Pariah Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 So, which progressive rock albums would you consider essential? I'd like to solicit nominations, one or two at a time, and then conduct a poll or three to narrow the list down to 10 or 15 total albums. The first step is nominations. Nominate no more than two albums for post, please. Include a sentence or two for each album to explain why you're nominating it. If you like an album that someone else has nominated, post a comment seconding the nomination. We'll let this thread for go for about a week, after which I'll take all nominated and seconded albums and create a poll. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pariah Posted March 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 At some point I will create a Google Document to keep track of which albums have been nominated and seconded. When I do so, I will include the link here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Logan D. Hurricanes Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 Are you including greatest hits albums or just the original albums? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pariah Posted March 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 I will get the ball rolling with a couple of pretty obvious ones. Days of Future Passed by The Moody Blues. One of the first concept albums, and one of the first rock albums to feature a full orchestra. Moving Pictures by Rush. This album features different musical styles, thought-provoking lyrics, exceptional musicianship (to say the least), and a hit single that features multiple shifting time signatures. Cygnia 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pariah Posted March 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 1 minute ago, Logan.1179 said: Are you including greatest hits albums or just the original albums? Great question. Let's limit it to original albums. If I get highly-motivated, maybe I'll do one for Greatest Hits albums later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazza Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 In the Court of the Crimson King by King Crimson. The Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd Reason for inclusion: Both are axiomatic masterpieces. If Pariah needs more, I can post later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ternaugh Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 Fragile by Yes. Starts out strong with "Roundabout", it's an album where it's possible to hear new details on each listening. Foxtrot by Genesis. While all of the tracks are good, the pinnacle has to be "Supper's Ready", a sprawling 23 minute opus that makes the best use of all of the band's talents. I will second Days of Future Passed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cancer Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 Second Court of the Crimson King, Fragile, and Dark Side of the Moon. I am not entirely certain where the boundaries are on the genre. Some of the below may be defined out of the category, but I still consider them essential. The short-lived supergroup GO's eponymous album Breathless by Camel Blow by Blow by Jeff Beck Machine Head by Deep Purple Open Fire by Ronnie Montrose Brain Salad Surgery by Emerson, Lake, & Palmer Asia Boston Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starlord Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 I honestly don't know what 'Progressive Rock' is. assault 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pariah Posted March 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 3 hours ago, Starlord said: I honestly don't know what 'Progressive Rock' is. I find this article at TV Tropes helpful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pariah Posted March 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 4 hours ago, Cancer said: I am not entirely certain where the boundaries are on the genre. I'm not entirely certain that anyone is. Of the ones you listed, I would definitely include Brain Salad Surgery as prog, with Asia being a borderline case. Boston is a great album, and Tom Scholz is certainly bombastic enough to be mentioned in the same breath as guys like Rick Wakeman and Keith Emerson, but I don't personally consider Boston to be a progressive band. I don't know that I have enough knowledge or a strong enough opinion to comment on any of the others you mentioned. Which I guess is the point. Nominate, then let the voters decide. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cygnia Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 I'd argue "2112" or "Hemispheres" is more prog than "Moving Pictures", but that's just me. aylwin13, rravenwood and Pariah 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starlord Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 Just for me personally, I think lead/rhythm guitar needs to be at the forefront of the music for it to be in the 'rock' category, otherwise it goes into the pop genre. To me, Genesis is pop and so is Rush's 80s stuff where they started using synthesizer heavily. The Best of the Moody Blues is an album that may fit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
death tribble Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 Having studied Pariah's link my first two nominations must be:- Ok Computer - Radiohead Listed as one of the albums of the year when it came out,. The most well known tracks are Paranoid Android, Karma Police and No Surprises. Just billiant Script for a Jester's Tear - Marillion This is their debut album and all tracks exceed 5 minutes with only 6 tracks on the album. He Knows You Know is about Drug Abuse while Garden Party has a go at elitism and snobbery. slikmar 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
death tribble Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 Next two nominations Bat Out of Hell - Meatloaf Every home should have a copy. This is more about the singer and the song rather than instrumentation. The title track is over 9 minutes in length. Truly epic. And all of Muse's output is listed as prog.Shame I can't have the live in Rome or Wembley albums but still. So let's have Black Holes and Revelations - Muse This has Knights of Cydonia and Supermassive Black Hole as tracks. The tracks are EPIC. 'Nuff said Sundog and aylwin13 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazza Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 I will second Script for a Jester's Tear slikmar 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aylwin13 Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 Although The Yes Album, Fragile, and Close To the Edge are my favorite YES albums; I'm going to nominate Tales From Topographic Oceans. To me it's even more "progressive" than the other three. It's still an incredible album, although for me it requires more... "effort", I guess, to process it. Sundog 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sundog Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 I would suggest Tales of Mystery and Imagination and I Robot, both by The Alan Parsons Project. I'd second Foxtrot. Edit: Tales from Topographic Oceans is brilliant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pariah Posted March 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 It's interesting to me that the first Marillion album nominated was Script for a Jester's Tear and not Misplaced Childhood. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
death tribble Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 I got into them from that album and I associate prog with long tracks. I don't associate Misplaced Childhood with long tracks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ternaugh Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 I usually treat side 1 of Misplaced Childhood as a whole like "Supper's Ready" by Genesis. There's lots of individual tracks, but they all flow into each other. Pariah 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pariah Posted March 7, 2020 Author Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 Plus, Fish has come out and said that the whole thing was inspired by an acid trip. How Prog is that? Ternaugh 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Logan D. Hurricanes Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 1 hour ago, Sundog said: I would suggest Tales of Mystery and Imagination and I Robot, both by The Alan Parsons Project. Second both of these, I was trying to decided which albums of theirs to nominate. Ternaugh 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bazza Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 3 hours ago, Sundog said: Tales from Topographic Oceans Seconded Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rravenwood Posted March 7, 2020 Report Share Posted March 7, 2020 7 hours ago, Cygnia said: I'd argue "2112" or "Hemispheres" is more prog than "Moving Pictures", but that's just me. I don't think that counts as an official nomination for either album, so I will go ahead and nominate "Hemispheres" (although it's REALLY hard not to also nominate "A Farewell to Kings"). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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