The Improbable Ascent (and Decline) of the First Court: King Crimson reflections Part Two

My journey through the Crimson Forest will now move in the northwest direction on the map to that fearsome image which graced the first King Crimson album proper – the screaming man's face with the look of terror in his eyes. For, although this was the first album to bear the group's name it was not the first record I heard. As I wrote in my last Crimson segment, Discipline was the first KC album I ever heard in its entirety. A handful of months away from the Discipline acquisition I found a copy of the debut LP which was in somewhat dodgy shape – a cheap flea-market find.

Not my first copy of this record - that one went to the great vinyl circular file in the sky.

 Scratches are not very kind to KC records since all the quiet parts get ruined, however I regret pitching it in the trash since it was an interesting Canadian red-label Atlantic pressing (doh!). I keep telling myself it really must have been a crispy critter for me to stoop to such brutality. At any rate, I did play the thing and had the following reactions:

   1.Oh, I've heard this on the radio before – hooray! I like this music. 
   2.Hang on, that's Greg Lake singing isn't it? Hmmmmm....

You see, I was already an Emerson, Lake and Palmer fan by the time I heard In the Court of the Crimson King for the first time. Well, I certainly liked Greg Lake's vocals then and now so – hooray! Of course, I couldn't help wondering why he'd left Crimson after having success with them – why not stay on when your band has a hit like that? I still don't know the real reason(s) for Greg Lake's departure though he did establish an interesting pattern for KC fairly early on – the transient nature of Crimson residents. Greg Lake's fade from the group was complicated by his vocals being present on the second record when in fact he was no longer an official member. But that's getting ahead of the story isn't it? What eventually replaced my scratchy KC debut LP was the compact disc pictured above. In recent months I managed to find no less than three vinyl copies – the most recent reissue on Inner Knot (very nice!), a 70s US Atlantic reissue (also very nice!) and a nifty German pressing with the palm-tree Island label (like a UK second issue). However, speaking of very, very nice – we are still a bit ahead of the story here. In the Court was not the first album to feature Robert Fripp and Michael Giles, even though it was the first Crimson album. About a year prior to the debut of The Court, Giles and Fripp produced this (with Michael's brother Peter on bass):

  The Cheerful Insanity of Giles, Giles and Fripp is a very entertaining curiosity and a facinating pre-quel to the runaway success that arose from its ashes. There are sonic glints of the “Crim to come” hiding amongst the breezy and sometimes silly jazziness of the Cheerful Insantiy tracks. Kind of like those demented smiles we are confronted with on the front cover – just what kind of insanity is lurking behind those smiles? The music found on The Cheerful Insanity of Giles, Giles and Fripp offers a few hints of what was to come, but not quite enough to predict the jarring experience that must have confounded the few “fans” they had who followed them into The Court. I imagine those select few must have had a marvelous time hearing the Crimson debut afresh (were any of them disappointed?). 

  21^st Century Schizoid Man certainly must have struck a nerve in the popular consciousness of its times – many a local garage band would happily add that song to their oeuvre. And the angst, paranoia and dread just oooozing from those power chords made for a splendid time in the year 1969 I am sure. I have to imagine a bit since I wasn't there. However, there is enough evidence to suggest that unlike The Cheerful Insanity record, the KC debut was a GRAND SLAM of a hit record. What's the famous endorsement from Pete Townshend? He called it “An uncanny masterpiece” or something to that effect. Not bad from the guy who unleashed his own masterpiece in the same year (Tommy, of course). The success of King Crimson's debut made everything else possible. Yet, the frustrating reality of how to sustain or equal that level of success over the following years must have played heavily upon the heart and mind of, well, at least the one member who rode the ship down to the end. And to think it wasn't exactly his band to begin with! Either by insanity or sheer tenacity, Mr. Fripp resolved to lash himself to the mast of that Crim craft for a ride of his life – which continues to the present, of course. The first phase of which tickles the imagination................

Imagination? Well, what's so interesting about a band that has an unlikely hit record and gradually dissolves over the next handful of years? If the catalog of King Crimson ended with the live Earthbound LP, then maybe it might be a typical case of “one hit wonder group ends after trying to recapture the magic – and fails – after numerous personnel changes”. However, the story doesn't end there (as we will see in Part 3). In 1973 King Crimson would roar back to life with the album Lark's Tongues In Aspic

 – a musical Lazarus if there ever was one. The Crimson of '73 would pave the way for all the future KC endeavors that continue to the present. Yet, what happened between 1969 and 1973 is, to me, pretty mysterious. Especially since I haven't read any group biographies (does one exist?) which is odd for me since I usually go out of my way to find books of that nature. So my imagination is left to fill in the details of a skeletal framework:

SPOILER ALERT!!! Attention Mr. Fripp: I am about to give away an idea that has merit and could be lucrative. Feel free to exploit as you wish. Here's the idea I am going to just give away because I have no ability to do anything meaningful with it myself.........

