'In the Court of the Crimson King' is the debut studio album by King Crimson,
and was released in October 1969 by Island Records. The album, one of the earliest and most influential works of Prog Rock, it blends the musical foundations of rock music with elements of jazz, classical, and symphonic music.
'In
the Court of the Crimson King' was reissued several times in the 1980s
and 1990s through Polydor and E.G. Records, with pressings made from
copies that were several generations removed from the master
tape. This resulted in sub-par audio quality and audible tape hiss. Today's freeload is a sweet sounding 24 bit/96 kHz version.
Greg Lake – lead vocals and bass guitar.01. 21st Century Schizoid Man
02. I Talk To The Wind
03. Epitaph
04. Moonchild
05. The Court Of The Crimson King
06. 21st Century Schizoid Man (radio version) (Bonus Track)
07. I Talk To The Wind (duo version) (Bonus Track)
08. A Man A City (live at the Fillmore West) (Bonus Track)
Robert Fripp – electric and acoustic guitars.
Ian McDonald – saxophone, flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, Mellotron, harpsichord, piano, organ and vibraphone.
Michael Giles – drums.
For the freeload, what's your favorite Prog Rock album?
Another great question. Another tough one. Listening now to narrow it down to one favorite. Thanks Babs. Be back in a while
ReplyDeleteKansas, first album is my favorite prog rock album (today). Thanks Babs
DeleteIf I had to narrow it down to 1, I'd probably go with The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway. I remember seeing Genesis on the accompanying tour (on TV, not in person) and wondering what is this shit? (I think it was Gabriels haircut). Flash forward maybe 2 years, whoosh!, and it all became clear. Runner-up: Close to the Edge (Squire's bass playing killed me). I'd put KC's Discipline at the very top, but I'm not sure it qualifies as prog. Now, there was a band...
ReplyDeleteWhy one? Pshaw. So many, but a definite bent to Canterbury style; the first two Hatfield and North albums, Gong's "Flying Teapot Trilogy", the first two National Health albums, "The Land of Grey and Pink" by Caravan, 801 Live!, "Brain salad Surgery" by ELP, "Yessongs", "Nursery Cryme" or "Selling England by the Pound" by Genesis, and to show Americans CAN do decent progressive rock if they try, The first Todd Rundgren's Utopia album, and the first "Happy the Man" album. And a fresh microdot. That'll sort my Saturday night out nicely.
ReplyDeleteWhy one?
DeleteCuz Babs sez, that's why.
I fancied ELP's Trilogy back in its day. And I love Court of the Crimson King!
ReplyDeleteI also liked 'Trilogy' back in its day. I should play it to see how it holds up.
DeleteApart from the one's already mentioned I'd add the great 3 album run of the Yes Album, Fragile & Close to the Edge and the early 'prog' of the Five Bridges Suite by the Nice.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite is probably, 'Foxtrot'.
ReplyDeleteRidiculously, I think it's probably Court Of The Crimson King.
ReplyDeleteBut all of the above are close seconds. Best of all for me is the Canterbury Scene and anything in that cachement.
ReplyDeleteNo one'll follow me on that one, but I guess it's still Yes' Drama. If that isn't proggy enough, then Close To The Edge.
ReplyDeleteDifficult. But probably the first Renaissance album, the one with Jane Relf on beautiful vocals.
ReplyDeleteTo play the "one" game, I'll go with several others and say "Close To The Edge," and it is Chris Squire that plucks the proverbial laurels. Other contenders are "Sunburst Finish" (Be-Bop Deluxe), "Foxtrot," "Tarkus" (ELP), and after that (excluding other offerings from those four bands) it slithers off into "how 'prog' was that, really?"
ReplyDeleteD in California
I came here to say "Close to the Edge," and it seems I am not alone.
ReplyDeleteGreenslade : Bedside Manners are Extra, bet I'm on my own, there. Followed by Gryphon : Red Queen to Gryphon Three
ReplyDeleteIf Krautrock can be considered Progrock, then I submit Amon Duul II's Wold City.
