EPITAPH, VOLUMES ONE & TWO

This release was far too long in coming. Yes, I know some of the tracks are poorly recorded. But the historical signifigance of this band makes it a treasure. This is where serious prog gained a foothold, and became the powerhouse it was in the seventies.

The best parts are the unreleased tracks. Get Thy Bearings is the weakest of them. This Donovan flower child song is just too light for this band. A Man, A City is actually an early version of Pictures Of A City, with a much more dissonant intro, which makes it sound a bit less like a clone of 21st Century Schizoid Man. Mantra eventually became the intro for Exiles in later years, but at this point was the intro to Travel Weary Capricorn a fine song which evolves into a great improv section. Drop In is a jazzy songs, with some great playing by Fripp, McDonald & Lake.

The sound quality is actually worst on the BBC radio sessions, with only Epitaph sounding good. The live material, sounds pretty good, even though much of it was culled from bootleg recordings. The second disk, all one concert, sounds very good.