The story of King Crimson Mark I is perfect for a TV drama. Imagine a TV mini-series either directly based on the first phase of KC or loosely based on it. I don't know all the details about what caused such a turbulant rise and fall from success by KC Mark I but I think it's an interesting trajectory of experiences that could sustain a TV audience – espeically Baby Boomers who I bet would EAT THIS UP. And I certainly would. So, all you TV entrepreneurs - let's get going. I'd love to watch a show like this and I haven't been interested in TV since 1985. And seeing how Robert Fripp has remained the central figure to KC – he is naturally the main character / hero of the story. Mr. Fripp – here's your chance to take KC to the next level – to the mainstream! Wouldn't it be great to have a TV mini-series based on King Crimson to talk about with the people you see at work? Consider the success of “Breaking Bad” which I didn't watch a nanosecond of, but seemingly the whole rest of the world did. The story of King Crimson is fascinating and could be entertaining if presented the right way. And the potential for developing a storyline is easy to find since the real story continues to the present. Here's a quick proposal:

Talented, yet directionally-challenged musicians release one fairly oddball LP that flops in spite of a genuine desire to entertain and please its audience:

One musician leaves – three more are added (among them a splendid vocalist / bassist). New group creates crazy classic LP in a radically different style than the previous flop LP:

After one tour to promote hit record – splendid vocalist bails out forming new supergroup (reaping even more commercial success). Remaining members manage to release follow-up LP somehow persuading splendid vocalist to contribute distinctive lead vocals to key tracks even though he is no longer in the band. 

After record #2 emerges – core members bail leaving only the guitar player and sax player holding the bag. Now with two pretty successful albums – the group that created them is no more. What explains such an unusual turn of events I have no idea.

The second defection of musicians never ascend to similar heights of visibility in the music world again though they continue to make music (and some very good music at that). 

Since the King Crimson band is still a lucrative enterprise – replacement members join to create LP #3. 

Splendid vocalist is now identified with his own successful band which renders him unable to help bail out LP#3. Several vocalists contribute – one who finds the experience so unfavorable that he quits the band before the LP hits the shops! And another vocalist is drafted in from a “rival” up and coming group further diluting any clear association of King Crimson with one vocal identity. Is Crimson the group that has to hire out vocalists from other bands just to get their records done? Egads – what a nightmare. 

  No matter - time to assemble another lineup to promote LP#3 that they didn't even play on!! How did things come to this? Said new musicians also appear to be struggling to hold the unique identity of Crimson together – at least on record. The fourth KC album – Islands – is created under this duress and - while engaging and interesting – bears only a passing resemblance to that first smasheroo LP that excited audiences in ways their recent efforts haven't. 

 Why keep banging one's head against the wall? Why not ROCK OUT instead? A general mutiny unfolds and the crew hijacks the Crim-ship on its last live go-round – grinding to a halt with the release of Earthbound as the terminal document illustrating what happens to a one-hit-wonder band gone wrong over many years of turmoil. Earthbound = the grave. 

Never to be seen again by disgusted and disheartened guitarist. Or so we are led to believe...........until the group rises yet again in Phoenix-like style about a year later.

 

 So that's my TV-plot line sketched out from the little I know about King Crimson Mark I. What I don't know fascinates me. This is where a little imagination can take artistic license and build up a nice drama. If ex-band members might take exception to being portrayed against their wishes - just use the general outline of King Crimson's real experience as a guide for a fictitious band to save the bother of stepping on any toes and egos. C'mon you TV bigwigs! I smell money in this idea - don't you??

For the record – although the first LP gets the accolades it rightly deserves, I have to admit a soft spot for In the Wake of Poseidon.

 I think the overall sound of the recording and the material gives the debut a serious run for its money. At least on the first side. Side two, while interesting, leans a bit more on experimentation – the likes of which are given free reign on LP#3 – Lizard.

Even Robert Fripp has gone on record to declare Lizard “unlistenable” though I have to say I adore it in all its weird glory. All the more so in its 5.1 surround sound incarnation courtesy of the deluxe, 40^th anniversary series of releases. Lizard in surround is as wild a sonic ride as you could ever hope for! I love it! Oddly enough, my first exposure to Lizard was via a used 8-track found at a flea market. 

At various points along the four “programs” of the tape I am certain I stared in disbelief at the player upon first listen. Some parts sounded like the tape was damaged (it wasn't). Then – am I dreaming? Is that Jon Anderson (from Yes) singing on one track? Oh for God's sake what the heck is up with THIS album? One must recall that 8 track tapes did not come with any useful information one might normally find printed inside an LP sleeve. Hearing that album for the first time under such spartan conditions was nearly as confounding as hearing “Trout Mask Replica” - another seemingly impenetrable sonic fortress........

King Crimson LPs have been issued on so many different labels around the world – the variations are dizzying. Which proves another point – that debut LP of 1969 must have really made a splash around the world. All the other subsequent Crimson LPs were issued enthusiastically worldwide no matter how weird they got. This is an important reality to consider. King Crimson, though never again reaching quite the level of “hit status” as achieved on that first album, managed to present challenging and interesting music on a global scale in the years following – right up to now. So many current bands are led into the mindset of finding one lucrative sound and riding it for all its worth in the marketplace – driving a well-worn sound into the dirt. King Crimson may have tried, but ultimately blazed a very different path. Not that “the answer” of how to do this was evident by the end of the tour which produced “Earthbound”. From the average fan's point of view that record was a bitter farewell to a chaotic scramble of a rock band's short and brutish existence. 

