P4 in the four-volume ProjeKcts Box Set is a compilation of shows from Seattle, Portland & San Francisco. Essentially, a progression of money shots.
"The Roar Of P4 - Live In San Francisco" (a Pat Mastelotto title) for KC CC No. 7 is one full evening of P4 in process: foreplay, engagement, development, delivery & the audient collector left to provide their own cigarette.
14.37 On Monday evening John Paul Jones, innocent DGM artist, met the Venal & Exploitative (but not Raging) Heartless Leader of his record company for our first meal together. And he picked up the tab.
The (London) Times' Saturdays magazine has a regular feature where they photograph & interview two people about their first meal together. JPJ & I have only had tea together before (at Reddish House) with Richard Chadwick, Manager To The Stars.
What a pleasure: talking with an outstanding player of my own generation who has more experience, and a greater breadth & depth of knowledge, than I do. And a nice guy. When I was playing covers in The Ravens (my first semi-pro group) at the West Moors Youth Club, JPJ was in groups & playing sessions London. He went seamlessly from semi-pro to pro when he left school at 16. (At 17 I told my mother I wanted to turn pro. She said nothing but burst into tears, delaying my conversion to professionalism by 4 years).
On Tuesday morning we had the photo session at The Halcyon, Holland Park. Both of us adopted The Crumpled Look: JPJ in crumpled collarless Issy Miyake & RF in crumpled collarless handmade Italian and crumpled jeans. The interviews concentrated more on the food than the conversation.
Then, via Le Bureau Opium to Chop 'Em Out Mastering (off Ladbroke Grove) I joined David & Alex to remaster "In The Court Of The Crimson King" with Simon Hayworth, David recovering from a mysterious Devil Bug which has attacked his head.
Chop 'Em Out specialise in 24 bit transfers of archive tape masters, & Simon remembers where he was when he first heard "ITCOTCK". So, the right place & person to bring the KC Virgin catalogue into the digital domain for a new generation.
Hugh is downstairs vibrating the artwork for a CD cover replicating the original (Barry Godber) screaming-face artwork. Of interest, one credit from the original cover was removed from the 1980s artwork on the CDs. This is my comment, to be included on the cover...
` The original credit "Produced by King Crimson for E.G. Productions - `David & John'" was removed from the cover art of "In The Court Of The Crimson King" during the 1980s, when it was released on CD. I was unaware of this at the time, as I had not been consulted. Nor was this the action of Virgin Records. The decision to remove the accreditation can only, therefore, have been made by EG.
David (Enthoven) left EG in 1977 and John (Gaydon) in 1970. As to why Messrs. S.G. Alder and M.A. Fenwick, the EG partners between 1977 and 1995, might have wished to remove the names of EG's founder members, their forerunners, from the album's sleeve credits, I am uninformed.
It feels appropriate that credit is restored to the two men who established EG as a player within the music industry on this, the facsimile of the original gatefold cover, to coincide with the release of the 24 bit remastering.
"In The Court Of The Crimson King" was originally released in the UK on October 12th. 1969. It provided the foundation for the success of both the group, and its managers - David & John.
' Diane is flying to the West Coast today. The Big Two met in her office to discuss a major new DGM initiative. This will shortly become public knowledge. Meanwhile, creative life & action is weighed down by piles of paper which has accumulated in a heap awaiting my arrival.
But, life is possible when P4 roar by.
"We pay our own tab."
