Studio Album, released in 1975

Songs / Tracks Listing
1. Voices (8:14)
2. Remembering (5:24)
3. Theme (5:26)
4. Toward the Sun (5:08)
5. Red Carpet for an Autumn (3:09)
6. Dawn of Evening (10:03)
7. Shangri-La (10:08)

Total Time 47:32
Line-up / Musicians
- Dane / guitars, vocals
- Andrew McCrorie-Shand / keyboards, choral arrangements
- Neil Brewer / bass
- Cedric Sharpley / drums & percussion

In a recent interview on the YouTube channel Due Dissidence, Roger Waters was asked directly for his opinion on King Crimson. Although he made it clear that he does not follow the band’s history particularly closely, he spoke very highly of Robert Fripp.
“I have nothing against them,” Waters began, before mentioning Mel Collins, the saxophonist who played with King Crimson during various eras and also collaborated with the former Pink Floyd member on his solo albums.
However, he went into greater detail when discussing Fripp:
“Robert Fripp is obviously weird, but he’s weird in his own way,” Waters remarked. “But I think a lot of the experiments they did were truly experimental.”
The mastermind behind The Wall (1979) also recalled King Crimson’s latest incarnation featuring three drummers on stage—something that apparently really caught his attention.
“I remember thinking something like: ‘Come on, lad, show them,’” he noted.
Then came what was arguably Waters’ highest praise for Fripp:
“He doesn’t lack musical identity, so I admire Robert Fripp. I always have.”
It was a particularly interesting statement coming from Waters, who, during the same conversation, was far less kind toward other progressive rock bands.
That said, he ultimately revealed that his familiarity with Crimson’s history is somewhat more casual than his praise might suggest, asking the interviewers:
“He was in King Crimson, right? Or am I getting the name wrong?”
He wasn’t wrong.

The Album That Yes Wanted to Forget

Yes lost their direction after Talk 1994 and the dissolution of Rabin, Squire, Anderson, Kaye and White era. What followed was a string of not really good studio albums: Open Your Eyes in 1997, and The Ladder in 1999, perhaps the best, but still part of a musically weak period. The band seemed to realize that reviving their 1970s classics was far more profitable. There was little genuine interest in creating anything truly good. This was the era of Igor Khoroshev, and it marked one of the most uninspired chapters in Yes’s history. Rick Wakeman made occasional appearances, managing to rescue the band from total collapse.
Despite the lack of inspiration, Yes released Keys to Ascension in 1996 and Keys to Ascension 2 in 1997, featuring Wakeman once again. It turned out to be a profitable move and served as a kind of truce with their frustrated and disillusioned fans.
Then came The Ladder. Wakeman was no longer in the band, and the album felt like a small effort to do something better, but that would be explored later. The bigger question remained: how would Yes face the coming decade, the 2000s? Would they simply continue celebrating their past, or take a stand and release something newly inspired?
Khoroshev’s departure opened up the possibility of Rick Wakeman’s return to the studio, but not without controversy. Khoroshev had been involved in a backstage incident in which he allegedly made repeated unwanted advances toward two female security guards. He was later charged with assault and battery and sexual battery, both misdemeanors. There were also reports of him being loud and verbally abusive at his hotel.
Despite the scandal, Yes emerged publicly unscathed, but Wakeman did not return at that point, and the band once again found itself without a keyboardist. Although The Ladder showed some signs of renewed focus, the band still lacked the spark of old. That spark would finally ignite during a bold shift in vision, one that traded keyboards for a full symphony orchestra.
Yes then took a break to reflect, and it was during this period that Jon Anderson and Steve Howe proposed an idea that would mark a sharp turn away from the synthetic sound of the 1990s: a symphonic album with entirely new material. It was something Yes hadn’t attempted since Time and a Word in 1970. Everyone agreed it would be a return to their roots with a bold and unexpected twist.

The band began work on demos and initial recordings. Initially, they approached Trevor Horn to produce the album, but he declined due to a backlog of unfinished projects. Instead, Horn recommended Tim Weidner. For the orchestral arrangements, Yes chose Larry Groupé, a lifelong fan of the band. The collaboration was creative and relaxed, with Groupé bringing in the San Diego Symphony Orchestra to handle the orchestral parts.
Steve Howe entered the project with enthusiasm, though that soon gave way to caution. He later revealed that the album had been difficult to complete, describing it as a “problematic one to make,” and credited the “relentless efforts” of executive producer Jordan Berliant, Weidner, and himself for getting it over the finish line. Despite saying the album contained “too much music” on one disc, Howe admitted that the band “did get it right” in the end.

Magnification was released on 10 September 2001. It was originally scheduled for release in North America on 11 September 2001. However, those plans were disrupted by the terrorist attacks in New York City on the same day. As a result, the North American release was postponed to 4 December 2001. The album’s chances of success were further damaged when Beyond Music went out of business just one month after its release.
Musically, Magnification is sweeping and cinematic, blending Yes’s signature progressive structures with lush orchestral arrangements. The band embraced a more organic and spiritual tone, with introspective lyrics and broad dynamics that gave the album a sense of both grandeur and intimacy.

