Prog-Does The Recording Year Matter? - Progressive Rock Music Forum

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dr wu23

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Topic: Prog-Does The Recording Year Matter?
Posted: July 15 2013 at 21:55

The.Crimson.King wrote:

Sean_96 wrote:

The most notable example I can think of is the band 'National Health'. Their albums were released in 1977, '78 and '81. They are a Canterbury Scene band with a very similar sound to 'Hatfield and the North', who are at least in the prog rock community quite well known. But, I don't hear so much about them on 'Prog Archives' which is quite a shame.

If they released their albums around '71-'75, I think in the prog rock community, they would be more well known.

A few years ago I went into Tower Records and picked up the double CD "National Health Complete". This was before slimline jewel cases so it was a pretty big box. The cashier (named Beau) was clearly the most knowledgeable in the store and I'm pretty sure outside he ran his own record collectors business and almost always had a comment for any prog CD that I bought. He looked at this one and started laughing. I asked him what was so funny. He said something like, "A National Health complete? They only have like 2 albums anyway".

Seem's PA isn't the only place this band doesn't get any respect LOL

I have the same cd box......and there is another cd called Missing Pieces that has some nice tracks.

Great band btw.

One does nothing yet nothing is left undone.
Haquin

The.Crimson.King View Drop Down

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Posted: July 15 2013 at 14:59

Sean_96 wrote:

If they released their albums around '71-'75, I think in the prog rock community, they would be more well known.

Seem's PA isn't the only place this band doesn't get any respect LOL

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Sean_96

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Posted: July 15 2013 at 13:54

Whilst the year it was made will not affect the purchase of an album for me, there is some examples where the date an album is released can be detrimental to the band.

If they released their albums around '71-'75, I think in the prog rock community, they would be more well known.

The.Crimson.King View Drop Down

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Posted: July 15 2013 at 13:18

^ Wow...I always thought this was the original version of "In the Court of the Crimson King"...

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moshkito

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Posted: July 15 2013 at 12:58

maani wrote:

"1971 is only of interest when talking about Stairway to Heaven if someone claims that Rolf Harris's 1993 version was the first, or when someone (someone else hopefully) makes the claim that Uriah Heep's 'Come Away Melinda' was an original Heep song."

You mean, like people who think Guns'n'Roses wrote Knockin' on Heaven's Door....LOL.

Better version of this is ZELIG ... a German band, and it was the soundtrack of the German film of the same name that was ripped up badly later! And if you did not see the original, you missed the hilarious bit in the end!

Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told!
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brainstormer View Drop Down

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Posted: July 15 2013 at 11:17

dr wu23 wrote:

brainstormer wrote:

Most proggers give absolutely no thought to the two Electric Prunes albums in 1968, the ones

that they did in collaboration with David Axelrod. If prog is also about sound experimentation,

the Prunes were probably one of the top 3 bands that advanced the sonic spectrum in rock music.

I had 'Mass' ...(never bought 'Oath')...., it always sounded like psych rock to me and not 'prog'.

As Dean once said recently on the proto prog thread, 'not all psych rock qualifies as 'proto prog.'

I don't see how you can come up with that opinion but to each his own. "Oath" is just as progressive.

Another note from James Lowe this morning, telling him of more the BS surrounding this album

that I found on Wikipedia:

Robert Pearson: I just wanted to touch base as

this morning I was alerted the the wikipedia note about your
recent liner notes saying the band didn't record on Mass in F Minor
at all:

^{Both Mass in F Minor and
Release of an Oath were released under the band's name, but
because of their complexity were recorded by other musicians and
not the band.[3]}The 3 footnote is:

^ Unterberger, Richie. "Liner notes for the Electric Prunes' Mass in F Minor". Retrieved March 7, 2013.

I can respect it though if you say you don't care any more about
setting it straight as you already did that quite a bit in your
interview with me.

I'm just curious about these liner notes. It's funny, it seems like there is a faction
of people out there that really want to discredit the Prunes completely as having
anything to do with being able to play their instruments.

James Lowe: I have always felt the Axelrod group would like to have had the Mass and Kol Nidre to themselves without the bother of a queer named band in the way. We (the original group) recorded the Mass in F Minor ... period. The Kol Nidre album was an obvious cash-in on the band's name and since we had all quit by that time it had no original members playing on it. Period. These people seem to want to rewrite the thing to their liking. Did we support the Mass album ... not really. We didn't think it had merit because we couldn't play it on our own. We needed horns, strings and singers. Maybe this was expected fare for musicians but we were a GARAGE band, for chrissake. Pass the mustard. (thank you for your interest) jAMES

Edited by brainstormer - July 15 2013 at 11:19

--
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dr wu23

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Posted: July 15 2013 at 09:58

brainstormer wrote:

Most proggers give absolutely no thought to the two Electric Prunes albums in 1968, the ones

that they did in collaboration with David Axelrod. If prog is also about sound experimentation,

the Prunes were probably one of the top 3 bands that advanced the sonic spectrum in rock music.

