These recordings of Cirkus form part of the studio sessions and unreleased recordings from the "Lizard" sessions at Wessex Studios in September 1970. The album "Lizard", engineered by Robin Thompson, was largely created in the studio, and featured numerous overdubs, many of which were not used on the final album.
All the original studio sessions from 1970 are being made available by download in 2020 to satisfy recent changes to copyright laws: All recordings must be released within the fiftieth year of their recording in order to continue to enjoy copyright protection. So these have been released to the DGMLive faithful – and are thus protected!
The exact recording dates have not been annotated on the original tapes. DGMLive has therefore assigned various session dates throughout September 1970, when the album was known to have been largely recorded.
Lizard Wessex studio sessions September 1970.
These recordings of Cirkus form part of the studio sessions and unreleased recordings from the "Lizard" sessions at Wessex Studios in September 1970. The album "Lizard", engineered by Robin Thompson, was largely created in the studio, and featured numerous overdubs, many of which were not used on th...
In contrast to the Poseidon sessions (which had several takes of the basic tracks with less emphasis on the process of overdubbing), the Lizard sessions shed a light on the process of laying down instrumental tracks on what must be one of KC's densest albums. In the case of "Cirkus", first off, the basic track is laid down, consisting of drums, bass, and Robert on electric piano, playing chords as well as the guide for the vocal melody. Afterwards, the various overdubs are added in layers. The s...
In contrast to the Poseidon sessions (which had several takes of the basic tracks with less emphasis on the process of overdubbing), the Lizard sessions shed a light on the process of laying down instrumental tracks on what must be one of KC's densest albums. In the case of "Cirkus", first off, the basic track is laid down, consisting of drums, bass, and Robert on electric piano, playing chords as well as the guide for the vocal melody. Afterwards, the various overdubs are added in layers. The second track contains electric piano, the main mellotron riff, and the sax doubling the riff. The third track has the acoustic guitar (occasionally playing some very wild riffs that didn't make the final mix), the alto sax solo, and an electric guitar playing through a tremolo effect. The next track has the vocal track and some other elements. Finally, there is a rough mix with Gordon singing la-la-la instead of the lyrics, and some elements that are different from the final mix.
