In the Wake of Poseidon is the second studio album by English progressive rock group King Crimson, released in May 1970 by Island Records in Europe, Atlantic Records in the United States, Philips Records in Australia, and Vertigo Records in New Zealand. To date the album is their highest-charting in the UK, reaching number 4. The album was recorded during a period of instability within the band owing to a fluctuating lineup. It follows a very similar musical style and track sequence to their first album, In the Court of the Crimson King. The album was well-received by contemporary critics, who commended the overall execution and production quality as an improvement over that of the band's debut. However, later assessments have faulted its heavy reliance on the template established by its predecessor, and generally deem the album inferior. Background Ian McDonald and Michael Giles left the band following their first American tour in 1969. Around the same time Greg Lake was approached by Keith Emerson to join what would become Emerson, Lake & Palmer. With the absence of McDonald, Robert Fripp took on part of the keyboard-playing role in addition to guitar. As Lake's position in the band was unclear, then-unknown Elton John was booked to sing on the recording sessions for In the Wake of Poseidon, but Fripp had second thoughts and cancelled the booking. Lake ultimately decided to leave, but agreed to sing on the recordings, negotiating to receive King Crimson's PA equipment as payment. He ended up singing on all but one of the album's vocal tracks. The exception was "Cadence and Cascade", which featured a guest vocal by Fripp's old schoolfriend and teenage bandmate Gordon Haskell. An early mix of the song with Lake singing a guide vocal was later unearthed and featured on the DGM site as a download. Michael Giles agreed to play on the album after an initial attempt to find a new drummer to replace him proved unsuccessful. Other performers were Giles' brother Peter on bass (the brothers and Fripp had all worked together in the pre-Crimson band Giles, Giles and Fripp), Mel Collins (formerly of the band Circus) on saxophones and flute, and jazz pianist Keith Tippett. Fripp, Lake, Tippett, and the Giles brothers appeared on Top of the Pops miming "Cat Food". This would be King Crimson's only appearance on the show. With the album on sale, Fripp and Sinfield