The Smiley Smile Message Board

Any fans of Progressive Rock?

Personally, my favourite band is King Crimson. They seem just a lot greater and technically more fantastic than other bands like Genesis or Yes.

In The Court Of The Crimson King, Larks Tounges' In Aspic, Starless And Bible Black, Red and Discipline are some of the greatest albums (The first being probably the best of all, and my favourite album of all time).

I hate Collins-era Genesis, it's too new wave, too poppy and just sell out music, abandoning the Gabriel-era of not just doing it for the money, cause hey, that's what Prog Rock is all about. I've been obsessed by Gabriel's performance of Willow Farm from their 1973 concert at Shepperton, he's fantastic.

ELP's a little to self-indulgent and over-the-top. Yes is fantastic until Bruford left (I can't get into Topographic Oceans). Anything from the Canterbury scene is great.

LOVE prog!

Yes after Bruford left: there is a lot to love.

Relayer is IMO the greatest prog album ever, and Going For The One (at least side 2) is a close second..... I actually prefer Alan White over Bruford with Yes. His playing on Relayer is unreal and his style is deceptively simpler than Bruford's. As a drummer myself, it was fairly easy decoding Bruford's Yes stuff. Once you learn the rudimentary (as in drum rudiments) core of those parts,  they're fairly easy to pull off because they are so precise to rudiments and counting and can be played in a very laid-back manner (he was cranked way up there on the records: to great effect). White's playing (particularly on Gates Of Delirium and Awaken) is far more difficult and physically taxing to pull off. He steers away from where it feels natural to go time/accent-wise and it takes an insane amount of exertion and concentration to hit all the marks.... Don't count him out as a lazy "rock" drummer, like so many do, is all I'm sayin. Then again, the drum track on Instant Karma is my fave of anyone/ever so I'm biased.

Otherwise you're damn straight regarding King Crimson....

I'm cold on Gabriel era Genisis but LOVE the first few Collins era albums, and Gabriel is one of my top 5 solo guys ever, so who knows what my problem is.

Steve Hackett has some great solo stuff too.

I guess I enjoy Bruford's drumming much more when I heard him say in this documentary on the BBC, Prog Britannia that "It shouldn't be drummer's job to keep time, if you wanted time, use a metronome". I just appreciate his style much more. The drumming on 21st Century Schizoid Man is one of my favourite pieces I've ever heard, on the note of drumming. It's sad Michael Giles didn't really do anything of note apart from Crimson.

Trick Of The Tail was alright but Abacab and the others are just...lame. Cheezy 80's stuff with an emphasis on getting hit singles out. Don't get me wrong, Phil Collins had a pretty good, catchy solo career.

Does anybody here like Can? Jaki Liebezeit is one of the greatest drummers of all time, bar none.

Hiding somewhere under heaps of filler is Yes' best album. Just cut it down to your liking and get ready for your mind to be blown.

I'll try but it's too much. It reminds too much of what ELP was becoming; too self-indulgent and just wankerish.

Can is amazing!!!!!

Liebezeit is unreal!!!!

Topographic Oceans hits the mark every so often. I ALWAYS dig side 4 in it's entirety and the opening sections of side one are pretty awesome. I think it's a great album, but one that requires a bit too much work to take in.

After repeated listening on long train journeys TFTO is now my favourite Yes album above Close To The Edge!

In the mid 70s I had a ton of prog Lps. Crimson was much my favorite...I even used to listen to Lizard back then. Even Earthbound....something soothing about that murky cassette sound. Then there was Van Der Graaf Generator/Hammill. And Genesis, though I quit listening to 'em well before "Follow You Follow Me." The Groundhogs (if you count TS McPhee's Mellotron accents as prog). Gong, all the Canterbury stuff (except Caravan for some reason) everything German from Can to both Amon Duuls to Faust to Tangerine Dream. Even Jade Warrior.

And Gentle Giant. Now that outfit's worth mentioning here because when they got into their quasi madrigal harmonizing they had kinda something in common with the BBs....though their final poppy albums, which actually show a little BBs influence here and there, were not so inspired...

And had all the Yes records from the third one to Relayer, all the ELPs up to Works...

Nothing against prog, in fact I'm quite fond of it. However, Relayer by Yes is the only album that has managed to make me feel physicallly ill. I bought it, listened to it (three times, trying to get it) and returned it to store the very same day, because the inhuman music inside made me feel nauseous.

This year I spend most of my time discovering Genesis music and it opened another world for me. Selling England by the Pound and the Lamb are simply awesome but I still enjoy the Collins era, even ABACAB. The last time they really tried to experiment and the title track rocks and Man on the Corner might be one of Phil's best songs, he has ever written. The left over tracks are fun as well (Paperlate, Me & Virgil). I've got to admit I prefer Phil's voice and I think they got live much better in the late 70ies and 80ies. If I could pick one tour it would be the Encore '82 (just prior to the one off reunion) where they had the best mix of new and old songs (Suppers Ready, Dance on a Volcano, etc.)

