THE BEAT CLUB, BREMEN 1972

Wanna know something funny? I've been listening to King Crimson for two years, and over those two years they've become on one of my favorite bands, but somehow I've never actually bought an album by them! I know, silly, right? Anyway, on to the album. This is an excellant live recording of the then newly formed King Crimson, and is one of the few live recordings released with inporvised precussionist Jamie Muir, who left the band the next year, in 1973, to become a monk in a monestary in Scottland. The album opens with a long, 30 minute improvised piece, retrospectively named "The Ritch Tapestry of Life". The piece is very interesting, adventurous, and exciting, showing off the skills of all five musicians. Rising from the dust of the improv is an excellant version of "Exiles", which, untill now, I completly underapriciated. The album closes with an excellant rendition of "Larks' Tongues in Aspic, Part I". This version ends about seven minutes in, right before the violin solo starts. The album sounds great, and the recording is of a very high quality compared to other ecordings from this era, with very little muffling and recording distortion. The CD comes with a great booklet, featuring photos of the band, notes, and two months worth of Robert Fripps diary (Nov and Dec 1998). I'd suggest this to any 70s Crimson fan, especialy if you're looking for some great improv and some recordings with Jamie Muir. 4/5