Customer Reviews

Usa: 30th Anniversary Edition

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"USA" is my second-favourite King Crimson album, after the towering genius that is "Red", and ahead of "In the Court of the Crimson King".

One of the interesting features of this (excellently remastered, HDCD-encoded) CD is that two tracks have been added that were not included on the original album - and I can't begin to understand why they were both excluded in the first place.

"Fracture", though an excellent track, might have been omitted on grounds of its length (11.20), but it's quintessential Crimson of the Fripp-Wetton-Bruford-Cross era, and a very welcome inclusion here.

But not even length can explain the omission of "Starless" which, for my money, is simply the best thing the band ever did. One hears various takes on this - that it was written for, but left out of, the album "Starless and Bible Black"; that Robert Fripp wasn't that keen on it; and that the success of the song on the US tour resulted in its inclusion on "Red", the last album by this incarnation of KC.

Whatever, the version here is excellent, and significantly different from the studio version, not least because we have David Cross on violin, who contributes significantly to the track. It's a nice alternative to the studio version - in either form, "Starless" is pure genius, and on its own worth the price of this CD.

After a very brief (0.35) introductory track - "Walk on....no pussyfooting", an Eno-Fripp composition - the listener cannot help but be inspired by the opening crescendoes of "Larks' Tongues in Aspic, Part II". This is heavy rock at its best, and showcases the tightness and cohesion of the band.

"Lament" is a lower-key track with some decent vocals by John Wetton. Vocals weren't Wetton's major role in Crimson - he was primarily a superb bass player - but, after he moved on to supergroup Asia and then a successful solo career, his voice seemed to get better and better. (To hear him at his best, try the solo album "Battle Lines", or the first Asia album).

"Exiles" is another track that exemplifies Crimson's ability to blend the powerful with the lyrical.

"Asbury Park", the only track that hadn't previously been released in studio form, is essentially a jam but, unlike many other bands, Crimson's jams always possessed direction and structure, so this is an enjoyable, atmosphere-filled listen.

"Easy Money" seems to have been a fixture in the band's playlist, and is a great, audience-energising track.

Last, on the original album, came "21st Century Schizoid Man". Well, it had to be on the play-list as a fan-pleaser, but it's the weakest track here, in my view. It hails from an earlier incarnation of Crimson, so was not ideally suited to the Fripp-Wetton-Bruford-Cross line-up. It's not a great performance, and Wetton's vocals seem heavily distorted. I'm not sure why this version was included, since Robert Fripp's archives included a far better version from the tour, and which can be found on disc 2 of "The Great Deceiver, vol 1".

And that's where the album ended - originally. Now, though, we have the excellent "Fracture" and the towering "Starless". That track fittingly ends the album - not even Crimson could improve on that.

If you like your music heavy but at the same time inspired and original, then you'll enjoy "USA" - and should also invest in "Red".

This was the first album I converted to MP3 directly from vinyl...It still sounds great even with a few pops here and there, but now that it has been remastered, I can retire my old version. Asbury Park it the epitome of the power of this "Sick Jam" era of KC. Worth every penny.

King Crimson has always been one of my all-time favorite bands. Not only are they original, but they have always had some of the finest musicians around that also starred or went on to star with several other groups.

Here, John Wetton (of Asia, Uriah Heep and U.K. fame) is the vocalist. King Crimson did have plenty of vocalists over the years, with the most notable ones being Wetton, Greg Lake (of Emerson Lake & Palmer fame) and Adrian Belew (of Frank Zappa fame).

But 1974's 'USA' record just rocks. Recorded in New Jersey and New England throughout 1973, this shows how well they could jam. David Cross would leave King Crimson after this release, and Wetton, former Yes drummer Bill Bruford and Robert Fripp, the founder, would become a trio.

If you enjoyed the 1969 studio version from 'In The Court Of The Crimson King' of '21st Century Schizoid Man,' you should love the version featured here. That's just as good, if not better than the studio version.

The final songs on the record, 'Fracture' and 'Starless' are jam sessions, virtually, the first one in particular. Bruford's drumming is superb, and Fripp is quite the virtuoso here. Cross plays some fine violin here as well.

Overall, buy this with 'Cirkus: The Young Persons Guide To King Crimson Live' and you have a pretty decent live collection of Crimson. The two paired together are great, with each one being a must own.

Highly recommended for any King Crimson or progressive rock fan. One of Crimson's best.

ENJOY!!!

Originally bought this as an LP back in 1975, I had heard it on a local Philly "underground" AOR (at the time - I think it was WMMR) and loved it. Wore out the LP. Finally got around to buying the CD for my collection. Favorites are "Larks Tongues" and "Lament". "21st Century Schizoid Man", though one of my favorite KC tunes, is kinda weak here. But still ear-ticklin' good! I love listening to this, particularly fun to blast it on my truck stereo while filling up and see the gangsta hiphoppies stare, wondering what the heck it is I'm listening to so loudly that they can't hear their subwoofies! Buy it and see what I'm talking about!

