In the Court of King Crimson

Rating:
Summary: A masterpiece!
Review: King Crimson is one of progressive music's all-time most important bands, and it is gratifying to see a book of such high quality as Sid Smith's book is.

This is not only a great book for fans, it is one of the very best books ever to be written about a contemporary rock band.

The presentation is of a very high quality. The cover art is superb. There are many rare photos from all periods throughout. The writing is informative and approachable, and not weighted down with overly technical analysis or too-clever-smart-assed-rock critic asides, as too many books about progressive music tend to be. The research and scope of the project are complete and far-ranging, devoting equal time to all periods and lineups of the King Crimson band, including projects like the wonderful McDonald & Giles album (from 1970).

Sid Smith makes a point of contacting all members of the band (no matter how brief their stints may have been), and this gives the coverage a perspective from all sides, as opposed to concentrating solely on Fripp. The odd relationships between the various band members makes for a very entertaining read. The conflicts between Fripp and Greg Lake are hilarious, and the story of their 1977 limo ride after an ELP show in NYC is pretty funny stuff.

I was dissapointed to learn of the venom that exists between some of the members, though it is pointed out that dealing with Mr. Fripp is no picnic. I was saddened by Fripp's comments in regards to certain Crimson songs and albums- apparently fans like myself like his material far more than he does. And it was maddening to read that Fripp was more interested in witchcraft than smoking grass, which explains alot about the kind of rock star Fripp is. Buy this book!

Rating:
Summary: The surface story
Review: Light reading for Crimson fans, of which author Smith is certainly one. He provides many colorful adjectives but little in the way of musical analysis; any detailed info comes from interviews with the KC members. What the reader gets is mostly the overal Crim story, with some trivia and background from the recordings.

There are some incongruities and non sequiturs in the text; one suspects that significant chunks of prosal connective tissue were cut from Smith's original manuscript. And thus some of the comments from (ex-)members come without context, and we're still left wondering about how, when, and exactly why Bruford quit/was dismissed from KC, among other things.

Also, Smith's tendency to lengthily quote email (!) from KC members - right down to every punctuation mark and grammatical liberty - is an impersonal touch and does not make for great reading. As the "middle man" in the email flurries of Fripp, Sinfield, and Bruford, Smith does not quite reconcile or even set up the conflicting views of these musicians. Again, this may have something to do with the editing. But for several sections of the book, I was reading with eyebrows raised, wondering if certain questions were even being asked, let alone answered.

Nevertheless, these gripes are outweighed by the fact that this Crimson biography simply exists. Smith obviously has a lot of love for his subject, and Crimsonites will find it enjoyable, if light.

Rating:
Summary: One Of The Best Rock Books I've Read !!!
Review: Not just because I'm a huge Crimson fan,I believe that this may well be THE BEST book on a rock band ever written. A challenging effort for an author,as documented in the preface with Robert Fripp's feelings/reservations about Smith's project. The fact that every Crimson era had so many personnel changes as well as a totally revamped sound and approach turns it into a book about half a dozen separate bands.I like the in depth track by track commentary on each album; as a working,recording musician I can especially appreciate this insight and found myself going back to these records to listen for different instruments and recording techniques that were described.We also get to know something about some of the most obscure Crimson members/sidemen(especially Lizard/Islands era,my favorite and maybe the most obscure and dark time for Crimson) and what they've done since their stint in Crimson. Also the collection of photos,almost all never seen by fans before,some of them Fripp and the Giles brother's pre Crimson days(as well as Gordon Haskell,Ian Wallace) are a real revelation too.

Rating:
Summary: It wasn't Easy Money for KC
Review: Robert Fripp has some sort of passive/agressive thing going on. It seems that whenever he encounters conflict with his band he splits the band or threatens to leave. Perhaps part of it has to do with his initial discomfort as "leader". Regardless, this makes for compelling reading in Sid Smith's fine book on the Crimson King. Journeying from 1969 to the present incarnation of Crimson, Smith assesses the strengths and weaknesses of each incarnation with candor. He's also managed to track down and interview just about every member of the band past and present.

