King Crimson Album Poll: “Red” (1974)

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Mirror Image, Aug 21, 2017.

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  1. stax o' wax

    stax o' wax Forum Resident

    Location:
    The West
    Arguably the pinnacle of the Wetton era.
    I have made King Crimson fans out of people who wouldn't give them a listen by playing Red for them.
     
  2. The Hud

    The Hud Breath of the Kingdom, Tears of the Wild

    No need to apologize, but I am curious as to what their favorite Crimson is if Red is considered to be the worst.

    That being said, your comment is hilarious!
     
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  3. Norbert Becker

    Norbert Becker Senior Member

    Location:
    Philadelphia PA
    Might be John Wetton's best hour in Crimson.
    And they recorded this live in the studio? Amazing musicianship.
     
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  4. smoke

    smoke Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago
    One of their better albums for sure, thanks for reminding me to relisten!!
     
  5. Edgard Varese

    Edgard Varese Royale with Cheese

    Location:
    Te Wai Pounamu
    Exhibit A to show to anyone who dares to say that prog doesn't "rock hard enough".
     
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  6. Rose River Bear

    Rose River Bear Senior Member

    Not my favorite album by them and not a masterpiece IMO. The title track goes on for too long with only a few motifs that never really take off for me. Sure lots of amazing counter rhythms but they sound gratuitous at times. Throughout the entire album, too many Mahavishnu take offs. Too many sus chords with flat 5th and ninths along the way. Gets kind of boring at times. I listen to Starless quite often though and is my favorite from the album.
    My favorite albums by KC are SABB and LTIA.
    Red IMO falls short of those two. I still listen to it though.
     
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  7. Archtop

    Archtop Soft Dead Crimson Cow

    Location:
    Greater Boston, MA
    Starless may be the most perfectly executed studio track of all time. While live Crimson generally destroys studio Crimson, Red is a must have and the studio version of Starless destroys the live versions of this particular track.

    The middle section, which features a bleak tone from Fripp (for effect, I suppose) is in 13, but Bruford plays the wood blocks in 4. Brilliant stuff.
     
    Last edited: Aug 21, 2017
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  8. fredhammersmith

    fredhammersmith Forum Resident

    Location:
    Montreal, Quebec
    Love the album, love everything: the raw energy, the cover art, Bruford brillance. But I have to admit: I listen to Starless (the song) 10X more than the rest of the album. I mean: when I need a dose of Red, I jump directly to Starless, probably in my Top 3 of progressive tracks of all time.
     
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  9. dkurtis

    dkurtis sonoftheFather

    Red is a mature album that has grown more significant to me over the years. Starless is to the album Red what a total eclipse is to the sun - total and complete awe.
     
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  10. libertycaps

    libertycaps Forum Resident

    Location:
    Portland, OR, USA
    Heavy.
     
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  11. jimjim

    jimjim Forum Resident

    The build-up at the end of Starless and Red are all I like of it so I voted 'not bad'.
     
  12. headshok

    headshok Well-Known Member

    Location:
    frankfurt, germany
    As far as Wetton/Bruford era goes I listen to SABB and live stuff like The Great Deceiver box and some of the KCCC stuff more often than I listen to Red. But Red was a hell of a formative album for me growing up and it holds a special place in me heart. Masterpiece.
     
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  13. SonicBob

    SonicBob Forum Resident

    Location:
    West Virginia
    Red is definitely one of Crimson's best, certainly of the Wetton era. Starless and the title track are amazing bookends to any album of the early-mid seventies prog movement and every song in between captures the band in top form. Such a shame that it ended so abruptly, but there was extraordinary music made in a short 2 year span. I'm still amazed at the determination and strength of Fripp during Crimson's many transformations in the early years; one would have thought that by the time of Bruford and Wetton he finally hit upon a solid formation, but I suppose he had reasons for disbanding it. Certainly his collaborations with Brian Eno were telling enough in how he perceived where his musical consciousness was going. I digress.
     
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  14. Holy Diver

    Holy Diver Senior Member

    Location:
    USA
    I still think In the Court is their best album, but for later Crimson it's one of their best.
     
  15. dkurtis

    dkurtis sonoftheFather



    When there is not enough Starless ........... Beauty beyond words.
     
  16. bartok2112

    bartok2112 Active Member

    Location:
    San Jose Ca
    Starless has haunted me since the first time I heard it. This is one of my favorites out of any artist.
     
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  17. Quincy

    Quincy Senior Member

    Location:
    Willamette Valley
    It's just the way I got into the band's works that between the debut and Discipline that I hadn't explored except through live stuff before I heard those albums, so to fine tune my poll click I'd say "Clearly one of their best works but I almost always play something live from this era instead of the studio albums".
     
  18. Sordel

    Sordel Forum Resident

    Location:
    Switzerland
    Okay, here's the thing ... I don't think that there's a single KC album that for me hangs together beginning to end.

    Nevertheless I think that Red's one of the absolute pinnacles: not only of KC'S career but also of rock music in general. If you were compiling a list of the greatest albums ever made, this is one you'd have to put one before making room for your idiosyncratic personal favourites. And I'm not sure why because the two preceding albums are just as good (in fact, I think that I prefer Larks' Tongues). But Red just has this undispellable aura of greatness about it.
     
  19. ohnothimagen

    ohnothimagen "Live music is better!"

    Location:
    Canada
    Red is essential- even if it was the only album made by Joe Shmoe and the Shmoes it'd still be an essential album. The title track, to me, is the aural equivalent of being whacked upside the head by a twenty pound sledgehammer in the best possible way. Crimson King, Lark's Tongue and the Belew/Levin era Crimson are great and all but Red is IMO King Crimson's masterpiece.
    Indeed- my wife isn't the world's biggest Prog fan by any stretch of the imagination but even she liked Red when she heard it. Doubt she'd like much more KC, though:p
     
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  20. Zongadude

    Zongadude Music is the best

    Location:
    France
    And then he broke up the band and put it on hiatus. Logical.
     
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  21. HiredGoon

    HiredGoon Forum Resident

    Essential KC for me. More coherent than any other KC album, the highs are higher and more consistent.

    I didn't know about the Fripp/Cross - Starless Starlight album ... me want!

    Here's The Unthanks doing a cover of Starless:



    --Geoff
     
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  22. I really like Red but my favorite KC album is Islands; i know many rate Red over Islands but not me.
     
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  23. Kassonica

    Kassonica Forum Resident

    it is my favorite K.C record by miles, I have the original US pressing with Starless in my top ten songs of all time

    :)
     
  24. Kassonica

    Kassonica Forum Resident

    it is my favorite K.C record by miles, I have the original US pressing with Starless in my top ten songs of all time

    :)
     
  25. Chris Schoen

    Chris Schoen Rock 'n Roll !!!

    Location:
    Maryland, U.S.A.
    Was not impressed with this album. So far, "Larks Tongue" is my favorite K.C. album.
     
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