In The Court Of The Crimson King

Hello, Red Screamy Man, my old friend… You’ve certainly got a reputation, haven’t ya? The “first progressive rock record”, the “greatest prog album of all time”, a “game changer”, “an album everyone should own on vinyl”…so on and so forth. Here’s thing…You are good, no one’s denying that. You were more or less the first and ushered in a new era. I’m just not sure that makes you immune from criticism, though. Good news first, “21st Century Schizoid Man”: an absolute classic. 53 years on, it’s still an undeniable heavy-duty tune. Great, great, great. Now, “I Talk to the Wind”…I get it, gotta calm down the chaos after the sonic assault of “Schizoid Man”. 6 minutes, though? A little excessive, right? Even in a genre known for excess, this one feels like a bit much and kind sucks the energy out the room after a blistering first track. (Red Screamy Man tries to interject and defend himself) Now hold on, this is for your own good. You’ve been coasting on your reputation for too long and sometimes we need to hear the truth, even if it’s uncomfortable. And besides, you haven’t even heard everything I had to say… “Epitaph”…another classic. An absolutely gorgeous song and easy front runner for greatest Mellotron performance ever committed to tape. Yeah, it’s 2 and half minutes longer than “I Talk to the Wind”, but it does a lot in that time frame, where “Wind” just kind of rehashes the same musical ideas and tacks on a flute solo as an outro. Epitaph is dynamic, it flourishes, has swells of emotion…takes you on journey. See? It’s not all bad. You’ve done some wonderful things here. That said…“Moonchild”. Bro, not sure why you have the tendency to suck the life out of the proceedings right after you strike gold. This thing starts off like a trip to the Renaissance Fair and then devolves into minimalistic free jazz tedium. Again, too damn long and honestly, you’re starting to wear out your welcome at this point. I think even you realize that, because what do you follow it up with? “In the Court of the Crimson King”, which borrows some of the heaviness from “Schizoid Man”, inserts the spacey Mellotron soundscapes of “Epitaph” and makes for a fitting finale, even if it ends…weirdly. Well done. More good than bad, Red Screamy Man. A commendable effort, indeed. We both know you were the template and templates get improved upon and fine tuned…You walked so Lark’s Tongues in Aspic and Red could run. There’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, you’re the perfect gateway to King Crimson, but you’re not the be-all-end-all of the discography or even the genre and certainly not beyond reproach. Ok, sorry we had to hash that out…are we cool? (Red Screamy Man nods in agreement, but is unable to remove the screamy look from his face) Cool…good talk, bud. Seriously…“Epitaph” is amazing. You’ve got a lot to be proud of.

YES. YES. YES. How have I gone my whole life without knowing about this album? This album is testament to how valuable this project can be. By doing this, I discovered a 5/5 album and a gateway to a piece of music history I once never knew.

A progressive rock landmark. Influenced so many things that came later, including Yes, The Moody Blues, Pink Floyd, Genesis, ELP, and many more. I never realized before that Yes pretty much stole the riff from 21st Century Schizoid Man for their song Heart of the Sunrise. Amazing debut album, it's like King Crimson emerged fully formed and mature. Classic. 5 stars.

