrumentally and lyrically at their very best.  

Patrick Moraz:  “Probably not as disappointed as me. (All laughing) I understand because it came as a total surprise. We’re talking thirty eight years ago when that happened, but I had two and half years with Yes which was absolutely fantastic. Would you believe we connected again recently, not only when I saw them at Ruth Eckerd Hall in April, and it was a great show, I was able to go backstage to say hello to everybody and even Steve Howe came out and gave me a big hug. Then this year with ‘Cruise to the Edge,’ it was fantastic to see them and collaborate on the same ship for a week. I was also asked to do an extra concert on the ship performing with acoustic piano and that went extremely well. I’ve never been on a cruise ever so you can imagine my surprise when I saw this huge ship and the thirty other bands that had signed up including … Renaissance , Marillion, Queensryche, Tangerine Dream, even Tony Levin a good friend of mine who is the bass player for Peter Gabriel …so it was really a fantastic journey.”

Ray Shasho:  I watched a You Tube video of you and Annie Haslam (Renaissance) performing the ‘YES’ Relayer classic “Soon” together on the cruise.

Patrick Moraz:  “Oh absolutely, yes. That was an impromptu version of the song; we had planned to do it but never had the possibility to rehearse it. Although I had gone to see her concert with Renaissance in May, and the fact that we were able to do that was just incredible. She has such a beautiful voice, so for an impromptu version of “Soon” I think she did fantastic.”

Ray Shasho:  I was fortunate enough to see you in concert with both ‘YES’ and ‘The Moody Blues.’ In 1976, I watched you perform with headliners ‘YES’ at RFK stadium in Washington D.C. along with Peter Frampton, Gary Wright, Ace, and The Pousette- Dart Band in front of over 45,000 people.

Patrick Moraz: “That’s right and we had also just played JFK Stadium. I remember the D.C. concert and an amazing thing was Steve Porcaro (The Porcaro Brothers) was in Gary Wright’s band and later formed Toto. Our management at the time had signed Peter Frampton one year before he was number one on all the charts and that was a big edition to help fill all the stadiums. To fill stadiums every other day and especially during a Bicentennial year with all the celebrations going on was absolutely unbelievable. We were also in Chicago that year and had 83,000 people. How was it for you in the crowd when you were watching the band …was the sound good?

Ray Shasho: I was standing on the floor and on top of boards about 20 rows from the stage. The acoustics were remarkably good; especially for the ‘Relayer’ album …it was an incredible show!

Patrick Moraz: “I remember for those gigs we used Clair Brothers Audio Systems based in Pennsylvania. We had 16 different PA systems all added together. Onstage my monitoring system was made out of what we used to call the F4 …just huge speakers, I had three of them man. So the sound onstage was just unbelievable, sometimes almost deafening, but really-really good.”

Ray Shasho: When I chatted with Jon Anderson about ‘Relayer’ and its inspiration from Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace, Jon said … “It was a combination of the war as we understand it and where would we be ... can we live beyond war, and then I had to jump in the real chaos and savagery of war in order to come out at the other end with ‘soon, oh soon the light’ to wake us up emotionally and spiritually.”

Patrick Moraz: “I think the title… ‘Gates of Delirium’ was influenced by a book I was reading  when I started to rehearse with him and the rest of the band, especially the first weekend I got invited to join the band, it was also the weekend that Nixon resigned, so I remember it very well.

We were discussing news happening and so on…  Jon was telling me about that Tolstoy book ‘War and Peace,’ and I was reading a comic book, “DELIRIUS” (by Philippe Druillet) a very good cartoon but a very serious designer created from France, and that guy was actually working for a magazine and he wrote a book. The book had just been released and I was reading that to take my mind a little bit away from all the rehearsals and the seven albums I was going to have to learn before we went out on the road. Also all the things I was to contribute to “The Gates of Delirium,” “Sound Chaser” and “To Be Over” in the next six weeks. So I’m pretty sure that ‘Delirium’ came from those discussions I used to have with Jon Anderson, and I showed him the book of course, he couldn’t understand it because it was all in French. (All laughing)”

Ray Shasho: I chatted with the current keyboardist of ‘YES’ Geoff Downes recently as well… very nice guy with an incredible musical past as well with The Buggles and Asia.

