David Cross - (1994) Testing To Destruction

(Review from progarchives.com, gepr.net)

David Cross is the lone bearer of the sound/tone of Larks Tongue era King Crimson. Heavy, brash, and powerful. Cross assembled a fearless group to perform this off- shoot of the King Crimson family tree. Vocalist/bassist John Dillion sounds like a cross between John Wetton's strained baritone and Roger Waters' manic delivery, which can at times, be either pleasant or grating, depending on the tune. Paul Clark, on guitars, is the perfect foil for Cross's fierce violin excursions. Razor sharp leads intertwine on nearly every track giving the solo spots a fusionesque edge. Sheila Maloney's keyboards add depth to the rhythm section with colorful chording and repeating motifs. Sheila rarely takes the lead, her sonic space fleshes out the overall textures. Dan Mauer keeps everything on track and consistently shifts between powerhouse bashing and odd metered grooves.

The opening track, "Learning Curve", makes a strong statement. Cross wastes no time in bringing his violin to the forefront over an interesting bass/drum combo. Great lyrics and scorching vocals pull you right in. "Calamity" shifts and slithers between sweet ambience and spiraling solo workouts. It has an infectious melody and very good dynamic shifts between restrained, tension-building vocal sections and explosions of rock power.

"Tripwire" is the most accessible song on the album. Thirty-five years ago it would have garnered a lot of airplay. Almost Asia sounding with heartfelt vocals, catchy hooks and strong melodies.

"Abo" is probably the album highlight: it opens with some ambient samples and abstract percussion, moving through a nice vocal section to an impressive instrumental blowout; here the pulsing bass line, repetitive riffing, gradually increasing intensity and finally the wordless falsetto vocals show definite zeuhl influence.

Five tracks are studio recordings and four are recorded live at Floz Club, Berlin, October 1993.

Track List :
01. Learning Curve (6:33)
02. Calamity (8:59)
03. Welcome To Frisco (Live) (6:49)
04. The Affable Mister G. (4:14)
05. The Swing Arm Disconnects (Live) (7:15)
06. Tripwire (4:44)
07. Cycle Logical (Live) (3:43)
08. Testing To Destruction (Live) (1:56)
09. Abo (12:22)

Line-up :
- David Cross / violins
- John Dillon / vocals and bass
- Sheila Maloney / keyboards & vocals
- Paul Clark / guitar
- Dan Maurer / drums

David Cross - (1992) The Big Picture

David Cross - (1992) The Big Picture

Studio Album, released in 1992

David CROSS is perhaps most known as a former violin player with KING CRIMSON. He recorded five albums together with them 1972-1974. This is a re-release of his solo album "The Big Picture", originally released in 1992, and a new, previously unreleased track, "Nurse Alone". The music is reminiscent to his former band-mates KING CRIMSON as well as PINK FLOYD and John WETTON, with David's violin in the spotlights. The highlights are the opening "Nurse Insane", "Christine", the instrumental "Minaret", "Black Ice", the instrumental "Sundays", the complex "Grinfixer", "Holly and Barbed Wire" and the closing instrumental "Nurse Alone". This album is equal to "Exiles" (1997) but in a different way. "Exiles" is interesting because of the many great guest performances by Robert FRIPP, Peter HAMMILL and John WETTON. "The Big Picture" because it is more like a band effort. Both albums have excellent song writing.

Track Listings

1. Nurse insane (4:55)
2. Christine (6:05)
3. Inc (4:10)
4. Dustbins (3:55)
5. Minaret (7:43)
6. Black Ice (6:52)
7. Brake (3:44)
8. Sundays (5:42)
9. Grinfixer (4:35)
10. Holly and Barbed Wire (4:35)

Total Time: 52:16
Line-up/Musicians

- David Cross / violin
- Sheila Maloney / keyboards
- John Dillon / vocals and bass
- Dan Maurer / drums

King Crimson - King Crimson Collector's Club 10 (1974) Live at NYC

King Crimson - KCCC10 (1974) Live at NYC

(Review from progreviews.com progarchives.com)

This concert was recorded at Central Park, New York, USA, July 1, 1974.

The show begins with a tape playing then recent Fripp & Eno collaboration “No Pussyfooting”, and then the band kicks in with a fine version of "21st Century Schizoid Man" featuring a Fripp on fire. The following "Lament" is also a good version of the song, there's a furious interplay going on between Bruford and Wetton especially! The tuning before "Exiles" morphs into a very oppressive and chaotic improvisation, which then transmutes to the mantra and then as the main song. The contrasts are exceptionally fine here, the beautiful minor ballad rises from the maelstorm of a violent nightmare. Then comes the full-improvised number, named as "Cerberus", which is an OK number. The quarrels within the band had escalated, and it can be heard in these "blows", the rhythm section dominates the playing, and Fripp and Cross try to punch in their melodic passages desperately.