 Until next time when I continue with Part Three...........

 

 

Caravan, The Meat Puppets, Zoot Sims and Mingus - a musical Detour

Taking a minor detour away from the King Crimson focus, it's surprising to note how long its been since my last entry here! I've been doing a lot of listening and thinking though not a lot of writing. So I figured before too many more ideas get lost in the shuffle it might be good to get them out in the open. Plus – there's a whole lot of great music I've been discovering or re-discovering that I wanted to pass along. 

First up – Caravan's first album – 1968. I've had this record in my collection for a long time without paying too much attention to it. In fact, I think it was given to me by an old friend I lost touch with (and haven't rediscovered despite the power of social media). At any rate, I remember listening to this back in the 90s and not being impressed (compared to Badfinger, Caravan sounded kind of meandering and tentative). Then, just this past winter I decided to give it another chance and BINGO! I'm eating this record up. In spite of some very funky recording values there are some wonderfully musical ideas presented. And the organ parts make the record. Here's a nifty video of Caravan performing the first track - “A Place of My Own”. 

 

Now, I have known of the Canterbury Scene groups for a while, yet the appeal of the aesthetic has eluded me for the most part. Finding the Caravan album so compelling gives me hope that I'll enjoy other releases of theirs and from other bands like Soft Machine. In the meantime, I've discovered just how rare (and expensive!) first run copies of this Caravan album are and since I've been playing the daylights out of it, went looking for a CD. Once again, the value of compact discs in terms of what you get for your money just can't be beat these days – you can get Caravan's first on CD with both the mono and the stereo mixes for less than $10 from a variety of sellers. I'd recommend jumping on that deal and keeping it in your collection even if you don't like it initially. I'm happy I never purged the LP years ago – funny how some music takes time to catch an ear for. Caravan was worth the wait for me!

Also worth the wait was finally getting to see the Meat Puppets at a local club! Once again – I'd been aware of the Meat Puppets for years due to my appreciation of the SST bands in general back in the 80s. Yet, I never connected with their music until the early 2000s. I didn't even latch onto them at the peak of their popularity in the 90s when they were featured on the Nirvana Unplugged show and album. Without getting into the whole story now, I never quite got into Nirvana. Let's just say I was surprised at how many people loved Nirvana when they became popular – those same people who must have been listening to Debbie Gibson when Husker Du was at their peak?! Ah, well.......I do remember seeing a lot of advertising of their records in Musician Magazine back in those days. The band certainly looked cool. I just never seemed to hear anything on the local college radio.

 In fact, the same was true of The Minutemen versus fIREHOSE. Never seemed to hear the former – whereas the local play of the latter's first album on the radio caused me to rush out and buy that. And of course, one of the songs on the first fIREHOSE album is called - “Under the Influence of Meat Puppets”! Yet, I still didn't bother with the Pups until I found a cheap copy of “Mirage” on CD and took a chance. 

“Mirage” completely baffled me. I was expecting heavy stuff like Husker Du. Yet, “Mirage” sounded like pastel-flavored, Euro-pop-funk-lite (whatever that means). Over time, I did get into “Mirage” pretty seriously and learned how it was a departure of sorts for the Meat Puppets – yet their whole catalog is a big departure from itself in a way. The Meat Puppets are one of the few bands to experiment with different approaches from one record to the next, yet remaining true to their own sound – that's a familiar tale isn't it? Kind of like The Beatles! Unfortunately when I got into the Meat Puppets, Cris Kirkwood was still estranged from his brother Curt (who had put out the solo album “Snow” which I dutifully snapped up when released). So, it was to my general surprise that the brothers reunited and started putting out new albums and playing live again. There's only one of those releases I don't have yet – the first in the series “Rise to Your Knees”. All the others I have on VINYL and they're great! 

 

Better still was the band live – I haven't been this thrilled to see a live act locally in a long time (at least at this particular club – one that I played at many years ago myself). Check out this nuclear version of “Lake of Fire” from the show I was at:

Long live The Meat Puppets!!!

One show I ended up missing by a mere few days was seeing Ryley Walker. He'd played a few towns north of me a handful of days prior to me buying his album. I wish I hadn't delayed as long as I had with that purchase – otherwise I probably would have gone to that show. And the new record in question is a corker!

Primrose Green is a fantastic blend of folk and jazz in the mold of John Martyn – yet Ryley has a great sounding voice – better than Martyn's in my opinion.

 I have to be honest – I can't comment about Ryley Walker outside of what my ears tell me about his music. I have no idea about his back story, where he comes from or how long he's been active. Just based on how much I've enjoyed Primrose Green I hope he has a long and profitable career. I have to say I am really enjoying this whole “new release on vinyl with download code included” thing. Primrose Green is a beautifully recorded album which translates well to the vinyl medium. If all new music sounded this good there could be a sonic revolution at hand beyond Neil Young's wildest Pono dreams. Ryley Walker is great artist to keep an ear out for in the future. Check him out!!

