Details of the 21st Century Schizoid Band’s live album, Pictures Of A City – Live in New York, have been released.
On April 27th 2004 the band arrived at the legendary BB King Blues Club to play two sets both of which are represented over two discs. The album is in a digi-pack format with sleeve notes by all five members of the group.
The pristine soundboard recording and the dazzling
performances makes this album the definitive live statement from the
group.
Sounding both relaxed and confident, they storm through a career-best set surpassing not only their other live releases to date, but outstripping some of the in-concert renditions by previous incarnations of King Crimson themselves!
The album contains the first official release of the Mel Collins-penned Spend Us Three, a charming flute trio that acts as a prelude to Cadence And Cascade, and Jakko’s composition, Catleys Ashes; a powerful instrumental work-out that tests the chops of Collins and band mate, Ian Wallace.
Tracks such as Ladies Of The Road, Cirkus and Formentera Lady/Sailors Tale and Epitaph all receive authoritative readings alongside a barn-storming version of Starless – a piece that regularly tops fan polls as the ultimate Crimson track. There’s also a superbly inventive outing for old Crim classic, 21st Century Schizoid Man.
“I think with this live album we got somewhere close to playing with the same amount of passion and ability that I was hoping for when we put the band together in 2002” says Mel Collins.
The full tracklist is:
Disc One: Pictures Of A City/Cat Food/Let There Be Light/Cirkus/Spend Us Three/Cadence & Cascade/The Court Of The Crimson King/Ladies Of The Road/Catleys Ashes/Formentera Lady/Sailors Tale
Disc Two:I Talk To The Wind/Epitaph/21st Century Schizoid Man/Starless
Although no release date has been finalised it will be
available early in 2006. For more information on the band, check out their website which also includes a free mp3 of Schizoid Man taken from the set at BB King's.
