Text by Bruce Gallanter (Downtown Music Gallery, November 9th, 2023)
“The Court of the Crimson King” performed by King Crimson. From their first album released in October of 1969
The rusted chains of prison moons are shattered by the sun
I walk a road, horizons change, the tournament’s begun
The purple piper plays his tune, the choir softly sing
Three lullabies in an ancient tongue for the court of the crimson king
The keeper of the city keys put shutters on the dreams
I wait outside the pilgrim’s door with insufficient schemes
The black queen chants, the funeral march, the cracked brass bells will ring
To summon back the fire witch to the court of the crimson king
The gardener plants an evergreen whilst trampling on a flower
I chase the wind of a prism ship to taste the sweet and sour
The pattern juggler lifts his hand, the orchestra begin
As slowly turns the grinding wheel in the court of the crimson king
On soft gray mornings widows cry, the wise men share a joke
I run to grasp divining signs to satisfy the hoax
The yellow jester does not play, but gently pulls the strings
And smiles as the puppets dance in the court of the crimson king
I recall hearing this song on FM radio in the Fall of 1969 and thinking that this was something quite different from any other rock bands were doing until then. Unlike the opening track, “21st Century Schizoid Man”, which was pretty brutal and even scary, this song closed the first Crimson record being more majestic and immensely haunting, especially the mellotron(s), a newly designed keyboard instrument which samples strings (mostly) which were recorded on short tape loops.
The mellotron has its sound and the strings often sound slightly off-key which seems to bend the reality of what we are hearing. It is often said that this album is the beginning of what would be called “progressive rock” and indeed there was nothing quite like it when it was released.
Like Procol Harum and the Grateful Dead, King Crimson had their own lyricist, Peter Sinfield, as a member of the band. Except for their guitarist/leader Robert Fripp and Mr. Sinfield, the personnel and sound changed on every King Crimson album. Sinfield wrote the lyrics for the first four Crimson studio albums and I thought he did a good job of creating a Crimson-like world/mythology. A world we could escape into, leaving our reality behind. King Crimson celebrated their 50th anniversary in 2019 and toured as well. The last version of the band included members from different eras and did songs from their entire catalog. A book and a film about King Crimson have recently been released. Those of you who are intrigued by the band should check out both. Let’s all get on board our own spaceships, celebrate, and dance in the court of the Crimson King.
