The Cheerful Insanity of Giles, Giles & Fripp (The Songs) / The Brondesbury Tapes

What does it sound like?:

Two curios from a bygone age here, both remastered this year by David Singleton. The whimsical 1968 debut set from the trio appears here minus for the first time the rather dated ‘humorous’ spoken word elements, letting all the focus shine solely on the musical content. It’s a strange mixture of psychedelic pop and almost folk influenced music with some nice guitar playing thrown into the pot for good measure. Although no individual pieces particularly stand out, taken as a whole it’s a rather charming if now somewhat dated example of early British psychedelia, although commercial success perhaps unsurprisingly evaded it at the time.
The Brondesbury Tapes, named after the location of the North London flat where the trio lived, comprises a set of demos recorded in 1968 and as such the sound quality is a little variable at times. The 21 pieces do however give a pointer towards the path that King Crimson would eventually follow. There are a couple of early attempts at I Talk To The Wind, one featuring Judy Dyble on vocals, while part of Suite No 1 would be used in Song of the Gulls, and Why Don’t You Just Drop In was rewritten with new lyrics to become The Letters, both appearing on 1971’s Islands set. Meanwhile, sections of Passages of Time would ultimately also be recycled into Peace – A Theme on the In The Wake of Poseidon set, and for Crimson devotees there are a few contributions to spot from Ian McDonald along the way.

What does it all *mean*?

Both albums are interesting to hear as historical artefacts but they sound distinctly of their time, and really they are presumably aimed at Fripp and Crimson completists.

Goes well with…

Remembering the earliest origins of King Crimson way back in the mists of time.

Release Date:

out now

Might suit people who like…

King Crimson, historical artefacts..

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