Starless

Not to be confused with Starless and Bible Black.

"Starless"
Song by King Crimson
from the album Red
Released	6 October 1974
Recorded	August 1974
Studio	Olympic, London
Genre	Progressive rock [1] jazz-rock [2] heavy metal [2]
Length	12:18
Label	Island (UK & Europe), Atlantic (USA)
Composer(s)	Bill Bruford David Cross Robert Fripp John Wetton
Lyricist(s)	Richard Palmer-James John Wetton
Producer(s)	King Crimson

"Starless" is a composition by English progressive rock band King Crimson. It is the final track on their seventh studio album, Red , released on 6 October 1974.

Background

The original chords and melody for "Starless" were written by John Wetton, who intended the song to be the title track of the group's previous album Starless and Bible Black . ^[3] Robert Fripp and Bill Bruford initially disliked the song and declined to record it for that album. ^{[4] [5]} Instead the group chose an instrumental improvisation as the title track. However, "Starless" was later revived, its lyrics altered and a long instrumental section (based on a bass riff written by Bruford ^[3] ) added to it, and performed live between March and June 1974. For the Red recording sessions, the lyrics were again altered (with contributions by Richard Palmer-James). The introductory theme, originally played by David Cross, was taken over by the guitar, with Fripp making minor alterations to the melody.^{[ citation needed ]} As the title "Starless and Bible Black" had already been used, the original title was shortened to "Starless". ^[3]

Composition

The piece is 12 minutes and 18 seconds in length, the longest on the Red album. It starts with mellotron strings, electric guitar and a saxophone. These introduce a vocal segment in conventional verse-chorus structure.

The middle section of the song builds, in 13/8. Starting with John Wetton's bass, shortly after joined by Bill Bruford on percussion. Robert Fripp's guitar repeats a single note theme on two adjacent guitar strings. Bruford's drumming maintains its irregularity.

The song's final section begins with an abrupt transition to a fast, jazzy saxophone solo with distorted guitars and bass, expressive tribal drumming, and the tempo doubling up to a time signature of 13/16. Variations of the middle section's bassline are played under Fripp's layered and overdriven guitar parts. The saxophone returns to play a reprise of the vocal melody, then the final section is repeated with more overdubs from Fripp. Finally, the song ends with a reprise of the opening melody, played on the saxophone instead of the guitar.

Personnel

• Robert Fripp – guitar, Mellotron
• John Wetton – vocals, bass
• Bill Bruford – drums, percussion

with:

• Mel Collins – soprano saxophone
• Ian McDonald – alto saxophone
• Uncredited – double bass, cello

Cover versions

Recorded cover versions of Starless include those by: Neal Morse, Mike Portnoy, and Randy George; ^[6] Craig Armstrong, on his album As If to Nothing as "Starless II"; Banco de Gaia, on their album Memories Dreams Reflections ; The Unthanks, on their 2011 album Last ; the Crimson Jazz Trio, on their album King Crimson Songbook Volume One (2005). ^[7]

The song has been covered live by Asia, a supergroup of which John Wetton was a founding member; 21st Century Schizoid Band, a group made up of earlier members of King Crimson (save for Jakko Jakszyk, who would later join King Crimson); After Crying, a Hungarian symphonic rock band, with guest vocals by Wetton; U.K., one of whose members was once again Wetton; and District 97, yet again featuring vocals from Wetton. ^[8]

The Canadian band FM performed a live version of "Starless" in concert in 1977 which was captured on reel-to-reel by band member Nash the Slash, shortly after the recording their classic 1st album Black Noise . ^[9] It came to light as part of a rarities CD, Lost in Space ^[10] in 2001. It is a unique cover version as the band consisted of a non-traditional trio; Cameron Hawkins (vocals, bass, keyboards/synthesizers, bass pedals), Martin Deller (Drums & Percussion) and Nash the Slash (electric mandolin, electric violin, synthesizers).

In other media

The first part of "Starless" is used in the opening of the film Mandy (2018), starring Nicolas Cage. ^[11]

References

1. "The Top 150 Albums of the '70s". Treble. 12 August 2019. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
2. "The 100 Greatest Prog Songs Of All Time". Prog Magazine . 26 March 2018. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
3. Curtiss, Ron; Weiner, Aaron (3 June 2016). "John Wetton (King Crimson, U.K., Asia): The Complete Boffomundo Interview". YouTube. Archived from the original on 15 September 2016. Retrieved 3 March 2019. Event occurs at 5:15–7:01.
4. Romano, Will (2010). Mountains Come Out of the Sky: The Illustrated History of Prog Rock. Backbeat Books. ISBN   9781617133756.
5. Bruford, Bill (2009). Bill Bruford: The Autobiography : Yes, King Crimson, Earthworks, and More. Jawbone Press. ISBN   9781906002237.
6. "The Official Website of Bill Bruford and Bill Bruford's Earthworks". Billbruford.com. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
7. The Crimson Jazz Trio – King Crimson Songbook, Vol. 1 Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic , retrieved 9 September 2022
8. "Shazam". Shazam. Retrieved 9 September 2022.
9. "50 Greatest Prog Rock Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. 17 June 2015. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
10. "Nash The Slash, Cameron Hawkins & Martin Deller – Lost In Space (Reel-To-Reel Obscurities)". Discogs . 2001.
11. "Nicolas Cage's Slasher Freakout 'Mandy' Makes Prog Rock Kick Ass". vice.com. 11 October 2018. Retrieved 7 May 2022.