Patrick Moraz: “I saw him on the cruise. Personally I think he did a fantastic job helping to recreate the three albums that were featured on the last couple of tours. With the new singer Jon Davison who is able to reach those notes and has a very good spirituality in him. I think Jon Anderson should be really happy and proud to have his music and songs re-performed the way they are now. I think it’s an honor to him every day.”

Ray Shasho: I was upset when Jon was let go from the band and all that transpired, and I told Chris Squire that when I spoke with him… I have to admit, I do miss Jon Anderson as the frontman of ‘YES.’ 

Patrick Moraz: “Of course … he’s one of two creators of the band at the time. I think his spirit will live forever because he was the creator of so many songs and most of those lyrics and melodies. I understand what you are saying but I think people will be absolutely happy and surprised by their new album with Jon Davison …‘Heaven and Earth.’

Ray Shasho: Patrick, you performed on Chris Squire’s ‘Fish Out of Water’ solo album.

Patrick Moraz:  “That’s right; it was also my first playing encounter with Bill Bruford.

I also did “Music for piano & drums” (1983) and “Flags” (1985) (Moraz - Bruford Albums) when I was still a member of The Moody Blues. I also contributed to Steve Howe’s album. In 1975 … I think I was very busy because we all had decided to do solo albums after ‘Relayer’ and the first tour. In the winter of 1975, I was contributing to ‘Fish Out of Water’ and arranging the chamber orchestra for Steve’s first solo album ‘Beginnings’ and preparing my recording as well, and I even did a cameo in Alan Whites video for his ‘Ramshackled’ album. 

Ray Shasho: Your solo release… ‘The Story of i’ (1976) was a magnificent album.

Patrick Moraz: “I had a lot of fun doing it; it took about four months to record. I was also able to give that first professional gig to one of the greatest bass players the planet has ever known… Jeff Berlin. He actually played on both sides of the album. The official name of ‘The Story of i’ was actually just ‘i’ and that’s why I had that logo which was the ninth letter of the Etruscan alphabet. It was actually by intention in the first minute of the opening piece of ‘i’ …there’s a large vocal section that we sang …John McBurnie and his girlfriend who was also in the backing vocals and all of us in the studio sang… ‘i’! That was actually the personification of the title of the album. But the record company told me … “Patrick, what do you want to do with a title with just a letter and a logo like that?  The album is great and we love it but since you wrote the story call it ‘The Story of i.’” He said, “With ‘i’ we’re not going to do any business.” Of course nowadays we’ve got iPhone, iMusic, iPhoto …i everything! I should have trademarked it. (All laughing)”

Ray Shasho: ‘The Story of i’ album is an intriguing concept and story.

Patrick Moraz: “It’s actually the concept of life and the afterlife and in a way an aspect of reincarnation that I was unveiling through that story. I wrote all the liner notes and did the cartoon on the original version of it when it was on vinyl. It really helped me as a plan to compose and arrange everything; I wanted to make it a whole piece of music in fourteen movements … or two pieces of music in seven movements each and I think that was well translated on vinyl. Of course recently it has been remastered and released, and I think it came out really well on the CD.”

Ray Shasho: You also inherited a Brazilian influence which you shared on the album?

Patrick Moraz: “Exactly! After the second tour with ‘YES’ in 1975 which finished in late August, I flew with my engineer to Brazil and all over South America. Even on the plane journey I was writing music and getting some ideas. When I arrived in Brazil I was able to find sixteen Brazilian percussionists, and each one having a different function. Later, I moved to Brazil and lived there for five years; even my daughter was born in Brazil. I was also able to learn how to speak Portuguese.”

Ray Shasho: “I watched you perform with ‘The Moody Blues’ for the ‘Long Distance Voyager’ Tour in 1981.

Patrick Moraz:  “After I did my second solo album called ‘Out in the Sun,’ with that long piece at the end of it called “Time for a Change, “which actually has some of the flavors of what I had recorded and composed for “Awaken,” in ‘Going for the One’ from ‘YES,’ I was associated with  them two years previous to the recording of ‘Going for the One’ and I had prepared with them all the material including some of the biggest tunes. In early 1977, I was able to secure the record contract for ‘Out in the Sun,’ which I wanted to be completely different and more liberated. Then I moved to Brazil for a year and half and was preparing my third album and was going to record it in Brazil and also Geneva, Switzerland. Then some agent called me, actually in Miami, and asked if I wanted to join a certain band, they didn’t say who it was.”

