Beat
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- Artist: King Crimson
- Rating:
- Release Date: 1982
- Total Time: 35:21
- Type: Lyrics are included with the album
- Genre: Rock
Review
Beat is not as good as its predecessor (1981's Discipline), but it's not too shabby, either. The '80s version of King Crimson (Robert Fripp, guitar; Adrian Belew, vocals/guitar; Tony Levin, bass; and Bill Bruford, drums) retains the then-modern new wave sound introduced on Discipline. The band's performances are still inspired, but the songwriting isn't as catchy or strong. The moody love song "Heartbeat" has become a concert favorite for the band, and contains a Jimi Hendrix-like backward guitar solo. Other worthwhile tracks include "Waiting Man," which features world music sounds (thanks to some stunning bass/percussion interplay), and "Neurotica" does an excellent job of painting an unwavering picture of a large U.S. city, with its jerky rhythms and tense vocals. With lots of different guitar textures, bass explorations, and uncommon drum rhythms present, King Crimson's Beat will automatically appeal to other musicians. But since they're fantastic songwriters as well, you don't have to be a virtuoso to feel the passion of their music. ~ Greg Prato, Rovi| Beat (1963 Album by Roy Brooks) | |
| Beat (2012 Album by East Helsinki Gunner) |
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Beat
Wikipedia on Answers.com:
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Beat (King Crimson album)
| Beat | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
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| Studio album by King Crimson | ||||
| Released | June 18, 1982 | |||
| Recorded | 1982 | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock, experimental rock, new wave | |||
| Length | 35:19 | |||
| Label | E.G. Warner Bros./E.G. Virgin Records |
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| Producer | Rhett Davies | |||
| King Crimson chronology | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Rolling Stone |  [2] |
Beat is the ninth studio album by the British rock band King Crimson, released in 1982.
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Contents
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The Beat Generation
According to the Trouser Press Record Guide, the album focused on the twenty-fifth anniversary of the publication of the novel On the Road by Jack Kerouac.[3] The album makes several references to the writings of the Beat Generation:
- "Neal and Jack and Me" is the track most obviously inspired by Beat writers. The 'Jack' of the title is Beat writer Jack Kerouac, and the 'Neal' of the title is Kerouac's friend Neal Cassady. The song was released as a b-side to "Heartbeat". The song picks up where the album Discipline left off, with interlocking guitars playing in 5/4. Guitars frequently play in polyrhythms with 5/4 over 7/8. Other time signatures in the song are 13/8 and 21/8.
- "Heartbeat" is also the name of the book written by Carolyn Cassady, Neal's wife, about her experiences with the Beats.
- "Sartori [sic] in Tangier" also derives its title from Beat influences including the Jack Kerouac novel Satori in Paris, and the city of Tangier in Morocco, where a number of Beat writers resided and which they often used as a setting for their writing. Writer Paul Bowles was associated with the Beats, and his novel The Sheltering Sky, which provided the title for a track on King Crimson's previous studio album, Discipline, is partly set in Tangier. The song was first released as a b-side to the Heartbeat 12" single in 1982. It is entirely instrumental with the intro performed by Tony Levin on the Chapman Stick.
- "Neurotica" shares its title with Neurotica, a Beat-era magazine.[4][5]
- "The Howler" refers to the Beat poem Howl by Allen Ginsberg, which Fripp suggested to Belew as inspiration for the lyrics.
Track listing
Lyrics by Adrian Belew, music by Belew, Bill Bruford, Robert Fripp, and Tony Levin, unless otherwise indicated.
Side one
- "Neal and Jack and Me" – 4:22
- "Heartbeat" – 3:54
- "Sartori in Tangier" – 3:54
- "Waiting Man" – 4:27
Side two
- "Neurotica" – 4:48
- "Two Hands" – 3:23 (lyrics: A. Belew and Margaret Belew)
- "The Howler" – 4:13
- "Requiem" – 6:48
Credits
- Robert Fripp – guitar, organ, Frippertronics
- Adrian Belew – guitar, vocals
- Tony Levin – bass guitar, Chapman stick, vocals
- Bill Bruford – drums
Charts
Album
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Billboard Pop Albums | 52 |
Single
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | "Heartbeat" | Billboard Mainstream Rock | 57 |
In popular culture
The Chapman Stick introduction to "Sartori in Tangier" is featured in the first scene of the premiere of the MTV show The Maxx.
References
- ^ Allmusic review
- ^ Rolling Stone review
- ^ "King Crimson". Trouser Press. http://www.trouserpress.com/entry.php?a=king_crimson. Retrieved July 5, 2005.
- ^ "Neurotica". Landesmania. http://www.landesmania.com/neurotica.html. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
- ^ Chapter 10: Battling the Social Neurosis. University of Chicago Press. http://books.google.com/books?id=Ti0jsxHJzVMC&pg=PA232&lpg=PA232&dq=Neurotica+magazine&source=bl. Retrieved 2009-03-20.
External links
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Copyrights:
AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Albums
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