Any of various colors resembling the color of human blood; the primary color at one extreme end of the visible spectrum, an effect of light with a wavelength between 610 and 780 nm.

The color red symbolizes 'stop' or 'danger' in Western Culture, green being symbolic of 'go' or 'safe'. In Eastern cultures, red is generally a sign of good fortune - often used in wedding dresses or as a symbol of happiness. As the world turns we're seeing the cultures slowly merge and red wedding dresses are popping up all over California while the Chinese throw white weddings sans Billy Idol (thankfully).

Red is often used as slang for people with red hair ('carrot tops, copper tops') - esp the Irish. In Canada, it further denotes the Canadian 50 dollar bill which is a red colour.

R.E.D. also denotes Random Early Discard. Routers use this instead of tail-drop to improve TCP performance when their queue overflows. As the queue fills, the router begins to randomly discard datagrams.

'Red', finally, is an album by the progressive rock group King Crimson. Released in 1974, it was considered a masterpiece especially considering that David Cross left the band while it was being recorded.

Track List:

Laura O'Neill had a nosebleed and could not stop crying, could not stop making it worse.

In Montana everything above you sets itself on fire every night, it never disappoints.

One Thanksgiving morning my brother went out to chop wood for the stove and came back in coated with blood, his whole face. So much blood my mother thought it must be a joke. Blood in the carpet, round specks on the kitchen floor, on the cabinet doors, on her hands when she realized it was really happening.

I think her wearing that dress was a gift to me, though she would not have planned it that way. Harlot red but she was shy.

red red my crazy bloodshot eyes the mornings I woke up so sad and at the end of lost. Monster eyes that didn't make biological sense, no reason.

Red sweater woman seated to my left writing words I do not know yet.

My father forbade me to touch his red pens but I did, I stole them every chance I got.

Red is not something I ever see at work, I realize, not on children. Their uniforms are redless and they are forbidden nailpolish, lipstick, barrettes, nothing gaudy and wonderful.

Apples apples apples tomato tomato cherry the number of apples I ate as a child was ridiculous.

My skin is red in the glow of neon SAN FRANCISCO COFFEE, hands glow red.

the red things that were not cattails that grew in the ditches of Tara's field; we were so little.

When's the last time I saw my own blood?

the red shirt I'm afraid to wear for obvious reasons, you don't need me to tell you. Who wears red, anymore? No one I know, we are all too shy. Last night I dreamed I had left the red shoes behind and a man I did not know returned them to me.

Red you could swim in, deep, encompassed in its own color like a jewel, like a really good sky.

A color charge carried by some quarks and some gluons.
It's antithesis is anti-red. Meaning that:

red + anti-red = white (or color neutral)

see Quantum Chromodynamics

Derogatory slang for a Communist, especially of the Soviet or Chinese persuasion. Lenin and Mao both used the colour red as their symbol.

In the Bolshevik revolution and the Russian Civil War, the Red Army was that of the Bolsheviks (as opposed to the Whites, who were tsarists; and the Mensheviks, who AFAIK didn't have a colour).


ASCII Art Representation:

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Character Etymology:

Usually this character has been explained as an ideograph combining earth and fire with a meaning of something like, "terracotta." However, an old form clearly shows that the top radical (which looks like + here) is a variant of the radical for big, giving a meaning of big blaze with a ruddy glow.


on-yomi: SEKI SHAKU
kun-yomi: aka aka- aka(i) aka(ramu) aka(rameru)

Nanori Readings:

Nanori: a ako ama

English Definitions:

  1. SEKI, SHAKU, aka, aka(i): red, crimson, scarlet.
  2. aka(bamu): redden, color up, blush.
  3. aka(ramu): become red.
  4. aka(remaru), aka(meru), aka(mu): blush, redden.
  5. aka(chan): baby.
  6. aka-: complete, entirely.

Character Index Numbers:

New Nelson: 5840
Henshall: 46

Unicode Encoded Version:

Unicode Encoded Compound Examples:

(sekishin): sincerity, true heart.
赤信吾 (aka shingo): red light.
(akacha iro): reddish brown color.

  Previous: stone  |  Japanese Kanji  |  Next: thousand

Red is blood. Red is fire. Infact, the Hebrew words for red and blood both share the same origin. Ancient Romans used a red flag as a signal for battle, while the ancient Egyptians considered themselves to be a 'red race' and painted themselves in the colour.

The colour red gives off both positive and negative feelings. Joy, passion, love, danger and anger all all represented by this bold colour. Yet the meaning of red tends to vary in different regions of the world. Different hues also have various meanings.