While I don't always agree with his critical comments about the various albums, line ups and songs, Smith's writing makes for a compelling and informed argument. Each incarnation of the band has produced notable and exceptional music but the most stable line ups (Fripp-Wetton-Cross-Brufford/Fripp-Belew-Levin-Brufford) are, of course, afforded the most space. Both have been the most powerful and consistent line ups in terms of the quality of music. They're also as different as can possibly be.He doesn't short the other line ups. The original line up gets plenty of space despite the fact that they only recorded one album. Smith also briefly focuses on their respective solo careers and other bands. The most interesting and conflicted of the line ups was the Fripp-Burrell-Collins-Wallace version that recorded Islands and Earthbound. There was an earthiness and blues/jazz element in this edition that was missing from later versions of the band. Smith manages to highlight the creative conflict that both created some enduring music (particularly on the Live in Jacksonville and Live at Summit Studios as well as Earthbound). Fripp was little more than a sideman in his own band at the end but it was a band that could create quite a noise!

The Fripp-Wetton-Cross-Brufford line up produced three studio albums (Cross left during recording of material for the last album)and one live album during their life time. This edition of KC had a distinctive European flavor to its prog rock sound. Cross violin helped accentuate this aspect of Crim. The band's most compelling albums (Lark's Tongue in Aspic and Red)were created in the fire of creativity and the burned out embers of the band's decline. Smith manages to give us an inside view of the conflicts, egos and critical press that created and destroyed the band.

The final line up (before the 7 year itch compelled Fripp to reform KC again)was originally going to be called Discipline. Smith displays a good understanding of what made this version tick. He also lays out the pressures that became its undoing (the conflict between Fripp & Belew over creative control and between Fripp & Brufford over "timekeeping"). He doesn't shy away from discussing the controversies about KC 80; he discusses the influence of Talking Heads (Belew was a member briefly during Remain in Light and toured with both David Bowie and Frank Zappa. It should be noted, however, that TH were also influenced by KC's 70's line up)and does acknowledge the difficulty of dealing with Fripp (he had Adrian Belew re-record the vocal to Cadence and Cascade and Tony Levin redo the bass part on a track from Lizard to "erase" former member Gordon Haskall from the band's history).

Fripp does get the last word but that's because it's his band (which he would deny). Nevertheless, Smith provides a fair balance assessment of the band from glory days to the aftermath of their implosion. A fine book for KC fans to read that gives a unique perspective of the band.

Rating:
Summary: A trip into Fripp's mind, and much more
Review: Sid Smith has done a fine job in chronicling the history of one of rock's most inventive and intelligent bands. Given that the band has existed in an underground, insular cult state for most of its three decades, away from the glare of the media lights and a glut of mainstream press interviews, such a documentation must have been a daunting task. It's fortunate for us fans that all the members of King Crimson over the years, as well as many non-musician insiders, are quoted in this book to share their insights on being in or familiar with the group, which allowed Smith to cobble together a coherent picture of a band that, on more than one occasion, has almost completely turned over its personnel from one album to the next. Robert Fripp, of course, has been the band's only constant, and most of the information made widely known on the band over the years has come through his carefully crafted treatises, which seem to mix history with revisionism favorable to the guitarist. "In the Court of King Crimson" finally offers abundant perspectives from someone other than him, often painting markedly different pictures from what Fripp would want you to believe about the group.

Even so, Fripp's influence over the group's direction and continued existence means that the spotlight can never totally be taken off him, no matter how much he may want to lurk in the shadows at the back of the stage. Indeed, even through the words of other band members, this book inadvertently serves as a penetrating character study of Fripp as much as it is a history of the group. What we are shown is sometimes unsettling but not a terrible surprise to those who have followed King Crimson. Basically, Fripp is revealed as obsessive, petulant, didactic, manipulative, sly, sulking, over-intellecutalizing, over-reactionary, hypersensitive, hypercritical, and sometimes hypocritical, often referring to himself in the third person, terrified of large-scale success and willing to sabotage the band's future when it has looked as though success was just around the corner, and never wanting to be seen as the leader of KC but getting angry when things aren't done his way. He is seen as a master of deflecting blame (and sometimes responsibility) away from himself and onto others through tortured explanations and rationalizations (often damning others with disarmingly kind words), as well as possessing a nearly pathological level of passive-aggressive behavior. (It seems, after reading this book, that the KC "ProjeKct" fractals were undertaken largely as a painfully roundabout way for Fripp to scuttle Bill Bruford from the band and establish the lineup he wanted all along, rather than just tell Bill to hit the road.) He is even seen as effectively ruining some careers (namely, Gordon Haskell). Yet Fripp is also presented as the brilliant and original musician that he is, who has also helped to launch others' careers (Boz, whom he taught to play bass, later went on to play bass for Bad Company) and has always demanded the highest musical standard for KC, which has always attracted top-notch and forward-looking musicians into the fold despite the known difficulties in working with him. He's also to be commended for keeping the band truly "progressive" and forward-looking, where other bands of the progressive '70s genre seem to be just as content to live off past glories.

