Do You Like Proogressive Rock?

I love a bit of Yes, ELP, Pink Floyd, Spock's Beard, and many others.

Discuss...

I can take Yes in small doses, Genesis (but I like the Phil Collins era), a little ELP but I'm not a huge fan.

After awhile it tends to get meandering and over done with synths and electronic extended instrumental "experiments" that don't know when to call it a day.

It is mostly a music movement that originated in the UK in the 1970's with bands utilizing alot of synthesizers and electronically programmed instruments like drum machines, to compose fairly long pieces of music. Not your typical top 40
2-3 minute long song...but songs that were 10 or 20 minutes in length, with lyric contect, but alot of emphasis on long instrumental extended, almost I wouldn't say psychedelic, but sort of mind expanding, pseudo-intellectual jamming interludes.

The lyrics are often very "mystical", "mysterious", yet light and airy. Unlike say Zeppelin whose lyrics were mystical but rough and kick ass rock, prog. rock's "mysticsm" was supposed to be kind of a precursor as a rock form of (I'm gonna hear alot of crap about this statement), but almost New Age, mellow, soothing, healing (which is ok but the way it's done is more mind numbing to me).

Yes, Emerson Lake & Palmer, the Peter Gabriel period of Yes, were some of the forerunners of this.

If you think the critics rag on Queen, prog. Rock took many a beating too. Though I have to say, that I actually agree with some of the criticsm. My earlier post you will see I can only take it in small doses, then it gets awful boring and meandering..but that's just my opinion.

Oh there is one prog. rock artist I do like alot and that is Tangerine Dream...their music is 100% instrumental and the reason it doens't come off as meandering, is they usually fo film scores such as "A Clockwork Orange" and "Legend" both of which I love.

Arlene R. Weiss wrote:

with bands utilizing alot of synthesizers and electronically programmed instruments like drum machines, to compose fairly long pieces of music.

pseudo-intellectual jamming interludes.

Wow, I cannot disagree more. You say Yes and Genesis are electronically programmed, use drum machines, and their instrumentals are just improvised jams? And you call yourself a professional music reviewer / journalist? I have generally liked everything you have posted, but now I have completely lost my respect for you. What stupid and completely musically uneducated/ignorant statements you have made. Those bands and many more were composed of some of the greatest rock musicians of all time, who I might add are leagues beyond mere jamming.

Rabid Wolverine wrote:

It's people trying to be smart when they're really not.

How ignorant to generalize and say that about all progressive rock musicians. Here, I'll tell you all what progressive rock is all about:

Initially, it was a fresh escape from the boredom of 3-minute pop songs and pentatonic-style solos that were all over the radio in the early 70s. Bands like ELP, Genesis, Yes, and King Crimson each brought forth their own unique sounds never heard before.

Progressive rock cannot be given a single definition. Usually it is about creating a mood; creating a piece of music that has sections, recurring themes, and tells a story. At times it can be musically complex, but usually not for the sake of being complex. Most of these musicians are at such a high level of musical understanding and thus have the natural ability to create music at this level of complexity, so they do not feel they need to stoop down to the simplicity of others in order to be successful (however, I do acknowledge that Genesis went pop by the late 70s, but they did not lose their integrity for a second).

That is why I have so much respect for a band like Dream Theater. While many virtuoso musicians create completely technical music, Dream Theater, while often technical, rarely stray from creating meaningful and/or emotionally-driven music. So many of these bands can craft such incredible instrumental pieces of music. Music can speak so much without words, and it's bands like these who can prove it.

However, I do whole-heartedly acknowledge that sometimes simple is good. But sometimes the complexity of arrangements is what can make a certain composition come alive; it's whatever is right for the particular piece of music.

For many people, progressive rock is an acquired taste, as it was for me. But once appreciated, it is a completely different world from the pop-oriented music we are bombarded with on the radio. It's indeed not for everybody, but for those who like it, or grow to like it, they wonder what they would have done without it.

My list of top progressive songs:

Yes - Heart Of The Sunrise, Close To The Edge
Genesis - Dance On A Volcano, Firth Of Fifth
Dream Theater - Learning To Live, Erotomania
Dixie Dregs - Free Fall, What If
Rush - Xanadu, 2112 overture

Albums:

Dream Theater - Scenes From A Memory
Yes - Fragile
Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway
Pink Floyd - The Wall
Gentle Giant - Playing The Fool
Symphony X - The Odyssey

Progressive rooooooock.... *drool* Love it!

*waves to Dan*

yes

There are right ways to do prog rock and there are wrong ways to do prog rock. The kings of the right way are undoubtedly Yes, at least between 1968 and 1974 - "Relayer" is probably one of the finest prog rock albums ever.

But I really cannot expand upon Sir GH's definition of prog rock, as it is about as damn perfect a definition as it can possibly be. The only thing I'll add is that it stretches the players' abilities, which is why many of those musicians are considered the finest in rock history.

Trying to sound smart when they're really not? No, I do believe that's you - prog rock's lyrics go beyond the normal "i love her, she loves me" kind of lyrics and draws most of their inspiration from spiritual or (sometimes) religious readings, or just attempts to tell a story that was inspired by many authors. Apparently, that's all Jon Anderson (singer for Yes) and Neil Peart (drummer/lyricist for Rush) did was read read read, and it certainly shows in their lyrics.

I love prog rock. Especially early Genesis

Arlene wrote:Yes, Emerson Lake & Palmer, the Peter Gabriel period of Yes, were some of the forerunners of this.

Ahh yes. The Peter Gabriel era of Yes. So obscure it is that no one's ever heard any of it.

;)

Agh blasts from the past--

how about -- Renaissance --- Mother Russia-- Song of Scheherazade-- Ashes are Burning-- to name a few

UK --Carrying No Cross-- Ceaser's Palace Blues

Crack the Sky -- Rangers at Midnight--Nuclear Apathy- Robots for Ronnie

jethro tull-- Thick as a Brick


to name a few.....

*waves back at GH*

I've just discovered Gentle Giant via their 1973 album, Octopus. This is an interesting band to say the least.

It's really growing on me. Richly complex yet melodic prog.
Anyone who digs the operatic part of BoRhap will trip on the tune 'Knots'.

The prog era is great because it stands out in the history of rock n' roll like a sore thumb. It was a very unique and experimental era in popular music.

Neil Peart, Alan White and Bill Brufferd were drum programmers?

Keith Emerson and Rick Wakeman were virtuso keyboardists - not accordian players.

Ahhhhh, I'm glad to see the brains have returned to this thread.

Lester, interesting how you cut Yes off at 1974. Going For The One from '77 is actually my favourite Yes album. Parallels and Awaken are in my top ten Yes songs for sure. I like Tormato very much, as well. Release, Release is a killer song!

I think I need to give Relayer another listen or two. Right now I don't like it nearly as much as the others from the 70s. I find the YesShows version of The Gates Of Delirium to be much more energetic.

Has anyone here got YesSongs? Don't get me wrong, I love Bill Bruford, but Siberian Khatru with Alan White blows the album version away.