"Moonchild" is the fourth track from the British

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 progressive rock

Progressive rock

Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...

 band King Crimson

King Crimson

King Crimson are a rock band founded in London, England in 1969. Often categorised as a foundational progressive rock group, the band have incorporated diverse influences and instrumentation during their history...

's debut album, In the Court of the Crimson King

In the Court of the Crimson King

In the Court of the Crimson King is the 1969 debut album by the British progressive rock group King Crimson. The album reached No. 5 on the British charts, and is certified gold in the United States....

.

The first section, "The Dream", is a mellotron

Mellotron

The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...

-driven ballad, but after two and a half minutes it changes to a completely free-form instrumental improvisation by the band (called "The Illusion"), which lasts until the end of the song. Robert Fripp

Robert Fripp

Robert Fripp is an English guitarist, composer and record producer. He was ranked 42nd on Rolling Stone magazine's 2003 list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" and #47 on Gibson.com’s "Top 50 Guitarists of All Time". Among rock guitarists, Fripp is a master of crosspicking, a technique...

 plays a snippet of "The Surrey With the Fringe on Top" from Rodgers & Hammerstein's "Oklahoma!

Oklahoma!

Oklahoma! is the first musical written by composer Richard Rodgers and librettist Oscar Hammerstein II. The musical is based on Lynn Riggs' 1931 play, Green Grow the Lilacs. Set in Oklahoma Territory outside the town of Claremore in 1906, it tells the story of cowboy Curly McLain and his romance...

" in this section. In the 2009 remastered version of the album, the track was edited by Fripp and colleague Steven Wilson

Steven Wilson

Steven John Wilson is an English musician, best known as the founder, lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of progressive rock band Porcupine Tree...

, with around 2.30 minutes of the original improvisation (the reference by Fripp to "Surrey With the Fringe on Top") being removed. This issue of the album does, however, offer the original version as a bonus track.

Along with songs by Yes

Yes (band)

Yes are an English rock band who achieved worldwide success with their progressive, art, and symphonic style of rock music. Regarded as one of the pioneers of the progressive genre, Yes are known for their lengthy songs, mystical lyrics, elaborate album art, and live stage sets...

, this song was used in the 1998 movie Buffalo ’66

Buffalo ’66

Buffalo ’66 is a 1998 comedy-drama film that is writer/director Vincent Gallo's semi-autobiographical full-length motion picture debut. Gallo and Christina Ricci star in the lead roles and the supporting cast includes Mickey Rourke, Rosanna Arquette, Ben Gazzara, and Anjelica Huston...

, in the scene in which Christina Ricci

Christina Ricci

Christina Ricci is an American actress. Ricci received initial recognition and praise as a child star for her performance as Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values , and her role as Kat Harvey in Casper...

 tap dances at the bowling alley.

Covers

• British rock band Doves used the melody from this song for their track "M62 Song
  The Last Broadcast (album)
  The Last Broadcast is the second studio album by British indie rock band Doves. The album was released by Heavenly Records on 29 April 2002, and went straight to number 1 on the UK Albums Chart. The album's first single "There Goes the Fear" entered the UK Singles Chart at number 3, the band's...
  
  ".
• Rapper MIMS
  Mims (rapper)
  -Career:Mims graduated from Westbury High School and was born in Westbury Ny enrolled at Nassau Community College. He left the institution after two months of classes to pursue a career in rap music. He began spending time in Harlem with Cam'ron as an acquaintance...
  
  samples the song in his track "Doctor Doctor".
• London based hip hop producer Beat Butcha samples the instrumental section in the song "looking at you" by Brad Strut, featured in the EP "fallout selter" by Brad Strut