I’m in a Prog-Rock state of mind today, so forgive me…
This is Crimson’s debut album, released in 1969. Yes, like all prog-rock, it treads an uneasy line between involving and pretentious but there’s some wonderful stuff here (I particularly like the gentle second track). Crimson are a little bit “arch” as a band, deliberately fashioning music that tested technique and structure, so this won’t be for everyone. Still, give it a whirl, you might be surprised…
Tracks:
- 21st Century Schizoid Man (00:00)
- I Talk To The Wind (07:24)
- Epitaph (13:25)
- Moonchild (22:17)
- The Court Of The Crimson King (31:18)
Enjoy!
Mind blowing album! It’s hard to believe that this was released in 1969. Their later stuff is quite different, but I particularly like Starless and Bible Black.
It’s pretty awesome stuff for sure, and music you have to work with rather than just let sweep by you. I know “Starless…” and I also have “Red”, “Beat” and “In The Wake Of Poseidon”, the latter of which I really like (particularly the title track).
I haven’t heard ‘Beat’ – I’ve got ‘Islands’ (A Sailor’s Tale is the stand out track for me) and ‘Larks’ Tongues In Aspic’ which is a bit of a drag except for Exiles and the amazing Easy Money. I love Cadence and Cascade on ‘In The Wake of Poseidon’ but I found it too similar to ‘In The Court of…’ to be a stand out album – haven’t heard it for years though!
Yeah, I agree: Wake is very similar to Court, but I just love the opening chord sounds to the title track – it’s just so ominous and trippy (as you can tell, I’m a big synth/ambient sound fan). Cadence is a terrific track too. Well worth a re-listen at some point. Beat is okay. I wouldn’t say it’s a particularly stand out album.