2/14/2022 Today's Album: "In The Court of the Crimson King" by King Crimson - Finally, I am able to talk about an album from this generator that I know very well and can review top to bottom with ease. This album is incredible. This album defined what would become essential parts of 70s psychedelic rock, progressive rock, noise rock, and art rock. The production is top notch and the choice to split the music into 5 tracks makes listening to it an incredibly deep, yet digestibly experience. The first song, 21st Century Schizoid Man is one of the best openers to any album ever. The blaring saxophones, the blasted out vocals, the booming bass and top notch drumming make this track feel incredibly powerful and chaotic. There's many time switches, screeching saxophone solos, and dizzyingly polyrhythmic drumming. The band keep incredible co-ordination while having random pauses, impacts, and entrances in a way I haven't seen perfected again until Black Midi. The horns, bass, guitar, and drums play off each other so well and the vocals all throughout the track ranting about the terrible condition of this hypothetical 21st century man match the manic and unpredictable tone of the instruments perfectly. It's hard to tell when the track is going to end because of how noisy and scattered all of the instruments get. I Talk to the Wind follows this track up in an almost unexplainable way. It is such a calm and beautiful track that it gives the listener musical whiplash. The vocals are so smooth and dazed, lamenting the condition of the world and the way the vocalist simply talks to themselves and the wind around them. There are clarinets and flutes in the mix that add to the flowing and sedated nature of the track. The flute solo about halfway through the song followed by the pedaled guitar just sounds so pristine and clear they're memorizing. The outro solo from the flute is even more technically impressive and leaves the track off on such a groovy and impressive note. There is then a huge drumroll transition into perhaps the best track on the record, Epitaph. From the hypnotic guitar riff to the drowning bass and snappy snare hits, this album puts the listener into this cage as it drags you through the universe it creates. The singer illustrates a terrible dystopian environment that one might compare to today. The chorus on this song is powerful, insightful, and incredibly saddening. There is just an incredible weight to this song that leaves such an impact after what was such a laid back song in I Talk To The Wind. The whole album feels like it's set in this "world of the crimson king" which just so happens to be medieval Europe. There's instruments like harpsicord that add to this effect. Moonchild follows this epic piece with a haunting and atmospheric track called Moonchild. The lyrics are incredibly well mixed and produced, telling of this moonchild that yearns for a sun-child and dreams in the shadows of a willow. Each song feels like it holds lore to this mysterious land and this song just hugs your ears while doing so. There's a wailing guitar that accompanies drowning synth chords and cymbal clashes until the album completely tapers off into nothing. The 10 following minutes of this 12 minute track contain some of the wildest improv percussion and it really just needs to be listened to to believe. The 10 minutes of psychedelic ambiance is completely smashed with the intro of the final track, In the Court of the Crimson King. This song is the perfect finisher to the album, leaving it on a similarly noisy and chaotic note as it began and with many ending fake outs too! It's a great track to end off this absolutely incredible album. I have to end this off short due to text limits, but please listen to this album. It's something that has to be experienced and in the 3 years I've been listening to it, it hasn't gotten old. Score: 10/10 Period. Highlights: 21st Century Schizoid Man, I Talk To The Wind, Epitaph, Moonchild, ITCOTCK

"In the court of the Crimson AHHHHHHHH AHHHHH AHH AHHH! AHH AHH AHHHHHHH!" So damn good. I was lost during some of the quiet free-form jazz shit, but I am here for all of the rest. And one of the best pieces of album art of all time!

Psychedelic rock and progressive rock are always kind of hit or miss, and this album is no different. There were a lot of places where I felt like I was just getting impatient for something interesting to happen and other places where I was wowed by what I just heard. No doubt this was influential and I think this might get better on repeated listens but on this listen it was just a little above average overall. 3.5 stars

"Confusion will be my epitaph." A central line of the album, I defy you to think of anything more succinctly pompous. The reference to death, the deliberate ambiguity, the fact that the band hasn't realised the lyric makes balls-all sense: this album wants to be taken seriously, but there is nothing whatsoever that makes the listener contemplate (fuck the standard claims that cannabis opens up this album; that's no better than saying the album sounds better when you're drunk). Is there a more pernicious album in the canon? This is the album that invented prog rock, after all. Prog rock, my dear sugarplums, is the worst music genre of all. Prog rock is a perversion of all of rock's wonders. The smuggest, most conceited genre, prog rock bands wilfully failed to clock that their music was completely empty, that for all their virtuosity and Tolkien references (a children's author, for fuck's sake!), they had nothing to say at all. Every Roger Waters era Pink Floyd album has no deep message other than, "it's grim up north". Do you need further proof than the title of Yes' Tales of Topographic Oceans? I'll give it to you: Tales of Topographic Oceans was supposedly based on a series of Hindu texts, yet when pressed, the band admitted that they'd never evn read them. Or how about literally any lyric from Emerson, Lake and Palmer (Greg Lake was the guitarist and vocalist on ITCOTCK, and recycled the line "Confusion with be my epitaph" for their cyborg armadillo concept album Tarkus (yes, cyborg armadillo))? By the by, if you rearrange ITCOTCK, you get TIT COCK. As far as I can gauge, TIT COCK doesn't have an overarching concept. That is, I can't discern a central theme, even though the men involved (and it is only men) may claim that the album outlined the gulf between man in the hypothetical state of nature and man in the hyperthetical modern world of concrete and electricity. Horrifically, as I typed that, I realised that some trainspotters will assert that as the authentic reading of TIT COCK. Do you not comprehend that you can read anything into any old cryptic claptrap? Did you think "I Talk to the Wind" was a sagacious insight of a guru at one with Arcadia? If you're talking, you're technically talking to the wind except if you're in space. Hitler giving his speeches at the Nuremberg Rally was talking to the wind. And that inprovised section of Moonchild (a title condensed to utter painfulness) isn't improvisation, it's just hitting instruments at random. All this would be tolerable if the album had a sense of fun, a sense of theatricality, a sense of camp. But no, this is a serious contrivance, a work purporting to reveal the depths of humanity. But this album lacks the gravity for me to truly hate it, but instead I dismiss it like a wasp landing on my forearm. To give a contrast, I went and listened to Joy Division's Closer, an album I take seriously. I felt my eyes moisten during the third track. TIT COCK only made me mock. It shouldn't be a scream on the cover, it should be a boo. 21st Century Schizoid Man is one of Tony Blair's favourite songs.

