IN THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING

Mighty album. The opener '21st Century Schizoid Man' must have been really heavy for the late 60's. The musicianship is magnificent on this recording. Multi-instrumentalist Ian McDonald and guitarist Robert Fripp are leading this crafty band, as they are followed by superb drummer/percussionist Michael Giles and singer/bass- player Greg Lake. The excellent lyrics are from Peter Sinfield. Note the haunting, almost scary, but powerful usage of the Mellotron on most of the tracks. It fits great with the melodies. Ballad 'I Talk To The Wind' is one of the most beautiful songs I ever heard. McDonald's flute-solo is so melodic, just wonderful. Epitaph is truly the best track on this album. Very dramatic Mellotron, with pounding drums by Giles and very strong vocals by Lake. Moonchild is a genius-song. Split the song in two parts: Vocal and instrumental. The vocal part is a tiny little song of 2,5 minutes, very fairy-tale-que and melodic. The second part is an AMAZING (and very underrated) instrumental jam by the complete band. Just close your eyes and do this trip. Those guys really had guts by recording this for more than 9 minutes. The closer of the album is the title track. Maybe it's a little too long, but again, just like Epitaph and Schizoid, it's a powerful track. I recommend this album to everyone who loves timeless, good melodic music. One of Crimso's finest work!