JAZZ CLUB, CHESTERFIELD, ENGLAND, SEPTEMBER 7, 1969

This 2CD set (recently reissued with some further tidying-up on the Complete 1969 boxed set) is the longest live album we have from the original King Crimson lineup. Hailing as it does from a jazz club in Chesterfield, the band clearly felt that the audience would be particularly open to some improvisation, and don't disappoint, delivering among other things a truly epic treatment of Get Thy Bearings.

In terms of sound quality, this is substantially better than the more well-known Hyde Park or Marquee Club live recordings - it's not quite on a level where I feel able to give the set five stars, but close enough that I'll give it four and a half. If you only want one 1969 live recording from the band, this is a strong contender for that, since it includes more or less all the material they were doing live at the time and extensive demonstration of their improvisational powers - plus it's interesting to hear them play up the jazz side of their sound.