'I Talk To The Wind' is right. This is farting around, plain and simple. They put in a lot of work in place of inspiration, but for what? A seven and a half minute opener with half a hook to show for it. And they don't get any closer than that in the subsequent 36 tedious as fuck minutes.

screamy man screamed and I screamed wittem

I really wanted to hate this Album, but it was pretty neat. Apart from the middle part, where they forgot to stop the recording and we got like 10 minutes of random noises.

Fuck you if you think Frank Zappa is better or weirder than King Crimson. This album is basically perfect. Normies should not even begin to consider thinking about attempting to try listening to this without the proper headgear. All necessary precautions must be taken, not to be limited to the usage of thick wall padding, a straitjacket. This album is legally and medically considered a highly effective (if extremely unsafe) method of boosting one's IQ to beyond normal human range. Severe volume is recommended for maximum dilation of the third through fifth eyes and/or other sensory organs. Do not attempt while primitively confined to any arbitrary set of three dimensions; alternately, if confined to less than the necessary number of dimensions: use quickly, far too much, and in any way not recommended. Seriously, this is some heavy-duty shit, man

Yes, that sounded like they just invented prog rock.

One of my favorite albums of alltime, that's for sure - and the easiest 5/5 I gave here so far. This album is pure perfection and I am convinced it's one of the most important artistic statements in human history of music. Hey, I might be just a King Crimson glazer, but they were one of the pioneers of my favorite, most beloved progressive genres, so how could I not love them? In The Court Of The Crimson is one of the best choices to put on this list - it's also quite sad that the cover is so well known while I think not everyone who knows the cover listened to this album in full. King Crimson's debut has everything a prog album needs, and it was so ahead if its time. It has heaviness, melancholy, grandiose finish, it's just a perfect experience listening to it everytime.

A real pinch in the hourglass for the genre; all the influences and fledgling prog ideas beforehand really came together into this album, and no prog rock can look back without tracing some roots to it. A true influence, and a true masterpiece.

While I love some aspects of prog rock, my brain craves structure. This experimental stuff led to some of my favorite bands (Rush, for example) but most of this album is a bit too off-kilter for me. Also I hate the album cover. Ugh.

Godlike

Even in albums I enjoy, there's always one or two songs that just don't live up to the rest of the album. In The Court of The Crimson King is an exception. It's an album where I genuinely cannot pick my favourite song (Sure, there's only 5 on the tracklist but they're divided into parts so technically there's more). Even the improv part of Moonchild, which fans tend to dislike and which I found boring at first listen, is amazing once it transitions to the title track, and I can't imagine the album without it. That's really one of the many strengths of ITCOTCK: each new song part ends up complimenting the last one. The majority of the album is actually quieter and more peaceful than 21st Century Schizoid Man and the title track might make one think; it starts off with the angry but anthemic first song, then becomes more mellow and introspective, gradually building up to the climactic final track. That's not to say any of the 3 tracks in the middle are in any way worse; they're just as perfect as the opener and closer. I'd like to point out the absolutely fantastic instrumental work on this album (just like all future King Crimson albums, of course). Michael Giles' drumming carries the entire album and the whole thing would be significantly lesser if the band had a less talented drummer. Ian McDonald's (rip) flute parts are simply perfect too. In conclusion, listen to this album. Or I will find you.

Superb, sounds like a real anachronism coming out at the time it did. King Crimson often sounded more expansive, grown-up and frankly more sinister than their peers - probably because they were. Nice to see a band that was (kind of) from my hometown represented on here!

My feelings on prog are well known. I am not, generally, a fan. Too clever clogs, widdly-widdly, pretentious, ridiculous time wasting, and not nearly rock and roll enough. I do, however, make an exception for King Crimson, largely because they rock hard. I have a number of albums from across the breadth of their career, although I have never become a devotee (i.e., I have never been even mildly tempted to buy any of their encyclopaedic and hideously expensive box sets). If ever you were going to identify the ground zero for prog rock, it really would have to be In the Court of the Crimson King. But let's not hold the subsequent sins of others against it. I was turned onto this record, especially 21st Century Schizoid Man, by some uni mates in the early 90s who had an instrumental jazz rock band (Trout Fishing in Quebec, check them out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEeU3rFSO6c You can hear the King Crimson influence). I still think 21st Century Schizoid Man is the bomb. It excites me every time I hear it. If all prog was this good, I would listen to prog (but it isn't, so I don't). Observations: - I am sure that that Fripp and MacDonald are playing each other's solos. The guitar solo sounds like a sax solo, and vice versa. - The fast start-stop section is awesome. As my drummer son pointed out, the timing is not precise. They were playing that tight in the room together, because they could. If you listen to the live recoding on Earthbound, you can hear that they could replicate that on stage, too. A testimony to Robert Fripp's band discipline. - This is the first evidence of Robert Fripp's propensity to play at right angles to what any other guitar player ever would. His note choice is consistently weird, but I love it. I will listen to him play on anything. (I particularly like the album he did with David Sylvian in the early 90s. And the Bowie records. And the Eno records. And Talking Heads and Blondie and Peter Gabriel and hundreds of other records). The title track is majestic, and memorably featured in Children of Men (2006). The use of mellotron has never been bettered. Really, all the pastoral stuff in the middle of those two tracks are dull with a tendency to go widdly-widdly on occasion. Personally, I could live without everything but 21st Century and the title track. But those two tracks alone rate 4 stars.

