Four months earlier the walls of the Jazz Café had been bludgeoned by P1. Now, after a handful of dates in March in the USA and some shows in early April sharing the bill with Bruford Levin Upper Extremities (BLUE) in Japan, it was p2’s turn to give the place a bit of a hammering.[endtease]
From the outset, it seems to take Fripp a minute or two to find his point of entry into the music but when he does things really start to smoke, provoking Gunn into supplying some of his strongest playing in the P2 context. Whilst all three lock horns throughout the evening, the overwhelming impression is of Trey dominating and pushing the blows.
Whether it’s that buzzsaw bass or screeching lead lines (and often it’s both at the same time), Gunn is absolutely all over this gig, stomping – as the saying goes – the sucker flat.
It’s interesting to hear such an early version of Thrush, appearing quite sombre compared to the soaring style which both Fripp’s orchestral backdrop and Trey’s soloing would later acquire. At the time someone in the audience uttered “It’s the new Starless” and you can certainly understand why that particular comparison might fly by with this version.
Next to the other P2 shows this is a shorter set but a more focussed affair as a result and one of the tightest gigs in the band’s brief history.