On "Fracture", Wetton's bass performance is stunningly virtuosic (or maybe just really, really loud), and gives the piece an almost funky flavor here that I've never heard on any other recording. Definitely one of my favorite renditions of this piece. The performance of "Starless" is blazing, and pretty close to the version that ended up on Red, although unfortunately the volume level seems to peter out a bit just as the climax hits. David Cross' performance on "The Talking Drum" is definitely notable, and this piece in general is quite brutal here. "Larks' Tongues Part 2" is almost anticlimactic as a closer, but still has sections that burn.

Robert Fripp claimed that this concert, the last concert King Crimson played in the 1970s, was the only one that matched the fury and intensity of the 1969 live band. Unfortunately the sound quality of this release is average, but still pleasurable.

Track List :
01. Walk On ,,, No Pussyfooting - 2:11
02. 21st Century Schizoid Man - 7:58
03. Lament - 4:49
04. Exiles - 7:53
05. Improve: Cerberus - 8:27
06. Easy Money - 6:26
07. Fracture - 11:20
08. Starless - 12:31
09. The Talking Drum - 5:30
10. Larks' Tongues In Aspic: Part 2 - 6:57

Line-up :
- Robert Fripp / guitar, mellotron, electric piano
- David Cross / violin, mellotron, electric piano
- John Wetton / bass guitar, vocals
- Bill Bruford / drums, percussion

King Crimson - King Crimson Collector's Club 03 (1972) Live at Bremen

King Crimson - (1972) KCCC03 Live at Bremen

(Review from progarchives.com)

This concert was recorded on the German programme Beat Club, in Bremen, Germany, on October 17, 1972.

The first track is named as “The Rich Tapestry Of Life”, which I recall is Fripp’s quotation from a letter he got from Jamie Muir. So this one begins with few minutes of anxious waiting, there’s some muffled speaking, tuning and such going on, and strangely it works as a nice contrast to the chaotic improvisation, which suddenly begins after two and a half minutes. The chaotic one minute blast clams down to beautiful tones of the mellotron, violin and bass guitar. Wetton begins to form a funky rhythm which the others join, and the famous King Crimson musical improvisation begins to blow, creating long layers of both calm and aggressive musical sequences. There also a funny anecdote here, as Cross plays some real flute in some parts of this track. If you are in to free jazz and old heavy rock of the 70's, this is a must material for you, as it combines both of these elements. The players are very bold, and they are not afraid of small "mistakes" or "misjudgments" which shall most surely occur in this kind of collective musical adventuring. Considering this, one can also find a nice metaphoric idea in Fripp’s name selection for this piece! The half hour long jam most surely contains the full scale of life's all emotions!

After the final waves of the massive improvisation begins to fade, the beautiful forms of sounds emerge from the sea of chaotic turbulence, and the music changes straight as the song “Exiles”. The version of “Exiles” it self is a bit clumsy, but if you are interested how these numbers evolved during time, this is an essential document of that process. Cross also does some singing on this one. The final number on this concert is “Larks’ Tongues in Aspic – part one”, which is a decent version but not essential. It’s a bit shorter version, as it ends in the part where the violin solo begins.

The sound quality is not remarkable, but good. There's also some tuning problems with mellotrons, singers and the violin... More matured versions of “Exiles” and “Larks’” are also available in other releases, but they have historical values, and the big improvisation (taking up two-thirds of the album) is great.

Track List :
01. Improv: The Rich Tapestry Of Life - 29:49
02. Exiles - 7:53
03. Larks' Tongues In Aspic (Part I) - 6:53

Line-up :
* Robert Fripp - guitar, mellotron
* John Wetton - bass guitar, vocals
* David Cross - violin, mellotron
* Bill Bruford - drums
* Jamie Muir - percussion

David Cross - (1997) Exiles

David Cross's Exiles is an album of progressive compositions spotlighting Cross's violin virtuosity.

It features guest appearances by King Crimson's John Wetton and Robert Fripp, as well as Peter Hammill of Van Der Graaf Generator.

