Documentary Review: 'In the Court of King Crimson: King Crimson at 50'

In the Court of King Crimson: King Crimson at 50 (2023)

Directed by Toby Amies

Written by Documentary

Starring Robert Fripp, King Crimson

Release Date November 3rd, 2023

Published November 3rd, 2023

Robert Fripp is a bit of a control freak. The leader turned ruler of the band King Crimson has ruled the band with an iron fist for more than 50 years. The new documentary, In the Court of King Crimson: King Crimson at 50, details Fripp's control freak nature, the bridges that Robert has burned with past members and the comfort Robert has developed with a group of musicians who've grown comfortable doing what Robert asks of them. I sound like I am being critical but I am truly not intending that. If the members of King Crimson are happy taking orders from Robert, and the result is the exotic and extraordinary music of King Crimson, who am I to complain about it.

King Crimson formed in 1969 and were fractured within their first year of existence. Two of the original members, having tired of Robert's iron grip on the band, decided that life was too short to be under the rule of Robert and left. Robert chose their replacements and moved on. Every so often over the next next 50 years, Robert would choose new band members and when he tired of them, no matter how long they'd been with the band, he'd fire them and replace them. A telling story has one band member who became part of an iconic lineup for the band, who was unceremoniously let go after over a decade with the band. He was the lead singer at the time.

King Crimson is like a constantly evolving musical experiment with Robert Fripp as the mad scientist. Having helped to define the notion of a prog-rock band, King Crimson toured and recorded for 50 years while developing a loyal and dedicated fanbase who don't seem to mind that Robert Fripp openly berates them during shows for occasionally distracting him. The band is famously private about their live shows and have gone to great lengths to punish anyone attempting to record their show or even grab a still photo of the band during a show. It sounds almost impossible in the day and age of the smartphone but its true, King Crimson concerts are a phone free environment.

Fripp is prickly and fastidious but also fascinating. He claims to practice playing the guitar for 6 hours a day. Seated in his living room, Robert will noodle away on the guitar, following his muse wherever it takes him for hours on end. So yeah, he takes King Crimson very seriously and he has for the past 5 decades. This makes the music of King Crimson that much more fascinating as the band appears to spend a good deal of their live performances jamming and riffing off of whatever Robert decides to play. It's an improvisation highly reminiscent of Jazz fusion but with a classic rock edge. And it sounds incredible.

I've not spent much time listening to King Crimson in my life, they don't have many singles and, because of their prog-rock style, they were rarely on the radio. Hit singles are hard to come by when your songs run on for endless runs, solos, and random sounds that Robert Fripp has collected and catalogued over 50 years, slipping these sounds seamlessly into King Crimson live performances via a large tower he keeps on stage next to him. The tower gets more time and care than any piece of equipment on stage because if it fails, there is no back up. If it goes, all of the sounds go with it.

The high wire act of a King Crimson show is part of the excitement of being a King Crimson fan. The band can go in any number of different directions and no live show is exactly the same. As much as Robert Fripp demands precision, a King Crimson live performance has an element of improvisation, led by Robert, dictated by Robert, that makes their live performances distinct. I love that about King Crimson and it makes complete sense that such a style would attract a rabid fanbase that is eager to see Crimson as often as possible to catch the various nuances of these remarkable live performances.

As for the documentary, directed by Toby Amies, the documentary is not immune from Robert Fripp's imperiousness. Attempts to get the band members to talk about their process or reflect on their time in the band are often overheard by Robert who interjects to mock or reject Toby's questions. Band members appear hesitant to speak freely about the band either out of deference to Robert or a fear that he might kick them out of the band if they don't tow the King Crimson company line properly. That said, Amies seemingly punches his way toward a documentary story to tell outside of Robert's controlling gaze.

Band member Bill Rieflin is dying. Four years prior to the setting of this documentary, Rieflin was diagnosed with stage four colon cancer and was not given much time to live. Rieflin looks shockingly healthy for a dying man. He appears dynamic and alert and has remained on tour with King Crimson all throughout his treatments and in spite of the fact that he confides in Tony, that he's in constant pain. For Rieflin, being on tour beats being in bed all day waiting for the Grim Reaper to show up. Rieflin is one of Robert's closest friends but we never find out Robert's thoughts about his friend's health and, when Rieflin passed away in 2020, as the documentary was being wrapped, we don't hear a single word from Fripp about his friend dying. The band carried on touring.

In the Court of King Crimson is a fascinating and insightful documentary even as Robert Fripp is not the most forthcoming subject. He's still a figure of great fascination and the insights we gain into Fripp and the history of the band from several of the men who were part and then no longer part of King Crimson, paint a telling and engrossing history of this highly unique and talent group of musicians. There doesn't appear to be a great deal of lasting animus between the former members of King Crimson and Robert Fripp. Even the most dramatic departure in the band's history, that of former lead singer, Adrian Belew, isn't so much fraught with bitterness as it is with confusion. Adrian was fired in 2013 and is still not sure what he did to cause Robert to fire him.

I highly recommend In the Court of King Crimson: King Crimson at 50. The documentary is engrossing, the interview subjects are lively and engaging, and the music is absolutely incredible. I've never been into Prog-Rock but what I have heard in this documentary has moved me to want to dig into King Crimson. Three drummers, multiple guitarists, brass, bass, and keyboards, all work together to create a rock n'roll symphony unlike anything I've ever heard before and I am a classic rock fan. I grew up on classic rock radio, and still, I don't think that I've ever heard rock n'roll played quite like King Crimson plays it and I want more.

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