In Western Europe, Japan and the USA red is generally associated with the words danger, anger and stop. China hands over a little more positivity to red, using it heavily during festive occassions and to signify joy and good luck. In India red symbolises soldiers. And lastly, in Russia, red connotates beauty.

Joy, love, feminity, passion and sexuality = Light red
Vigor, willpower, masculinity, anger, courage and wrath = Dark red
Sacrifice and bravery = Maroon
Desire, pleasure, pride, vanity, idealism and a thirst for action = Reddish orange

Red is often considered a warm colour. Surrounding ourselves in a red-coloured environment wil leave us feeling cozy, harmonious and may even speed up our perception of time. A common example is that chickens surrounded in a red environment will become happier and eat less.

Many shades of red are thought to be stimulating and even appetising. Some people believe that eating red foods will help you lose weight, and science has even proved that the mere perception of colour red can enhance the human metabolism by up to 13.4%! On top of this, red can stimulate the autonomic nervous system and increase bodily tension. It is because of this and the colour's good visibility that stop signs, brake lights and fire equipment are coloured in red. Also, when a person suffers temporary colour blindness, they will regain the ability to see red before any other colour.

A red rose is a sign of fidelity and love. Give a loved one a rose and you will be giving them a message of passion and respect. Red candles are linked to strength, passion, energy, sexual potency, good health and courage.

Red has been used widely in politics during the past. It became the symbol of communism and socialism in Russia during the early 1900's. In a cold country like Russia, the warmth of red was smiled upon. The colour is also the most common colour featured on national flags.

These days red is used in the advertising industry because it stands out, however it can be considered obtrusive and is used less often than blue.

References cited:'s_leap/meaning/red.htm

A penny. "That crumb ain't got a red, and he's puttin' on a million dollar front (appearance)."

- american underworld dictionary - 1950
Members (at the time):

Robert Frippguitar and mellotron
John Wettonbass and voice
William Brufordpercussion

Special thanks to (i.e., not actual members):

David Crossviolin
Mel Collinssoprano saxophone
Ian McDonaldalto saxophone
Robin Milleroboe
Marc Charigcornet


Fallen Angel
One More Red Nightmare

The third (and last) King Crimson album with the Fripp-Wetton-Bruford lineup, KC goes out with a bang on this one. The three remaining members really play the hell out of their instruments, giving the masses one more red nightmare (so to speak). Bob, John, and Bill really focus their talents, being (in my opinion) what King Crimson should be: just a group of truly remarkable talents playing some damn good music. Unfortunately, right before this album came out, Fripp disbanded King Crimson, because he wanted to prepare himself for the coming apocalypse.

I'm serious.

"...a decade of considerable panic in the 1990s - collapse on a colossal scale. The wind-down has already started. It's no doomy thing - for the new world to flourish, the old has to die. But the depression era of the Thirties will look like a Sunday outing compared to this apocalypse. I shall be blowing a bugle loudly from the sidelines."* - Robert himself

I must've missed it.

Anyway, this last album sums up the whole library of Wetton-Fripp-Bruford King Crimson. Raw, unadulterated rock, depressing but strong ballad-tales, improv loosely bound into a coherent song with strange lyrics, and straight prog-rock lunacy.

It all starts with the title track, Red, an instrumental. Raw power is the issue here. Robert has a fantastic ability to write an incredibly intricate piece of music and make it a whole lot louder than it's meant to be. Reminiscent of the Larks' Tongues In Aspic, Part Two, off of Larks' Tongues In Aspic, this song is probably the heaviest on the album. Absolutely stunning riffage brings to mind a sense of evil, but Crimso stays true to its prog roots, and incoporates David Cross and his violin into the fray. Also, Bill Bruford's penchant for psychotic drumming is shown off through the whole song. Amazingly, he keeps perfect rhythm with the frenzied chords, and does a magnificent job. And, as always, John Wetton's basswork is on par with Fripp's guitar work. An ideal beginning for the end.

The second track, Fallen Angel, is my personal favorite. It starts out a bit like Exiles, a track from Larks' Tongues In Aspic, epic and sweeping, and then John Wetton's voice comes in. Low, comforting, a dark, smooth finish on the structure of the song itself. For once, it seems that the instrumental talents take backseat for a while. But when they take over again, it's absolutely awe-inspiring. Fripp's guitar weeps, moans, and screams, Wetton's bass sings softly and wistfully, and combined with Bruford's brilliant percussion and Wetton's gentle, sad voice, the three create a gloriously regretful ballad (for lack of a better word). Also, Mel Collins, Ian McDonald, Robin Miller, and Marc Charig play off of Fripp's guitar, and add greatly to the song. John sings of a life on the streets, of the death of a brother, and of deep regret. One of the most beautiful songs I've ever heard.