Track List :
1 Exiles
2 Tonk
3 Slippy Slide
4 Duo
5 This Is Your Life
6 Fast
7 Troppo
8 Here

King Crimson - (1999) Cirkus Live in 1969-1998

Track listing

Vol. 1 - Neon Heat Disease 1984-1998

* Tracks 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 9 & 10 recorded at the Metropolitan Theatre, Mexico City, 2-4 August 1996
* Tracks 2, 13 & 15 recorded at the Spectrum, Montreal 11 July, 1984
* Tracks 8 & 15 recorded at Nakano Sun Plaza, Tokyo, 5-6 October 1995
* Track 6 recorded at the Jazz Cafe, London, 1 December 1997
* Tracks 11 & 12 recorded at Pearl Street, Northampton, Massachusetts, 1 July 1998

1. Dinosaur (Belew, Fripp, Levin, Bruford, Gunn, Mastelotto) 5:05
2. Thela Hun Ginjeet (Belew, Fripp, Levin, Bruford) 5:17
3. Red (Fripp) 6:10
4. B'Boom (Belew, Fripp, Levin, Bruford, Gunn, Mastelotto) 4:54
5. THRAK (Belew, Fripp, Levin, Bruford, Gunn, Mastelotto) 1:04
6. 1 ii 2 (Fripp, Gunn, Levin, Bruford) 2:43
7. Neurotica (Belew, Fripp, Levin, Bruford) 3:43
8. Indiscipline (Belew, Fripp, Levin, Bruford) 6:40
9. VROOOM VROOOM (Belew, Fripp, Levin, Bruford, Gunn, Mastelotto) 4:42
10. Coda: Marine 475 (Belew, Fripp, Levin, Bruford, Gunn, Mastelotto) 2:38
11. Deception of the Thrush (Belew, Fripp, Gunn) 6:05
12. Heavy ConstruKction (Belew, Fripp, Gunn) 3:52
13. Three of a Perfect Pair (Belew, Fripp, Levin, Bruford) 4:23
14. Sleepless (Belew, Fripp, Levin, Bruford) 6:10
15. Elephant Talk (Belew, Fripp, Levin, Bruford) 4:36

* Musicians (disc 1):
* Robert Fripp: Guitar
* Adrian Belew: Guitar & Voice (except 6), V-drums (11 & 12)
* Trey Gunn: Touch Guitar (except 2, 13 & 15)
* Tony Levin: Basses & Stick (except 11 & 12)
* Bill Bruford: Drums (except 11 & 12)
* Pat Mastelotto: Drums (except 2, 6, 11, 12, 13 & 15)

Vol. 2 - Fractured 1969-1996

* Track 1 recorded at the Baseball Park, Jacksonville, FL, 26 February 1972
* Track 2 recorded at Kemp Coliseum, Orlando, FL, 27 February 1972
* Tracks 3 & 4 recorded at the Fillmore West, San Francisco, CA, 15 December 1969
* Tracks 6 & 8 recorded at the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam, 23 November 1973
* Track 7 recorded at Palais Du Sport, Besancon, 25 March 1974
* Track 5 recorded at Massey Hall, Toronto, 24 June 1974
* Track 10 recorded at Stanley Warner Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA, 29 April 1974
* Track 9 recorded at the Metropolitan Theatre, Mexico City, 2-4 August 1996

1. 21st Century Schizoid Man (Fripp, Lake, McDonald, Giles, Sinfield) 9:26
2. Ladies of the Road (Fripp, Sinfield) 6:00
3. A Man A City (Fripp, Lake, McDonald, Giles, Sinfield) 10:00
4. In the Court of the Crimson King (McDonald, Sinfield) 6:50
5. Fracture (Fripp) 11:04
6. Easy Money (Fripp, Wetton, Palmer-James) 6:12
7. Improv: Besancon (Cross, Fripp, Wetton, Bruford) 1:37
8. The Talking Drum (Cross, Fripp, Wetton, Bruford, Muir) 6:25
9. Larks' Tongues in Aspic (Part II) (Fripp) 6:29
10. Starless (Cross, Fripp, Wetton, Bruford, Palmer-James) 12:07

* Musicians (disc 2):
* Robert Fripp: Guitar, Mellotron
* Mel Collins: Saxes and Flute (1 & 2)
* Boz Burrell: Bass Guitar, Lead Vocal (1 & 2)
* Ian Wallace: Drums (1 & 2)
* Ian McDonald: Sax, Flute, Mellotron, Vocal (3 & 4)
* Greg Lake: Bass Guitar, Lead Vocal (3 & 4)
* Michael Giles: Drums, Percussion, Vocal (3 & 4)
* Peter Sinfield: Words & Illumination (3 & 4)
* David Cross: Violin, Mellotron (5-8, 10)
* John Wetton: Bass Guitar, Vocal (5-8, 10)
* Bill Bruford: Drums, Percussion (5-10)
* Adrian Belew: Guitar & Voice (9)
* Trey Gunn: Touch Guitar (9)
* Tony Levin: Basses & Stick (9)
* Pat Mastelotto: Drums, Percussion (9)

