Lucky Man (Emerson, Lake & Palmer song)
Encyclopedia
"Lucky Man" is a song by the English
progressive rock
supergroup
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
, from the group's 1970 self-titled debut album. Written by Greg Lake
when he was 12 years old and recorded by the trio using improvised arrangements,
the song contains one of rock music
's earliest instances of a Moog synthesizer
solo
. "Lucky Man" was released as a single in 1970 and reached the top 20 in the Netherlands
. The song also charted in the United States
and Canada
. The single was re-released in 1973 and charted again in the U.S. and Canada.
The lyrics tell the ironic
story of a man who had everything, went to war, and died. A Moog synthesizer
solo, recorded in one take
, is performed by Keith Emerson
at the end of song, making it one of the first rock compositions in which a Moog was a featured solo instrument.
The solo begins as an ominous drone on a low D
before leaping up two octave
s and using the glide control throughout.
,
number 25 in Canada,
and number 14 in the Netherlands. The single was re-released in January 1973 and peaked at number 51 on the U.S. Hot 100 and number 71 in Canada.
In a 1971 issue of Billboard
, the song was described as being "loaded with programming appeal and should make its mark on the sales charts."
In a review of the 2004 film Moog
, MTV
's Kurt Loder
said "'Lucky Man' demonstrated for delighted keyboard players everywhere that it was at last possible for them to blow amp-shredding lead guitarists right off the stage, if they so chose."
Former Moog technician David Van Koevering praised "Lucky Man" as the instrument's "big breakthrough" in popular music.
Emerson, however, has remained somewhat embarrassed about the song, saying "That's the solo I've had to live with!" He noted that during the recording of the solo, he was "just jamming around," and was "devastated" to learn that it was going to be used in the final version of the song without having the chance to record another take, as all the tracks had been used.
episode "Million Dollar Maybe
", where Homer Simpson
found an Emerson, Lake & Palmer CD and sang to the song as he drove.
The song has been covered by the band Ween at two concerts.
7" Atlantic Oldies Series Single
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
supergroup
Supergroup (music)
In the late 1960s, the term supergroup was coined to describe "a rock music group whose performers are already famous from having performed individually or in other groups"....
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Emerson, Lake & Palmer, also known as ELP, are an English progressive rock supergroup. They found success in the 1970s and sold over forty million albums and headlined large stadium concerts. The band consists of Keith Emerson , Greg Lake and Carl Palmer...
, from the group's 1970 self-titled debut album. Written by Greg Lake
Greg Lake
Gregory Stuart "Greg" Lake is an English musician, songwriter and producer, best known as a vocalist and bassist of King Crimson, and the bassist, guitarist, vocalist, and lyricist of Emerson, Lake & Palmer.-1960s: King Crimson:...
when he was 12 years old and recorded by the trio using improvised arrangements,
the song contains one of rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
's earliest instances of a Moog synthesizer
Moog synthesizer
Moog synthesizer may refer to any number of analog synthesizers designed by Dr. Robert Moog or manufactured by Moog Music, and is commonly used as a generic term for older-generation analog music synthesizers. The Moog company pioneered the commercial manufacture of modular voltage-controlled...
solo
Solo (music)
In music, a solo is a piece or a section of a piece played or sung by a single performer...
. "Lucky Man" was released as a single in 1970 and reached the top 20 in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. The song also charted in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The single was re-released in 1973 and charted again in the U.S. and Canada.
Background and composition
On the last day of recording their debut album, Emerson, Lake & Palmer discovered they were short of satisfying the label's contract requirement of 21 minutes of music per album side, and therefore needed one more song. Greg Lake began playing "Lucky Man", a song he had written when he was 12 years old. Unlike many songs on the album, which use a distorted fuzz bass to sound like a guitar, "Lucky Man" is an acoustic ballad.The lyrics tell the ironic
story of a man who had everything, went to war, and died. A Moog synthesizer
Moog synthesizer
Moog synthesizer may refer to any number of analog synthesizers designed by Dr. Robert Moog or manufactured by Moog Music, and is commonly used as a generic term for older-generation analog music synthesizers. The Moog company pioneered the commercial manufacture of modular voltage-controlled...
solo, recorded in one take
Take
A take is a single continuous recorded performance. The term is used in film and music to denote and track the stages of production.-Film:In cinematography, a take refers to each filmed "version" of a particular shot or "setup"...
