Emerson, Lake and Palmer

Emerson, Lake and Palmer formed in London in 1970 and became one of the defining progressive rock supergroups of the decade. Keyboardist Keith Emerson brought his Hammond organ and Moog modular synthesizer work from The Nice, Greg Lake brought his bass playing and vocals from King Crimson, and Carl Palmer brought his percussion virtuosity from Atomic Rooster. Their debut performance at the 1970 Isle of Wight Festival announced something genuinely new. Emerson's stage theatrics -- stabbing his Hammond with knives, wrestling his Moog -- matched the musical ambition of a band that headlined the California Jam in 1974 to 250,000 people. They sold over 48 million records.