With so much great music coming out on vinyl again, the platters have been stacking up. Taking into account my varied tastes (including classical and world music) I've got records piled all over the place. Keeping things organized has continued to be a challenge. I ended up separating by general genres – Classical, Rock / Pop and even Jazz. As much as I disagree on an aesthetic level with putting music into pre-conceived “bags” I've had to confront how tough it can be to find what you're looking for when all records are thrown in the same pile. It gets worse when records end up in different rooms of the house – oy! So I was surprised to find a jazz record lurking in the “rock” section that I must have missed when setting up the jazz section: Zoot Sims and the Gershwin Brothers

 Here's another record given to me a long time ago which I gained a new appreciation for recently. Zoot Sims was a tenor sax player in the straight-ahead tradition. Once again, I know next to nothing about his life. By the time he recorded this album for Pablo Records in the mid-70s he was a well-established name in jazz. The title of the album is a bit misleading, however since the Gershwin Brothers do not appear on the record – they were the composers of all the tunes. Without getting into a whole Gershwin deal – if you are reading this and don't know about the impact of Ira and George Gershwin on modern music I'd be shocked to say the least. Plenty of artists continue to record entire albums of Gershwin material – Brian Wilson being a recent example. What caught my attention on this record was, besides the great music (Grady Tate on drums again!!), the general presentation of the album. Pablo Records was a Norman Granz designed label that put out quality jazz music with a no-frills image. This is such a 70s thing. No disrespect to Zoot Sims, but that cover photo is not the most flattering image in the world. Nobody would mistake this label with Blue Note (arguably the hippest looking jazz album covers of all time). This is PEOPLE'S JAZZ. Man, what a lost aesthetic if there ever was one. Well, don't be fooled by the stark cover image – the music is swinging and fantastic (as is most of the music featured on these Pablo albums – they put out a lot of stuff). But image can carry a lot of influence, of course. This is stating the obvious, yet some innovators were more savvy than others. 

I was recently reading about Charles Mingus again and I found myself re-watching this intense film showing Mingus at the apex of his paranoia in the 60s. As scattered and frustrated as Mingus is in this film, I couldn't help thinking how some of his insights continue to have a relevance and resonance right down to the current times. It is curious to note that the world of music was changing pretty rapidly at the time this film was made. The jazz world was poised to take a plunge into jazz-rock-fusion (the more commercial extension beyond the free-jazz innovation of the early 60s). Mingus would not make that transition along with many others – his own health demanded his time and attention. And perhaps the frantic fire we see in the film settled down for his own benefit (how long can any person sustain that level of intensity without consequences?). Yet, many of the injustices remain from Mingus's time to our own. Images can be powerful – as Mingus knew too well as he demonstrates how easy it is to operate a firearm – it seems that the JFK assassination was especially in the forefront of his mind as one can hear in the film. There are no easy answers to the question of how to make the world a better place. I think Mingus's music will continue to illustrate that beauty can emerge from the most trying of circumstances. I think that is ultimately what the film maker gives us here – in the turmoil of the times, music can still express the human qualities of joy, hope and exuberance. Keep those vibrations flowing................

Crimson Reflections – Part One: Stumbling into the Court

For the next few installments here, I will be working through some reflections on the great musical institution known in rock music circles by the name King Crimson. It's weird, but I don't think of Crimson as a typical band, per se. It isn't exactly a collective either. Crimson is more of a creative landscape under the watchful guidance of Mr. Robert Fripp who, if anyone has taken the time to read some of his fascinating blog posts, seems to have a fairly complicated relationship with his “garden”. Hmmm. That isn't a bad analogy – King Crimson is more like a musical garden than a “band”. Fripp is the master gardener - the gatekeeper. Crimson is a carefully manicured garden where some plots are allowed to grow wild – as long as the carefully controlled chaos suits the aesthetic of the master gardener. Sometimes the undergrowth gets out of hand and the garden goes on lockdown only to be re-opened to the public in a newly remodeled form. Yet, the essence of the garden remains consistently tied to a particular aesthetic which can only be defined as Crim.

As usual, I am grossly ill-suited to be telling this tale. I haven't even heard all of the music from this region. Well, it would be kind of tough to do though not impossible. There have been solo albums and offshoots – many pathways winding through the Crimson Forest. Yet, a curious realization emerges – the lifeblood of the land is tied up with other elemental components – often associated with other landscapes and regions. There is an odd sense of dislocation that permeates through the Crimson Garden. A slightly less romantic analogy for King Crimson might be the family across town who lots of folks are related to though they don't always admit it. There is an element of elite yet outlaw status with this motley assortment Mr. Fripp has presided over since its inception......which goes back to 1969 when it was still just a band – and not even HIS band, initially.

To move this analysis forward, I will be using the above visual to represent the four major time shifts associated with the Historic Crimson Identity. Those familiar with the music will understand what the four compact discs represent. Everybody else will have to keep reading, of course.

NOTE: There is a recent permutation of King Crimson which toured in the fall of 2014. This version of the band has so far been represented with a live CD which I have not yet ordered or heard. True to form for me – I totally missed the opportunity to see this new version of Crimson just like every other time. Sheesh. So this newest edition is not represented quite yet here.