Goddammit I hate this album. This is like the 3rd time I've listened through it. I don't get it overall. The rock moments overall are fine, but the songs get BORING, go on for WAY too long, and like sometimes I'm like "these guys had way too much money to want to record THIS." I do not get the hype. Sometimes there is just silence and random noise going on and I am like what is this. It lowkey gives me anxiety. Also WHAT THE FUCK was "Moonchild"? Not good is what it was. Kinda funny that Kanye sampled "21st Century Schizoid Man" for "Power"....what a much better song. I think I was a little harsh on my first review ever of it. I gave it .5 stars. This isn't worse than "Dub Housing" so it gets 1. "Liked" songs: "21st Century Schizoid Man" and "Epitaph"

This is #day280 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and… as much as I'm not a fan of prog rock a la Yes or Rush (I find this music too showy technically), I do, however, like Pink Floyd. But, I'm not sure I've ever actually "been" In the Court of the Crimson King before. Maybe it's the gloomy, rainy weather in my hometown today, or it's simply that this album is crafted with such intricate attention to detail… The way it weaves jazz, folk, classical, and symphonic elements into late '60s rock is mesmerizing. It's like reading good literature. Also, the lyrics complement the music so poetically. I'm in awe. This is a 5 out of 5. Looking forward to #day281.

Kingly? This mournful, dramatic big synth and murmur of this took me back to memories of the folks playing the Moody Blues in the car: it carries the impression of huge brooding skies and romanticism that’s an unappreciated tradition in English art.

ok WOAH! -OMGGGGGG THIS IS WHERE THE KANYE WEST SONG COMES FROM "POWER" ??????? ohhhhh i didnt even know that was a sampleeee bro 21st century schizoid mannnnn -talk to the wind lyrics are GOOD - great album 5/5

this was a lot I think I liked it? not at first, but it really grew on me

Ah the classic r/vinyljerk album cover. Love it. I've listened to this before but never really paying as much attention to it as I should've Only know 21st Century Dude and the Court of the Crimson King. Leggooooooo No one man should have all that POWER! What an awesome sample. 21st Century Schizoid Man rules. Just some finger-lickin' jams. I have gained such a respect for my favorite of the woodwinds, ze flute (thanks Stu Mac). Dude fucking kills it on this track with it. Epitaph would be a great song to use in a film. Thinking Tarantino. Fun fact Space Jam got its name from Moonchild. Wiggly is the word I'd use. I really like that every song seems to have a different instrument that sticks out. Saw Claypool Lennon Delirium cover The Court of the Crimson King and have been in love with this song since. That fucking flute and the drums are so fucking good. This is some baller ass prog rock. I'll be back

21st Century Schizoid Man gets this an automatic 5 star. Amazing song, great album.

That feeling when one of your favourites pops up on the 1001.........😊 I've listened to this for many years and it is quite simply in the Top 10 of all albums ever produced. Barry Godber's haunting artwork inside and out, Peter Sinfields mystical lyrics, Fripps inspired guitar, McDonald's multitude of wind and Keyboard instruments (that Sax is a killer), Lake's vocals and powerful bass (so dominant) and Giles's drums (i've never heard anyone play the drums that well since)....... .......and finally to the Vision: to create something that stands alone in it's own world, untouched and eternal. There are haters that like to label everything and disdainfully call this 'Prog' then close their minds. Of course it's their own choice but I think they're missing out.

