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King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King CD (album) cover

IN THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING

King Crimson

 

Eclectic Prog

4.64 | 4725 ratings

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Salviaal
3 stars I am mystified by the constant assertions of this being the first prog rock album. "In the Court of the Crimson King" was the prototype at best, depending on how you look at it. Contemporary works of The Moody Blues, Procol Harum or Yes were very similar in style, already the gloomy sound of mellotron and the shimmering flute were mainstays in this brand of "proto-prog". On the other hand there is one quite original tune on here, the erratic "21st Century Schizoid Man". It's the natural link between "Helter Skelter" and "Black Sabbath", surely Sabbath must have been influenced by them, Ozzy even covered this very song on his recent covers album (a very mediocre version I have to say). The rest of the songs however mostly move in the typical late 60s fashion, from that soft "moodie" sound on "I Talk to the Wind" to the "floydish" experimentation on "Moonchild". Perhaps part of the mystique is that Greg Lake, whose voice is very characteristic here, went on to sing in ELP, one of the bands that defined the classic prog sound. Good album but as Robert Fripp himself said, he didn't yet have his own compositional style. Crimson went on to produce much greater classics.
Salviaal | 3/5 |

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