What's your favourite old prog rock

[Greeny]

Do The Wombles count?! 

Hmmm, well they have ridiculous costumes, a whole concept behind them, so.....

But I don't remember Uncle Bulgaria's penchant for silk kimonos and samurai swords, nor Madame Cholay's 30 minute dulicimer solos, so probably not....

Cheers,

Nigel

Chris Spedding was Wellington!!!!!!!

[Oldrottenhead]

PS: I enjoyed reading Nigel's argument with ORH about The Flaming Lips (my favorite CURRENT band), and can see both sides completely.  I don't think a band necessarily has to have concept albums (although the Lips do have at least two) and lyrics including wizards, fairies, leprechauns, spaceships, Bible passages, ancient civilizations, forests, mythological beasts, etc., nor does one necessarily need to have 20-minute songs or excessive keyboard, drum, and guitar solos to be considered "progressive."  Nigel, if you just take the definition of "progressive" and look at it objectively and separately from the already established phrase "progressive rock" or "prog rock," you will understand ORH's point.  I mean, Zaireeka, for shit's sake ... come on!  What's more progressive than that?

i have always defined prog rock as something that pushes the boundarys of music and  trys new, different and experimental things, by that definition zaireeka by the laming lips should be the number 1 prog rock album ever. lmfao

[Ferryman]

Chris Spedding was Wellington!!!!!!!

LOL, I thought I recalled that while I was typing the response but wasn't sure. What a come down, but it pays the rent!

Cheers,

Nigel

[Bosko Schwartz]

i have always defined prog rock as something that pushes the boundarys of music and  trys new, different and experimental things, by that definition zaireeka by the laming lips should be the number 1 prog rock album ever. lmfao

Well said, ORH -- I concur!  Most people don't even have the equipment nor the coordination it takes to listen to the album the way it was meant to be heard.  How utterly pretentious and absurd ... AND AWESOME!!!

One band nobody has brought up is Kansas! Not hardcore prog maybe but still !! Listened to a lot of their work, .... well I have almost every record they made

Geir, that's so funny -- I wanted to bring up Kansas, but I feared the Wrath of Nigel, so didn't do it just in case he thought they didn't qualify!   Luckily, Kerry Livgren's hair is ridiculous enough ...

[Greeny]

Rick Wakeman... prog-overdrive...

[Ferryman]

I wanted to bring up Kansas, but I feared the Wrath of Nigel, so didn't do it just in case he thought they didn't qualify!

And you are right to fear it!!! Upset me and I will be round at your house to read you a selection of Michael Moorcock poems dressed as a Slipperman from the Lamb Lies Down On Broadway.

Fear my wrath

Nigel

[Ted]

Ted, I may be wrong  but Brand X are more jazz than prog. They went in a direction I couldn't follow (as you'll understand from my post).
...
Don't know David Sancious, will have to check him out and also listen to more UK.

I'm not much of a Jazz fan. Nonetheless, I lean a little toward the Jazz side of the Prog spectrum. David Sancious and UK are on that side of the spectrum too.

Damn you, Prog, for tricking me into listening to Jazz!

Product is probably the most accessible album by Brand X -- a couple of songs were almost radio-friendly at the time.

Prog (like Punk) is kind of hard to define.  I fall back on my Subjective Definitions:

• If it makes me feel like breaking things (other than the source of the sound), it's probably Punk.
• It it makes me feel ashamed of my own musicianship (and ashamed that I might be caught listening to it) it's probably Prog.

[Oldrottenhead]

brand x are more jazz than prog?, so what are soft machine more prog than jazz?

[Ferryman]

Nah, Soft Machine have too much jazz to be prog. They are jazz rock. Hatfield and the North varied between the two, some of their stuff got a bit too jazzy. Gong the same - went very jazzy at stages but still had bonkers hippy prog at their core.

Next question please.

BTW Bosko, nailed it again! And if everyone else is ashamed of your musicianship, it's probably jazz.

Cheers,

Nigel

[Oldrottenhead]

Nah, Soft Machine have too much jazz to be prog.

Soft Machine were an English rock band from Canterbury, named after the book The Soft Machine by William S. Burroughs. They were one of the central bands in the so-called "Canterbury scene," and helped pioneer the progressive rock genre.