Nunca había escuchado nada de King Crimson y vaya que es un viaje. Disco de 1969, es la pura psicodelia progresiva. Arreglos complejos, van de 0 a 100 y de 100 a 0 una y otra vez. Epitaph fue mi favorita del disco, lúgubre y grandiosa. Desafortunadamente después de disfrutarla tanto viene Moonchild y si fue tortuoso bajarle de revoluciones tanto durante tanto tiempo, pero en general es un discazo. Songs: Epitaph, 21st Century Schizoid Man

Una obra mestra atemporal. Cinc petites joies d'orfebreria tan ben engastades que no es desgasten per més escoltes que es facin. Quina millor manera d'acabar el 2021 que escoltant un álbum 5 estrelles!

What an opening track. A total ripper that feels so ahead of its time and still wows today. During its release, to have been a fan of both Black Sabbath & Yes only to then hear this must have been a surreal and exciting experience. Strangely, I always found a lot of this album sleepier than I would have liked. That said, there are some EPIC moments besides the opening song like what you find in “The Court of the Crimson King” as well as the truly ethereal moments of “...” which for me make this album truly enjoyable. Moments on this album also feel like the permission the Mars Volta (and many others) needed to do what they do today.

Pre-listening thoughts: I’m really curious about this one. I feel like it’s super popular among classic rock fans but I’ve just missed it. Also I get this band mixed up with King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard oops Post/during listening thoughts: this was actually really good. I understand why people glaze the shit out of this. HOWEVER. Every single song went on at least a minute too long. Moonchild was like insane. I thought we had transitioned to another song but there were still SEVEN minutes left. But the good parts of the songs were really good. 7.5/10 DID I NEED TO HEAR THIS BEFORE I DIE: nah Fav tracks: honestly all of them except MoonChild Least fav tracks: moonchild

Overall pretty good. When he is singing the instruments back him perfectly but the long instrumentals are nowhere near as enjoyable. Moonchild is really not a great listen because of this.

Screamy red man album. This one is the stuff of legends, it's up there with Dark Side of the Moon as the album that your pretentious music nerd friend won't shut up about. Memed to oblivion, but I haven't heard it in full yet, so let's see if it's worth the hype. Of course, it's got "21st Century Schizoid Man," infamously sampled by Kanye West on "Power." That's a cool song, sounds nothing like "Power," which is why sampling is so fun. A few other great tracks on here too. I'm into this prog stuff, I'm not entirely sure if I like this album or Larks Tongues in Aspic more, but safe to say I'm a fan of these guys. That said, I also don't see this as "best album ever" by any stretch, so it doesn't quite live up to the pedestal in the way Dark Side of the Moon absolutely did. But it's still a great ride, and knowing this is one that I'm sure would grow on me too, I'll give it the half-star bump. Glad we finally got this! Favorite tracks: 21st Century Schizoid Man, Moonchild, The Court of the Crimson King. Album art: Screamy red man. This poor guy looks like he just noticed the door of the room he's being wheeled into is labeled the "Penis Explosion Chamber." 100% iconic, no notes. 4.5/5

This is a classic album that aptly represents the times. Always worth and end-to-end listen.

I've been on Reddit long enough to see endless memes about the Red Screamy Man, but I had never listened to it until now. It is a pretty good album but I will continue to laugh at the memes about it.

You know, I'm disappointed in this. I had Larks' Tongues In Aspic a few weeks ago, and everything I read was that it was a difficult album for "new fans" but I loved it. So I was really quite excited when this album popped up, as this is supposed to be their magnum opus. It's...fine? It's a lot slower than I thought, and it doesn't sound as unique as I thought it would be. It sounds more like a bridge between hippie 60s rock and what they would ultimately become. That's fine, and I *do* think that a bridge album of sorts justifies a spot on this list, but it just didn't connect with me the way I had hoped it would.

Starts strong. The textures were weird and bold and I liked that they weren’t afraid to get a little messy. Somewhere close to early Floyd but less refined. Still worth a spin. Spins: 2 Playlist Additions: - 21st Century Schizoid Man - Epitaph - The Court Of The Crimson King

Quite a wacky album, if you know what I mean. There were plenty of highs and lows. I'm glad I heard it, but I doubt I'd seek it out again.

Har godt hørt navnet King Crimson før men tror ikke jeg har lyttet til det. Det er lidt flippet musik Hov jeg har hørt “i talk to the Wind”?? Ved ikke hvor. Men den kan jeg meget godt lide. Ikke fantastisk. Men den ville jeg lytte til. Det er faktisk meget godt. Kender åbenbart også deres sang “Matte Kudasai”? Den er i hvert fald på min playliste

Algo completamente distinto y experimental. Muy curioso

”it’s fine”

sympatoche sans plus

Some good tunes in there, not entirely my cup of tea. I think the cult following of this album does a lot of carrying in it’s ratings

I loved parts of this. Other parts were so self indulgent it became unenjoyable. Really not sure how to rate this actually in a simple 1-5 rating. Kind of album that I think would be amazing on the 100th listen and is pretty good on the first. Given it a 3. In hindsight Duran Duran should have been a 2 as this is taken from a list of classic albums. The voting system is not granular enough imo.