, is performed by Keith Emerson
Keith Emerson
Keith Noel Emerson is an English keyboard player and composer. Formerly a member of the Keith Emerson Trio, John Brown's Bodies, The T-Bones, V.I.P.s, P.P. Arnold's backing band, and The Nice , he was a founder of Emerson, Lake & Palmer , one of the early supergroups, in 1970...
at the end of song, making it one of the first rock compositions in which a Moog was a featured solo instrument.
The solo begins as an ominous drone on a low D
D (musical note)
D is a musical note a whole tone above C, and is known as Re within the solfege system.When calculated in equal temperament with a reference of A above middle C as 440 Hz, the frequency of middle D is approximately 293.665 Hz. See pitch for a discussion of historical variations in...
before leaping up two octave
Octave
In music, an octave is the interval between one musical pitch and another with half or double its frequency. The octave relationship is a natural phenomenon that has been referred to as the "basic miracle of music", the use of which is "common in most musical systems"...
s and using the glide control throughout.
Release and reception
"Lucky Man" was released in 1970 and reached number 48 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
,
number 25 in Canada,
and number 14 in the Netherlands. The single was re-released in January 1973 and peaked at number 51 on the U.S. Hot 100 and number 71 in Canada.
In a 1971 issue of Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
, the song was described as being "loaded with programming appeal and should make its mark on the sales charts."
In a review of the 2004 film Moog
Moog (film)
Moog is a 2004 documentary film by Hans Fjellestad about electronic instrument pioneer Dr. Robert Moog. The film features scenes of Dr. Moog interacting with various musical artists who view Moog as an influential figure in the history of electronic music....
, MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
's Kurt Loder
Kurt Loder
Kurt Loder is an American film critic, author, columnist, and television personality. He served in the 1980s as editor at Rolling Stone, during a tenure that Reason later called "legendary". He has contributed to articles in Reason, Esquire, Details, New York, and Time. He has also made cameos on...
said "'Lucky Man' demonstrated for delighted keyboard players everywhere that it was at last possible for them to blow amp-shredding lead guitarists right off the stage, if they so chose."
Former Moog technician David Van Koevering praised "Lucky Man" as the instrument's "big breakthrough" in popular music.
Emerson, however, has remained somewhat embarrassed about the song, saying "That's the solo I've had to live with!" He noted that during the recording of the solo, he was "just jamming around," and was "devastated" to learn that it was going to be used in the final version of the song without having the chance to record another take, as all the tracks had been used.
Popularity
In 2010, the song appeared in The SimpsonsThe Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
episode "Million Dollar Maybe
Million Dollar Maybe
"Million Dollar Maybe" is the eleventh episode of the twenty-first season of the animated comedy series The Simpsons. It first aired on Fox in the United States on January 31, 2010. In this episode, Homer wins $1 million in the lottery...
", where Homer Simpson
Homer Simpson
Homer Jay Simpson is a fictional character in the animated television series The Simpsons and the patriarch of the eponymous family. He is voiced by Dan Castellaneta and first appeared on television, along with the rest of his family, in The Tracey Ullman Show short "Good Night" on April 19, 1987...
found an Emerson, Lake & Palmer CD and sang to the song as he drove.
The song has been covered by the band Ween at two concerts.
Track listing
7" Single- "Lucky Man" (Lake) - 4:35
- "Knife-Edge" (Emerson, Frazer, Janácek, Lake) - 5:04
7" Atlantic Oldies Series Single
- "Lucky Man" (Lake) - 4:35
- "From The Beginning" (Lake) - 5:04
Personnel
- Keith EmersonKeith EmersonKeith Noel Emerson is an English keyboard player and composer. Formerly a member of the Keith Emerson Trio, John Brown's Bodies, The T-Bones, V.I.P.s, P.P. Arnold's backing band, and The Nice , he was a founder of Emerson, Lake & Palmer , one of the early supergroups, in 1970...
: piano, synthesizer - Greg LakeGreg LakeGregory Stuart "Greg" Lake is an English musician, songwriter and producer, best known as a vocalist and bassist of King Crimson, and the bassist, guitarist, vocalist, and lyricist of Emerson, Lake & Palmer.-1960s: King Crimson:...
: acoustic guitar, bass, lead guitar, percussion, vocals - Carl PalmerCarl PalmerCarl Frederick Kendall Palmer is an English drummer and percussionist. He is credited as one of the most respected rock drummers to emerge from the 1960s...
: percussion, drums
Chart performance
| Chart (1971) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian Singles Chart | 25 |
| Dutch Top 40 Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting... |
14 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 48 |
| Chart (1973) | Peak position |
| Canadian Singles Chart | 71 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 51 |