"From the Beginning" is a song written by Greg Lake and performed by the progressive rock trio Emerson, Lake & Palmer. It was released on their 1972 album Trilogy. It hit #39 in the United States and was their highest-charting single there.[1]
Composition
The song was written in the key of A minor.[2] It is driven by an acoustic guitar line with layers of electric guitar (both rhythm and lead), electric bass guitar, and sung by Lake, with some backing on drums (played by Carl Palmer with congas, tympani mallets and without cymbals), and with a distinctive closing synthesizer solo from Keith Emerson, accompanied by overdubbed synthesizer sounds.[3][4] This song was originally intended for King Crimson's debut album In the Court of the Crimson King, but band leader Robert Fripp didn't think it would fit into the album's context. [citation needed]
Record World said that "Greg Lake gets a great sound out of his band on this acoustically jazzy number that highlights his voice and fine lyrics."[5]
The song was sampled by singer Amerie on the track "Got To Be There" from her debut 2002 album, All I Have with Greg Lake receiving a songwriting credit.[11]
^Flick, Larry (23 November 1996). "Dokken". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 47. p. 84. Retrieved 5 March 2012.
^Verrico, Lisa (9 August 2002). "Talk of the Clones". The Times. p. 12. Other highlights include the jazzy ballad Nothing Like Loving You and the Emerson Lake and Palmer-sampling Got to be There.