I like prog rock and I cannot lie! This dipped to a 2 "Just musicians noodling around with no real plans" to a 4 "transported to a fantasy world" No real suprise I ended up in the middle (again)

First off - top contender for iconic album covers. Don't know much about King Crimson other than it is an early progressive rock band whose members have expanded and left incredible marks on modern music through the musical prowess and creativity of its various members. As with many other prog artists, I have no idea what the heck they are talking about - it is more about the music and vibe. The first few songs are beautiful, of ourse The Court of the Crimson King is familiar and an epic listen. Really like the voice of the singer, although I know he didn't last long in the group with John Wetton (another great prog singer/bassist), but the vocals really hit on this one. Enjoyed the album much more than I anticipated and support weird, good music when I can.

I genuinely am torn on how to rate this. On one hand, it’s so ahead of its time. Never would’ve guessed it’s a summer of love era album. And Basically created Prog Rock and manages to still hold its own and not be overshadowed by later prog albums. I love the way the vocals are mixed in particular, and I’m a big fan of some psychedelic nonsense lyrics. On the other hand, it’s very artsy in a way I don’t really like. Moonchild in particular reminds me too much of an art museum, which is my least favorite kind of museum. It’s what’s playing in one of those dark isolated corner rooms. I get nothing out of the instrumentals and solos except a sense of impatience for something else to happen. 21st Century Schizoid Man and Court of the Crimson King would be easy 10/10 for me without the 5 minute solos (the latter of which, while too long, is probably the best one as I feel it goes somewhere and has appropriate thematic elements to it). Ultimately I think this is one of those best listened to while on drugs albums, but I’m an anxious man and can’t really do that. 5/5 with less improv solos, 2/5 with them. The strong elements are really strong but how am I supposed to enjoy this in the car? Gonna have to be a 3 from me. What’s a man gotta do get an abridged version of this album?

Too many random noises sprinkled throughout and silence / nothing musical happening in Moonchild to be Great for me. "In the Court of the Crimson King" is a great track though. I can see peoples' minds being absolutely blown by this when it came out, seeing as they're contemporaries with the likes of the Beatles and the Carpenters. Too experimental and abstract in many sections for my liking though.

Cover: 4 It's ok. It took several listens for me to even pay attention. Not my style of music but it was ok for what it was.

LOVE 21st Century Schizoid Man Like I Talk to the Wind, Epitaph, and Court of the Crimson King, A Man A City Not a big fan of Moonchild Probably would not listen again but 21st century did get added to my playlist

This album cover always looked cool but I was afraid the music wouldn't live up to the imagery. Once I started reading H.P. Lovecraft and The King in Yellow (which Lovecraft referenced, maybe even co-opted) the image in my head turned even darker. 21st century schizoid man kind of fit the expectations and was cool. The rest just made me think classic rock about fantasy things. Basically, more flute than I expected or wanted. But preconceived notions aside, it was alright.

Based on the album cover I had no idea what I was getting into... I don't hate it, overall parts are actually really interesting and enjoyable. My criticisms are that its kind of all over the place and I am not always seeing everything connecting with the songs being really long. It kind of feels like each song is its own kind of mini album or piece, that don't necessarily all go together but on their own they are mostly nice. Moonchild just kept going and I am not really sure why

No. 61/1001 21st Century Schizoid Man 2/5 I Talk To The Wind 4/5 Epitaph 4/5 Moonchild 2/5 The Court Of The Crimson King 4/5 Average: 3,2 Epitaph and the title track are really good, other Songs are too out there for me. Adding evidence to the discovery I made on the Taylor Swift album: I'm a basic bitch

Overwrought and outdated. I was never a big fan of prog-rock, even when it was current and I was young. Always felt like a bunch of young men being way too introverted for their own good. There are some fun tunes but ultimately I just can't get on board.

Crap.

Ugh, this thing. I first heard this album in ninth grade. I had an English teacher who tried to display that he was a "cool teacher" by decorating his classroom with various Rock albums. I asked him about this one, as it had the most distinctive art. Encouraged by my curiosity, he offered to let me borrow it, guaranteeing that is was "heavy" and "so cool." I took it home, played it on my parents' stereo, and quickly realized that the music was incredibly tedious, annoying, and painfully uncool. Forty years later. my opinion remains unchanged and my distrust for authority, and my English teacher (we'll call him Mr. P.) in particular, remains unchanged.* The single star is granted solely for the quality of the album's cover art. * This sentence was poorly written as a protest against said English teacher.

I just couldn’t get behind this album. I don’t know how this is talked about on level with Dark Side of the Moon.

