ALBUM OF THE WEEK # 273 KING CRIMSON - STARLESS AND BIBLE BLACK (1974)

[RJhog (Admin)]

Artist: King Crimson

Band Members: Robert Fripp (Guitar/Mellotron/Devices/Electric Piano)/John Wetton (Bass/Vocals)/Bill Bruford (Drums/Percussion)/David Cross (Violin/Viola/Mellotron/Electric Piano)

Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Member: No 

Album: Starless And Bible Black

Producer: King Crimson

Disclaimer: All info that does not reside in my brain is gathered from wikipedia.com (mostly because Jon can't stand it) unless otherwise noted. 

Album of the Week this week goes to the progressive rock band King Crimson.  Starless And Bible Black is the band's sixth album, released on March 29th, 1974.  Only one single was released from the album, and that was Night Watch.  It did not chart.  The album reached number 64 in the U.S. and number 28 in the U.K.  It has not received any RIAA awards to this point.

The album was recorded partly in the studio and partly live in concert.  The crowd noise was edited out.  The song Trio was performed by only three of the band members.  The piece was an improvisation in which drummer Bill Bruford continued to wait for just the right time to join, but he decided it sounded better without him and he never joined the fun.  

I have the 40th Anniversary Edition, which is remixed by Steven Wilson and comes with bonus tracks as well as a DVD audio disc that contains multiple mixes of the album.  I'm pretty sure I paid 20 bucks for it a couple of years ago at Best Buy, but you can get it from Amazon now for $13.99 brand new.  You can even get it from Amazon Marketplace for about 10 bucks used.

Side One:

1. The Great Deceiver

2. Lament

3. We'll Let You Know

4. The Night Watch

5. Trio

6. The Mincer

Side Two:

7. Starless And Bible Black

8. Fracture

[Jon]

Just total weirdness. Total LISTENABLE weirdness. I've always found King Crimson to be weird, but have always got caught up in that weirdness. It really shouldn't make any sense, it should just be noise, but it's not. There's method to their madness, but I do believe that a majority of the young 'uns today wouldn't give this a second thought, much less a first listen. It isn't simple, it doesn't go from point A to point B, it goes from A to F then back to C then forward to H and then sticks on H for a bit, meanders to S, goes back to C with a slight detour to W and then maybe, just maybe, it ends at B. 

Good stuff, this!

 

[RJhog (Admin)]

That sums it up pretty well.

[Niels (Mod)]

Interesting choice indeed!

I don't know much KC. I bought a double "Best of" a couple of years ago, and I didn't really like it at all. Their early stuff was by far the best, but that was only a third of the albums, or less. It kind of sounded like to me, that the only really good album, they made, was their first one, but I can't really tell, can I.

1. This is a good start. I don't think, I've heard this one before. Sounds a bit like early Pink floyd, only heavier. A good track.

2. He does sound like one of the members of 10Cc, Eric Stewart, I think. This one, I also like. I don't think, this appear on my best of either. I like this!!

3. This is too weird for my taste. I don't like this one!! There's too much of this stuff on the best of!! I wonder why, when they CAN produce good music, as the first two tracks.

4. Not a good start, but around the middle of the song, it get's really good. Not as good as the first two, but in the end, a good track. Some nice guitar-work.

5. Why oh why, do they have such slow starts to their songs? Or some of them. Oh, it's not the start, it's the whole track. Nope, don't care for this one. Very boring.

6. I guess, a lot of people smoked some weed, when they were listening to this stuff, and maybe the band had different colors in the back of the stage?! Another slow, boring start. Nope, it's actually the whole track again. I don't like this one either, so it was 50/50 on side 1.

7. Now the two tracks on side two, does appear on the double best of. As I remember them, I don't like them, but I'll be sure in 20+ min. The start again kind of annoys me. Boring sounds, is not my kind of taste in music. Oh, aren't we clever to make these noises. No, you're not. It get's a LITTLE more interesting, when the drums appear, but that guitar is most definitely annoying. I have one word for this: Crap!!

8. Here we go again: A boring start. Like you, RJ, I'm not much of a fan of instrumental music. I need some vocals. This is better than "Starless", especially near the end of the track, but it won't make me listen to KC more than I do now, which means once every 5 or 10 years.

Bottomline: They CAN produce some good tunes, but still they fill their albums with instrumental noise. Too "arty farty" for my taste. They are even worse than Pink Floyd (I only like 2 Floyd-albums)