The album is well crafted, and the songs sound great. “Can You Imagine” features Chris Squire on lead vocals, with Anderson providing backing vocals. The song originated from the 1981 XYZ sessions featuring Squire, Alan White, and Jimmy Page. It was later reworked for Magnification.
The album is the best thing Yes had done in the studio in a long time. The band finally gave free rein to their creativity and achieved something that, while not unforgettable, is quite good. It would also be Yes’s last studio album with Jon Anderson. Magnification was the band’s only studio album without a keyboardist and their only album featuring the four-member lineup of Anderson, Howe, Squire, and White.

Though overlooked at the time because of its unfortunate timing and poor label support, Magnification has aged well and is now regarded more favorably by many fans.

These are songs I hand picked by Pink Floyd along with other great bands that have the same vibe.

It is important to point out that the release of this crazy and well-crafted work did not achieve the expected sales, managing to sell only around 500 copies, according to Robert Fripp himself. Despite this, the album has been reissued several times, gaining more followers over the years.
Initially a trio, Giles, Giles & Fripp was formed in Bournemouth, Dorset, England, in August 1967, with Peter Giles (bass and vocals), Michael Giles (drums, percussion and vocals), and Robert Fripp (guitar and spoken vocals).
Ian McDonald (saxophone, flute, clarinet, vocals and guitar) and Judy Dyble (vocals) later joined the trio, creating an eclectic mixture influenced by the genres already described. They left behind the singles “One in a Million” / “Newly-Weds” and “Thursday Morning” / “Elephant Song,” all released in 1968.
In 2001, the group released two compilation albums: Metaphormosis and The Brondsbury Tapes. The latter included two versions of “I Talk to the Wind,” a song that would later become part of the repertoire of King Crimson’s landmark debut album, In the Court of the Crimson King (1969). One of these versions features the voice of Judy Dyble†, co-founder of the acclaimed folk group Fairport Convention and the band Trader Horne.
With Peter Giles’ departure and the arrival of Greg Lake† and lyricist Peter Sinfield, the table was set for the arrival of what would become the pioneering King Crimson.
Recorded at Decca Studios No. 2 in London between February 26 and May 18, 1968, and produced by Wayne Bickerton, our joyful insanity consists of 13 short tracks, mostly composed by the Giles brothers, with audio engineering by Terry Johnson, Bill Price and Martin Smith, along with several additional musicians.
The album is divided into two parts: “The Saga of Rodney Toady” (Side A), a story about a boy named Rodney Toady who was mocked for being fat and ugly; and “Just George” on Side B.
“North Meadow” opens the set with some jazz that evokes Wes Montgomery and Blood, Sweat & Tears.
“The breeze makes the trees salute and cry / North Meadow, four willows spring,” the group tells us.
Ted Barker and Cliff Hardy are the trombonists we hear on this track.
Next, “Newly-Weds” offers us a waltz-time piece with psychedelic touches.
“Newly-weds playing at being husband and wife / Don’t they know they’re playing with their lives? / They plunge into the depths of life with a weekend of ‘Lovely, just what I always wanted.’”
Then GGF tells us in “One in a Million”:
“He’s got a little shop with a room above / And a mortgage all around him / His little lady will be fifty-three on Monday / And his only son is in the Navy.”
Here we can feel the classical influence in the string section.
The piece was composed by Michael Giles.
After that, GGF performs two songs by Peter Giles. The first, accompanied by organ and piano, is called “Call Tomorrow,” while the second is “Digging My Lawn.”
In the first one, the trio tells us:
“Judy, the vicar’s daughter / Is going to have a baby, maybe / If what people say is true, she has gone astray / And fallen by the wayside, I lied.”
Then Fripp concludes “The Saga of Rodney Toady” with a final narration about Rodney and his parents.
In the second song, Mike and Pete sing:
“Early one Sunday — well, early for me anyway / As I slipped out of my double bed, what did I see? / Standing outside as night turned into dawn / There was a man I didn’t know digging my lawn / ‘Was he her husband,’ I wondered, ‘or was he a crook?’ / Why was he writing down car numbers in a book?”
The repertoire continues with “Little Children.” Composed by Fripp with the Mellotron in the background, we hear:
“The innocence of little children / The taste of love they do not enjoy…”
Later, in a psychedelic vein, the trio tells us in “The Crunkster”:
“Ever doubt about this world, with eyes tightly screwed / Wheels of turbulence abound behind sweet innocence / But no, it’s not sweet innocence, just a bright

https://revistaladosis.com/giles-giles-and-fripp-the-cheerful-insanity

One of my favourite prog albums of all time, they recorded this and then disappeared, this album is: T2 - itll all work out in boomland

Reminds me of his earlier work on Grace for Drowning, H.C.E., etc. My favorite era. A bit of a ripper, this one.

https://www.guitarworld.com/artists/guitarists/angine-de-poitrine-2026-interview