''The Condensed 21st Century Guide to King Crimson'' is a compilation by

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...

band

King Crimson King Crimson were an English progressive rock band formed in London in 1968 by Robert Fripp, Michael Giles, Greg Lake, Ian McDonald (musician), Ian McDonald and Peter Sinfield. Guitarist Fripp remained the only constant member throughout the ...

, released in 2006. It contains select studio tracks from the two box sets, '' The 21st Century Guide to King Crimson – Volume One – 1969–1974'' and '' The 21st Century Guide to King Crimson – Volume Two – 1981–2003''.

Track listing

Disc One: In the Studio: 1969–1974

Disc Two: In the Studio: 1981–2003

Personnel

King Crimson *

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 ...

Peter Sinfield Peter John Sinfield (27 December 1943 – 14 November 2024) was an English poet and songwriter. He was best known as a co-founder and lyricist of King Crimson. Their debut album '' In the Court of the Crimson King'' is considered one of the fi ...

Michael Giles Michael Rex Giles (born 1 March 1942) is an English drummer, percussionist, and vocalist, best known as one of the co-founders of King Crimson in 1968. Prior to the formation of King Crimson, he was part of the eccentric pop trio Giles, Giles a ...

Greg Lake Gregory Stuart Lake (10 November 1947 – 7 December 2016) was an English musician, singer, and songwriter. He gained prominence as a founding member of the progressive rock bands King Crimson and Emerson, Lake & Palmer (ELP). Born and b ...

* Ian McDonald *

Mel Collins Melvyn Desmond Collins (born 5 September 1947, Isle of Man) is a British saxophonist, flautist and session musician. Collins has played in several progressive rock groups, having been a member of King Crimson on two occasions (the first from ...

Gordon Haskell Gordon Haskell (27 April 1946 – 15 October 2020) was an English musician and songwriter. A pop, rock, jazz, country and blues vocalist, guitarist, and bassist, he was a school friend of King Crimson guitarist Robert Fripp. The two first worke ...

* Peter Giles *

Keith Tippett Keith Graham Tippetts (25 August 1947 – 14 June 2020), known professionally as Keith Tippett, was a British jazz pianist and composer. According to AllMusic, Tippett's career "...spanned jazz-rock, progressive rock, improvised and contemporar ...

* Andrew McCulloch *

Boz Burrell Raymond "Boz" Burrell (1 August 1946 – 21 September 2006) was an English musician. Originally a vocalist and guitarist, Burrell is best known for being the vocalist and bassist of King Crimson from 1971 to 1972 and the original bassist of B ...

* Ian Wallace *

Bill Bruford William Scott Bruford (born 17 May 1949) is an English drummer and percussionist who first gained prominence as a founding member of the progressive rock band Yes. After leaving Yes in 1972, Bruford spent the rest of the 1970s recording and tou ...

John Wetton John Kenneth Wetton (12 June 1949 – 31 January 2017) was an English musician, singer, and songwriter. Although he was left-handed, he was known for his skilled right-handed bass playing as well as his booming baritone voice. He was a member ...

David Cross David Cross (born April 4, 1964) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and director. Cross is best known for his stand-up performances, the HBO sketch comedy series '' Mr. Show with Bob and David'' (1995–1998), his role as Ian Hawk ...

Jamie Muir William James Graham Muir (4 July 1945 – 17 February 2025) was a Scottish painter and musician, best known for his work as the percussionist in King Crimson from 1972 to 1973, appearing prominently on their fifth album '' Larks' Tongues in As ...

Adrian Belew Robert Steven "Adrian" Belew (born December 23, 1949) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. A multi-instrumentalist primarily known as a guitarist and singer, he is noted for his unusual approach to the instrument, his ...

Tony Levin Anthony Frederick Levin (born June 6, 1946) is an American musician and composer specializing in electric bass guitars, Chapman Stick and upright bass. He also sings and plays synthesizer. Levin is best known for his work with King Crimson (19 ...

Pat Mastelotto Lee Patrick Mastelotto (born September 10, 1955) is an American rock drummer and record producer. He has been a member of King Crimson, Stick Men, Mr. Mister and O.R.k., as well as working as a session drummer with XTC, The Pointer Sisters an ...

Trey Gunn Trey Gunn (born December 13, 1960) is an American musician, known for being in the progressive rock band King Crimson from 1994 to 2003. He plays Warr Guitar and Chapman Stick instruments. Biography A native Texan who now resides in New Mexi ...

Additional personnel * Robin Miller *

Marc Charig Mark Charig (born 22 February 1944 in London) is a British trumpeter and cornetist. He was particularly active in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when he played in settings as diverse as Long John Baldry's group, Bluesology, Soft Machine, a ...

Richard Palmer-James Richard William Palmer-James (born 11 June 1947) is an English guitarist, songwriter and lyricist. He may be best known as one of the founding members of Supertramp (playing guitar and songwriter); writing lyrics for several songs by the pro ...

Reception

David Fricke wrote in ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' that this is a "deluxe primer of studio lightning and live thunder, compiled with the novice in mind ... Crimson's singular union of power, passion and intellect never flags despite the comings, goings and severe turns in direction ... made by entirely different lineups, both albums nevertheless epitomize Crimson's — and Fripp's — dedication to searing, transportive excellence ... the concert tapes affirm that with a blowtorch vengeance". Author

Greg Kot Greg Kot (born March 3, 1957) is an American music journalist and author. From 1990 until 2020, Kot was the rock music critic at the ''Chicago Tribune'', where he covered popular music and reported on music-related social, political and busines ...

opined that "guitarist Robert Fripp's bitter liner notes get things off to a sour start, but the violence and invention in the music more than compensate". John Kelman from ''

All About Jazz ''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...

'' wondered "if Fripp can continue to reissue material ad infinitum ... but this new release is, indeed, a concise collection that almost perfectly represents Crimson's long and multifaceted career". Barry Cleveland of ''

Guitar Player ''Guitar Player'' was an American magazine for guitarists, founded in 1967 in San Jose, California San Jose, officially the City of San José ( ; ), is a cultural, commercial, and political center within Silicon Valley and the San Francis ...

'' said that the "CD box set provides the perfect introduction to one of rock's most influential bands ... the majority of the studio tracks are culled from the band's stunning 1969 debut ... the selections from the band's first seven studio albums are well-chosen, and the song sequencing makes for an enjoyable listen, but it's the live material that provides the greatest insight into what this group—or groups, as there are actually several different incarnations represented—was all about". He also noted the box set includes "a 24-page booklet containing a list of all the band's gigs, a diary-like running commentary by guitarist Robert Fripp, and a bevy of cool photos and other graphic memorabilia".

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Condensed 21st Century Guide To King Crimson, The Albums produced by Robert Fripp 2006 compilation albums King Crimson compilation albums