David Singleton's Diary

DAY 54

Sadly I lied when I closed my last diary with "Here endeth the rant". This is part 2. I am writing it at 12.54 just before lunch, so that I can hopefully clear my head and return energized to attend this afternoon to all those positive tasks which awaited me as I arrived in the office this morning.

In fact, this morning I had intended to avoid all further thoughts of Wikipedia, but I was diverted by a kind offer of support, which forced me to delve deeper into the factual errors on the DGM page - and then, error of errors, at looking on the King Crimson page.

This is written by a very authoritative source. Someone who has devoured every liner note, and who is almost certainly a follower of DGMLive, as it contains accurate news about things yet to happen. It lists everyone who has ever played with King Crimson, including what they have done before or since, it lists everyone who has ever written for King Crimson, including Margaret Belew (who contributed the lyric to Two Hands). It includes the studio work done by Tony Arnold and Steven Wilson (and that about to be done by Jakko). It is almost anally accurate, even down to listing an "unknown cellist" as performing on Red. I know the catalogue very well and I cannot think of a single name that is missing.

Except one. Mine.

This is disturbing. If you are going to faithfully list every session musician and writer, including Margaret Belew and "unknown cellists" - why omit the only other person from outside the band (Palmer-James’ involvement is obviously well-covered) who has written for them - the album credits have evidently been extensively scanned and my writing credits on both THRAKATTAK and The Power to Believe are, I think, the only ones that have been overlooked.

Which can only lead to the complicated question of "why?"

So this diary is not so much a rant about Wikipedial inaccuracy (the writer had gone to great lengths to be accurate), nor, rest-assured, is it some needy cry for "we appreciate you David" (I can thank my family for leaving me fairly self-assured on such matters). This is the rather more existential and possibly career-defining question of why my name would seem to be the only error. In a list of faces (even one that includes a faceless cellist), why is my bald ugly mug the only one that is not seen?

This is more complex than a need for self-promotion. "The uncredited musicians" who played strings on Islands have evidently done no self-promotion, yet they appear on the list, as does Hunter McDonald who engineered Earthbound. There is, it seems, something more disturbing at work. The only logical explanation (until some kind soul suggests an alternative) is that there is a force at play actively removing my presence. I am neither paranoid, nor a conspiracy theorist, so I do not mean that there is some person out there actively doing this - I mean that there is some form of acquired belief/preconception/negativity causing me to be overlooked (presumably unwittingly - I don’t think that someone deliberately overlooked me. That would actually be better, as you would be perceived to have an importance). This is simply being perceived as being invisible or having no value (again, I am fortunately, comfortable with my self-knowledge of my value, the question is why it has no external resonance).

I have just re-read this posting, and toyed with the delete button - as these are not thoughts that are easily shared. They read like the self-obsessed delusional ravings of a madman (pretty accurate there, then). But a diary has no value without honesty. So it stays. And it unmasks a vital truth which will have an important bearing on all that follows this year. And recognising it, however painful, is a leap forward.

PS. I have referred above to my compositional credits with King Crimson, not my far more extensive production work, as it would appear that the Wikipedia writer has made an editorial decision to exclude outside producers from the list (neither Rhett Davies nor Machine are included). Although whether or not they make a larger contribution than "unnamed cellists and string players" might be up for debate...