Great Prog bands who weren't one of "the Big Five"

Can is its own thing, sui generis. While I can almost understand the impulse, I can't put them in the same category as bands like ELP and Genesis. And I agree with your broader point there as well. I love the German bands a lot but while obviously experimental, they were operating in more of a minimalist vein with a very a different feel from what we think of as symphonic prog, less manicured, more visceral (barring some exceptions like Eloy and Novalis). I think maybe ADII comes a little bit closer to prog territory (circa Tanz der Lemminge) at times but more like Canterbury psych. Of course, these categorization labels are imprecise at best, so I don't get too hung up on it.

 

The fab letter "N"

Necronomicon
Nektar
Neu!
Night Sun
Nosferatu
November

 

Happy The Man

 

I've never really thought of Barclay James Harvest as a prog band.

 

Don't see why Pink Floyd wouldn't be in that list of top 5.
Fit perfectly in that list of the "biggies".

 

Definitely one of the most important originators of the burgeoning form defined as "prog"
Lots of folks, (hello Rolling Stone mag. and its roster on the board of that Rock hall of fame... ) seem to forget. Or overlook this....

 

While I agree that they should be included, lest the term becomes too restrictive, many argue that neither have the complexity to be true prog bands. They pretty much stick to 4/4. Gilmore had to play the fretless bass parts as Waters didn't have that level of skill. And even on Money, one of their few odd meter songs, they switch from 5/4 to 4/4 when it comes time for Gilmore's solo.

 

Can were an extremely agile group live, capable of transforming disparate music ideas and unleash monster improvisations on the fly. Probably only Henry Cow could come really close on an rare all-out improv night, but even then it was never such a captivating magic carpet ride like Can's.

Surely, Soft Machine were great at their repetitive free-psychedelic-jazz jamming, Zappa and Fripp might let their bands loose for a longer while, Magma had their shaman group improvs and chanting (at times not far away from AACM/AEoC's modus operandi), Focus could soldier on improvising for 40 minutes with gusto and bravado, but it all still sounded like a semi-controlled environment. And Can, once unleashed, could just go anywhere and never return, producing surprising twists off the cuff, and that wonderful freedom never felt like an anarchy.

I love the crazy feeling of "anything can happen" on Can live recordings. Their lightness and sheer brilliance of touch I can sometimes find in the music of AreA, Samla Mammas Manna and Maneige, but these three usually followed the script, except for some occasional AreA's outward bound trips. However, it was only Can which had their unique alchemical receipt for an instant transmutation of ideas into improvisations, actually compositions in statu nascendi.

What a band!

 

Triumvirat

 

Totally agree with the Gentle Giant part. I think they're the best prog band ever. Honorable mention to Camel.

 

The Alan Parsons Project
Supertramp
Electric Light Orchestra
Rush

 

Caravan. And the much ignored Egg....a taster for those not familiar...

 

I agree on the band but not the album , it is a great album but suffers from poor sound, I much prefer the following albums Second and Phantasmagoria, my favourite, however, is the rockier and less progressive Aircut.

 

Seventh Wave. Eccentric English band that made two albums, "Things to Come" and "Psi-Fi". Dense keyboard/synthesizer arrangements. Vocals which weren't everyone's cup of tea.

 

Not sure if they have been mentioned but in France Ange used to be absolutely huge - my favourite album is Emile Jacotey (1975), one of their albums (Par les fils de Mandrin, 1976) was also released with English vocals but I prefer the original French version - if you haven't heard them yet , check them out , another great French band is Atoll , this is their debut from 1974

 

I am a big fan of Home but only The Alchemist can be considered a prog album, and one of the best too



a band that I haven't seen mentioned yet and certainly one of my favourites is Beggar's Opera

 

It's the only Aphrodite's Child album I've heard, but I really like 666.

 

Interesting. Airconditioning, to me, is a classic album, but I agree the album could have been produced a lot better.

Air Cut, I like, but some of the lyrics are a bit lame, and a couple of songs really grate.

I took my favourites from Air Cut & Love Child, and made an album I really like.

 

Now the letter "K" :
Kahvas Jute
Kalacakra
Kuni Kawachi & Friends
Kebnekaise
King Ping Meh
Kollektiv
Krokodil

 

Lots of great bands mentioned here. Aside from the usual UK suspects (VGDD, Gentle Giant, Camel, Caravan), there are many great Euro bands like Ange & Magma from France, Le Orme, PFM and Banco from Italy that have plentiful and worthwhile back catalogues. As far as today is concerned, I'm not nearly so enthusiastic. I think Radiohead is as close as it gets for my taste. I know it's cool to call them overrated nowadays, but I'll take any Radiohead LP over the myriad bands recycling Genesis moves. Those guys have amassed a back catalog as impressive as Genesis, Yes or ELP, IMO.

 

For the most part, yes. They pre-date every band referred to in the "Big 5," yet never get the props they deserve. It's a joke.

 

Caravan.
Wigwam.
Aphrodites Child.
Gentle Giant.
Strawbs.
Hudson-Ford.

 

"M"

Machine
Mahogany Rush
Marsupilami
The Master's Apprentices
May Blitz
McChurch Soundroom
Message
Mighty Baby
Monument
Moses
My Solid Ground
Mythos

 

And turned upside down:

Wallenstein
Warhorse
Warpig
Wigwam
Wild Turkey
Wind
Wishbone Ash
Writing on the Wall

 

Rayuela from Argentina.