 

My journey through this region commences not in a chronological manner, but in a geographic one. I will begin in the southwest quadrant of the map since that is where my own journey started. How I wound up there is related to an article I read in Musician Magazine in August 1984. The article is highly entertaining and worth spending the fifteen minutes or so it takes to read. See here: 

http://www.elephant-talk.com/wiki/Interview_with_King_Crimson_in_Musician 

The residents of Crim at this time were Fripp (of course), Bill Bruford (who to me was the first Yes drummer), Adrian Belew (who I knew only from Frank Zappa's band at that point) and bassist Tony Levin (who I heard on countless records without knowing who it was – like John Lennon's last album). For some reason I found that article interesting enough to want to just buy some King Crimson without worrying about what the music sounded like. So it was that I wound up at my favorite record joint and purchased the Discipline album on compact disc (new in the blister package!) without having heard a note of the music.

 
 Never mind that the record was about 4 years old by the time I got to it – this was still “new music” as far as I was concerned. And was it EVER! To this day, I have not heard anything remotely like what the Discipline album was then and still is. It is uncanny to me. Discipline was love at first listen. I was thirsty for a new music and King Crimson delivered in a way no other musical entity could at that time. 

I was so enthused with Discipline I set out later in the summer to bag another Crimson album – the one profiled in the article that, for reasons I don't remember, I initially passed up in favor of Discipline. Good thing too, since Three of a Perfect Pair was not quite the same experience – and one I nearly paid an ultimate price for (had I not been as fortunate as I was). You see, all this pre-dated my ability to drive an automobile. Trips to the record shops were dependent upon a willing parental lift and were therefore infrequent. Until I got it in my brain that I could ride my bicycle to the record shop on a clear, non-rainy day.

Having some LP-spending cash on hand I reasoned I could steer the bike with one hand while holding the LP with the other on the trip back. Of course, certain parts of the return trip involved a few intense downhill maneuvers which might complicate the process. No worries – just go! The trip to the shop was unremarkable except I got the LP this time (would have been smarter to get the CD, no?). The return trip was also fairly unremarkable – even down the really BIG hill which should have been the scarier prospect. It was the second biggest downhill where things went awry. My street was on the left at the bottom of a down-hill dip in the main road – right after going under an overpass built for a train-track elevated above the road. No problem except I was riding into oncoming traffic, one-handed and didn't count on some rather large debris which had accumulated under the bridge which was hard to navigate and............................. holyshitivehitalogwherethefuckdidthatcomefromiamnowfallingoffthebikeintooncomingtraffic! What's the first thought when I realize I am going down off the bike like this? “Oh my God! SAVE THE RECORD!!!!”

 

See that bend in the LP cover? Well, that was the extent of the damage to the record, thank heavens. My own damage was also mercifully slight. No cars managed to run over me thank goodness. So I arrived home bruised and shaken, yet undeterred. I later would bring Three of a Perfect Pair to parties and put it on when other guys tried to dance with the girls I was interested in. Heh heh! Yet, that LP would be the end of Crimson Mark III and I never got to see that edition live in concert. It would be many years later before I even bothered to purchase the Beat album.Not because I didn't want it, but because I KNEW – I knew it was going to be great and I was holding out for when I needed to hear it. I know – I am such a weirdo I just didn't want to rush into the last LP from that era of the band. I wanted to SAVOR it.

Last summer I got to experience the ultimate re-creation of this era of Crimson when I saw the double trio act of Adrian Belew's and Tony Levin's bands together performing Crimson music up in Woodstock at the Bearsville Theater. I was totally blown away. I cannot wait for the next performance next summer. I was enthralled once again – even though that Fripp guy was not present. I was also semi-yet-not-quite starstruck to discover the great Tony Levin mulling around the bar before the show – standing right next to me! I'm sure I could have blathered on to him about how his contribution to the Discipline album changed and energized my life as a young listener (and still does), but any knucklehead can come off like Waynes World, right? Just being that close in proximity to such an important musical figure was enough of a buzz for me. So enjoyable it was to see him then, I returned to the Bearsville later in the season to see Tony Levin's Stickmen group. I could watch and listen to him play all day long – he's a true musical treasure of our times. It is no surprise that Mr. Fripp let him in the Crimson Garden all those years ago.

 

          As a postscript and tie-in to the other eras I will be writing about – the Discipline album was released as part of a 40^th Anniversary campaign featuring new 5.1 surround sound mixes of all the King Crimson albums. Most of the catalog has been released this way, though so far Discipline is the only album from that era to be given the 5.1 treatment. That said – the new mix is so spectacular I would recommend any fan of this album to get a surround sound system RIGHT AWAY so you can hear this experience as quickly as possible before life gets in the way too much or back copies of this thing become too expensive to afford anymore. Yes – it is THAT GOOD. In fact, as I will profile in the future, it is this 5.1 remix campaign that finally convinced me King Crimson leads the pack of so-called progressive bands. 

