by King Crimson
Release Date: 24 September 2012
Format: LP Vinyl
Label: Warners
£16.99
King Crimson Lizard Deluxe 200 gram Vinyl LP+MP3 Codes
Overview
“Lizard” – King Crimson’s third studio album & second recording of 1970, was, like its predecessor “In the Wake of Poseidon”, the product of a studio band. It was also the first Crimson album for which Robert Fripp provided all of the music. Remarkably self-contained & sounding somewhat atypical for a King Crimson album – even by the standards of a band that rarely sounded similar from album to album, “Lizard” is an often overlooked & under-appreciated gem from their early years. Certainly at the time of release, anyone expecting an extension of the soundscapes introduced & explored on the band’s earlier two albums was in for a surprise.
“Lizard” featured a lighter, more delicate sound than the earlier albums – an approach perhaps necessitated by an extended instrumental lineup. The expanded range of instruments allowed for intricately interwoven instrumental passages – with Fripp’s guitar & Tippett’s piano pleasingly to the fore – and this combination, along with the prominence afforded to Mel Collins & the guest players on the album’s main title suite, led some to believe that Fripp was guiding Crimson towards the world of jazz & away from rock altogether. But such claims were misguided. Crimson was, as ever, seeking to expand the vocabulary of rock music & “Lizard” was, in some ways, the band’s most ambitious album to date.
As this lineup never toured, very little of the material was performed live & “Lizard” remained a product of the studio environment & the musicians who performed on it. “Lizard” remains a fascinating, intriguing album – an album only a band called King Crimson could make – even if it was a very different King Crimson to that which had gone before or would come after. The album’s reputation has undergone a serious re-evaluation in recent years, due in no small part to the overwhelmingly positive nature of the reception given to Steven Wilson & Robert Fripp’s 2009 CD/DVD-A edition. As a result the album has never been as popular in its 42 years’ history.
Featured Tracks
Side 1
Side 1:
1. Circus
Including Entry Of The Chamelons
2. Indoor Games
3. Happy Family
4. Lady Of The Dancing Water
Side 2:
1. Lizard:
a. Prince Rupert Awakes
b. Bolero – The Peacock’s Tale
c. The Battle Of Glass Tears (Dawn Song / Last Skirmish / Prince Rupert’s Lament)
d. Big Top
Release Date: 20 December 2023
Format: Boxed Set CD Large
Label: Virgin
£49.99
Release Date: 03 November 2023
Format: LP Triple Vinyl
Label: Panegyric Records
£44.99
Release Date: 13 October 2023
Format: LP Double Vinyl
Label: Panegyric Records
£29.99
Release Date: 02 December 2022
Format: LP Vinyl
Label: Panegyric Records
£18.99
