The Nice

The Nice were an English progressive rock band active in the late 1960s. They blended rock, jazz and classical music. Keyboardist Keith Emerson, bassist Lee Jackson, guitarist David O'List, and drummer Ian Hague originally formed in 1967 to be the backing band of soul singer P. P. Arnold. After replacing Hague with Brian Davison, the group set out on their own and quickly developed a strong live following. The group's stage performances featured Emerson's Hammond organ showmanship and abuse of the instrument. Their compositions included radical rearrangements of classical music themes and Bob Dylan songs. The band achieved commercial success with an instrumental rearrangement of Leonard Bernstein's "America", following which O'List left the group. The remaining members carried on as a trio, releasing several albums, before Emerson left the band in early 1970 in order to form Emerson, Lake & Palmer. The group briefly re-formed in 2002 for a series of concerts.