Memory: Keith Emerson Suicide in 2016

By editorial board on March 10, 2019

ELP star Keith Emerson 'shot himself because he could no longer perform perfectly for his fans'

Greg Lake has told U.K.'s Express that he wasn't shocked by the tragic death of his EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER bandmate Keith Emerson.

Emerson, Lake & Palmer keyboardist Keith Emerson died last week (March 10) at age 71. Following the sad news, Santa Monica police confirmed Emerson died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, with his death being ruled a suicide.

Over the weekend, Emerson's girlfriend Mari Kawaguchi -- who found his body at their shared California residence -- spoke to U.K. publication Daily Mail and shed some light onto why the legendary keyboard player may have taken his own life.

Girlfriend Sheds Some Light on Keyboardist's Suicide

"His right hand and arm had given him problems for years. He had an operation a few years ago to take out a bad muscle but the pain and nerve issues in his right hand were getting worse," she said.

"He had concerts coming up in Japan and even though they hired a back-up keyboard player to support him, Keith was worried. He read all the criticism online and was a sensitive soul. Last year he played concerts and people posted mean comments such as,

'I wish he would stop playing.' He was tormented with worry that he wouldn't be good enough. He was planning to retire after Japan. He didn't want to let down his fans. He was a perfectionist and the thought he wouldn't play perfectly made him depressed, nervous and anxious."

Greg Lake has told U.K.'s Express that he wasn't shocked by the tragic death of his EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER bandmate Keith Emerson.

Now Lake says that Emerson had been struggling with depression since at least 1977 and describes his friend as "increasingly confused, desperate and depressed" in his final years.

"I have to be honest and say his death didn't come as a shock to me," Lake said. "The situation with Keith didn't happen suddenly — it has been developed from as far back as 'The Works Vol. 1' album. At that point I began to see things happening with Keith which didn't look or feel right.

He continued: "It's very difficult to describe what depression is. We all know what it looks like. People's moods become very black. But it's more complicated. It changes someone's personality.

"He lived, in the end, this very lonely existence of someone who was deeply troubled. I saw someone who became increasingly confused, desperate and depressed."

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