Every single release from this 40^th Anniversary series is so stellar, they've raised the bar as to what real progressive excellent music is really all about. The 5.1 remixes have breathed so much new life into the back catalog of Crimson albums, they have forced a re-evaluation of even the more marginal records made under less-than-ideal circumstances. Its almost as if the sonic unfolding of those records sheds new light on what those Crim residents were really up to – while everyone thought they were imploding, they were re-defining the potential of the future. What may have baffled listeners in stereo back in the early 70s comes to life in surround sound in the present era. King Crimson has always been a cutting edge ensemble. Technology has made it possible for the music to be re-discovered and re-evaluated for newer generations of listeners.

 

Defying Expectations: Sinatra’s “Watertown”, Nilsson Schmilsson and Billy Meshel's Minor Masterpiece

     

 It finally happened. Either a sign of advancing good taste or advance of age, I can’t tell which. It hit me – Sinatra. Not in some crazy obsessive way. Call it a general appreciation that didn’t quite exist before. Now, I’m not into the whole Myth / Mystique / Idealization trip here. Just an ability to enjoy Sinatra’s music and an acknowledgment of his artistry. I’d read little articles here and there – some by Sinatra experts. Interesting stories from a musical point of view, not from the “Rat Pack Fanboy Club” point of view. For many of my generation, the Sinatra image was not especially interesting, in terms of what was considered “cool”. Maybe some of the blame can be laid on comedian Joe Piscopo’s doorstep. Somehow I could never take Sinatra seriously - especially after the way Piscopo sent him up on Saturday Night Live. All those songs with mundane lyrics being crooned like they were the most important and profound poetry – with that mock-seriousness in his voice - good God, it really was just too funny. 

  Yet, if you give yourself the chance to listen beyond the mind-numbing, drool-inducing lyrics you’ll hear PHRASING. That’s what got me to listen a little closer. I like singers who know how to phrase through interesting melodic material. And, even with the limitations of his range, Sinatra was a phrasing magician. That said, I would be very hesitant to call his style “jazz”. Advanced crooning with a unique swing feel, perhaps. A stylist, surely. Plus, it’s fairly easy to pick up Sinatra records in thrift store bins. Like classical music these days, only the die-hard collectors want Sinatra LPs. The main concern for collectors centers around his Capitol-era output. Something to do with the original vinyl being the only place to get the “dry” mixes – later reissues were smothered in reverb apparently. And don’t get me started on the “D” versus the “N” pressings. I can’t remember which is the better one right now. I have examples of each and I’m still working on figuring that stuff out. But the collectors know. What they usually don’t care about are the Reprise-era albums.

I have a bunch of these too – actually I kinda like the oddball stuff like Frank’s version of “Both Sides Now” on this record:

  By this point in his career, Sinatra miraculously had some pretty decent comebacks and he wasn’t quite done. The “Cycles” LP was released in 1968. His next big smasheroo, “My Way”, was right around the corner in 1969. Yet, as iconic as “My Way” is today, this is where Sinatra’s hits would start to dry up (“New York, New York” notwithstanding). His recorded output would start to taper off and head for that long slide towards the “Duets” albums that would pretty much cap his career, for better or worse. The Reprise era did, however, have a few interesting experiments along the way, the first – and arguably greatest – of which was unleashed on the public only a year after “My Way” topped the charts. Yet, this LP would sink like a stone and make nary a ripple in either the Sinatra-obsessives circles or everybody else’s circles. I speak of: WATERTOWN.

  I’d read a little about this album over the last few years and a bunch of months ago I finally found a nice white-label promo copy – in mint shape – for about $10. I reckon it is available on CD and/or download for the digital-inclined. Now, this is very important: don’t read the article I’m going to link here until you listen to the record! It’s not a very long album and it’s rewarding so just suck up that 40-some odd minutes and do it.

 

Then, read this article: http://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2013/03/14/blue-eyes-in-watertown/

Sinatra’s “Watertown” may very well end up as the record music fans will celebrate with his hits, long after the Rat Pack fanboy brigade has left the building. The artistry he displays in reading through the material, as a believable sonic narrative, is impeccable. “Watertown” really stands apart from the usual Sinatra offering. Perhaps that is why it remained largely ignored when it was released. Folks probably didn’t know what to make of it and most likely just shrugged it off. Silly people……….for once Sinatra sounds to me like he’s sincere, like he’s not purposely trying to hustle you about how great he is – you know that kind of rap.

I have this theory about singers. For whatever reason, I especially enjoy singers who approach their material almost as actors / actresses. I want the illusion that the singer is communicating something from a point of experience. I say “illusion” because, as in acting, it really isn’t necessary for the artist to have personally experienced whatever they are singing about as long as they are able to communicate the emotion, idea or sentiment. I do wonder, though, if most people really care about whether or not singers portray their material in such a way anymore. Given the way a lot of current music sounds to me, I think not. To my ears, so much of current music / singing sounds like a commercial on TV – like the singer is trying to hustle me. Big turnoff. Not being a vocalist myself, I generally admire anybody who can carry a tune, though. 

  One of the better vocalists of the late 20^th century, in terms of American-styled popular music, was Harry Nilsson. I mentioned in an earlier posting about the RCA Albums Collection Box I picked up (along with the most recent biography). Maybe not everybody needs the whole catalog, but I'd say at least one Harry record belongs in any music fan's collection: Nilsson Schmilsson. 

