It’s truly bewildering to consider how many ground-breaking albums were released in 1969-70, creating an entire new style of music called either “progressive rock” or “jazz fusion”, depending on what side of the street you lived. In the retrospect of half a century, King Crimson’s debut album In The Court of the Crimson King was not simply breaking new ground, but shattering the earth. This three disc, single Blu-ray disc expanded edition of the Nike heat seeking missile of an album includes the entire gauntlet of the original release, remixes, stereo mixes, alternative takes and even an in concert snippet of the original band at a July, 1969 Hyde Park gig.
Everything about this album was extra-ordinary and experimental. Even the album cover had no title or writing to let you know who the band was; you just had to know. Also, the music was not a performance of music, but was labeled “An Observation by King Crimson” while the harrowing cover art work was sui generis and the inside character seemed like an alien from a Star Trek episode.
The music itself was revolutionary, from the opening ominous oozings that suddenly stopped for a brief respite before pounding into the mix of Ornette Coleman and Jimi Hendrix for the mind shattering anthem “21st Century Schizoid Man”. Who was prepared for that initial onslaught during the Nixon Years? The mix of head banging rhythms, intricate and articulate teamwork, wild soloing, caustic vocals by Greg Lake and the cataclysmic last note set the tone and benchmark for every band after it, including Genesis, Moody Blues, Gentle Giant, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Tony Williams’ Lifetime, and Lake’s eventual Emerson, Lake and Palmer.
Equally inventive was the use Peter Sinfield, a non-musician, to compose all of the lyrics to this and subsequent albums, teaming with guitarist Robert Fripp to become the Mozart & Da Pont of progressive rock. The mix of Dylanesque lyrics, renaissance woodwinds, jazzy grooves, apocalyptic themes and sounds, and ambient atmospheres created ideas and inspirations for a plethora of other bands and artists in its wake.
And, let’s not forget the Mellotron! While guitarist Robert Fripp guitar was a searing laser, Ian McDonald created sounds and moods with the then-unknown instrument to make it a sine qua non for future bands and artists. Greg Lake’s bass teamed with Michael Giles’ drumming to meld kinetic ricochets with dramatic climaxes, while his voice was able to sound like the prophet Ezekiel during his dire warnings such as “Epitaph” or wondrously searching on “I Talk To The Wind” and “Moonchild”. Each song was completely unique in its own way, making the novice listener which was the “real” band in concert. Fripp would take each color from this mosaic to explore in later incarnations, but this was the first stake in the new land, and it still stands strong.