This was King Crimson’s debut album and also the debut of Prog Rock, with its fusion of Blues, jazz and classical musical influences. In 2015, Rolling Stone named this album as the second greatest Progressive Rock album of all time (second only to Dark Side of the Moon). Every track is musically totally different, but all the tracks fit together on this album beautifully. The 2 standout tracks are of course the title track and 21st Century Schizoid Man, but while these are tracks that grab you by the throat, tracks like Epitaph and Talk to the Wind bring you delicately back to earth. Robert Fripp (Mr Crimson) introduces some elegant guitar playing with traditional rock explosions sitting next to classical guitar interludes and some jazz noodling at other times. In addition, Ian McDonald’s mellotron is everywhere, along with his saxes, clarinets and flutes, adding depth, sophistication and mystery to the music. The band got Pete Sinfield to write the lyrics, which are astounding, but the genius of Fripp was to get Greg Lake to lead on vocals. Lastly, but not least, we have the superb drumming of Michael Giles (Rhythm magazine vote it the 8th best Prog Rock drumming album of all time). I also need to mention the stunning cover illustrated by Barry Godber which completely reflect the music, with the Schizoid Man on the outside and the Crimson King on the inside. Sadly, Barry died aged 24 in 1970 of a heart attack, just after the release of the album.
This album is a classic and the more you play it the more you hear. Just fabulous.
