Mark King
Influences

The most famous musician among the natives of the Isle of Wight (England, right in the English Channel) is currently a portly gentleman who runs a local pub with his second wife Ria (the first was named Pia, how funny...). Occasionally, together with his career-long partner, keyboardist Mike Lindup, he embarks on some British or European tours, reviving the brand and music of his Level 42. His golden hands then stop unsuspectingly handling mugs of beer and bank statements, to reach prodigious levels when in contact with the graphite keyboard and the four strings of the Status bass, an instrument with which he has undoubtedly written an indelible page in the manual of world funky pop.

In 1984, however, the young King was yet to break through with the Level: the group's fame and commercial success were on the rise, but only three years later would they reach their peak with the remarkable and somewhat suave “Running In The Family.” The record label miraculously allowed him to release this solo album filled with artistic free will and a desire to play for himself rather than for any other less noble reason. The work is indeed not very commercial, much less than the contemporary music of Level 42, although far from diluted at the time, as would happen later. This wasn't music for the kids of that time, but rather for adults seeking instrumental excellence and melodic accessibility combined with musical consistency.

Remembering his youthful drumming days, the virtuosic King also sits behind the drums and cymbals for this occasion, providing a more than decent performance overall, and quite surprising considering that drums are not his regular instrument. On drums, he undoubtedly has no problem with timing, in fact... it's even too precise. Given the opportunity, in this solo album, the highly talented musician also handles the bit of electric guitar he needs (including solos) and even extends his hands to the keyboards, though he gets help from his colleague Lindup and others for the more virtuosic parts. In short, the only instruments he stays away from, enlisting specialists, are wind instruments and strings.

The forty minutes of the album are all interesting, with episodes sung with his polite and relaxed baritone voice, including a cover of Cream's "I Feel Free" which is re-proposed truthfully without any particular added value, alongside instrumentals. Mark makes sure to stay within the realm of structured songs, not indulging too much in jam sessions or purely gymnastic episodes on the keyboard. However, towards the end of the super suite opener "The Essential," the album's strong piece, he really goes at it with his proverbial and terrifying slaps at unreal speed, after previously indulging at length on his principal instrument with a series of harmonics, wha wha pedal timbre distortions, and darting melodies on the high notes.

Focusing on this extensive (over eighteen minutes) and laborious masterpiece of his, it contains a lot... there are choral voices, tubular bells, cello and flute passages, brass sections, electric guitar solos, frenetic accelerations, and atmospheric openings: it's decidedly a progressive page, even if the timbres and punch of the rhythm logically draw from the preferred jazz rock fusion palette.

Last note on the cover: in my opinion, it's no accident the posture chosen for the musician's photo, with that thumb prominently displayed pressing on his face, complete with calloused fingertip... in the foreground is precisely the limb responsible for much of his unique and sensational style on the bass, so pumping and percussive. No wonder Mark King's hands are still insured with Lloyd’s for a six-figure sum!