  This record has it all: great singing, great playing, great songwriting. The Moonbeam Song. Coconut. Without You. Jump Into the Fire. Man, if you can’t dig this record I feel sorry for you! Jump into the Fire also happens to have one of the top five BADDEST bass guitar moments ever in the history of recorded music: bass man Herbie Flowers got the wild idea to de-tune his bass right in the middle of an already rockin’ performance – still on-key but all growlin’ and flappin’ and totally rockin’! Herbie don’t need no 5 string bass to get those low, low notes. Just start unwinding that low E RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TAKE. How badass is that? If that track doesn’t make you want to jump up and play “air bass” you must not have a pulse. Anyway……depending on how much you like brilliant songwriting and stellar singing, you might not need the new box, but you definitely need Nilsson Schmilsson because you like the good things in life. Maybe throw in Son of Schmilsson (the sequel) since you like to laugh too. 

  Yet, these Nilsson albums are a bit different from what came before in Harry’s catalog. The Schmilsson records were a carefully designed move toward more rock-n-roll territory. The clutch of records that preceded these were more in the adult-pop, thinking-man’s music vein with a little touch of 1920s aesthetic to them. And those early albums were successful enough for other aspiring songwriters and singers to take notice. Who wouldn't want to have this guy's talent, right? See here:

 One little known example of Nilsson's impact on music (from pretty early on) came to me in a fairly random way………

Once in awhile I end up with records I didn’t intend to buy. Such was the case when I saw a few Ahmad Jamal records advertised with a “lot” of LPs on an ebay auction. It was like 6 or 7 LPs for $5 or something (including the Jamal albums). I didn’t think too much about the other records that arrived. Among the mystery albums was this:

  I honestly didn’t take much time to even look at this record until a few weeks ago. I noticed it was sealed and looked like some middle-of-the-road, crooning Ed Ames type LP until I looked a little closer………….

First of all, the record label – Probe – was a short-lived offshoot from ABC Records in the late 60s. This label is noteworthy for being the American company that released the first few Soft Machine records in the US. Soft Machine was a decidedly prog-rock / psychedelic band from England. Hmmmm. This album also looked like it was a “concept” album – especially obvious when perusing the song titles………

  Oh my God…..the front cover photo, the song titles, the back cover liner notes……read this:

Even before I placed the needle in the groove I was snickering to myself. This was one of the funniest things I’d seen in a long time: a “concept” album about a lonely guy who just can’t make it with the chicks! Everything about the package is screaming this concept. Who is this guy? How did he get away with it? Who would give him a budget to complete such a project, let alone release it? It is interesting to note that the very goofy liner notes on the back cover make specific reference to Frank Sinatra (and presumably the current hit “My Way”).

Apparently, Billy Meshel cut a few singles under his own name in the early 60s and worked as an erstwhile songwriter for smaller companies. (This song isn't bad – though some of the comments listed on the youtube site are, shall we say, concerning!)

  I get the sense that he must have worked for ABC records in some other capacity besides “singer” and through those connections managed to wrangle a deal for his “concept album”. Although the liner notes make reference to Sinatra, the real inspiration behind this record seems to be Nilsson who was pioneering a new “sensitive loner singer” approach to popular music. However, where Harry's tunes betray sophisticated command of language and finesse, Meshel's lyrics are, by contrast, direct and absurd! Yet, despite the lowbrow vocal delivery, the songs are well-orchestrated and inexplicably catchy! Meshel certainly had a gift. At least one other person has taken notice of this album and uploaded a few tracks to youtube. Here's one:

  This is certainly one of the oddest “concept albums” I've encountered. What makes it so offbeat is the earnestness with which the material is presented – the music itself is very radio-friendly (for the era). It's the extreme point of view of the concept and the ham-fisted lyrics that skew the proceedings toward decidedly “cult status” territory. Fans of late 60s “sunshine pop” would find this record FASCINATING. And, in its own twisted way, it's really very funny! A “quirky classic” that has been gurgling under the radar all these years. I actually like it better than the Four Season's “Imitation Life Gazette” (their “concept album”). So, for those of you who think you've heard it all – if you see Billy Meshel's minor masterpiece lurking in the bins for $1 – it ought to keep you scratching your head and tapping your toes between guffaws. If there ever was an album that probably wasn't supposed to happen, but did anyway – this is IT! Somehow, I'm glad it did and wound up in my collection. It shows a dogged resolve in an industry which seldom rewards such tenaciousness. Maybe these days its too easy to put one's own “minor masterpiece” out into the public arena. Billy Meshel's album was a leap of faith. Perhaps not a lucrative one, but certainly impressive enough in its own inimitable fashion. Regardless of what it may have been like to work for the guy and whatever you might think of the music, he wasn't “phoning it in” here. Isn't that what we, as demanding listeners, ask for?

The 1990s - Decade of the Curmudgeon in Training

                                                It was 20 Years Ago Today.............

 

Wow. I can't believe the mid-1990s are now officially 20 years ago. As each new year arrives I like to think in terms of where I was and what I was doing 10 - 20 years ago. The 1990s were not my favorite decade by a long stretch and I'd never want to live through a bunch of years like that again. I'd prefer not to get into why specifically, but I do know about the music that got me through a pretty rough decade. And oddly enough I've found myself listening to some of that same stuff again lately. So, before we move forward I'm going to get us in the wayback machine for a guide through what music kept me sane in the crappy decade of the 90s.............