Third is One More Red Nightmare, the story of (surprise, surprise) a nightmare. This is where the album starts to get more prog-related. It goes from rock to prog improvisation, back to rock, and ends with a mellifluous combination of both. Robert really gets his Les Paul to sing for him on this one, evoking snarls and shrieks. Wetton's bass really stands out in this song, almost overtaking Fripp's guitar in the more prog-ish parts of the song. The nice thing about this song, though, is that it's almost a sampler of King Crimson's music in one song. It gets really raw at some points, and gets really progressive at others, creating a melange that coalesces perfectly. Modern jazz meets raw power in a sort of musical maelstrom.

Then comes the real prog-fest of the album, Providence. I've heard that this started out as an improv at a King Crimson live show, and made its way onto the album. Sounds good to me. For once, Robert isn't the main attraction. This song focuses a lot more on the talents of David Cross and his violin, and Wetton and his fantastic basswork. Providence gives the listener a taste of what King Crimson was like on stage: very bizarre. Fripp does get into the song near the end, but his guitar sort of takes a backseat to the lower instruments in the band. At one point (around the six and a half minute mark), Fripp seems to get pissed off, and starts playing his guitar louder. Wetton responds by playing his bass quicker and louder, to drive Fripp out. What results is a fight between instruments, a clash of the titans, as it were. This dies down after a while, the monsters shrink back into their respective caves, and Cross comes in to finish the song off.

Lastly, we have Starless, a supposed "reworking" of the track Starless and Bible Black, from the previous album of the same name. I'm not too sure about that, but Starless is still a great song. It's really Fripp's piece, though. As progressive and improvisational as it may seem, it's truly driven by Robert's black Les Paul. It starts with a sad mellotron backing and a saxophone solo, with hopeless lyrics crooned by Wetton. The beginning is misleading, going from gloomy mellotron to lone guitar for a few minutes, giving the song a creepy atmosphere. Fripp plays the same line, progressively higher and louder, and Bruford throws a few cymbals and other sundries into the mix, but nothing terribly exciting seems to be going on. Then, it all comes back together. Wetton's bass slides back in with some amazingly quick lines, and the saxophone takes over again. At one point, you can feel the tension of the musicians, holding back the full fury. Then, it finally comes. Fripp, Wetton, Bruford, Collins, McDonald, Miller, and Charig all play as hard as they can, intertwining to form Crimson at its progressive, raw best, to end the album with one hell of huge bang.

Looking back, this is probably the best '70s era King Crimson album out of the three. It seems like the three musicians knew that this would be the last one, and they put their all into it. Everything they had, and a lot more than that. Robert's guitar, John's bass and voice, and Bill's drums form a sort of triforce (heh) here, blowing the listener away at one point, and lulling him/her to sleep at the next. The perfect epitaph for the band that broke the rules and made some awesome music. Recommended for: King Crimson beginners, veteran Crimso fans, fans of rock, fans of classical music, fans of prog-rock, and fans of music. In short, everyone.

*Taken from Red’s liner notes

The trees, their arms outstretched, inviting,
The wind, cold and unforgiving,
The darkness, surrounding, suffocating,
Fingers, scraping, searching, clasping,
The knife, sharp, ripping flesh,
The screams, hollow and twisted,
The wolf, howling, bleeding, defeated,
Red, the cloak fluttering,
The girl, insane: smiling.

Red (r?d), obs.

. imp. & p. p. of Read.



© Webster 1913.

Red, v. t.


[Prov. Eng. & Scot.]


© Webster 1913.

Red, a. [Compar. Redder (-d?r); superl. Reddest.] [OE. red, reed, AS. red, red; akin to OS. rd, OFries, rd, D. rood, G. roht, rot, OHG. rt, Dan. & Sw. rd, Icel. raur, rjr, Goth. ruds, W. rhudd, Armor. ruz, Ir. & Gael. ruadh, L. ruber, rufus, Gr. , Skr. rudhira, rohita; cf. L. rutilus. &root;113. Cr. Erysipelas, Rouge, Rubric, Ruby, Ruddy, Russet, Rust.]


"Fresh flowers, white and reede."


Your color, I warrant you, is as red as any rose. Shak.




© Webster 1913.

Red (r?d), n.



"Celestial rosy red, love's proper hue."



A red pigment.

3. European Politics

An abbreviation for Red Republican. See under Red, a.


4. pl. Med.

The menses.


<-- 5. Informal name for a Communist. -->

English red, a pigment prepared by the Dutch, similar to Indian red. -- Hypericum red, a red resinous dyestuff extracted from Hypericum. -- Indian red. See under Indian, and Almagra.


© Webster 1913.