“When I arrived in Rio, I was staying in a hotel at that point because of logistics, and then on the telex machine I understood it was The Moody Blues. I immediately got their album and already new some of their material, especially from ‘Days of Future Past,’ which is actually the title that has been retrieved by X-Men nowadays in the movie. So I was invited to come to London on the 17th of July in 1978, a couple of days after the end of the Montreux Jazz Festival where I played. I was able to secure a place to play at the festival so it would help me in my travels and to meet The Moody Blues in London two days later. I was fortunate enough all these years to keep my roadie in London with my equipment in top shape. I used to always joke that I was probably one of the first musicians to say… ‘Have Keyboards, Will Travel’ (All laughing).”

“I arrived in London and met with The Moody Blues and they were very nice and within the next hour we managed to play three or four tunes including “Tuesday Afternoon,” “Nights in White Satin,” and “Legend of a Mind” the song written by Ray Thomas about Timothy Leary who eventually became a very good friend in the late 80’s. The first two years I was with The Moody Blues as a session man of course and I learned all the material and so on. We had the idea of recording and they asked me to join them in the studio at the very beginning of the 1980’s. From then on, I was able to stay with them another ten and a half years and record five studio albums including the first one with them…‘Long Distance Voyager’ and ‘The Present’ several years later, and ‘The Other Side of Life’ after that. Those ten years as a member with The Moody Blues were absolutely fantastic and I really enjoyed every note that I ever played with them in the studio and onstage. I am very proud of having been a member and probably the only musician who has been a member of both groups …’YES’ and ‘The Moody Blues.’”

Ray Shasho: You played several mellotrons while onstage with both groups?

Patrick Moraz:  “Absolutely! When I was with ‘YES’ I had in a way …designed for the mellotron makers to make me a double mellotron. I was the first to have a double mellotron. I remember with ‘YES’ I had three mellotrons and when I joined The Moody Blues I actually had four mellotrons onstage. They call it the Ancient Sampler because it was all analog, each key could produce three different sounds from A, B, and C, but since there was (35) keys on each mellotron keyboard you could have up to (105) sounds, which was extremely useful at the time. I’ve used the mellotrons not only with every Moody Blues album that I’ve done but also with some of my solo albums, and even the solo albums that I was able to play as instant composition in front of TV cameras. I’m talking about ‘Future Memories I and II,’ these were extraordinary for the time because there was no computers. When I joined The Moody Blues as well there were no computers or programs as such, so the mellotrons were the key instruments, also to be able to reintroduce and give the interpretation to their best known hits. And to play all the parts that Michael Pinder had played, who was a fantastic mellotron player, great musician, and remarkable gentleman. Unfortunately I hadn’t had the time or pleasure to meet for a long time, I only met him for a few minutes at the NAMM show in the 90’s. But the Moody Blues recognized the fact that other instruments were as important, I had an array of synthesizers, electric pianos, and moog synthesizers of the time … I had so many instruments it was just unbelievable!”

Ray Shasho: You must be embracing today’s technology in so many ways while working in the studio … do you record from home nowadays?

Patrick Moraz:  “Yes I do, I’m fortunate enough to be able to have somewhat of an expansion of my array of keyboards and computers and what I call the ‘space station,’ because I use Apple computers and have some Thunderbolts and screens …I use mainly Logic and Pro tools.”

Ray Shasho: Patrick, I understand you knew Salvador Dali, what was he like?

Patrick Moraz: “It was in 1964 and I was engaged by a company in the north of Spain around Cadaqués which was the village or the town where Port Lligat is situated, a few miles northeast, but on the sea, and that’s exactly where Salvador Dali was living. So I was engaged for two reasons …to be a scuba diving instructor and also to organize some shows and concerts. I was playing piano, vibraphone and so on… and I was able to go on the property of Salvador Dali and even organize some parties for several months. We became friends and he was also speaking in French to me although in Spain. He would be saying surrealistic phrases to me and that’s how I got immersed into his creativity. I was fortunate enough as well to go and mingle with the people who used to come around as well, but mostly with Salvador and his wife Gala. I was probably one of the rare people to be allowed in one of his own painting studios and watch him work. It was extraordinary!”

Ray Shasho:  I noticed a photo on your website with you on the set for the first ‘Predator’ movie with Arnold Schwarzenegger … that had to be awesome!

