''The League of Gentlemen'' is the sole studio album by British guitarist and composer

Robert Fripp Robert Fripp (born 16 May 1946) is an English musician, composer, record producer, and author, best known as the guitarist, founder and longest-lasting member of the progressive rock band King Crimson. He has worked extensively as a session mu ...

and his short-lived band

The League of Gentlemen ''The League of Gentlemen'' is a British surreal comedy horror series that premiered on BBC Two in 1999. The programme is set in Royston Vasey, a fictional town in northern England originally based on Alston, Cumbria, and follows the lives ...

, released in February 1981 on the Editions E.G. label. The music is instrumental, although two tracks contain spoken-word overlays and three tracks, labelled as "Indiscretions", are composed entirely of spoken-word collages. Three further tracks, "Pareto Optimum" I & II and "Ochre", are solo organ pieces produced using the

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system.

Recording and release

The album was recorded in several sessions during 1980, produced by Fripp and engineered by Tony Arnold at 'Arny's Shack' studio in Parkstone, Dorset, England. The initial sessions included original drummer Johnny Toobad but ultimately he was replaced at short notice by Kevin Wilkinson, who was in their support band on tour, due to Toobad's escalating heroin addiction. Wilkinson played on all but two tracks on the finished album. The original album has never been reissued in full on CD, although all but one of the full-band tracks appear in remixed form on the Robert Fripp and the League of Gentlemen compilation album ''God Save the King'', released in 1985. This compilation omits the three spoken-word tracks ("Indiscreet" I-III), the three

-style organ tracks ("Pareto Optimum" I & II, "Ochre") and "Minor Man", a full-band track with vocals by

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J.G. Bennett John Godolphin Bennett (8 June 1897 – 13 December 1974) was a British academic and writer. He is best known for his books on psychology and spirituality, particularly on the teachings of G. I. Gurdjieff. Bennett met Gurdjieff in Istanbul in ...

's voice is also removed from "Cognitive Dissonance".

Track listing

All songs are credited to Robert Fripp except those marked ^†, which are credited to The League of Gentlemen.

Side I (EGED 9A)

#"Indiscreet I" (1:47) #"Inductive Resonance" (4:35)^† #"Minor Man" (3:45)^† #"Heptaparaparshinokh" (2:03)^† #"Dislocated" (4:35)^† #"Pareto Optimum I" (2:07) #"Eye Needles" (3:12)^† #"Indiscreet II" (2:35)

Side II (EGED 9B)

#"Pareto Optimum II" (1:27) #"Cognitive Dissonance" (3:38)^† #"HG Wells" (3:25)^† #"Trap" (4:45)^† #"Ochre" (3:07) #"Indiscreet III" (1:26) :The run-out groove on this side bears the message "THE NEXT STEP IS DISCIPLINE", a reference to Fripp's next project.

Personnel

;The League of Gentlemen * Barry Andrews – organ *

– guitar *

Sara Lee Sara may refer to: People * Sara (given name), a feminine given name People with the given name * Sara Aboobacker (1936–2023), Indian writer and translator * Sara Ahmed (born 1969), British-Australian writer * Sara Allgood (1880–1950), Ir ...

– bass guitar *Johnny Toobad (Johnny Elichaoff) – drums on "Heptaparaparshinokh" and "Dislocated" *

Kevin Wilkinson Kevin Michael Wilkinson (11 June 1958 – 17 July 1999) was an English drummer, who was based in Baydon, Wiltshire, England. Career Born in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, Wilkinson is credited as a former official member of several successful ...

– drums on all other tracks Also credited are: *

– vocals and lyrics ("Hamsprachtmuzic") on "Minor Man"; album sleeve front cover *

– "Extracts from the Sherborne House talks" *Tony Arnold – recording engineer *Marjori – photo of the League, taken at Gramercy Park, New York during July 1980 *

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– "Cover Glue" *Paddy Spinks – "Strategic Interaction"

'Indiscretions'

The various uncredited voices on the album occur on the tracks "Indiscreet" I-III and "Cognitive Dissonance". The compilation of these 'indiscretions' is credited to Robert Fripp. They may be classified by their location in the running order of the album, the distinct voices heard and the following opening phrases or sounds: INDISCREET I #"This is addressed to people who have the intention to work" – Voice 1 #"Rock and roll is about fucking" – Voice 2 and Voice 3 #"That is the possibility that we should explore" – Voice 1 #"Can you tell me about your first experience of a nuclear explosion" – Voice 4 #- ''Sound of female groaning (evoking orgasmic ecstasy)'' – #- ''Sound of air-raid siren followed by applause'' – #"There are people who want to know more" – Voice 1 #"This is not a record which is out to showcase a guitar player" – Voice 5 #"How do I dance to this music?" – Voice 2 and Voice 3 #"Then what am I to do about it?" – Voice 1 #"Don't dance with your feet" – Voice 2 and Voice 6 INDISCREET II *Features more of the above with emphasis on Voices 2 and 3 extemporising on the subject of rock music. Also included is the complete non-sequitur "I'd like to spend about 100m a year on sewers" and the observation "This country's going down the well" probably sampled from TV or radio. Voice 5 also gets an airing on the subject of

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's guitar sound. COGNITIVE DISSONANCE *Features extended excerpts about change from J.G. Bennett's 1972 lecture entitled
Concern for the Future
. INDISCREET III *Features a number of clips of Voice 5 criticising the League of Gentlemen's music and making unfavourable comparisons with a

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record and a live performance by

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. These comments are interspersed with samples from TV and radio presumably chosen to signify that the opinions of Voice 5 are held to be of questionable value, e.g. "Why should we put up with this nonsense" and "I think it stinks". ''Key to voices:'' *Voice 1: J.G.Bennett *Voice 2:

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*Voice 3:

Maggie Roche The Roches were an American vocal trio of sisters Maggie, Terre and Suzzy Roche, from Park Ridge, New Jersey. Career In the late 1960s, eldest sister Maggie (October 26, 1951 – January 21, 2017) and middle sister Terre (pronounced "Terry", ...

*Voice 4:

Sue Lawley Susan Lawley (born 14 July 1946) is an English retired television and radio broadcaster. Her main broadcasting background involved television news and current affairs. From 1988 to 2006, Lawley was the presenter of ''Desert Island Discs'' on BBC ...

(taken from the

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programme Nationwide) *Voice 5: Unknown Male *Voice 6: Unknown Female American music journalist

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and later became a ...

claims to recognise the voices of

Karen Durbin Karen Durbin (August 28, 1944 – April 15, 2025) was an American journalist, feminist and film critic. While Durbin is best known for her work with ''The Village Voice'', she wrote and published consistently on film, arts, anti-war, and feminis ...

, Chip Stern,

, Richard Goldstein and

Ellen Willis Ellen Jane Willis (December 14, 1941 – November 9, 2006) was an American left-wing political essayist, journalist, activist, feminist, and pop music critic. A 2014 collection of her essays, ''The Essential Ellen Willis,'' received the Nationa ...

on the album, but does not say where each one appears.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:League Of Gentlemen (Album) Robert Fripp albums 1981 albums New wave albums by English artists E.G. Records albums