vinyl LP cover detail
detail photo by Styrous®
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I
started the Vinyl LP series because I have a collection of over 20,000 vinyl record albums I am
selling; each blog entry is about an album from my collection. Inquire
for information here.
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My first discovery of the English rock band, King Crimson, was with the 1969 album, In the Court of the Crimson King (link below). It was the group that began an awakening for me of the wonders to be found in the progressive rock genre; I wasn't to discover Pink Floyd (link below) until 1971 with their album, Meddle, which sent me on an entirely different trajectory.
vinyl LP cover
photo by Styrous®
Discipline, released in 1981, featured a transformed group that had elements of the new wave sound being produced at that time. It is the eighth studio album by the band. The image shown on the cover is a Celtic knot design by George Bain and is embossed. Only founder Robert Fripp and later addition Bill Bruford remained from previous incarnations. The rest of the band was Adrian Belew (guitar, lead vocals) and Tony Levin (bass guitar, Chapman Stick, backing vocals). I saw them perform at the Hearst Greek Theater in Berkeley, one of many concerts I have seen there (link below).
vinyl LP cover back
photo by Styrous®
As usual, I have a favorite from the album; Matte Kudasai is it. It is totally unlike the prog-rock King Crimson is known for producing. It starts out slow, dreamy and VERY quietly with the guitar work only Robert Fripp
could manage. It has a mellow, gently loping beat that gives a country-western feeling to it with a vocal by Adrian Belew that sounds a little like David Byrne. The vocal is softly syncopated and disjointed but it is
introspective, beautiful and reminiscent of the country-western style of the
40's-50's. It would not surprise me if this song was inspiration for the wonderful 1985 ballad by Chris Isaak, Western Stars, from his Silvertone album (link below). If you'd like to listen to Matte while reading
the rest of this, click here.
Matte Kudasai (Japanese: 待って下さい) literally means "please wait". The original release of Discipline featured only one version of Matte Kudasai, with a guitar part by Robert Fripp
that was removed from the track on a subsequent release of the album.
The latest versions of the album to be released contains both versions
of the song – track 3, Matte Kudasai, without Robert Fripp's original
guitar part; and track 8, Matte Kudasai (alternative version), with
the guitar part included.
vinyl LP in plastic sleeve
photo by Styrous®
MATTE KUDASAI Lyrics
Still, by the window pane,
Pain, like the rain that's falling.
She waits in the air,
Matte Kudasai.
She sleeps in a chair
In her sad America.
When, when was the night so long,
Long, like the notes I'm sending.
She waits in the air,
Matte Kudasai.
She sleeps in a chair
In her sad America.
She waits in the air,
Matte Kudasai.
She sleeps in a chair
In her sad America.
Songwriters:
Adrian Belew, Bill Bruford, Robert Fripp & Tony Levin
photo by Styrous®
Sheltering Sky is a blend of the gentle, trippy Matte with the progressive rock sound the group was so well-known for. There is a video of the song from The Sheltering Sky, 1982 Tour, on YouTube (link below).
vinyl LP label detail, side 1
detail photo by Styrous®
Elephant Talk returns to their original prog-rock sound with it's
fast bouncey and jittery tempo that moves with the speed of a runaway
train. There is a video of them playing the song on the television show,
Fridays (link below). The ABC weekly late-night live comedy show showcased the most amazing range of music talent in the world. The program was ABC's attempt to duplicate the success of NBC's Saturday Night Live, which, at the time, was in its fifth and final season featuring the original "Not Ready for Primetime" cast.
vinyl LP label detail, side 2
detail photo by Styrous®
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A1 - Elephant Talk - 4:40
A2 - Frame By Frame - 5:05
A3 - Matte Kudasai - 3:46
A4 - Indiscipline - 4:30
Side 2:
B1 - Thela Hun Ginjeet - 6:23
B2 - The Sheltering Sky - 8:19
B3 - Discipline - 5:00
Side 1:
A1 - Elephant Talk - 4:40
A2 - Frame By Frame - 5:05
A3 - Matte Kudasai - 3:46
A4 - Indiscipline - 4:30
Side 2:
B1 - Thela Hun Ginjeet - 6:23
B2 - The Sheltering Sky - 8:19
B3 - Discipline - 5:00
Companies, etc.
- Phonographic Copyright (p) – E.G. Records Ltd.
- Copyright (c) – E.G. Records Ltd.
- Pressed By – Capitol Records Pressing Plant, Winchester
- Published By – E.G. Music, Inc.
- Published By – Editions EG
- Mastered At – Europadisk
Credits:
- Chapman Stick, Bass Guitar, Backing Vocals – Tony Levin
- Drums – Bill Bruford
- Guitar, Electronics [Devices] – Robert Fripp
- Guitar, Lead Vocals – Adrian Belew
- Engineer [Assistant] – Nigel Mills
- Music By – King Crimson
- Producer – King Crimson, Rhett Davies
- Words By [Elephantosity] – Belew*
Label: Warner Bros. Records – BSK 3629,
EG – BSK 3629
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: US
Released: 1981
Genre: Rock
Style: Prog Rock
Net links:
King Crimson ~ In the Court of the Crimson King
The Hearst Greek Theater performances
Paul Simon at the Greek Theater
Chris Isaak ~ Silvertone
Chris Isaak website
King Crimson on YouTube:
Matte Kudasai
Elephant Talk (live on Fridays)
The Sheltering Sky
The Hearst Greek Theater performances
Paul Simon at the Greek Theater
Chris Isaak ~ Silvertone
Chris Isaak website
King Crimson on YouTube:
Matte Kudasai
Elephant Talk (live on Fridays)
The Sheltering Sky
Styrous® ~ Friday, February 26, 2016
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