King Crimson - (1997) The Night watch Live In 1973

Tracklist:

CD1:
1. Easy Money (6:15)
2. Lament (4:14)
3. Book Of Saturday (4:09)
4. Fracture (11:28)
5. The Night Watch (5:28)
6. Improv: Starless And Bible Black (9:13)

CD2:
1. Improv: Trio (6:09)
2. Exiles (6:38)
3. Improv: The Fright Watch (6:03)
4. The Talking Drum (6:35)
5. Larks' Tongus In Aspic (Part 2) (7:51)
6. 21st Century Schizoid Man (10:30)

Line-up :

- Robert Fripp
- Bill Bruford
- David Cross
- John Wetton

Links in comment

Live in 1973 -1974

cd 1
1. Walk On ... No Pussyfooting (0:52)
2. Larks' Tongues In Aspic: Part 2 (6:12)
3. Lament (4:04)
4. Exiles (7:00)
5. Improv: A Voyage To The Centre Of The Cosmos (14:41)
6. Easy Money (7:14)
7. Improv: Providence (9:47)
8. Fracture (10:47)
9. Starless (11:56)

cd 2

1. 21st Century Schizoid Man (7:32)
2. Walk Off From Providence ... No Pussyfooting (1:15)
Walk On to Glasgow ... Glasgow Apollo: October 23rd, 1973
3. Sharks' Lungs in Lemsip (2:38)
4. Larks' Tongues In Aspic: Part 1 (7:25)
5. Book Of Saturday (2:49)
6. Easy Money (6:43)
7. We'll Let You Know (4:54)
8. The Night Watch (4:54)
9. Improv: Tight Scrummy (8:27)
10. Peace - a Theme (1:01)
11. Cat Food (4:14)
Penn State University: June 29th, 1974
12. Easy Money (2:19)
13. ... It Is For You, But Not For Us (7:25)

cd 3

Pittsburgh, PA - Stanley Warner Theatre: April 29th, 1974
1. Walk On ... No Pussyfooting (1:15)
2. The Great Deceiver (3:32)
3. Improv: Bartley Butsford (3:13)
4. Exiles (6:23)
5. Improv: Daniel Dust (4:40)
6. The Night Watch (4:18)
7. Doctor Diamond (4:52)
8. Starless (11:36)
9. Improv: Wilton Carpet (5:52)
10. The Talking Drum (5:29)
11. Larks' Tongues In Aspic: Part 2 (abbreviated) (2:22)
Penn State University: June 29th, 1974
12. Applause & Announcement (2:19)
13. Improv: Is There Life Out There? (11:50)

cd 4

Toronto, Massey Hall: June 24th, 1974
1. Improv: The Golden Walnut (11:14)
2. The Night Watch (4:22)
3. Fracture (10:48)
4. Improv: Clueless & Slightly Slack (8:36)
Zurich Volkshaus: November 15th, 1973
5. Walk On ... No Pussyfooting (1:00)
6. Improv: Some Pussyfooting (2:23)
7. Larks' Tongues In Aspic: Part 1 (7:41)
8. Improv: The Law Of Maximum Distress: Part One (6:31)
9. Improv: The Law Of Maximum Distress: Part Two (2:17)
10. Easy Money (6:57)
11. Improv: Some More Pussyfooting (5:50)
12. The Talking Drum (6:05)

Lineup :

- David Cross
- Robert Fripp
- John Wetton
- Bill Bruford

LINKS, LINKS, LINKS, LINKS, LINKS

U S A - 1975

Tracklist

1. Walk On... No Pussyfooting (0:35)
2. Larks' Tongues in Aspic Part 2 (6:24)
3. Lament (4:21)
4. Exiles (7:23)
5. Improv: Asbury Park (6:53)
6. Easy Money (7:11)
7. 21st Century Schizoid Man (8:10)
8. Fracture (11:19)
9. Starless (14:57)


Lineup

- Bill Bruford
- David Cross
- Robert Fripp
- John Wetton
- Eddie Jobson

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Starless and Bible Black 1974

Overview (from Book Rags)