I had 'Mass' ...(never bought 'Oath')...., it always sounded like psych rock to me and not 'prog'.

As Dean once said recently on the proto prog thread, 'not all psych rock qualifies as 'proto prog.'

One does nothing yet nothing is left undone.
Haquin

brainstormer View Drop Down

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Posted: July 15 2013 at 09:11

Most proggers give absolutely no thought to the two Electric Prunes albums in 1968, the ones

that they did in collaboration with David Axelrod. If prog is also about sound experimentation,

the Prunes were probably one of the top 3 bands that advanced the sonic spectrum in rock music.

--
Robert Pearson
Regenerative Music http://www.regenerativemusic.net
Telical Books http://www.telicalbooks.com
ParaMind Brainstorming Software http://www.paramind.net

tamijo

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Posted: July 15 2013 at 03:02

Dean wrote:

^ Once, when Annie Lennox's Sweet Dreams came on a pub juke box, I did overhear the comment "That's ironic... some bird's covered Marylin Manson."

Not to mention that i won a BOX of beer (30 x 33cl of Carlsberg)

Because someone was THAT sure, "I Shot the Sheriff" from 461 OB, was an original Eric Clapton

One day young people may be of the impression Reggae was invented by Clapton and The Police

Quite a few people think "Cocaine" was a Clapton too.

Edited by tamijo - July 15 2013 at 03:15

Prog is whatevey you want it to be. So dont diss other peoples prog, and they wont diss yours

The.Crimson.King View Drop Down

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Posted: July 14 2013 at 17:35

dr wu23 wrote:

I can't say it matters a lot to me though if some one tells me about a good prog lp that I'm not familiar with from 1974 as opposed to a good one from 2003, I tend to want to hear the older one first.

But for me I think it's due to my age more than anything else.

As an example I love the last 2 IQ cd's as much as most of my older prog.

I feel exactly the same about the first 2 IQ albums Wink

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progbethyname View Drop Down

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Posted: July 14 2013 at 16:14

Well. A good example is IQ's TALES FROM THE LUSH ATTIC.
First recording in 1983 was plaqued by horrible sound mixing and production.
Now...2013 TFTLA has been reissued and re-mixed in such a way where it represents IQ's true vision for the album. Suffice to say, I really do prefer the 2013 reissue. The sound quality and production far exceeds that of the original.

This is a classic case where technology saves and restores a classic album. I am very thankful. :)

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progbethyname View Drop Down

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Posted: July 14 2013 at 16:05

But for me I think it's due to my age more than anything else.

As an example I love the last 2 IQ cd's as much as most of my older prog.

Nice. I feel the same way about IQ. Age can be irrelevant depending on how much you love something. ;)

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progbethyname View Drop Down

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Posted: July 14 2013 at 16:03

Dean wrote:

^ Once, when Annie Lennox's Sweet Dreams came on a pub juke box, I did overhear the comment "That's ironic... some bird's covered Marylin Manson."

Uh oh.

Best you had fun correcting him.

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dr wu23

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Posted: July 13 2013 at 19:27

I can't say it matters a lot to me though if some one tells me about a good prog lp that I'm not familiar with from 1974 as opposed to a good one from 2003, I tend to want to hear the older one first.

But for me I think it's due to my age more than anything else.

As an example I love the last 2 IQ cd's as much as most of my older prog.

One does nothing yet nothing is left undone.
Haquin

Dean

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Posted: July 13 2013 at 19:07

^ Once, when Annie Lennox's Sweet Dreams came on a pub juke box, I did overhear the comment "That's ironic... some bird's covered Marylin Manson."

What?

maani

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Posted: July 13 2013 at 19:03

"1971 is only of interest when talking about Stairway to Heaven if someone claims that Rolf Harris's 1993 version was the first, or when someone (someone else hopefully) makes the claim that Uriah Heep's 'Come Away Melinda' was an original Heep song."

You mean, like people who think Guns'n'Roses wrote Knockin' on Heaven's Door....LOL.