The complaints I have are few. First, there are quite a few careless typos. Second, Smith has a tendency to decide for us which tracks from each album are good and which are bad. I found myself disagreeing with his analyses quite often, even though I greatly appreciate the track-by-track behind-the-scenes information he offers up. And third, some details seem to be rather glossed over. For example, some deeper analysis of what Frippertronics really is, and how the sound evolved, would be helpful to those who may go into the book without an intimate knowledge of this part of Fripp's musical evolution. I also noticed that Bruford is mentioned as favoring electronic drums beginning in the mid-'80s (which is true) but then later is said to be at an impasse with Fripp because Fripp wants to use electronic percussion but Bruford doesn't. Also true, but Bruford's return to favoring acoustic drums in the interim is never mentioned. Further, some more information on Guitar Craft and its offspring, the California Guitar Trio, would have been appreciated. And most of all, I would have liked to see more on Fripp's immersion in Gurdjieffian thought, which had a huge impact on his personal and musical philosophy but is not given a great deal of attention here.

These are small complaints, though, as this is an extraordinary look into the long and complex history of one of rock's greatest bands, told by the people who were there. It's not written in the hyperactive, adulatory prose common to many band biographies written by avowed fans (which Smith certainly is); instead, it's remarkably informative and fairly well balanced. The little-known background information behind every album, song, and lineup, as well as the thoroughly researched and documented history of the band and the input throughout the book from its members, alone make "In the Court of King Crimson" worth every penny, both to hardcore fans and to those who may want to learn more about this enigmatic group. A good job.

Rating:
Summary: Socrates, PLato and the Cave of King Crimson
Review: Sid Smith has written an absorbing and fascinating linear history of the drive of King Crimson from its dual inception in GG&F and the McDonald-Sinfield partnership through the ConstruKction of Light. While claiming not to be a musicological analysis, his discussions about the music itself take this book far away from the fanzine type of writing in many a band or popstar bio. He is inclusive and thorough in his research and was trusted by present and former members of the court enough for them to present their forthright observations of their service to the king. And in the end, who is the king? It is not Fripp. Fripp is certainly the Prime Minister for the moment, although the heir apparent has presented his credentials. King Crimson is and is not what it is that moves the spirit of all of these earnest young men, many with facial hair and glasses, to commit themselves to the Heideggerian tasks of clearing the ground for Music to take them into its confidence. Even when failure, calamity and heartbreak result, it has come with passion. Each member in each phase has stood up and recognized the shadows on the wall for what they are and elected to make their ways to the source of the light. They have gone out to the garden to greet the Future. Some retreat, some go beyond, some become extraordinary gardiners.
There may yet be a musicological analysis, perhaps from Fripp or Bruford or a Lewis Porter, whose remarkable tome on Coltrane quite lucidly shows the structure of the music being very much a part of that ineffable presence Coltrane came face to face with. But in this book, Smith charts the artistic and personal commitments that the King demanded and exacted from its participants.
It is quite clear that once he stood up from the rest of the crowd and sensed that there was something else besides the ephemera before him, Fripp's course in life could go only in search of this light. He is by no means a benevolent Yoda, but his heart has always been in the right place, and so in the pursuit of the Ideal, he has wrought a milieu in which only the pure of heart prevail. Parsifal with an axe and a jones for Bartok and Hendrix.
However, inasmuch as the King could not have carried on without his dedicated minister, so too Fripp could not have pursued his mission without the remarkable contributions of each and all. There are essential dialectics throughout: with McDonald and Giles, with Bruford and Wetton, with Belew and Gunn and Levin, among others. There are sacrifices and conversions of the soul with Cross and Muir. Locked horns, business failures, dope and disappointment each assault the Court, yet the King and Fripp remain loyal to each other. It is quite a read, and well worth the time to go slowly and mull the contents. My only criticism of the physical book is that it seems no one ran spellcheck or proofread the punctuation.
Perhaps you'll draw some conclusions, for whatever conclusions might be worth, such as:
1. Drummer who best got along with Fripp: Ian Wallace
2. Vocalist who least had a clue what the lyrics were about: Gordon Haskell
3. Best pinch hit vocalist: Jon Anderson
4. Bassist who hated every minute of Crimson: Boz Burrell
5. Drummer who least got along with Fripp: well, that would be telling
6. Reed player who seems to rattle Fripp the most: Ian McDonald
7. Worst lyricist: Sinfield. After the first record, it all got a bit arch, and Haskell was right.
8. Best lyricist: Palmer-James and Belew.
9. Perfect foil for the Prime Minister: see number 5.
10. Heir apparent: Trey Gunn.