The most serene track is an instrumental piece for violin, bass guitar and mellotron flute entitled "Trio". Even though there are no drums on the piece, drummer Bill Bruford received a composition co-credit because the piece was improvised live in concert and Bruford's decision not to add any percussion was seen by the rest of the band as a crucial choice. The album art is by painter Tom Phillips. The enigmatic phrase "this night wounds time", which appears on the back cover, is a quotation from Phillips's signature work, the "treated novel" A Humument (p. 222). Several songs from the album were recorded live in concert, with applause edited out. The only songs recorded entirely in the studio were the first two tracks, "The Great Deceiver" and "Lament". "We'll Let You Know" was an improvisational piece recorded in Glasgow. "The Mincer" was another improv, recorded in Zürich and overdubbed in the studio. "Trio", "Fracture", and "Starless and Bible Black" were recorded at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, as was the introduction to "The Night Watch" (the remainder was recorded in the studio). The complete Amsterdam Concertgebouw concert was released by the band in 1998 as The Night Watch. The lyrics were composed by Richard Palmer-James, byname of Supertramp guitarist Richard Palmer. Only four tracks on this album have lyrics. The Great Deceiver refers to The Devil and is an ironic commentary on commercialism. Lament is about fame. The Night Watch is a short essay on Rembrandt's painting of the same name, describing the painting as an observer sees it and attempting to understand the subjects.^[1] The phrase "Starless and Bible Black" is a quotation from the poet Dylan Thomas's play, Under Milk Wood. The band's next album, Red, contains a song called simply "Starless", though quite different from that in the eponymous album. Confusingly, the song "Starless" actually contains the phrase "Starless and Bible Black", whereas "Starless and Bible Black" is an improvised instrumental. The title track is actually an edit of the original Amsterdam improvisation, which apparently ran longer than the album's 9 minute version. The liner notes for The Night Watch Live in Amsterdam Compact Disk indicate that it was edited "due to the constraints of vinyl". One can surmise that the track contains an edit toward the end, but not AT the exact end, just prior to the entire band slamming the downbeat in a violin climax flourish. Audiences have noticed that the track could have been edited to accentuate the downbeat. Additionally, Cross switches from the Mellotron (flute setting) to electric violin in a too-short interval of time. One note of the Mellotron leads directly into the violin flourish, not enough time to switch instruments. The album's final track, "Fracture", is a strictly composed instrumental, similar in both style and melodic phrasing to "Larks' Tongues in Aspic Pt. 2". Robert Fripp has stated on several occasions that "Fracture" is the most difficult guitar piece he has ever played. The speed and complexity of the piece often gives the impression that several guitarists are playing, even though it is only Fripp. In retrospect, "Fracture" is also notable for its similarity to Danny Elfman's simple theme for The Simpsons, due to the two pieces' ascending violin lines on the whole tone scale. The JapaneseAcid Mothers Temple recorded an album entitled Starless And Bible Black Sabbath in 2006 as a double homage to King Crimson and Black Sabbath.

Track listing

1. "The Great Deceiver" (John Wetton, Robert Fripp, Richard Palmer-James) – 4:02
2. "Lament" (Fripp, Wetton, Palmer-James) – 4:00
3. "We'll Let You Know" (David Cross, Fripp, Wetton, William Bruford) – 3:46
4. "The Night Watch" (Fripp, Wetton, Palmer-James) – 4:37
5. "Trio" (Cross, Fripp, Wetton, Bruford) – 5:41
6. "The Mincer" (Cross, Fripp, Wetton, Bruford, Palmer-James) – 4:10
7. "Starless and Bible Black" (Cross, Fripp, Wetton, Bruford) – 9:11
8. "Fracture" (Fripp) – 11:14

Tracks 1 - 6 are side one, tracks 7 and 8 are side two.

Personnel

• Robert Fripp – guitar, mellotron & devices
• John Wetton – bass & lead vocals
• Bill Bruford – drums & percussion
• David Cross – violin, viola, mellotron & electric piano

• George Chkiantz – engineer
• Peter Henderson – assistant engineer
• Tom Phillips – cover design
• "Equipment by Chris and Tex"

External links

• Lyrics and info

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R E D 1974

Tracklist

1. Red* (6:20)
2. Fallen Angel (6:00)
3. One More Red Nightmare (7:04)
4. Providence (8:08)
5. Starless* (12:18)

Lineup

- Robert Fripp
- John Wetton
- Bill Bruford

- Mark Charig
- Mel Collins
- David Cross
- Ian McDonald
- Robin Miller

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Larks' Tongue In Aspic 1973

Tracklist

1. Larks' Tongues In Aspic Part One* (13:36)
2. Book Of Saturday (2:49)
3. Exiles (7:40)
4. Easy Money (7:54)
5. The Talking Drum (7:26)
6. Larks' Tongues In Aspic Part Two* (7:12)

Lineup :

- Robert Fripp
- John Wetton
- Bill Bruford
- David Cross
- Jamie Muir

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