Record Store Haulllllll :)

Happy 80th birthday to the talented Roger Dean!!!

Credits (Art): Roger Dean

A Jon Anderson photo taken in 1973 and published for an article Link to article

Jon Anderson photographed at a gig in Oklahoma City (1974) Photographer: Clowerokc

Jon Anderson with his Gibson Melody Maker (1976) Photographer: Unknown

I love driving my friends and making them listen to Yes and other progressive rock groups :)

Well here is my amateur analysis of Frame by Frame 😭 I'm not gonna lie I have up when it came to the ending because I confused myself to the point of no return... I also wanna say that I am not heavily trained in music theory, but I have been classically trained on the violin for about 4 years (I can only really read sheet music for the violin and keep time). All of that to say that I may be wrong in my analysis sorry! I'm also not very happy with it 💀 Annnddd sorry for any spelling and grammar mistakes!

Frame by Frame - King Crimson

The song I picked was Frame by Frame because of the wacky time signatures that go on throughout the song. (this part was for class lol)

Intro (52 Measures): Robert Fripp who is the lead guitarist starts with a 16th note trill in 12/16 for about 43 measures, the other guitarist Adrian Belew is playing chords in 4/4, Tony Levin who is playing the stick bottom in 4/4 as well, and Bill Bruford playing percussion in 4/4. After Fripp plays the 43 measures in 12/16 he plays one bar (the 43rd) in 4/4 with the rest of the band. Fripp playing in a different time signature than the rest of the band makes the song have this chaotic feeling and also a feeling of building. The Stick Bottoms resonance and distinct sound really makes the beginning of the song grand. For the chorus, Fripp and Belew play a similar pattern with both guitarist playing in ⅞. After 52 measures the intro ends and the chorus ends. 

In my opinion what makes this intro so grand are the different time signatures, Buford’s drumming with the fast septuplets leading into a crash from the cymbal, the resonance from the Chapman Stick (Turn your EQ up on 32 Hz and you’re in for a treat if you like bass notes), and of course Fripps insane trills and Belews poignant/staccato chords with whammy bar additions and a divebomb from behind the guitar nut. Overall with all of these elements put together it gives it an organized chaotic feel.

Random note on the Chapman Stick: The stick does not have a body and you press the strings and they vibrate which then will be converted at the pickup. 

Chorus (Measures 53-?): The chorus begins with some more alternating notes done by both Belew and Fripp for about 32 measures before Belew starts singing. When Levin sings “Suddenly,” his notes on his stick mimic the rhythm that he is singing and with the stick resonance layered with it, it makes it seem powerful. Levin and Belew’s vocals harmonizing makes the chorus have that mysterious feeling. 

Refrain (Measures 85-112): The refrain in Fripp doing the trill in 12/16, Belew doing his chords along with the whammy bars and plucking behind the guitar nut with a divebomb, Levin playing his stick in a staccato way, and Buford playing in his Buford style in 4/4. 

Second Chorus & Refrain (Measures 121-?): The same situation is happening here that happened in the first chorus. (Refer back to the first chorus’s notes and the refrain’s notes.)

Ending (?-?):  Fripp and Belew solo time!

Fripp and Belew are playing a set of notes in ⅞ in synchronicity for about 7 measures before Fripp drops a note (Which is the 4 that Belew plays and is also the original pattern) and the guitars go out of sync and that continues until Fripp does his triplets in ¾ (Look at the picture below for reference please).   These are messy notes for when I was trying to figure out the ending lmaoooo credits to: UltimateGuitar for the tabs and SoundSlice for the ending tabs (To find a better explanation of the ending, click here)

now I wrote a whole thing about King Crimson's Frame by Frame for my professor to change the assignment... *eye twitches*

Jon Anderson photographed by Gerard Scheppink

Jon Anderson photographed in the 1980s Photographer: Unknown

Happy 37th anniversary to Big Generator!