The Condensed 21st Century Guide to King Crimson
| The Condensed 21st Century Guide to King Crimson | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Compilation album by | ||||
| Released | 2006 | |||
| Recorded | 1969–2003 | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock | |||
| Label | Discipline Global Mobile | |||
| Producer | Robert Fripp | |||
| King Crimson chronology | ||||
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The Condensed 21st Century Guide to King Crimson is a compilation by progressive rock band King Crimson, released in 2006. It contains select studio tracks from the two box sets, The 21st Century Guide to King Crimson – Volume One – 1969–1974 and The 21st Century Guide to King Crimson – Volume Two – 1981–2003.[1]
Track listing
[edit]Disc One: In the Studio: 1969–1974
[edit]| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original album | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "21st Century Schizoid Man" (including "Mirrors") | Robert Fripp, Ian McDonald, Greg Lake, Michael Giles, Peter Sinfield | In the Court of the Crimson King, 1969 | 7:23 |
| 2. | "Epitaph" (including "March for No Reason" and "Tomorrow and Tomorrow") | Fripp, McDonald, Lake, Giles, Sinfield | In the Court of the Crimson King | 8:55 |
| 3. | "The Court of the Crimson King" (Abridged version; including "The Return of the Fire Witch" and "The Dance of the Puppets") | McDonald, Sinfield | In the Court of the Crimson King | 7:16 |
| 4. | "Cat Food" (Single version) | Fripp, Sinfield, McDonald | In the Wake of Poseidon, 1970 | 2:47 |
| 5. | "Cadence and Cascade" | Fripp, Sinfield | In the Wake of Poseidon | 4:37 |
| 6. | "Ladies of the Road" | Fripp, Sinfield | Islands, 1971 | 5:30 |
| 7. | "Sailor's Tale" (Abridged version) | Fripp | Islands | 7:02 |
| 8. | "Larks' Tongues in Aspic (Part I)" (Abridged version) | David Cross, Fripp, John Wetton, Bill Bruford, Jamie Muir | Larks' Tongues in Aspic, 1973 | 6:41 |
| 9. | "Book of Saturday" | Fripp, Wetton, Richard Palmer-James | Larks' Tongues in Aspic | 2:49 |
| 10. | "Fracture" (Abridged version) | Fripp | Starless and Bible Black, 1974 | 10:05 |
| 11. | "Starless" (Abridged version) | David Cross, Fripp, John Wetton, Bill Bruford, Richard Palmer-James | Red, 1974 | 4:37 |
| 12. | "Red" | Fripp | Red | 6:15 |
| 13. | "Fallen Angel" | Fripp, Wetton, Palmer-James | Red | 5:55 |
Disc Two: In the Studio: 1981–2003
[edit]| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Original album | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Elephant Talk" | Adrian Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Tony Levin | Discipline, 1981 | 4:44 |
| 2. | "Frame by Frame" | Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Levin | Discipline | 5:08 |
| 3. | "Matte Kudasai" | Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Levin | Discipline | 3:46 |
| 4. | "Discipline" | Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Levin | Discipline | 5:02 |
| 5. | "Heartbeat" | Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Levin | Beat, 1982 | 3:54 |
| 6. | "Waiting Man" | Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Levin | Beat | 4:26 |
| 7. | "Neurotica" | Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Levin | Beat | 4:50 |
| 8. | "Three of a Perfect Pair" | Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Levin | Three of a Perfect Pair, 1984 | 4:10 |
| 9. | "Sleepless" (Abridged version) | Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Levin | Three of a Perfect Pair | 4:36 |
| 10. | "VROOOM" | Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Trey Gunn, Levin, Pat Mastelotto | THRAK, 1995 | 4:37 |
| 11. | "Coda: Marine 475" (Abridged version) | Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Gunn, Levin, Mastelotto | THRAK | 2:05 |
| 12. | "Dinosaur" (Single version) | Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Gunn, Levin, Mastelotto | THRAK | 5:18 |
| 13. | "Sex Sleep Eat Drink Dream" | Belew, Bruford, Fripp, Gunn, Levin, Mastelotto | THRAK | 4:48 |
| 14. | "The Power to Believe I: A Cappella" | Belew | The Power to Believe, 2003 | 0:43 |
| 15. | "Level Five" | Belew, Fripp, Gunn, Mastelotto | The Power to Believe | 7:17 |
| 16. | "Eyes Wide Open" | Belew, Fripp, Gunn, Mastelotto | The Power to Believe | 4:09 |
| 17. | "Happy with What You Have to Be Happy With" (EP version) | Belew, Fripp, Gunn, Mastelotto | Happy with What You Have to Be Happy With EP, 2002; later released on The Power to Believe | 3:44 |
| 18. | "The Power to Believe III: Deception of the Thrush" | Belew, Fripp, Gunn, Mastelotto | The Power to Believe | 4:10 |
| 19. | "The Power to Believe IV: Coda" | Fripp | The Power to Believe | 2:21 |
Personnel
[edit]King Crimson
Additional personnel
- Robin Miller
- Marc Charig
- Richard Palmer-James
Reception
[edit]| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| All About Jazz |   [2] |
| AllMusic | [3] |
| Guitar Player | [4] |
| Rolling Stone | [5] |
David Fricke wrote in Rolling Stone that this is a "deluxe primer of studio lightning and live thunder, compiled with the novice in mind ... Crimson's singular union of power, passion and intellect never flags despite the comings, goings and severe turns in direction ... made by entirely different lineups, both albums nevertheless epitomize Crimson's — and Fripp's — dedication to searing, transportive excellence ... the concert tapes affirm that with a blowtorch vengeance".[5]
Author Greg Kot opined that "guitarist Robert Fripp's bitter liner notes get things off to a sour start, but the violence and invention in the music more than compensate".[1] John Kelman from All About Jazz wondered "if Fripp can continue to reissue material ad infinitum ... but this new release is, indeed, a concise collection that almost perfectly represents Crimson's long and multifaceted career".[2]
Barry Cleveland of Guitar Player said that the "CD box set provides the perfect introduction to one of rock's most influential bands ... the majority of the studio tracks are culled from the band's stunning 1969 debut ... the selections from the band's first seven studio albums are well-chosen, and the song sequencing makes for an enjoyable listen, but it's the live material that provides the greatest insight into what this group—or groups, as there are actually several different incarnations represented—was all about". He also noted the box set includes "a 24-page booklet containing a list of all the band's gigs, a diary-like running commentary by guitarist Robert Fripp, and a bevy of cool photos and other graphic memorabilia".[4]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Kot, Greg (12 December 2006). "Leave It To Boxed Sets To Unearth Forgotten Tony Bennett Tunes, Hook A New Generation On Classical Music And Vindicate The '80s". Chicago Tribune. p. 3.
- ^ a b Kelman, John (14 February 2007). "King Crimson: The Condensed 21st Century Guide to King Crimson 1969–2003 album review @ All About Jazz". All About Jazz.
- ^ Westergaard, Sean. "The Condensed 21st Century Guide to King Crimson". AllMusic.
- ^ a b Cleveland, Barry (2006). "King Crimson: the 21st Century Guide to King Crimson". Guitar Player. Vol. 39, no. 3. pp. 79–80.
- ^ a b Fricke, David (2006). "King Crimson: The 21st Century Guide to King Crimson". Rolling Stone. No. 966. pp. 64–65. ISSN 0035-791X.