Patrick Moraz: “It was absolutely phenomenal. That picture was probably taken at the beginning of 1987. Joel Silver wanted me to fly to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico where they were filming in the jungle and that’s where I met Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jesse Ventura, and Carl Weathers, and I spent about four days there. The day I arrived at Puerto Vallarta, Joel Silver was exuberant and the first thing he said to me was, “Patrick, I heard your music in New York and I was amazed,” and he said, “Guess what the good news is? The budget for the movie has been increased from 17 -million to 30- million dollars,” (Laughing) so it was a real celebration." 

"There was about 300 people all positioned in the jungle which was pretty thick above the mountains of Puerto Vallarta. Everybody was arriving by jeep or helicopter. The next day they were filming a scene with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Carl Weathers and there was also a scene including some parrots and chameleons. The parrots worked out fine but the chameleons would not change, so they flew in three chameleons in a helicopter from LA. Originally one of the assistant directors to John McTiernan the director, wanted to spray the chameleons but the ASPCA from Mexico said, “No-no Senor, you cannot do that.” We were laughing about it at the dinner later that night. Remember the scene when they attacked the guerrilla soldiers at their camp? I was almost a cameo appearing from the back, so they asked me to put on army fatigues because I was so close to the shooting.”

“I was supposed to be finishing the score for ‘Predator’ but The Moody Blues were going to Australia and having been with them for already nine years I didn’t want to let them down. The Producer Joel Silver had asked me to finish the score for ‘Predator’ during that period and even fly to somewhere like Romania or Czechoslovakia and finish the score with some aspect of a symphony orchestra. Eventually they changed that because I was not able to complete the score, I had done the temporary score for ‘Predator’ and I had just finished the full score for another movie called ‘The Stepfather’ with Terry O’Quinn.”

Ray Shasho: Patrick, here’s a question that I ask everyone that I interview. If you had a ‘Field of Dreams’ wish like the movie, to perform or collaborate with anyone from the past or present, who would that be?

Patrick Moraz: “I would immediately say Beethoven, Bach, and Mozart would be the most unbelievable in terms of the music. Also Stravinsky because he actually used to live in the town where I was born and forty years before that where he started to write ‘The Rite of Spring’ and had already written ‘The Firebird’ which was one of the music that we used to come onstage with ‘YES.’ He was also one of the main influences for some of the music that I have done. I would also have to include John Coltrane.”

“In terms of the movies … I would say Orson Welles, Stanley Kubrick, and Spielberg … or somebody of that imagination caliber, creativity, and genius …also some aspect of French directors like François Truffaut who had a big influence on me when I was a kid.”

“If there was only one spiritual entity which has always guided me my whole life it’s God.”

Ray Shasho: Patrick, anything else you’d like to promote?

Patrick Moraz: “I’d like to mention my ‘Windows of Time’ album recorded in 1993 at Full Sail University. I recorded it over a period of 72 hours, but recorded over 14 hours of piano, and nine months after that I was able to …with the help of a very good sound engineer and programmer to extract the essence of that music and make it into a one hour album. It’s the first CD at exactly 60 minutes or 3600 seconds  … My subsequent solo albums … ‘Resonance’ which is all piano and ‘ESP’ which is more classically oriented.”  

“I’m working on so many new projects …“The M.A.P.” ("The Moraz - Alban Project”) is going to be a very big surprise for the listeners and fans. I also have most of the music for my upcoming CD entitled ‘A way to Freedom’ due in the very near future. I’ve also got some very interesting poems presented in different languages, and a Cantata in the final works for SATB Choirs in 7 movements which pay homage to ‘Our Planet.’ So, I’m really-really enjoying what I’m doing.”

Ray Shasho: Patrick, thank you so much for being on the call today, but more importantly for all the incredible music with ‘YES,’ ‘The Moody Blues’ you’re brilliant solo projects, and the sensational music you continue to bring.

Patrick Moraz: “Having an interview like yours on the day of my birthday is a gift from God. I’ve really enjoyed your questions so much and I hope we can meet when I come to Sarasota in the not so distant future.”

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Very special thanks to ‘the great’ Billy James of Glass Onyon PR

COMING UP NEXT … Legendary keyboardist Keith Emerson (The Nice, Emerson, Lake & Palmer) … Robin Trower (Legendary guitarist and songwriter)… Don Wilson guitarist, pioneer, and co-founder of ‘The Ventures.’ … Country Music’s shining new star -19 year old Mary Sarah … And Folk/Rock singer & songwriter Jonathan Edwards (“Sunshine”).

Contact music journalist Ray Shasho at rockraymond.shasho@gmail.com

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