IN THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING

I don't doubt the historical value of this album, but though I love King Crimson, I seldom listen to this record. The album highlight for me is "Epitaph", the song which introduced me to this marvelous band. "I Talk to The Wind" is also a nice little ballad, both softening the A-side's hard opener "21st Century Schizoid Man". I like that song as a composition, but I don't think that the version presented here shows its full potential. The early band did much better version of it on BBC studios, a track that can be heard on "Epitaph" CD box. Also the upcoming Wetton-Cross line-up smashed great versions of this song on stage. I guess what makes it better as live is the actual co-playing of a concert performance. The studio versions sound often a bit powerless and sterile to me - a symptom which follows the most of the material of this band's releases during the 1960's and 1970's. The B-side of this album is yet still weaker. Though the beginning of "Moonchild" is pretty, the long drones following it are then very boring. Also the title song doesn't please me much, though the melody and its sounds are beautiful, it has been extended as composition too much for my taste. As an anecdote, British hard-rock group Saxon did a funny cover version of this song. Despite my criticism "In Court of The Crimson King" is an interesting album still, and it might please you much more than it did me.