Articles by Sid Smith

Sid's feature articles and reviews have appeared in numerous publications including Prog, Classic Rock, Record Collector, Q, Mojo and Uncut.

A full-time freelance writer with hundreds of sleevenotes and essays for both indie and major record labels to his credit, his book, In The Court Of King Crimson, an acclaimed biography of King Crimson, was substantially revised and expanded in 2019 to coincide with the band’s 50th Anniversary. Alongside appearances on radio and TV, he has lectured on jazz and progressive music in the UK and Europe.

A resident of Whitley Bay in north-east England, he spends far too much time posting photographs of LPs he's listening to on Twitter and Facebook.

Articles by: Sid Smith

“Our failure got us dropped by our label, manager and publisher – and led to us rediscovering what we really wanted to do musically”: How No-Man learned to confound their expectations without offending each other

By Sid Smith published 27 June 24

Tim Bowness and Steven Wilson’s mutual respect and passion has kept their art-pop collaboration alive – despite the constant distractions of their other projects

“Decent material, often trampled by shoehorning in flamenco motifs, fancy footwork and an over-the-top macho swagger”: Carmen’s The Albums collection

By Sid Smith published 8 June 24

Three-disc retrospective illustrates the promise of a mid-70s band supported by David Bowie and Tony Visconti

“My discipline is doing what needs to be done, whether you like it or not… Robert decides what to do and Fripp has to go and do it”: How to survive over 50 years of King Crimson, by the only person who’s been there

By Sid Smith published 16 May 24

Serious leader of a prog behemoth, hugely influential guitarist, half of the Toyah & Robert party band… who is the real Robert Fripp? He offers some tantalising hints

“They’d been to university, they had bank accounts; two of them were teachers; they had a car; they’d got a bank loan to buy a PA!”: Phil Manzanera always knew Roxy Music were going to make it

By Sid Smith published 13 May 24

Guitarist who failed his first audition recalls making 1972 debut album for just £5,000

“I’m 16 and they were my heroes… They started to laugh because I was also playing the echo parts. I didn’t know they were a special effect”: Obsessive attention to detail was always Eddie Jobson’s superpower

By Sid Smith published 28 April 24

From a backstage performance for Curved Air to being dragged onstage by Frank Zappa and out-complicating King Crimson, the UK violinist has managed to ignore distractions from making music

King Crimson sitting on an area of grass, 1969

"All of a sudden we play at blinding speed and unbearable intensity, and everyone starts to take notice and stand up": How King Crimson got started

By Sid Smith published 8 April 24

Recorded in just 10 days in 1969, King Crimson’s iconic In The Court Of The Crimson King has been called “the true point at which progressive rock was born”. We look at the making of a landmark album

“When I drank, I was going to be the best drinker in the bar, or take the most drugs or whatever. When I did give up the drink I was going to be the best at that:” The bottom-end drive that made Danny Thompson’s name

By Sid Smith published 4 April 24

Rejecting criticism from those who wondered why he bothered playing folk music, the always-in-demand bassist’s attitude led to experiences with John Martyn, Kate Bush, David Sylvian, Tim Buckley and many others

Van der Graaf Generator - Still Life and Vital

“One doesn’t so much listen as feel it deep in the bones… their stark inventiveness and originality remain outstanding”: Van der Graaf Generator’s Still Life and Vital reissues

By Sid Smith published 30 March 24

1976 studio album and 1978 live double album return from era of new momentum for Peter Hammill and co

“We were really screwing with the system, removing applause from live tracks to sound like studio tracks – the exact opposite of what people do today”: How King Crimson made stealth live album Starless And Bible Black

By Sid Smith published 29 March 24

King Crimson’s 1974 ”excruciating, teeth-pullingly difficult” album Starless And Bible Black sowed the seeds of their looming breakup

Photograph of Judge Smith in front of a painting

“We were making very peculiar music not particularly well played. We got a record contract because the record companies thought, ‘We better get weird’”: Inside the mind of Judge Smith, the man who named Van der Graaf Generator

By Sid Smith published 14 March 24

Inspired by the work of bandmate Peter Hammill and Frank Zappa, Smith aimed never to sound like them – and after working on large ensemble pieces and stage musicals, admitted he’d quite like to “just roll in with a guitar”

“Our contemporaries had numbers that got people up on their feet cheering. We didn’t… We wondered if A Plague Of Lighthouse Keepers was the way to go. I thought, ‘We can’t even play this!’”: Van der Graaf Generator’s struggle through the 70s

By Sid Smith published 23 February 24

Keyboardist Hugh Banton on deciding not to emulate Keith Emerson’s stage persona, how he got the band signed, and why it took him so long to accept the “prog” label

