"Prog's crowning achievement" — Which LP is it?

I'd say at least the earlier albums were prog - but what do you think?

 

Ian wouldn't have had it any other way, I'm certain.

 

Just learning about them. Listened to Eye In The Sky tonight. I guess that's not an early album of theirs.

 

I love ‘the Raven’ but I love ‘The Gospel According To The Meninblack’ even more, and it even darker and prog-ier.

 

Echoes is totes prog.

Of course it's Close To The Edge.

 

But I'm not saying that. :-/ I'm asking why others have said it.

 

They did? Fair enough, I didn't notice.
Sometimes it helps when referring to an earliers post, to quote the post. Otherwise the assumption is that it's a direct response to the OP.

 

I've gotta go with:

U. K. "Self-Titled"- (Wetton/Bruford/Jobson/Holdsworth)
Yes - Tales From Topographic Oceans
Genesis - The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway

 

PRog's crowning achievement isn't an album, it's a song - "Roundabout"

 

O.K., we've finally come to the end of this thread. AND THE WINNER IS...

Glossolalia by Steve Walsh

 

I'm obviously not qualified to vote, as a prog denier, plus it's not been mentioned but if only for the title, Jon Anderson - Olias Of Sunhillow

 

An excellent and unique album.

 

just saying .....

 

My problem with the list was (as I explained) just that it was so narrow. It would be like a magazine producing a list of the "30 Greatest Rock Albums of the 70s" that looked like this:

America - America
Bread - Guitar Man
Carly Simon - Anticipation
Christopher Cross - Christopher Cross
Dan Fogelberg - Phoenix
Eric Carmen - Eric Carmen
James Taylor - JT
Loggins & Messina - Sittin' In
Seals & Crofts - Summer Breeze

Etc.

I like (and actually mostly love) all of that music, but if the whole list is more or less like that, it reflects at least pretty narrow tastes, if not very limited familiarity with the field. And since one of the main points of lists like that when they're coming from major publications (rather than just being an individual's personal favorites) is to serve as an exploration guide for people interested in the genre but not so familiar with it, the narrowness has problems in my view. Likewise if there were NO prog metal or heavy prog (basically prog hard rock) I'd see that as an issue. If you're going to make a list as an exploration guide, present a wide scope of stuff that's more representative of the genre. Otherwise it's like producing a map of New York City that only shows Times Square and that doesn't show Central Park, Murray Hill, Harlem, SoHo, the Lower East Side, etc., not to mention the other boroughs.

 

Yes on my view. I consider them "AOR prog" or "Arena prog," along with the Moody Blues, most ELO (after the first album, at least), Floyd from Dark Side on, Ambrosia, Styx, Kansas, etc.

 

You must have been looking at my uncle Rick's album collection. LMAO!

 

Maybe it's because the genre was still progressing continually in the 70s, breaking new ground rather than recapitulating the pre-existing formulae from decades past. I do listen to a fair amount of newer music, but I've rarely heard modern progressive music that convincingly asserted its own identity in a fresh new way. It usually feels more like they're trying to wear someone else's costumes, imo, and it often comes across sounding sterile. Strangely, I don't have this same issue with a lot of neo-psychedelic music that's come out over the years. Somehow that style seems more adaptable to different kinds of contemporary textures.

 

I understand what you're saying, and that's true of certain of the current "progressive" bands, but I don't think that can be said about - to pick just four - Porcupine Tree, Opeth, Anathema, or iamthemorning.

Anyway, since I made that post the New Prog Top 30 thread seems to have come back to life.

 

I don't know who from the past you'd figure Simon Steensland, OOIOO, Zs or Felicita sound like, to just name a few.

Not that I'm someone who thinks that a "literalist" approach to "progressive" as a genre term is a good idea. And definitely there are plenty of recent artists who are strongly following in the footsteps of various artists from the past--which there's nothing wrong with in my view, and it's still progressive rock on my view. But there are a lot of people doing a lot of things that don't sound like anyone else from the past, too. (Which isn't to say they have no influences--everyone does, even the 70s artists who were "breaking new ground," but there are plenty of new artists who are just as much breaking new ground as those previous artists were.)

 

I'd say bands like Radiohead, Air and Massive attack are the spawn of prog. I had Cinerama Torino on the other night and was thinking if it had been made in 1972 it would have been prog, concept rock even rock opera. Generations like to badge their era, long hair short hair, double denim flares no flares etc the music just shifts its focus for its audience taste.

Find their other albums too prog for me same with Yes appreciate the technique but I like a bit of edge.

I'd say King Crimson Red defies classification by mere mortals and shouldn't be mentioned in such lists.

My favourite prog is Caravan IICDIAOAIDIOY with honourable mention to Court of crimson king

 

Somewhat like ELP, due to their power trio configuration and penchant for stealing melodies from the classics (usually credited). But The Rat (as Jurgen Fritz called them) also employed strings, horns and female backing vocals and their concepts and themes alternated between the historical (Pompeii, Spartacus), and more timely issues as in Illusions on a Double Dimple (struggles of a young working class German).

 

You should give it another chance. A lot of songs by the more adventurous artists make more sense on repeated listening. Jeff comes up with some really appealing melodic themes and the acting in the narrative portions are a definite improvement over War of the Worlds. And Catherine Zeta Jones sings beautifully!