Recorded: 1973/1974, Released: 1992
Tracks: [Disc 1] Walk On…No Pussyfooting; Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, Part Two; Lament; Exiles; Improv – A Voyage to the Centre of the Cosmos; Easy Money; Improv – Providence; Fracture; Starless [Disc 2] 21st Century Schizoid Man; Walk off from Providence; (improv) Shark’s Lungs in Lemsip; Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, Part One; Book of Saturday; Easy Money; (improv) We’ll Let You Know; The Night Watch; Improv – Tight Scrummy; Peace – A Theme; Cat Food; Easy Money…; (improv) …It Is For You, But Not For Us [Disc 3] Walk On…No Pussyfooting; The Great Deceiver; Improv – Bartley Butsford; Exiles; Improv – Daniel Dust; The Night Watch; Doctor Diamond; Starless; Improv – Wilton Carpet; The Talking Drum; Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, Part Two (abbreviated); Applause & Announcement; Improv – Is There Life Out There? [Disc 4] Improv – The Golden Walnut; The Night Watch; Fracture; Improv – Clueless and Slightly Slack; Walk On…No Pussyfooting; Improv – Some Pussyfooting; Larks’ Tongues in Aspic, Part One; Improv – The Law of Maximum Distress, Part One; Improv – The Law of Maximum Distress, Part Two; Easy Money; Improv – Some More Pussyfooting; The Talking Drum
Best track (per disc): Disc 1-Starless, 2-Easy Money #1, 3-Daniel Dust>Night Watch, 4-Law of Maximum Distress
Track to skip: nothing on the entire box set should be skipped
This, like Crimson’s Epitaph, is a totally different beast. And hot damn what a beast this is. Another similarity to Epitaph (and truthfully any live 4CD set from any group within a year) is that many of the songs are repeated here. Crimson has more songs to choose from, and plays more improvs, but there are some repeats here. The repeats don’t bother me at all as each version has its differences and peculiarities that make them enjoyable. I’ll go over all 4 discs of this live box set individually since it’s way too easy to just slap a good grade on here for the whole thing.
Disc 1 is nearly the full concert from Providence, RI 6/30/74 (the last two songs are at the beginning of disc 2). This was the next to last show that Crimson played before breaking up (Live in Central Park is that last show) and it plainly shows how monstrous this band was. I love that we get the full concert, too bad it couldn’t all fit on one CD. All three of the band’s mid-70’s albums are touched on here, with some great improv as well. As Red wouldn’t be released until later in the year both Starless and the improv Providence were previews of the upcoming album. In the case of Providence, it’s the actual track itself. This version is the full improv (not edited like on Red) and also has a different mix. I actually prefer the version on Red, mostly since Wetton’s bass is mixed louder on that version. Either way, it’s still a fantastic improv. Better though, is the evening’s first improvisation, A Voyage to the Centre of the Cosmos a track that Fripp announces to the audience as “a piece we’ve been working on for a considerable amount of time.” At nearly 15 minutes long it’s one of the cooler improvs this group did (this from a band that was exceptional at group improvisation). I think the biggest highlight is Starless. Probably the best live version the band ever did; it’s very intense. This Providence show is excellent.
Disc 2 continues on with the rest of the Providence show, the encore of Schizoid Man and the Walk Off. Schizoid Man is the same excellent version from USA, without the overdubs. The Walk Off is particularly amusing with the recorded conversation of the audience (Guy #1: We want more! Guy #2: You can’t have any! Guy #1: That’s too bad!). Sharks’ Lungs to Cat Food are from Glasgow on 10/23/73 (the oldest material on the box set) and the last two tracks on the disc were recorded at Penn State the day before the Providence show. The Glasgow tracks are interesting in that we get songs that aren’t anywhere else on the box set. Stuff like an excellent Book of Saturday and the extremely rare Peace/Cat Food. This ’73 version of Cat Food isn’t anywhere near as good as the original, but it’s still nice to hear it done by this lineup. The audience sure was surprised. We’ll Let You Know is an improv and also it’s on the Starless album in an edited form. Both Easy Money’s from this disc are excellent and both go into great improvs. The Glasgow EM starts out kinda tentative, but then turns into a monster and the best track on this particular disc.
Disc 3 is mostly from a show in Pittsburgh on 4/29/74 with the last two tracks again from the Penn State show. The setlist for the Pittsburgh show was the ‘middle of the tour’ setlist that the band had going. This one presented some different material as well as running order. Great Deceiver opened the set with Night Watch in the middle and closing with an improv>Talking Drum>Larks 2. I don’t think this set works as well as what’s on disc 1, but I LOVE the version of Night Watch on here. Sometimes they did this one too fast or too slow, but this version is right on. The improv that sets up Night Watch is excellent as well: a very peaceful improvisation, which is a rarity among this heavy of a group. Great Deceiver really doesn’t work as a live track; it’s just missing something. We do get a previously unreleased song in Doctor Diamond on here, but after one listen it’s understandable why it remained in the can until now. It’s not that bad of a song, but the first half is pretty boring. It does pick up and get into some really cool bits, but overall it’s not that great of a track. The version of Starless on here is a bit rough and it sounds like it was one of the first attempts at it. I really like the inclusion of the improv from the Penn State show, great stuff. Mostly this disc is just average, there are some standouts, but it’s the ‘least best’ disc of the set.
Last disc in the set gives us two concerts: the first four tracks are from Toronto 6/24/74 and 5-12 are from Zurich 11/15/73. The best thing about this disc is it’s full of improvised goodness. On this disc alone there’s over 35 minutes of Crimson improv. Actually, it’s all the improv that makes this the best disc of the whole box. The written songs are all excellent (esp. Larks 1 & Fracture), but the meat of this disc is all the improv. The best one is Law of Maximum Distress (both parts). The tape ran out in the middle, so that’s why it’s divided into two parts. The part that actually connects these two was used as the music bed for The Mincer from Starless and Bible Black. There is the area of the actual tape running out, but that probably didn’t take too long. If you know The Mincer then you’ll have some idea of how sinister this music is. The other improv I really love from this disc is the first track, Golden Walnut from Toronto. It’s another long one and pretty evil as well…damn, so is Some More Pussyfooting. Man, they don’t mess around on this!
Unless you were at any of these concerts or had bootlegs, this box set was probably a revelation when it came out in 1992. It really proved once and for all that the 73/74 version of King Crimson was one of the best heavy bands to ever exist. For all the Crimheads out there, the main reason you need this is all the group improvisation these guys do. They’re masters at it and no other rock band (ever, before or since) could improv this well. Seriously, the improvs here take up over 1 ½ CDs. Couple that with all the other good performances and you have an absolutely essential box set. This is worth most any price you’ll pay for it.
Rating: 96
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