The Nice were an English progressive rock band from the 1960s, known for their blend of rock, jazz and classical music. Their debut album, The Thoughts of Emerlist Davjack was released in 1967 to immediate acclaim. It is often considered the first progressive rock album. The Nice are also a forerunner of the much more widely known Emerson, Lake & Palmer.
The Nice consisted initially of keyboardist Keith Emerson, bassist/vocalist Lee Jackson, guitarist David O'List, more commonly known as "Davy", and drummer Ian Hague, quickly replaced by Brian Davison. The band took their name from Steve Marriott's slang term for being high, a term he used in the song "Here Come the Nice". Marriott originally wanted to give the name to a band he was producing, called The Little People. Andrew Loog Oldham took it upon himself to rename The Little People Apostolic Intervention, and dubbed the Emerson, Jackson, Davison, O'List group "The Nice". Emerson's autobiography Pictures of an Exhibitionist suggests that the name originated with a suggestion from P. P. Arnold. The reference to "being high" is not mentioned, instead a routine by hipster/comic Lord Buckley is quoted.
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