I actually saw this lineup in Denver at the Colosseum just weeks before that last gig in... was it Providence? Barry Fey pulled the plug on them for playing too long... nice. Poor ol' Bill was left up on the stage flailing away. It took a couple minutes for him to realize the rest of the band had left the stage and there was no PA. Terrible that. Obviously I'm an "old guy" too. I wore this out on vinyl and 8 track tape. This is intensely great music. This expanded version includes Fracture and Starless which were not on the original release all those years ago. USA Live is, as Mr Wetton once said, "very ballsy". This is one of the unheralded great rhythm section of that time. Bruford and Wetton are all over the place but hanging together measure after measure, tune after tune. They make Bogart and Appice (THE heralded rhythm section of that time) sound like child's play. USA Live wildly spontaneous stuff, closer to the spirit of jazz than rock-n-roll. I can't believe someone out here rated this with 2 stars. I'm sure there's a ZZ Top live album somewhere in his collection that he'll enjoy more.

This is a ripper! A mincer, A real "wallpaper shreddar". It kicks butt in a cerebral kind of way! Buy it!

Classic King Crimson live! This CD brings back good memories as I saw them live in 1974 in State College, PA. at the old Rec Hall.

I bought this CD about 5-6 years ago when it was re-issued on CD. One reason was that I'm a huge fan of Crimson's mid 70' work. But also the other huge reason was that I grew up right next door to Asbury Park in the 70's & 80's, I remember as a kid seeing the banners & lights on the AP boardwalk as well as hearing faint music coming from inside Convention Hall & the Casino. Not sure if I was on the boardwalk the night of the KC show at the Casino.

So yes, most of USA was recorded live at the Asbury Casino (with the exception of a nuclear version of '21st Cent Sciz Man' recorded in Providence, RI). My fav tracks are 'Asbury Park' & 'Starless'. A warning to those beginners who are puzzled by the abrupt ending of 'Asbury Park' & 'Easy Money'...you can get the original endings on other official releases of this show. I still listen to this one just to get a different take on how this show was recorded.

A great show of the band's time, but also a great show in the timeline of Asbury's musical heritage. Just think, there were shows like this at the Casino, more mainstream & bigger acts at Convention Hall...and sandwiched in between both venues in a little club called the Stone Pony, artists such as Springsteen & Southside Johnny were perfecting their chops & rising in popularity at the time this album was recorded.

Earthbound and USA in the same sentence? Some Crimsos may consider that sacrilege but it makes sense. Two powerful live documents of a band storming through their material: one blown-out and distorted and the other clean and clear but both grabbing you by the scruff and giving you a good healthy shake and leaving you better off at the end. Dynamic, inventive, amusing, enthralling, scary in parts and massive throughout, this is a great album from a unique band and highly recommended for when you want to purge the mundane and predictable from your surroundings.

Back before Robert Fripp dug out his basement tapes and released The Great Deceiver and The Night Watch, this was the only way a latter-day fan such as myself could hear the thunderous roar and mortal terror of the John Wetton/Bill Bruford/David Cross/Robert Fripp lineup of King Crimson live in concert (of course, that is until I found out that large parts of Starless & Bible Black were actually recorded live, later released in full without overdubs on The Night Watch). As such, it showed the grand power of this "intelligent heavy metal" band in live performance. WOW!! Although much later-released material has equalled its majesty and fury, this WAS THE live KC album I listened to for many years. While the material included from LTIA and SABB was most impressive, as was the version of "21st Century Schizoid Man" (that guitar-violin death spiral was almost too much!!), it was "Asbury Park" that REALLY blew me away! KC's live improv piece was more powerful and intense than almost anything else I had EVER heard in rock-n-roll, it sounded like the speakers were going to explode as it neared its climax! Even if you own the more recently released live KC material, this album is worth it for "Asbury Park" alone! And now you get "Fracture" and "Starless" too! Plus fun pictures of the guys and random reviews as well.

I am a HUGE King Crimson fan but when I first bought "USA" as a kid I just didn't care for it. I bought it again, 30 years later, thinking I'm older (++), wiser (??), and may have more refined taste than a (much) younger man...but I still don't like it! The music is well played, the production is excellent, but when I buy a live album I'm looking for something different. This music doesn't add anything from the studio albums. Each song fades out so you don't pick up on the energy of the audience. The songs are virtually reproduced, note for note, from the studio albums so you're not getting a different interpretation. I don't even really like the selections that were chosen from the different albums to be put on this album so it isn't even like you get an interesting combination of songs. Bottom-line: I deleted this album from my MP3 player and traded in the CD.