King Crimson live recordings: where to start?

I just picked up a used copy of that DVD yesterday for $3!

 

I like all of the live songs on Absent Lovers better than their studio counterparts!

 

For Wetton-era these 3 should make a good collection, get them in this order:
- The Collectable King Crimson Vol. 1
- The Night Watch
- King Crimson Collector's Club: Live in Guildford 1972

Other titles that I'd recommend:
- Epitaph Vol. 1 & 2
- Ladies Of The Road
- Absent Lovers
- VROOOM VROOOM
- Radical Action To Unseat The Hold Of Monkey Mind

 

Thanks for all of the help everyone. It seems like the OP made a good move with the Collectable King Crimson Vol. 1.

I have had my taste with the second ½ of the reprint of the Great Deceiver and so may be ready for a big box. A) If I was hoping to get away with just one of those big boxes, does anyone think one does a better job of it than others? B) Also I am a 30+ year Grateful Dead fan, so am extremely spoiled with well recorded releases either 2 track or multi-tracks mixed later; does one box scratch both of those concerns maybe, you could live with it alone and it sounds better than the others. Thanks again for the help.

 

KC thread reminded me to check DGM for new stuff....What the heck happened to DGM.com?
I do not like the new webpage.

Does it get easier? I can't find anything, except a headache.

 

Sort of. I mean, if all you care about is getting complete concerts, then yes, TGD has been made obsolete by TRTR. But I stand by my belief that TGD is the better set because it was a purposeful selection of performances, probably the very best of that particular lineup. The full concerts are great, but time after time I return to TGD because it's so damned well put-together. And if you're just jumping into the live album fray, it's a really good starting point along with Night Watch (though I think that's out of print?) Later the Club and DGMLive stuff can start to trickle in. I know for me it was many years before I'd digested their catalog enough that I needed many versions of the same songs from the same tours. One great live version of this or that was all I needed for quite a while. Now, of course, after 25, 26? years of listening, I love hearing the little changes they'd make from night to night. I really appreciate that stuff now in a way I simply couldn't before.

 

If I'm looking for specific concerts, then I just go to Tour Dates. I don't like how that works now either but at least I can go right to an individual tour for a specific lineup. I much preferred how ALL King Crimson-related acts were listed out on the same page and you could choose particular tours from there. I liked being able to see connections between different lineups and even different groups that Fripp was involved with. Still annoyed that they made this massive redesign but left the Guestbook as, well, a guestbook, which went out of style ages ago. Why not just use a normal forum so people could respond directly to each other, and others could see the thread of responses?

 

Full versions of the concerts are not the only reason for wanting the Starless and The Road to Red box sets. Hi rez and surround mixes in DVD-A and Blu Ray are the major drawing cards. The Night Watch is included with Starless. If all he wants is to sample, according to his own criteria, then The Night Watch would be the one to recommend. For someone who wants to dive in face first, the recent box sets are the way to go.

 

Yeah, I'm still confused by it.

I'm not seeing a clear presentation of the live recording anymore. (I am very slow-witted with webpages though).
The only way I can find the live recordings is by going into the Tour Dates and selecting a Year.

It's like the main function of the site (live recordings) is totally buried.

Anyways, that site USED to be a great place to start and end for live recordings....

 

I picked up Starless and The Road to Red boxes recently. The live material (Blue Ray) on Starless is superb. I'm just listening to the Wilson mix of Amsterdam. What an amazing performance.

 

I have ...
Radical Action
Live In Toronto
Live at the Orpheum
All current line up sets.
I love them all...
Where should I go next.
The On and Off The Road looks great but I have to admit
Discipline and Perfect Pair are not not favorite KC albums.
I was thinking about the Great Deciever set.
I want physical media, not downloads.
Thanks Glen

 

I picked up used Great Deceiver box today.
Nice set.
Love the book that accompanies it.
I have listened to first disc so far.
This line up was more improvisational than current line up for sure.

 

For me the Night Watch is the best Wetton era live album I've listened to.

 

You know, I think a better question is:
King Crimson live recordings: where to stop?

 

Well I start when Wetton & Bruford join and stop when they (both) leave. Exception being the latest waxing!!!

 

rather than where to start.......I need some suggestions on where to go next...
For live CD's, I currently have
The Great Deceiver Box Set
Live At The Orpheum
Night Watch
Radical Action
Live In Toronto
U.S.A.
are there any more authorized live CD's I should check out?
I am not a downloader.
Thanks Glen

 

The Starless box is killer for fans of the Wetton/Bruford incarnation. Also, if you're interested in their 80s output, Absent Lovers is essential.

 

It is particularly good but Starless is just mind blowing. The audio quality and performance quality are amazing.

 

Yes. Starless is the better box. I had a mental mixup. Maybe because I prefer the TRTR cover art

 

Ah, thank you! I've just got a new PC which can burn CDs and immediately thought of KC as there were a few 72 shows I wanted...but when I looked I thought the y'd abandoned them.

 

Totally agree to start with the "Great Deceiver". It was OOP for a while but I believe it is now available a 2 double CD Sets. It has excellent sound and the recordings are great. Also, if you like the original Lineup, "Epitaph" is a great set of early KC with many audience and BBC recordings. I would also say the sound is quite good (not as good as the "Great Deceiver" though).

 

I was at a flea market today and picked up an Elements set from 2014 tour
for twenty bucks!!!
I know how I am spending my Sunday.
Glen

 

Great Deceiver regularly sells in the 30 to 40 $ range on ebay . A cheap way to investigate the live stuff.
Those mega boxes are expensive also the Larks box doesn't sound that good compared to the other two 70's boxes.

 

This.

And another vote for the Great Deceiver.

 

The most affordable box on Amazon is the Larks Tongues box.
130.00 on Amazon.ca
Road To Red is 190.00
Starless box is 247.00
Any opinions on this set.
Thanks Glen