1972 WHITE LABEL PROMO KING CRIMSON ISLANDS MELLOTRON FRIPP PROG PSYCH LP

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61

  RARE ADVANCED RELEASE WHITE LABEL PROMOTIONAL

1972 ORIG ~ CLASSIC PROG PSYCH ~ MELLOTRON FRIPPP

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• KING CRIMSON
  " ISLANDS "
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• USA - Atlantic Records - SD 7212 (PROMO)
  
  RARE ... ADVANCED RELEASE
  
• WHITE LABEL PROMOTIONAL
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  Contains the scarce song titles sticker that was originally only on the outside of the cellophane wrapper on first pressings back 48 years ago!

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          ...Original 1972 first pressing in THICK matte gatefold cover...very soft pastel colors make it hard to find CLEAN...
  
          1972 King Crimson included John Wetton who just passed away a couple days ago was a prominent figure of this album
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  When you think about it, it's pretty staggering how many musical identities King Crimson created for themselves during their thirty-plus year-long career. The band's early 70s output makes this particularly apparent: every '70s Crimson album is a unique work that stands on its own. Islands is no exception. After the bombastic quirkiness of Lizard, Fripp created a work that is lighter and more subdued with beautiful melodies that stick in your head; the symphonic nature of the band's sound is also explored in depth. Boz Burrell's vocals play a significant role in this album's sound. He is by far the most melodious vocalist the band ever had; Lake, Haskell, Wetton, and Belew all have great singing voices, but Burrell's voice is soft and harmonious. While Lizard was a romp though some sort of avant-garde medievalism, Islands is both a cosmic and pastoral piece of musical introspection.
  
          Biting strings give way to the opening chaotic flute solos, twisting inter-weaving instruments and swirling Tippet piano. Boz comes in with a haunting, yet undemanding, vocal. A thick bass part and tingling percussion lead into the uplifting 'chorus' section, which is later repeated with some gentle acoustic Fripp additions and an oriental feel, and then into a fairly chaotic section where just about everyone is contributing to the mix. Echoey vocals and a mixture of flute, saxes, Ian Wallace tinglings and oboes sustain the song over a stable, gentle bass part. These various instruments create an ethereal, exotic atmosphere with a very interesting decadent edge, assisted by Pete Sinfield's excellent lyrics. The especial standouts on this track are Ian Wallace with his various percussion ideas and Keith Tippet's piano. A perfect introduction to the album: progressive, yet unimposing, and relaxed, yet both interesting and moving.
          Tapping percussion and bass introduce The Sailor's Tale, while a strained sax and strings add an unusual, almost awkward, feel to the beat. You need to listen quite hard to hear the opening of the superb Fripp-Collins duet of doom, with sax and guitar exchanging ideas and textures. In the background, a mellotron slowly throbs while the rhythm section provides another riff and Fripp continues in a chaotic cascade of sounds which we've yet to hear from another guitar, with occasional creaking sounds on the Mellotron leading to a powerful Mellotron burst and twisted ideas and the rhythm section getting a little more leeway (that Ian Wallace makes good use of). Fripp ascends into the picture again with another strong solo before the mellotron humming brings the song to its conclusion.
  
          The Letters, a rather melodramatic lyrics-driven song, showcases Boz' vocals and developing Fripp gentle acoustics, before launching off dramatically into punchy sax-driven chaos with frantic guitar from Fripp, and a variety of vicious and heavily distorted percussion. After this has moved through chaos and a gentle aftermath, the biting second part with distorted vocals, interesting bass and percussion and weird background flute soloing begins. Superb song.
          Ladies Of The Road begins with an individual acoustic and vocals, before thudding drums and bass slide in with a monstrous sax solo. Fripp's acoustics, along with the rest of the musicians, continues to develop throughout the song, emphasized a little by the moments of VCS-3. The harmonies are perfect, and Boz's vocals and lyrics are amusing, mild sexism aside. The concluding instrumental section includes a bit of high electric guitar, a superb sax duet, a walking, effective rhythm section. Nothing out of place, another great song.
          The gentle, pastoral Song Of The Gulls is delightful and emotional, with oboe and strings fusing together into a cheerful classical composition with an astral and a rather separated feel. I don't know enough classical music of this kind to really comment with anything except 'I love it'.
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          Islands begins with Tippet's soft piano supporting a calming vocal and a gentle low flute part, and is very much carried by Tippet throughout, since he is responsible for most of the mood changes. Fripp (on both mellotron and guitar) occasionally turns up alongside Tippet. Mark Charig provides a wonderful cornet solo, while Robin Miller's oboe glides along with the vocals, sustaining the vaguely classical feel of the piece. Subtleties lurk everywhere within the gentle, uplifting piece until the gentle humming end (presumably 'Peter's Pedal Accordion').
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          - Robert Fripp / guitar, Mellotron, Peter's Pedal Harmonium and sundry implements
          - Mel Collins / flute, bass flute, saxes and vocals
          - Boz Burrell / bass guitar, lead vocals and choreography
          - Ian Wallace / drums, percussion and vocals
          - Peter Sinfield / words, sounds and visions
  
          SIDE ONE
  
          FORMENTERA LADY (5:45)
  
          SAILOR'S TALE (9:30)
  
          THE LETTERS (4:23)
  
          SIDE TWO
  
          LADIES OF THE ROAD (5:39)
  
          PRELUDE: SONG OF THE GULLS (4:14)
  
          ISLANDS (9:14)
        

1.   CONDITION:
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3. The cover: Rated: VG+(+) The thick fragile pastel matte GATEFOLD cover is solid and primarily clean with scarce SONG TITLES sticker at center front cover has very minor wear. Downgrading from excellent for light previous handling visual, it is very collectible in appearance.  Otherwise the fragile pastel color gatefold is overall very decent solid with no split seams, no bends, no writing & no delete marks

1. The vinyl: Rated: near M- lots of original shine, visually vastly clean ...both WHITE PROMO 1841 Broadways Atlantic labels are clean

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• KING CRIMSON


• " ISLANDS "
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