One of my favorite albums of the '60s!

A fabulous concept albume further enhanced by the astounding artwork by Barry Godber. The artwork was universally adopted and must have sold many copies of the album by those mesmerised by its power.

I haven’t heard any songs from this band, but I have seen the album cover a lot. 21st century schiztoid man - holy moley what a strong start, ok this is great, I love the drums and clarinet (I think 🤷‍♀️) and all of the switches in the song, I thought it drag because of how long it is, but it didn’t at all I talk to the wind - rlly like the vocals and the tone, very soft and pleasant, ok flute solo, ok bass solo, this is just a really nice listen 😛, ok flute solo part 2 Epitaph - nice soft start ish, looove the build with the drums and vocals, ok yearning, YES CRESCENDO, lowkey getting medieval now 👑, the clarinets are back, love the drum fills near the end, this is so good what the heck Moon child - oh my 12mins long, the soft start is nice, now they’re smashing their instruments randomly for a while, ok it’s not bad, but I feel it’s not as good as the other songs so far 🤷‍♀️ The court of the crimson king - this feels so grand (like a king🤴, a crimson king if you will🤴), THE FLUTE IS BACK, why did it go into an adventure time beat, ok we’re so back OVERALL: ok woah, this is album is rlly rlly good, I was worried that the songs being 7 to 12 mins long would drag on, but I didn’t have that issue at all. Except for moonchild, which got a lil experimental and just wasn’t my fave, all of the songs are sooooo good, and I understand why this album is so influential. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/ 5

- LOVE THIS ALBUM - so beautiful - truly takes u along a journey

Loved it. Can't believe I didn't know about this, it's the blueprint for so many things I love. Long live all flute music.

la primera que conocí fue 21st Century Schizoid Man xq venía en el guitar hero 5 (y qué pedo de rola, imagínate empezar con eso tu discografía, más cuando el resto del disco no suena así), pero me acuerdo mucho la primera vez que oí el title track, el papá de un amigo de la secu que era prog head me preguntó si la conocía y la puso y a la fecha cuando la escucho pienso en la impresión que me causó. así se ha de sentir flotar alv

talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show stopping, spectacular, never the same, totally unique.........

One of my all time faves

i love this album epitach is one of my all time favorite songs.

Wahnsinn, wie gut das gealtert ist. Meisterwerk und seiner Zeit weit voraus.

King Crimson is the SHIT

Absolutely amazing! I loved all the songs but personally love I talk to the wind! This album so is underrated!! The instrumentals are insane

King Crimson. 'Nuff said. Add it to your playlists.

I had limited knowledge of King Crimson. One of my favorite albums is Days Of Future Passed by the Moody Blues. I'm listening to this album and hearing all the similarities and sure enough, the albums share a producer. Anyway, there's a bias warning right there. Prog. Rock is a genre that you either love or hate. It tells a story through both word and sound, envelops the listener to a fantasy land. Albums like "In The Court Of The Crimson King" take the listener somewhere else and then gently guide them back to the couch, or the car, or the office, or wherever they decided to take in this work. I've always enjoyed art that delivers these results. Perhaps it's my own deep desire for escape? That's a conversation for a therapist...not the reviews section on a niche website... In sum, this was my first time listening to this album in full and I went somewhere. I can't tell you where. It was misty and unclear yet I felt strong and determined to discover the land. Just as it all began to make sense the flutes began to play and I felt something outside of myself saying "No, not yet" as I was slowly, softly brought back to reality. I know I can always go back, but like the addict that always chases the first high will I always chase the journey that was had on my first listen....

This is my first album on this website! I am enticed by its absolutely phenomenal instrumental tones from its drums to guitars. The Vocal range is just downright phenomenal. I couldn’t recommend it enough and a great start to 1001 albums Each track has its own individual and unique atmosphere that creates such a brilliant array talents from each part. I listened all the way through without shuffle and each track led seamlessly into the other.

PEAK!!!!!!!!!

It was my first time listening this album despite being familiar with iconic cover art. I preferred the more intense parts of the songs. When I listen to albums like this one I wonder how it would be to listen it in the year it was released. First thing is that we are now more or less culturally biased to appreciate music like this. Second thing is that we know how music genres changed. Experiments from 60's are not that innovative to us because we know theirs offspring.

historic for a reason ngl

Surprisingly really fucking good

no many can stay schizoid after listening to this album

Eternally progressive.

Incredible record.

lovelovelovelovelove epitaph is the song of all time

old school

Absolute banger

Psychedelic rock

Masterpiece, even if it's not easy to hear at times. "Epitaph" is one of the greatest songs ever written.

Masterpiece man. One of the Best prog rock album of all time.

