Album
Starless and Bible Black
Starless and Bible Black is King Crimson's sixth studio album, released on 29 March 1974. It follows Larks' Tongues in Aspic with most of the same line-up, the one change being the departure of percussionist Jamie Muir. It also marks the last album with violinist David Cross as a full member, though he turns up on one track of Red.
What makes it such an interesting listen is how it was put together. Much of the record was captured live, then edited together with studio recordings and overdubs, so the stage and the studio blur into one. Several pieces are fully improvised, which gives the album a raw, exploratory edge within the band's progressive rock sound. It suits anyone curious about the more experimental side of King Crimson in the mid-1970s, sitting just before Red in their story.
Starless and Bible Black: tracklist, credits and charts
8 tracks · 46:41Tracklist
- 1The Great DeceiverFripp, Wetton, Palmer‐James4:02
- 2LamentFripp, Wetton, Palmer‐James4:00
- 3We’ll Let You KnowBruford, Cross, Fripp, Wetton3:46
- 4The Night WatchFripp, Wetton, Palmer‐James4:37
- 5TrioBruford, Cross, Fripp, Wetton5:41
- 6The MincerBruford, Cross, Fripp, Wetton4:10
- 7Starless and Bible BlackBruford, Cross, Fripp, Wetton9:11
- 8FractureRobert Fripp11:14
- Produced by
- King Crimson, Robert Fripp, Steven Wilson
- Recorded at
- Air Recording Studio No. 1, AIR, London
- Recorded
- January 1974
- Mixed by
- Robert Fripp, Steven Wilson
- Engineered by
- George Chkiantz
- Labels
- Atlantic, Island
- Length
- 46:41
Line-up
- Bill Bruford · drums (drum set), other vocals
- David Cross · keyboard, violin, viola
- Robert Fripp · mellotron, guitar
- John Wetton · bass, vocals
Singles
- “The Night Watch” · 22 March 1974
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 1974 | 28 |
| US Billboard 200 · 1974 | 64 |
| Italian Albums (Musica e Dischi) · 1974 | 7 |
| French Albums (SNEP) · 1974 | 8 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1974 | 38 |
| UK Independent Albums · 2011 | 49 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 1974 | 73 |
| Canadian Albums (RPM) · 1974 | 75 |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
66.6
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
2.0k
ListenBrainz listeners
111k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
4.8k
Deezer fans (all editions)
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Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + musicbrainz + wikidata
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 29 March 1974 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 29 March 1974 | |
| Wikidata | 29 March 1974 | |
| US release | 1974 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 29 March 1974 | earliest UK or European date |
21 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | XE | Virgin | 724384407124 | deluxe |
| 1974 | US | Atlantic | other | |
| 1974 | US | Atlantic | other | |
| 1974 | CA | Atlantic | other | |
| 29 March 1974 | GB | Island | original | |
| January 1987 | GB | E’G | 5012985301220 | other |
| 26 August 1987 | JP | E’G | 4988006615984 | other |
| 6 April 1988 | JP | Virgin Japan | 4988037002166 | other |
| 1989 | US | E’G | 017046150729 | other |
| 1989 | GB | Virgin | 077778677628 | other |
| 15 December 1996 | JP | Canyon International | 4988013506039 | other |
| 2000 | JP | Discipline Global Mobile | 4988013047303 | other |
| 26 January 2000 | XE | Virgin | 724384407124 | other |
| 2004 | US | Discipline Global Mobile | 633367050625 | other |
| 17 January 2005 | GB | Discipline Global Mobile | 633367050625 | deluxe |
| 3 October 2011 | GB | Discipline Global Mobile | 633367400628 | deluxe |
| 20 October 2014 | XE | Panegyric | 633367197429 | other |
| 2015 | IT | — | deluxe | |
| 14 April 2015 | XW | Discipline Global Mobile | 633367880826 | other |
| 6 November 2015 | GB | Discipline Global Mobile | 633367910615 | other |
| 27 April 2016 | JP | Discipline Global Mobile | other |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · cropped: cropped from 2495x2476 to 2476x2476
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 2495×2476 | cropped: cropped from 2495x2476 to 2476x2476 |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |