King Crimson - Happy Family

Full Album Playlist:

HAPPY FAMILY
(Fripp / Sinfield)

Happy family, one hand clap, four went by and none come back.
Brother Judas, ash and sack, swallowed aphrodisiac.
Rufus, Silas, Jonah too sang, “We’ll blow our own canoes,”
Poked a finger in the zoo, punctured all the ballyhoo.

Whipped the world and beat the clock,
wound up with their share of stock.
Silver Rolls from golden rock, shaken by a knock, knock, knock.
Happy family, wave that grin, what goes round must surely spin;
Cheesecake, mousetrap, Grip-Pipe-Thynne cried out,
“We're not Rin Tin Tin.”

Uncle Rufus grew his nose, threw away his circus clothes.
Cousin Silas grew a beard, drew another flask of weird.
Nasty Jonah grew a wife, Judas drew his pruning knife.
Happy family one hand clap, four went on but none came back.

Happy family, pale applause, each to his revolving doors.
Silas searching, Rufus neat, Jonah caustic, Jude so sweet.
Let their sergeant mirror spin if we lose the barbers win;
Happy family one hand clap, four went on but none came back.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Robert Fripp: Guitar, Mellotron, Electric Keyboards and Devices
Mel Collins: Flute & Saxes
Gordon Haskell: Bass Guitar & Vocals
Andy McCulloch: Drums
Peter Sinfield: Words & Pictures

with
Robin Miller: Oboe & Cor Anglais
Mark Charig: Cornet
Nick Evans: Trombone
Keith Tippet: Piano & Electric Piano
Jon Anderson of YES: Vocals on ‘Prince Rupert Awakes’

Engineer: Robin Thompson
Tapes: Geoff Workman
Studio: Wessex Sound, London

Sleeve Conception: Peter Sinfield
Outside Painting: Gini Barris
Inside Marbling: Koraz Wallpapers

#KingCrimson
#RobertFripp
#Lizard

[CoolioTops]

King Crimson making Happy Family while having the most dysfunctional band in existence

[sqTake]

Is it safe now to admit this is one of my favorite pieces of music ever? Beam it out into space & see what sort of response comes back.

[anon]

Happy family, one hand clap, four went by and none come back
Brother Judas, ash and sack, swallowed aphrodisiac
Rufus, Silas, Jonah too sang, "We'll blow our own canoes"
Poked a finger in the zoo, punctured all the ballyhoo

Whipped the world and beat the clock, wound up with their share of stock
Silver Rolls from golden rock, shaken by a knock, knock, knock
Happy family, wave that grin, what goes round must surely spin
Cheesecake, mousetrap, Grip-Pipe-Thynne cried out, "We're not Rin Tin Tin"

Uncle Rufus grew his nose, threw away his circus clothes
Cousin Silas grew a beard, drew another flask of weird
Nasty Jonah grew a wife, Judas drew his pruning knife
Happy family one hand clap, four went on but none came back

Happy family, pale applause, each to his revolving doors
Silas searching, Rufus neat, Jonah caustic, Jude so sweet
Let their sergeant mirror spin if we lose, the barbers win
Happy family one hand clap, four went on but none came back

[dnn]

Great song, biting, dissonant and bittersweet, just as the world took the brokeup of one of the most influential bands in the history

[kirstenabrahamson]

one of the very best KC creations! This entire album is fabulous.
Every piece is totally different and just as weird. Love it.

[HazardProfile]

Let their sergeant mirror spin if we lose the barbers win.

[andragg]

Absolutely wonderful song. I first heard Lizard in 1972 and is one of my favorite Crimson albums. Keith Tippet's piano playing helped me learn about and use stacked 4th chords which is used in quartal harmony. The lyrics are supposed to be about the Beatles and their breakup. It is hidden in lyricist Peter Sinfield's allegorical words, plus the Beatles are shown in the cover art.

[jeanbonnefoy]

Maybe the funniest/sharpest/pinpoint comment about the Fab Four ever written. Worth hundred pages or scenes of Get Back/Let it Be.

[bierdlll]

This song was how I got initiated into jazz! After that was a journey through Bitches Brew, John Coltrane, Alice Coltrane, Pharoah Sanders, Keith Jarrett. Music is an eternal family.

[reeread]

What a wonderful disjointed and jazzy mix. Brings back great memories. Thank you Robert Fripp

[zambnio]

that flute solo at 1:53 is bidding them farewell. so good

[morbidmanatee]

First time I ever heard this was around 1980 at a party tripping my ass off, it was unreal.

[terrabull-shitty]

That VCS3 sound is a mind gripper. And, it never lets go. KCrimso revisited this sound during an extended mid-show jam in 1974 S&BB tour. It was put through a stereo PA with the chopped pulse ping ponged L&R and then panned back and forth across the stage. I’ll never forget it.

[genoesposito]

Major Frank Zappa vibes from this one.

[Arakamira]

Is this how a happy family feels like?

[dwaynerosemeyer]

Pretty much anything they did from 69 to 75 was genius.

[williamdoyle]

Cheesecake, mousetrap, grip pipe thin, cried out "We're not Rin Tin Tin." This i how I proposed to a girl I haven't seen since that day.

[basemfityan]

All music on one side and Happy Family on the other …. I don’t know why it’s so addictive and for many others it is intolerable!!

[oppai]

rufus = Ringo, judah = Paul, jonah = Lennon, silas = George

[aquinasish]

I never got this when I was 14. It gave me the creeps. Now, at 68, I think it is genius.