ReplyDeleteYes - "Tales From Topographic Oceans" and runner up, Triumvirat - "Spartacus"
ReplyDeleteI came back to edit and add an Honorary Mention: Covenant - "Northern Light"
DeleteI'm pretty partial to the first Todd Rundgren/Utopia album, especially the half-hour "The Ikon". The later power-pop stuff, not so much. Oh, jeez, and Nektar's Remember The Future was and still is a brain-opener!
ReplyDeleteexcuse the twofer!
DeleteThis is a genre that does bupkis for me, except (album-wise), the debuts of King Crimson, Kansas and ELP. It's occurred to me that maybe I like it best when purveyors of this genre are still finding their way, seeing as these three are debuts and their follow-ups didn't grab me (tho I liked lots of Brain Salad Surgery and a couple of ELP's singles).
ReplyDeleteHaving said that, one of my favorite albums of all time is Thick As A Brick, and I much like the Tull albums preceding it, tho they don't seem particularly proggy to me (even if TAAB had proggy proclivities).
C in California
Agreed, C. Overall I find the genre to be middlebrow and just sooo vanilla. There are exceptions, though...
DeleteIs there some universal def of what is prog rock, or is it amorphously all consuming like that grotesque term (and genre) yacht rock (eat the rich!)? Is Abbey Road's side 2 prog rock? Seems like it has a lot of the elements. If so, that's my favorite. If not, then I'll place my x on none of the above (never was really a huge fan).
ReplyDeleteAcquiring the taste; Valentyne Suite; Pawn Hearts
ReplyDeleteOooh, nice choices.
DeleteLast week I had been binging on Bastards Of Soul, which got replaced last Thursday with Sly & The Family Stone, that lasted thru the weekend. I was fortunate to see the Questlove documentary Sly Lives!, very enjoyable. Monday morning I see King Crimson & another fantastic question. I immediately listened to Tarkus, Kansas, Thick As A Brick & Wish You Were Here. It was a real good time. And seeing all the comments, I can tell I probably need to expand my listening further. I like Yes but for whatever reason was never a big fan of Genesis. I'll try harder I guess. Thanks Babs, once again, what a great place this is.
ReplyDeleteLink
ReplyDeletehttps://workupload.com/file/Yunc5jr6gDq
Camel "Rain Dances"
ReplyDeleteOh your ARE so cruel. Only one? I know, I know. If only one there is to choose, I'll go with Red by King Crimson. But there are many albums that deserve that distinction (Still Life by VDGG, The Lamb Lies Down and Foxtrot (Genesis), Fragile (Yes), The Snow Goose (Camel), Thick As A Brick (JTull), etc.) In The Court of the CK is clearly in this level too. Many thanks!!
ReplyDeleteI just like to make people think.
DeletePicking an artistic favorite is tricky and inherently contradictory, you need to use lateral, divergent, and convergent thinking. It’s not like asking “What’s your favorite pair of shoes or sneakers?” I picked ‘Foxtrot’ by Genesis, because it’s the Prog Rock album I play the most.
I know Babs, just joking. It's just that I love so much the genre. I don't listen to it much nowadays, it's more a thing from early youth, but I still remember how deep those records made a deep impression. I guess that the music you hear when you are young neve leaves you completely... cheers!
DeleteApart for all those mentioned above (and I have to sgree with all) Gentle Giant and UK released excellent albums as well.
ReplyDeleteBat
Greatest Show On Earth. "The Going's Easy" (1970)
ReplyDeleteThirty-some comments and no one has mentioned Argus by Wishbone Ash, the Allman Bros of Prog (more guitar less synth).
ReplyDeleteI could never make sense of the lyrics:
Delete“I thought I had a girl
And all because I seen her.”
Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?
Would you expect romantic lyricism from the cast of the Big Bang Theory? Prog Rock has no blood in its veins.
ReplyDeleteTutti frutti, oh rutti Awop-bop-a-loo-mop alop-bam-boom has passion.
Love the first two Soft Machine albums if they count but I'm going to go with King Crimson's "Discipline" if only for the face melting song "Indiscipline." Thanks for this upgrade!
ReplyDeleteChris Squire "Fish out of Water"
ReplyDeleteMost of the albums mentioned above are long-time favorites, but this one, obviously. When it was released there was nothing remotely like it and its influence on what came after is generally accepted as a given.
ReplyDelete