Fame & Fortune: Drummer Carl Palmer Wild drummer for ELP and Asia invested conservatively
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Bankrate: Where do you own these properties?

Carl Palmer: I had a rental property in Cypress and one in Spain, which I have put into a trust for my daughter now, because certain laws have changed and you can move things over once your children hit 21. I've had a rental property in the North of England which has been part of my daughter's education, because she's going to a specialized university and the cost has already run four years and might run another two. Other investments have involved a self-administered pension scheme that we have in England. Once you get over a certain bracket of earning, it allows you to put as much as 40 percent of your earnings away, and that's changed a bit. Here in Europe, these rules constantly change each year, but we do have more openings to move money around throughout countries in Europe.

Bankrate: Are you also a stock investor?

Carl Palmer: I am. I have a trustee that does that for me.

Bankrate: Would you say you pay a little less personal attention to that, since you have someone else doing it for you?

Carl Palmer: I pay as much attention to that as I can. I don't follow the stock market to the point where I'm playing it on a daily, weekly, hourly basis.

Bankrate: These days, what is your most significant source of income?

Carl Palmer: I would say back catalog.

Bankrate: How many records does ELP sell every year at this point?

Carl Palmer: I couldn't tell you how many records I've sold. If you were to ask me the correct question, if you asked, how many records have I been paid on, I could tell you.

Bankrate: All right -- how many records have you been paid on?

Carl Palmer: To date, around 35 million. We've actually sold, I believe, somewhere in the region of about 40, 45, maybe even 50 million. To lose 10 million records sold over a 35-year period might seem an awful lot, but you have to keep in mind, I'm considering the bootlegging and copying in Asia. There was an awful lot of that going on. I would say we've actually sold more than 45 million globally.

Bankrate: Do you make decisions regarding your next musical moves based on potential business, or do you have the luxury of letting your creative desires dictate every move?