ISLANDS

This is my favourite by King Crimson (minus the fripptonics by Fripp and friends), the one that works on the narrative level as well as on the musical level. The cello intro has yet to be beaten in any form nor in any style of music. Of course, there were those intros by Miles Davis' All Blues and the Beatles' Hard Day's Night and Day Tripper, still Islands is the LP I put on when I need to experience modern music as narrative form. I remember spending evenings trying to get friends to appreciate this magical narrative experience, and it always worked. Fripp's astonishing chord solo has never been matched. But this obsession with breaking up the chord is what led him, in my humble opinion, to the modern outfit called King Crimson with Belew and great company. This is modern Be-Bop. Parker on guitar. But it starts here on Island, only on a softer note. It's where it begins, the cry for melody that is broken up by modern madness. Islands is where it becomes serious for Fripp. This is Fripp and friends allowing the feminine side to finally take over roch and roll. Brought to complete fruition with Sunday all over the world (a must).