Love me some prog, and this is the King

An album i'll permanently associate with /mu/, the greater general terminally online internet music community, and Kanye West. It's awesome nonetheless.

They gave us prog rock and helped usher in my favorite (and I think most interesting) decade of music (70s) in their influence

The challenge with this album is that the interlude is such a flop, but the rest is so strong. The highs are higher than the lows are low. Kanye's such a genius for sampling this album

pretty awesome, very iconic. The last song is sooo good Will I listen to again: 100%

love how the different influences originating from this band/album are palpable in several bands i know (contemporary and older ones). at times it feels like Mars Volta, there's pink floyd in it, Porcupine Tree, Opeth and a myriad other flavours. i could go on and on! still it feels original, because certainly it is - the origin, a cornerstone of prog rock!

One of the greats on an artwork side for sure. But the music itself is just as high quality. The opener is probably my favorite song. It has the most structure. But after that it devolves into a more free form type thing. And usually thats not what im in it for. But here it keeps my attention the whole way through. There are some sparce and dissonant passages that I find very interesting on moon child. And the ending title track is still ambiguous and mind melting but it does come back to some structure again. Its a classic and there is a reason everyone had seen the boogies of this terrified red man. Listen and love it

I've heard of this, and I've seen the cover art a thousand times, I was expecting prog rock of top tier quality. That much is evident right away, track one side A, what killer riffs and displays of talent. 21st Century Schizoid Man is a work of art from the moment you read its title until its thick bassline decides to leave your mind's eye. The rest of side A was so unexpectedly beautiful. The rest of the album really doesn't feel quite as dark and terrifying as the album art does, which ends up reflecting the introduction better than the overall energy. The two songs that follow that intro went in a direction I wasn't expecting. It's artsy, in the sense that the typical mainstream listener would have to pay extra attention to understand the layers of talent. We're paying attention to the empty spaces, to the subtleties of the instruments, and I'm sorry, we're also gonna play the fuck out of the flute. Jethro who? Ian McDonald has some of the most impressive credits I can remember on an album of this magnitude, with his wind instruments and keys becoming essential to the energy of the album. I was unaware I'd be falling in love. What a beautiful listen. 4.7/5

For me, King Crimson are masters of atmosphere and mood, first and foremost because of their sensational timing and also because of their diverse repertoire of harmonic and melodic approaches. For me, these qualities actually come before their undoubtedly excellent rhythmic and polyrhythmic ideas, making King Crimson one of the very few bands that really come into their own in their quieter moments. That's why I could listen to the tracks “Epitaph” and “Moonchild” from this album all day long, while I find the other three tracks quite good. 40% absolute killer material, plus one of the most iconic covers—is that enough for five stars? In direct comparison to the same year's "Unhalfbricking" by Fairport Convention (that I reviewed yesterday): certainly yes!

The complex production and soundscapes, including deep mellotron and orchestration are perhaps the strongest points of this record. Yet the complexity is perhaps the reason it has influenced countless musicians but completely forsakes commercial appeal in virtualy every way. At once, it was a statement of purpose, a coming-of-age and a brilliant flash of inspiration unleashed on the world. What it wasn't is accessible. They disregarded commercialism and put out an art-rock record... and proceeded to make a career out of it. It's a near-perfect record that should certainly be listened to... closely... by any music fan. It takes some effort to really dig into this record and appreciate it's depth and complexity.

OK, you know the deal. One of the head honchos of the prog sphere right here, for a host of very good reasons. The instrumentation are clean and well thought of, song structures and songwriting are poignant, inspiring with just the right amount of complex to not make a fool of itself. What I love most about this album is how captivating it is. Almost every time I listen to it, I leave what I'm doing and just stand there life a 50yo dad with my hands on my hips and think, "Damn." And that's honestly amazing, because I've never had that kind of experience with any album I've listened to. Not going to go into each song, but I will highlight the band member's contributions. Lake's vocals perfectly fit the medieval aesthetic, the sound of the drums are crisp and sharp, and the whole thing is gelled up by Fripp's "chess game" guitar work. Can't praise it enough. Interesting and captivating all throughout One of the ways you can determine the worth of an album is by how well it has stood since its release, and even though the tides of the musical world have vastly changed since its inception in 1969, In The Court of the Crimson King has always been well above the water. That alone should put it above half of the albums ever created. Now that I read this, these paragraphs have no sense and connection to each other, but fuck it, I'm too drunk to do a revision. It's a good album, check it out.

I've tried listening to other King Crimson albums before and never really been convinced by them, but this one was genuinely great.

Super interesting album. Sounds so extraordinary and unique.

one of the first prog bands, great album its a classic with 12st centry scitzo man

No notes, flawless album