At different points in the history of this band, the question has been raised whether or not Crim could be Frippless. Possibly during the Wetton-Bruford-McDonald summit at "RED" time. Now, on the evidence of what is on record, another clearing is about to be becoming. But that's likely another book or two away yet.

Rating:
Summary: COURT IS IN SESSION
Review: This is an excellent book, carefully researched and, with the exception of scattered and persistent typos, an enjoyable read. Sid Smith has done an outstanding job of making the story of King Crimson inclusive, with plenty of background information on the many talented and singular musicians who found themselves a part of one of the longest running experiments in rock. It also comes across as a very fair book, in that many of these musicians seem to have more of a voice on these pages than they had in the band.

The indices include a comprehensive discography and gig list. Combined with the 30th anniversary reissues and the King Crimson Collectors Club CDs, a thoroughly documented record of Crimson is readily at hand. We get a good ration of quotes, dates, pictures and descriptions, but we don't get a whole lot closer to the music.

Instead, the reader is brought face to face with the story of the personalities, the business and money issues, the touring, the deadlines, the feeling of elation and exhaustion happening all around the music. The story revealed is one of almost random action and reaction, opportunities lost and flat-out short-sightedness on the part of just about everyone in and around Fripp's experiment. I say Fripp's experiment because, following the departure of McDonald and Giles, the notion that King Crimson was a band in the traditional sense of the word no longer applies.

Despite frequent quotes from Fripp explaining or justifying his rejection of the contributions of others -- or his rejection of others entirely -- by saying that their ideas weren't "Crimson enough", we are never told what "Crimson" is, was, or will be. In light of Fripp's persistence in sticking with this codified response, we can only assume that what is "Crimson" is obviously flexible enough allow some pretty questionable music to be mixed in with some unquestionably remarkable music, as along as Robert is in charge. Readers are left to conclude, given the comparatively small and at times scatter-shot nature of the King Crimson catalog, that perhaps Fripp didn't know what "Crimson enough" meant either. (I say small because, when compared to other groups and musicians pushing 30, once you take away the live releases King Crimson's studio work looks a little skinny. Especially next to, say 47 albums of original work by Peter Hammill.)

Mr. Smith provides us with thoughtful and accurate descriptions of each recorded piece, partly illuminated by details of the recording process and the nearly always strained relationships between whomever the current line-up happened to be. But they are only descriptions. What is lacking is any access to or speculation regarding the thinking behind the music. We are not made privy to the impetus behind a piece as powerful as "Epitaph" or as artificial and strained as the medieval "Lizard". The idea for "Lark's Tongues" is mentioned as arriving before the recording of "Islands", but we don't learn what that idea happened to be. We're only told it was "an idea". The absence of such an orientation to the writing -- to really take on the music rather than simply describe it -- is a flaw because, more than any well-known band, Crimson seemed to offer listeners a genuine aesthetic. An aesthetic that sadly remains unarticulated, at least by verbal or written language. And perhaps the book's approach is a practical one, since it is safe to assume that most readers will be more concerned with human flaws rather than the hard work of creating flawless music.

So, we are left where we begin. With the music. Books like this one deal exceedingly well with the events and the documents, but they do not reach to the heart of the music. That King Crimson's music continues to provide us with glimpses of a fierce intelligence leaves us to conclude that the people that make the music insist that the understanding we seek is available only through listening. And, rightly, that the music is all that really matters.

Rating:
Summary: Superb writing, well researched and clearly written
Review: This is simply the best book I have read on progressive rock since Armando Gallo's, "I Know What I Like" - Sid's book is a wonderful account of all things Crimson. I quickly devoured the book over a weekend as I walked down memory lane by playing every Crimson album in sequence. I could provide a detailed analysis of this book but my recommendation is that if you love progressive music and in particular King Crimson, buy this book fast and you will have no regrets whatsoever.