Dean

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Posted: July 13 2013 at 12:31

The recording/composition year is important if only to place it in context and in the right chronology. It is important to know that Beethoven wrote the 3rd Symphony after he'd written the 1st and 2nd not just for purposes of being accurate but to understand the development (go on, say it, say 'progression' Wink

) in his music. Similarity it helps to know that Tchaikovsky wrote the 1812 some 60 years after the event it commemorates and that it was intended to be a more general purpose celebration piece than the name implies. (Curiously the first performance relied on 'electricity' to time the church bells and canon fire into the orchestral performance.) Context and Chronology. Knowing the context of both pieces (Beethoven wrote the 3rd, the [h]Eroica, in honour of Bonaparte before the events of 1812) helps us appreciate them, and their composers, a little better.

Specific dates only become important when the context needs the precise chronology to define it, 1971 is only of interest when talking about Stairway to Heaven if someone claims that Rolf Harris's 1993 version was the first, or when someone (someone else hopefully) makes the claim that Uriah Heep's 'Come Away Melinda' was an original Heep song. Knowing the date fits the tune into a chronology and that puts it into context.

Recording date also becomes important when the artist decides to re-record the piece (Tangerine Dream, Eloy, Banco del Mutuo Soccorso (Darwin!), Mike Oldfield, The Enid, Rick Wakeman, etc), giving us two different views of the same work and a big stick to thump them with no doubt when the later version is far from being the definitive version.

Edited by Dean - July 13 2013 at 19:59

What?

moshkito

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Posted: July 13 2013 at 11:21

TODDLER wrote:

With me...it's the basics. I never gave any thought to the fact that "Music In A Doll's House" by Family was released in 1968. When listening to this recording...I thought it was reminiscent of Genesis' Trespass, Nursery Crime but, in fact that is not the case and it's quite the opposite. Family must have influenced Genesis. Genesis were not writing that particular style ....not even in 69' because they sounded more like a Bee Gee's clone..and in reality Genesis did not contain that sound and approach to writing until 1970 when they released Trespass. Family were also a huge influence on Jethro Tull. I always had Family albums,but never cared to notice the dates of releases. This was quite interesting to discover and thanks to Dean for waking me up to that small portion of Prog history. Now ..when I sometimes listen to Doll's House ..I have the strangest impression of how certain Prog ideas may have been developed in the 60's.

Honestly, I prefer to not give a darn about the date.

We don't sit here and listen to Beethoven because it was 1821, or Ravel, because it was 1921, or whatever. There might be a connection as to why the music is the way it is, but that is not as important as the music itself ... otherwise we would not be listening ... which is the most important part of it!

Again, I consider all of this stuff a natural extension of the growth of music history in the 20th century ... and to me there are no basics ... the only thing there is, is ... music ... that someone created a special moment in time that you and I listen to and love doing so. The only "basic" that was not there 100 years ago, was electricity, which has gone on to change music in ways that no one could ever had conceived of!

It would seem trivial, but not to sadistics (per Guy this is statistics and statesmen! hehehe!) who are not really listening to the music at all ... just to one piece they like that happened in 1972! And they compare the world to it. Look, that girl was nice on the cover, but there was more music, not to mention girls! Like saying the ones in that day were different than the ones a couple of years later ... maybe the t-shirt and hairdo ... but the rest?

We need to do better on our critical discussions!

Edited by moshkito - July 13 2013 at 11:32

Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told!
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maani

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Posted: July 10 2013 at 19:43

Actually, from a historical point of view, I'm more interested in when a composition/album was WRITTEN, NOT so much when it was recorded. After all, even the "average" album was almost certainly written at least a year prior to its recording date (which may, by the way, be somewhat earlier than its RELEASE date...). But some compositions/albums may have been written even earlier than the recording and/or release date.

Again, strictly from a historian's point of view, the writing date is the most important.

Peace.

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Posted: July 06 2013 at 19:07

TODDLER wrote:

presdoug wrote:

^^^^^^^Thanks, everybody, for your interesting comments. Something that i don't think has been mentioned yet, that i find fascinating to decipher in music, prog or otherwise, is what i like to call "atmosphere"-the sort of overall feel of a piece of music that relates your mind to something of the time it was recorded. I have got to the point where i can tell the decade a prog album or classical romantic symphonic work was made in simply by the atmosphere it creates. It took me decades of intense listening to be able to do this. Not that "atmosphere" is the most important thing in the music, but it is kind of fun to make a guess and then link it up to the recording date. Just a funny quirk of mine,i guess.

I believe I do the same.

You can count me in.

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