Robert Fripp is performing tonight with Slow Music at the Triple Door (he's also playing at Washington Hall May 25 with the League of Crafty Guitarists). In honor of this occasion, here are seven of his most memorable moments on record, as recollected by me in the last couple of hours. Your mileage may vary; if so, vent in the comments.
âKingâs Lead Hatâ (from Brian Enoâs 1977 album Before and After Science): Fripp takes a solo in Brian Enoâs hardest-rocking composition that never fails to set my eyeballs rolling around their sockets in ecstasy. The whole tuneâs amazing, but when that Fripp steps into the spotlight at 3:16, itâs like heâs captured the god particle and is letting it bubble up to a heaven I donât believe in. (Did you know that âKingâs Lead Hatâ is an anagram for âTalking Headsâ? You are obligated by law to mention this factoid anytime you listen to this song in company.)
âSt. Elmoâs Fireâ (from Brian Enoâs 1975 album Another Green World): One of Frippâs most emotionally fraught and frilly guitar parts; itâs seriously balletic and beautiful. (Couldâve easily put âIâll Come Runningâ here, too.)
ââHeroesââ (from David Bowieâs 1977 album "Heroes"): An obvious choice, but fug it. Frippâs eloquent ebowâd cry carries one of the most poignant, sway-inducing songs in creation.
âBreathlessâ (from Frippâs 1979 album Exposure): This cut sounds like a sideways homage to Bobâs own menacing King Crimson classic, âRed.â The world canât have enough songs that sound like âRed,â if you ask me.
âAn Index of Metalsâ (from 1975âs Evening Star): Frippâs had a lot of hypnotic and ominous peaks in his long career, but this 28-minute zoner is probably the ultimate. A deep contrast from the placidity of Evening Starâs first side.
âSwastika Girlsâ (from Fripp & Enoâs 1973âs [No Pussyfooting]): This is OCD looping madness, toggling repeatedly between nerve-fraying shrieks and calming tintinnabulation. Play this simultaneously with âAn Index of Metalsâ for a very highbrow bout of disorientation.
âThe Zero of the Signifiedâ (from Frippâs 1980 album God Save the Queen/Under Heavy Manners): Recalls âAn Index of Metalsâ with its wayward emergency siren wails and air of imminent disaster. Put it on at a party and watch everyone's expressions crash to the floor. [To hear "Signified," go to around the 36-minute mark of this clip.]