SE 4, EP 19: King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King

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On this weeks episode, we discuss King Crimson's 1969 debut: In the Court of the Crimson King.

Not only is In the Court of the Crimson King regarded as one of the greatest and most influential progressive rock (or prog rock) albums of all time, it is considered by many to be the album that defined the genre.

Like all prog rock musicians, Robert Fripp, Greg Lake, Micheal Giles, and Ian McDonald all know their way around their instruments.   But what makes King Crimson stand out from those they would influence, and what makes this album worthy of a listen, is that the band never lost the sight of what made a song a song; they weren't interested in excessive musicianship over musicality, and most of In the Court of the Crimson King is hauntingly beautiful.

Based on the band's live performances, established artists such as Pete Townsend and Jimi Hendrix sung the band's praises before the album was ever released. Their performance in front of an estimated 500,00 people in Hyde Park on a bill with the Rolling Stones in July 1969 reinforced that King Crimson was a band to watch.  When In the Court of the Crimson King was release later that year, songs like title track and "21st Century Schizoid Man" laid down the foundational building blocks for progressive rock for years to come, and cemented King Crimson as one of the most influential bands to come out of the 1960s.  

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