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Welcome, my friend, to the show that never ends...

Posted by 'ELP on April 04, 2003

In Reply to: Origin? - Welcome to the show that never ends... posted by TheFallen on April 04, 2003

: : : What is the origin of the phrase:" Welcome to the show that never ends." ? Please email any ideas to my email account also please.

: : In a previous life I was a recording engineer and, for my sins, worked on all of Emerson, Lake and Palmer's albums (I could tell stories that would frighten livestock). Anyway, I recall, and at that volume its hard not to recall, a line from their show's opening song - "Welcome my friends to the show that never ends". I've not much doubt that Greg Lake nicked this from somehwere else but just maybe he coined it himself.

: Including "Pictures At An Exhibition"? It's a very brave man that's prepared to admit this.

I actually quite liked the music of ELP - including 'Pictures' - Fanfare for the Common Man has become a classic piece of rock instrumental a bit like Strauss's "Thus Spake Z" and "Oxygene" by Jean Michele Jarre. I suppose the fact that I also liked Focus and Yes totally trashed my street-cred to such a degree that no number of Stereophonics, Chilli Peppers or Travis albums can restore it.

I have an inkling that Barnum or the Windmill Theatre might be the source of the original phrase.

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