b o b

The pre-Bruford era is my least favorite of Crimson's periods, but of that group of albums Lizard is probably my favorite. This one just sounds more demented than any other KC album, and also shows a strange sense of humor which is probably what makes me like it. "Indoor Games" and "Happy Family" are great twisted songs, with the lyrics to the latter supposedly being about the Beatles (it's not very apparent, and I didn't really believe it until I noticed the four very Beatlish looking characters on the cover under the "I" in Crimson). The disc bogs down a bit in the middle with "Lady of the Dancing Waters" and "Prince Rupert Awakes" being a little too twee for my tastes (although it's fun to hear Jon Anderson singing about staking a lizard by the throat). The "Bolero" section is nicely done (and the only part of the album that Fripp saw fit to include on the Frame by Frame boxed set), and the segue into it from the "Prince Rupert" section is very well done (except for that damn tape flutter in the opening cornet note). The remainder of the album is on par with the quality of the other early KC discs. If you're looking to hear the band at their oddest, give Lizard a try. Even if you ignore the strange parts, there's still plenty on the album to appeal to fans of the band's other early work. review by Bob Eichler — undated —

s e a n

Everyone likes to point out that this album "stands alone in the Crimson catalog", so I guess that's an appropriate enough opening statement. After accidentally recording the same album twice, here Crimson goes for a different sound altogether, something a bit twisted. "Cirkus" has some very pretty guitar playing and (of course) Mellotron, but this prettiness is offset with the uneasy quality of Gordon Haskell's odd vocals and a bizarre key sound in the background during the verses that may also be Mellotron, but a fairly non-standard sound from it if so. Mel Collins also contributes some really cool sax work here. The other strong track on this album is "Indoor Games", which breaks into some nice free-form jamming led by Collins' sax, other woodwinds and some cool keyboard effects. I could do without the stupid laughter at the end, though. "Happy Family" goes for a similar kind of vibe as the first two tracks but is really just kind of annoying. It's an interesting experiment to melt Haskell's vocals into the mix as an equal part rather than the dominant role usually given to vocals, but it is only partially successful here, and in the end babbling lyrics are just irksome. Keith Tippet's jazz-inflected piano playing saves it from being a total wash, though. The rest of the album is kind of bleh. "Lady of the Dancing Water" is this album's insomnia cure, but thankfully clocks in at a bit under three minutes. Jon Anderson's guest vocals on the title track are cool, if only because he's singing something that (sort of) makes sense for a change. The title track just goes on and on, though, and the reward of each continuation decreases admirably. To paraphrase another Crim track, when I stay "Stop!", it continues. On the whole, this is the most rewarding of the early Crimson material. Since In The Court... is mainly a historical curiosity to me, and the less said about the others the better, by default Lizard rises to the top with some crazy, erratic, demented and mixed-quality material. review by Sean McFee — undated —

j o e

As Bob intimated (see above), you should buy this one just for the giddy rush of hearing guest vocalist Jon Anderson sing "stake a lizard by the throat" with a straight face. But despite being disavowed by Robert Fripp nowadays, I agree with Brandon (see below) that Lizard is probably the most underrated of the early, pre-Larks' era King Crimson albums. Particularly through the jazzy vibe brought to the table by musicians like Mel Collins, Keith Tippett, and Nick Evans, many of the pieces (e.g. "Indoor Games," "Happy Family," and the beautiful "Bolero") present a madcap, Canterbury-emulative sound that would never really return to Crimson's repertoire after this one. "Cirkus" is a pretty good bridge between the early and Larks' periods, and makes me yearn for the days when Fripp was the sole guitarist in Crimson, layering thoughtful acoustic over buzzing electric with equal volume and passion. Peter "scar the sacred tablet wax" Sinfield's lyrics usually suck, and here they are particularly godawful. Still, I must begrudgingly admit that they fit in well with the flamboyant surrealism of the album's cover (Sinfield's conception, apparently), and it's relatively easy to tune them out if they get too overbearing for you. Lizard's a good example of the 'imperfect but interesting' prog album from the early days, as prog bands were stretching out and playing with different ideas. review by Joe McGlinchey — undated —

e r i c

Released in 1970, Lizard is King Crimson's third album and fairly typical of the early KC sound and structure. For my money In the Court of the Crimson King their 1st recording is the must have of early KC. Lizard has some moments, but it is not one of their best, and my guess is that Fripp is not fond of it either, because not much of Lizard shows up on the box sets or live recordings up to this point. "Cirkus" sounds like it could have been on Court and some parts sound like Red era. "Indoor Games" uses a lot of horns in the arrangement and has a very jazz like mid-section. "Happy Family" sounds very jazzy, with a lot of for the listener to take in musically, as each instrument is off doing its own thing for the most part. "Lady of the Dancing Water" is a very pretty song with mostly guitar and flute behind the vocal. The title track is broken into different pieces. Jon Anderson of Yes makes a vocal appearance on "Prince Rupert Awakes" and does an excellent job. The whole piece is about 23 minutes, with a lot of improvisation. The ending piece has a circus theme musically with some Frippertronics over the top. To any KC fan, all of their material is a must have, but I find Lizard in my CD player the least of any KC release. review by Eric Porter — undated —

b r a n d o n

When I first heard this album I really didn't know what to make of it. It's like nothing else in the Crimson body of work, and it's not much like anything else by anyone else either. Most immediately noticeable is the way Fripp hangs around in the background, picking on his acoustic guitar and adding some mellotron lines here and there; there are no screaming electric leads at all. The whole album is very warm and acoustic, and in fact the best performances (aside from some excellent acoustic guitar from Fripp in the opening track) come from sax-and-flute player Collins and pianist Tippett. Even Sinfield's lyrics are very different from other King Crimson words; the whole album reads like some kind of nightmarish fairy tale. Of all the tracks here, only "Lady of the Dancing Water" has a clear comparison - it's another quietly pretty acoustic ballad in the style of, say, "Cadence and Cascade". The first three tracks are all short, psychotic freakouts that go in decreasing order of effectiveness. "Cirkus" is the coolest thanks to its weird juxtaposition of evil mellotron and clear acoustic guitar; "Happy Family" is the weakest thanks to Haskell's terribly distorted vocals (I don't have a problem with his singing in general, but that distortion is just too much for me). The title track is the only side-long epic King Crimson ever wrote, and it's a little rusty. The opening two sections are great - Jon Anderson's vocals in "Prince Rupert Awakes" are a fresh surprise and work very well within the framework of the music, and the improvisatory middle and beautiful closing part of "Bolero" are equally effective. However, the band seems to get a bit lost in indulgence in the ten-minute "Battle of Glass Tears" - this section has never gotten through to me. "Big Top", on the other hand, is a fittingly weird closing track to a uniquely insane album. Lizard is perhaps the most underrated of King Crimson's albums, and contains some of the band's most unique, demented, and enjoyable work. While it'd be a poor place to begin exploring the world of KC, it's a strong effort overall, whatever Mr. Fripp thinks about it. review by Brandon Wu — undated —