First off, as the 90s started I developed an ear for The Beach Boys. This was big news for me, especially since I had dismissed them for so long. I really like it when I have a “eureka moment” with music. For me, The Beach Boys LP “Little Deuce Coupe” - the mono original – was what hooked me in. I still love this record. Every song is great.

  It also helped that my cousin Steve got into the Beach Boys at the same time. I'll never forget the generosity of my cousins who pitched in to give me the Beach Boys “Good Vibrations” box set that Christmas.

  Those six CDs played in heavy rotation for the balance of the decade. The retrospective CD box set was a big deal in the 90s and The Beach Boys set a standard of excellence with this release. It's still fantastic! I loved it so much I put the decal that came in the box on the back window of the car that got me through the decade. 

 Two years ago I was amused to see quite a number of young 20-somethings at the Beach Boys 50-year anniversary concert I went to. Really took me back to my own formative years as an obsessive fan..........

So while everybody else was cranking up the Nirvana – I was playing side two of Surf's Up religiously every night before I went to bed (I did mention how cheerful the 90s were for me, right? Heh heh). 

  As it turned out, there were plenty of Beach Boys “moments” through the decade – Brian Wilson emerged from his 80s haze, Pet Sounds was released as a separate “sessions” box set and in 1996 I saw my first Beach Boys concert in Poughkeepsie, NY. I am so glad I got to see Carl Wilson before he died – I will never forget him belting out “Sail On Sailor”. You could tell he wanted to do that song for “those fans” - the faithful. Yeah. I was among that lot. Still there, too. 

 

  Now, look. If you can't figure out that most of my musical tastes run pretty much backward in time you haven't been reading this blog too often. I'm doing my best to connect with some new music nowadays, but in the 90s I had pretty much zero interest in current bands. At least in the main genres. So, the 90s for me were more about older music. However, some older artists were putting out first rate records......like Paul McCartney did with his “Flaming Pie” album. Yep! I got that on VINYL, new! 

  Where? Well, I managed to find my way down to the Princeton Record Exchange in the 90s and boy did I blow a lot of cash there! With everybody re-discovering vinyl these days, I started that process back in the 90s. Paul's album came out after the Beatles Anthology hoopla (also a fun memory / experience for me in those years). I still think “Flaming Pie” is one of his best. Hard to realize it is almost 20 years old now........

Now, let me introduce you to my two steady girlfriends of the 90s................one British and one American.

Dusty:

Lesley:

       Now, I knew them both before the 90s, but I got really serious with them in that decade. Good thing they never found out about how much I professed my love to each of them separately. They were known to be pretty feisty if you crossed them the wrong way. Lesley could be brooding – saying “You Don't Own Me” over and over. Dusty was known to throw dishes and stuff when she got going! Each of these women sent me scrambling for their original albums and 45s since most of their music hadn't been reissued on CD yet. They made me WORK, I tell ya! Yet, when I did find those platters all was forgiven. We're still friends to this day and get together when we can. But life moves on. Dusty and Lesley still hold places in my heart even though Sandy Denny would come along in the 2000s and sweep me off my feet permanently. (Listen, I told you the 90s was a bad decade........I wasn't kidding!)

        Being involved like I was with those crazy women – it usually leads to only one thing: The Blues. Man, I had the blues in the 90s. I played with some great blues musicians in those years – lots of memorable gigs. There was a renewed interest in West Coast Swing in some circles I hung around. Good thing I had a membership to the BMG Music Club so I could have access to great compilations like this:

     I got heavy into T-Bone Walker in those days. Years later I read biographies on T-Bone and Muddy Waters. I think T-Bone would have been more my kind of character to hang out with. These Imperial sides have served me well over the years. Really fantastic – especially the slow numbers. Like “I Got A Cold Cold Feeling”. Yeah....

Aside from T-Bone Walker I also spent a lot of time listening to Elmore James. This CD compilation is still the only disc I have, but its got killer songs on it. When Elmore sings on some of those late-period tracks he just sounds so desperate and jumping out of his skin with heartache – God! There's nothing like that voice. 

 

As the late 90s rolled around, my fortunes started to turn around a little. But not without a serious bump in the road – after a year working in my chosen profession full time, I was left wondering if I'd manage to continue on that path. The summer of 1999 left me full of doubt and (near) despair. Things would work out in the end, but one of the best musical experiences I had in the 90s was seeing The Fugs in concert at the Byrdcliffe Barn in Woodstock NY that summer. Their performance really bolstered by spirits and gave me the courage to keep trucking, no matter how weird life might get. So I want to publicly thank Ed Sanders, the late Tuli Kupferberg, Steve Taylor and all the modern Fugs for positive vibrations back in the summer of '99.

I have no idea why I got caught up in the tunes of those times. Music is the soundtrack of our lives. And some years, that's what gets us through. Keep those vibrations close – some of my fondest companions have been the vibrations flying off those black and silver sonic potato chips. Keep 'em crunching, friends.