“I think the appeal was that it was just a very spacey and very unusual sound world for me." How the classic Canterbury sound inspired young UK proggers Zopp

By Sid Smith published 3 February 24

How Zopp, masterminded by young UK prog musician Ryan Stevenson, are making. areal impact with second album Dominion

Baker Gurvitz Army - Neon Lights the Broadcasts 1975

“Ginger Baker stamps, thumps and whacks his personality into these numbers… he sounds a bit confused and well-lubricated, much to the evident, if a little strained, amusement of his bandmates”: Baker Gurvitz Army’s Neon Lights: The Broadcasts 1975

By Sid Smith published 26 January 24

They own the stage in collection of five live performances which will please old campaigners and new recruits alike

“I suppose what’s different is me. I’ve done a lot of exploring, particularly with Robert Fripp… Working with him was very easy, which doesn’t sit well with a lot of the public’s perceptions of him!” Theo Travis looks back

By Sid Smith published 15 January 24

He’s worked with Soft Machine, Steven Wilson, The Tangent, Gong and more – but the saxophonist and flautist still has one collaborator on his bucket list

“Do seven versions of one piece border on overkill? Resolutely and resoundingly no”: Magma’s Une Histoire De Mekanïk - 50 Years Of Mëkanïk Dëstruktïẁ Kömmandöh

By Sid Smith published 24 December 23

Anniversary box set may not be cheap, but it’s immensely satisfying

“We played for practically 24 hours. When somebody got too tired, somebody else would take over. It was a functional, practical thing to enable the band to play for ever!” When the Pink Fairies and Hawkwind became a single band

By Sid Smith published 23 December 23

Pushed together by accident, two pioneering acts of the psychedelic era made the most of it

“I was seven months pregnant. The doctor said I couldn’t travel but I explained that I was going to be playing with John McLaughlin… she said, ‘Okay, well you have to go!’” Hedvig Mollestad started out feeling like a failure

By Sid Smith published 13 December 23

From a challenging start where she couldn’t play be-bop to delivering improv music that’s favourably compared with King Crimson, she’s taken every opportunity to progress

“As hard as it was, and it was hard, nobody wanted to bottle out. We just knew we had a big landscape we could explore”: How Tales From Topographic Oceans became the most arduous project in Yes’ history

By Sid Smith published 7 December 23

Used as a byword for musical over-indulgence, 1973 album fought its creators every step of the way – right down to its master tapes nearly being crushed by a bus

"It’s like an ocean of music, of experience and concept and feelings." Inside the musical mind of David Sancious

By Sid Smith published 1 December 23

A one-time member of Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band and Peter Gabriel collaborator, David Sancious discusses his Eyes Wide Open album

King Crimson and Can were among their go-to inspirations – but in the new romantic era, Talk Talk couldn’t admit it

By Sid Smith published 27 November 23

Steve Hogarth, Tim Bowness, Richard Barbieri and others speak up for the band’s prog credentials

Frank Zappa Over-Nite Sensation 50th Anniversary

“He may be lauded by some as a genius, but without this team’s heavy lifting, these pieces might fail”: Frank Zappa’s Over-Nite Sensation 50th Anniversary Edition

By Sid Smith published 20 November 23

Five-disc, 88-track set proves his music lasts - even if many of his lyrics don’t

Pentangle got a bit of stick and still does... but music is about putting ideas together and understanding them, not making sounds you think are trendy”: Why John Renbourn always stood up to the purists

By Sid Smith published 1 November 23

Kicked out of art school, he embarked on an accidental career in baroque prog and folk jazz - and regarded himself as a lucky winner

“Playing the second-ever single alongside brand-new compositions brings a degree of eccentricity that’s important to Soft Machine”: The new line-up’s new album Other Doors

By Sid Smith published 10 October 23

Canterbury mainstays enter a new era without late drummer John Marshall and retired bassist Roy Babbington

“Otherworldly, intensely powerful and sometimes baffling… the product of an artist they no longer recognised”: Tim Buckley’s Lorca

By Sid Smith published 8 October 23

1970 album contained more progressive elements than his label wanted from a sensitive hippie troubadour

David Sylvian - Samadhisound 2003-2014: Do You Know Me Now?

“Unsettling - not exactly made for repeat listening but more occasional contemplation, like a book of poetry”: David Sylvian’s Samadhisound 2003-2014: Do You Know Me Now?

By Sid Smith published 21 September 23

Box set illustrates an apparent disappearing act over a decade

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
View Archive

Sid Smith

Get the Louder Newsletter