Brain Salad Surgery is the fourth studio album by English progressive rock band Emerson, Lake & Palmer, released on 7 December 1973 by their new record label, Manticore Records, and distributed by Atlantic Records.
Following the tour in support of their previous album, Trilogy (1972), the group acquired rehearsal facilities to work on new material, which would blend classical and rock themes. To control things, they launched their own record company, Manticore, in March 1973. The album was recorded from June to September at Olympic and Advision Studios and mixed in October 1973 at AIR Studios in London. As were all the group's previous works, it was produced by Greg Lake. The album includes a cover designed by H. R. Giger.
Released to a mixed critical response, it has received more favourable reviews since its release. Brain Salad Surgery continued the group's commercial success, reaching number 2 in the United Kingdom and number 11 in the United States, and eventually gaining Gold certifications in both countries. In its support, the trio embarked on their largest world tour to date, including a headlining spot at the California Jam festival.
The album has been remastered/remixed and reissued numerous times, including stereo and 5.1 surround sound remixes by Jakko Jakszyk.
Background
After the release of their third album, Trilogy, in June 1972, the group toured across Europe and the United States, playing in sold-out venues. By the beginning of 1973, Emerson, Lake & Palmer had become commercially successful in both the UK and the US.
The group had become somewhat dissatisfied with their record label Atlantic Records for a lack of involvement. Around January 1973 Keith Emerson, Greg Lake, Carl Palmer, and their manager Stewart Young decided to form their own record company. Together, they bought an abandoned ABC cinema in Fulham, West London and converted it into a rehearsal room and company headquarters, which would later be named Manticore Records. Lake said: "We set up Manticore to try and make the entire record process as good as it could be. We were also aware of a number of artists who we knew were having problems getting their music released and getting a record deal". Since the group knew that they would not have enough time to run their company, Atlantic promoter Mario Medious, who had worked with the group since their debut album, was brought in to serve as the president of Manticore in April 1973. Atlantic handled distribution duties.
Production
Emerson, Lake & Palmer began working on new material at the end of 1972. As Lake explained in an interview, the group's previous record, Trilogy, was recorded with the use of 24-track machines and featured too many overdubs that made the music very difficult to recreate properly on stage. So the trio agreed to record an album that they could perform live. The rehearsal facilities equipped in the former cinema allowed the group to play live, then write, play live again, write again, etc., resulting in a feeling of addressing an audience, that would be alluded to in the well-known line "Welcome back, my friends, to the show that never ends...".
Writing
During writing sessions around the end of 1972 and the beginning of 1973, the first two tracks began to take shape. One of them was the first movement of what would become the dominating composition of the forthcoming album, the epic "Karn Evil 9", and the other was an adaptation of the 4th Movement of Alberto Ginastera's 1st Piano Concerto.