Any thoughts on the band "Marillion"? Just a Genesis knock off? Any albums good without their first singer Fish? Or any other prog band you'd recommend? I am not that interested in ultra long guitar solos, I prefer more emphasis on bass and keys.

King Crimson is great stuff.....it's just so much more fun to listen to Rush and Coheed Cambria.

I'd like to add The Moody Blues, Os Mutantes, Magma, Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, and Henry Cow to the bands already mentioned.

Should The Moodies really count as prog? This seems to have caused them some trouble as they "don't have the chops" that the guys from Yes or King Crimson have yet they are way too prog for the Rolling Stone/Rock contingent.

I think that the Moodies have a singular style of music...they're probably more art rock than prog. I don't much consider them to be prog, either way.

Su-su-sussudio!

I've been a big Genesis fan ever since the release of their 1980 album, Duke. Before that, I really didn't understand any of their work. Too artsy, too intellectual. It was on Duke where Phil Collins' presence became more apparent. I think Invisible Touch was the group's undisputed masterpiece. It's an epic meditation on intangibility. At the same time, it deepens and enriches the meaning of the preceding three albums. Listen to the brilliant ensemble playing of Banks, Collins and Rutherford. You can practically hear every nuance of every instrument. In terms of lyrical craftsmanship, the sheer songwriting, this album hits a new peak of professionalism. Take the lyrics to Land of Confusion. In this song, Phil Collins addresses the problems of abusive political authority. In Too Deep is the most moving pop song of the 1980s, about monogamy and commitment. The song is extremely uplifting. Their lyrics are as positive and affirmative as anything I've heard in rock. Phil Collins' solo career seems to be more commercial and therefore more satisfying, in a narrower way. Especially songs like In the Air Tonight and Against All Odds. But I also think Phil Collins works best within the confines of the group, than as a solo artist, and I stress the word artist. Sussudio is a great, great song, a personal favorite.

Surprised nobody mentioned The Soft Machine. Their first four albums are prog monsters.

Aegir, is your real name Patrick Bateman? :o

ooh you got me. I was really hoping at least one person would respond to that and take it seriously. oh well.

I'd give Genesis the nod as to who is the best prog band ever. Until Gabriel left they didn't really put a foot wrong. I'm still trying to warm to King Crimson in the same way, but the constant line up shifting stopped the band from hitting the same heights. Also as great a player as he is, Robert Fripp often makes the mistake of showing how clever he is on his instrument as opposed to creating a catchy riff or chord sequence.

Aegir I'm with you. I used to try and hate Invisible Touch (mainly just because I was constantly told to) but if I ever happen upon In Too Deep, I have to go home and play it over and over and over and over again. It really is an absolutely perfect song/production/performance....

Funny story: I was in Albuquerque NM last year and I was at this hip little record store and there was a stack of new as of yet un-priced records that had just come in, and a sealed copy of Invisible Touch was among them. I asked what they wanted for it and they WOULD NOT LET ME PAY FOR IT and insisted I just take it..... I pleaded to let me give them something/anything, but they refused. It was their gift to me..... So, the mass public narrative is firmly in place.

I also happen to consider Duke the # 1 greatest concept album of all-time. It is certainly the easiest to relate to from a male perspective. What guy hasn't experienced that ugly and expansive barren and grey feeling after being dumped? That album encapsulates it all to well.

Count me in as an Invisible Touch fan, there are far worse songs then "In Too Deep" and I can not take the argument "sounds too much like Phil Collins solo stuff", almost anything on We Can't Dance sounds more like Phil. The only song I don't care for is "Land of Confusion". "Domino" is awesome, especially in 5.1 if you happen to own the SACD boxes.

That's why King Crimson never bettered In the Court of the Crimson King. Fripp's best work after that album is on No Pussyfooting.

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I dunno, Man. Lizard? Lark's Tongues In Aspic? Red? Discipline? Those are all masterpieces.

When I first decided to try out King Crimson I bought "In the Court Of...., Lizard and Larks Tongues..." Only the first one really grabbed me. I still plan to check out some of the Adrian Belew era stuff at some point.

RED is an absolute gem! Bruford seemed to even be awake for that one!

If Patrick Bateman was 10 years older what would he had listened to?

Not the biggest KC fan but my favorite of theirs has always been Islands (despite its flaws, such as including the truly awful "Ladies of the Road"...). Also, personally I like In the Wake of Poseidon way better than In the Court, even though these two are very similar to each other stylistically.

The last few minutes of the title track is one of the most profoundly beautiful moments in Rock N' Roll.

I love prog although the older I get the less patience I have for the length of the tunes, even though I don't find that to be self-indulgent as is often claimed.

I pretty much like most of Crim's music, a track or two there might be below average but the majority of it is great. I like the Larks/Starless/Red era Crimson best.