70s Pop Crossover Prog tracks
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Printed Date: June 17 2025 at 18:46
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Topic: 70s Pop Crossover Prog tracks
Posted By: jude111
Subject: 70s Pop Crossover Prog tracks
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 10:33
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Here are some tracks, most of them massive "hits" in the day, [by bands] that sometimes straddled the line between Billboard-type pop music and prog. Not all of these artists are in PA. For example, Elton John's no prog artist, but he did make a few prog-like tunes (I'm partial to the Bowie-esque "Rocket Man," but "Love Lies Bleeding" is arguably his proggiest track). Al Stewart's not in PA too, although I think he might belong - Alan Parsons produced at least 3 of his albums in the 70s. I don't believe Gary Wright's in here, but the nearly all-synthesizer "Dream Weaver" track was his ode to Pink Floyd (lyrics include: Fly me away to the bright side of the moon / And meet me on the other side), and, like 10cc's track, is pretty spacey and great. Not sure if McCartney's in PA either, but that track is crossover pop-prog if ever such a thing could exist. These tracks are often as close as prog got to Billboard. The reason I chose some tracks - for example, Chicago's "Wishing You Were Here" - is not because it was their highest placing hit, or their proggiest hit, but rather because it's simply my personal favorite.  What's your favorite among these? And what have I left out, what track(s) would you add to this list? Feel free to vent as well. I'm quite fond of many of these tracks, but a few of them I detest. (Okay, I'll name them: Ambrosia's track, and the ubiquitous "Hotel California.") Which track offends you the most? |
Replies:
Posted By: someone_else
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 10:42
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This thread should be moved to General Music Discussions (I won't report it, this will be seen soon enough). Most of the artists here are non-prog (outside PA) or Prog Related (in PA). And the relation with prog of most songs, as far as I know them, is very remote, if there is any. Btw, my favourite from this list is I'm Not in Love. ------------- 
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Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 10:48
I thought most of these bands are filed under "crossover prog." I'll check real quick... Okay, I checked: Crossover (4): Barclay James Harvest, Electric Light Orchestra, Alan Parsons Project, Supertramp Jazz Rock/Fusion (2): Chicago, Steely Dan Prog Related (5): Ambrosia, David Bowie, Queen, Styx, 10cc Not on PA (7): Eagles, Elton John, McCartney & Wings, Steve Miller Band, Al Stewart, Edgar Winter, Gary Wright. |
someone_else wrote:Posted By: Stool Man
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 10:51
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Looking down the list, I'd almost decided on Band On The Run, then I saw one of my favourites was listed, so I voted for it. For the benefit of those who have never heard it, here's Frankenstein: ------------- rotten hound of the burnie crew |
Posted By: hellogoodbye
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 11:08
| Macca, of course. |
Posted By: digdug
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 11:08
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Funeral for a Friend what an awesome song ------------- Prog On! |
Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 11:09
Yeah, I love this video. And it's totally prog  |
Posted By: Finnforest
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 11:20
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I enjoy all of it. I'm no "prog snob". I actually prefer the Chicago "hits" over their more acclaimed fusion jamming stuff. I think they were a way better singles band than jam band. ------------- https://www.youtube.com/shorts/sQD8uhpWXCw" rel="nofollow - It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood...Road Rage Edition |
Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 11:33
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Not sure yet what I'll go for. That violin in "Livin' Thing" gets to me every time! (The violin bit in Jean-Jacques Goldman's great "Comme toi" is lifted right from it.) That guitar solo in Steely Dan's FM - the way the music is pared pack and the guitar is allowed to breathe - reminds me so much of Floyd's "Another Brick, p. 2" - and I've often wondered whether Gilmour was influened at all by that track for his own solo at the end. I love Alan Parsons' lush production on that Al Stewart track - and by the way, the electric guitarist on that track is Tim Renwick, whom Floyd fans may know as playing with Floyd on their 1987 and 1994 tours, and accompanying the band at Live 8. Yeah, impossible to vote for only one :-) |
Posted By: Snow Dog
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 11:39
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Band on the Run. And was fame really as early as 75? Golly! ------------- http://www.last.fm/user/Snow_Dog" rel="nofollow"> 
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Posted By: akamaisondufromage
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 11:40
I'd never hear the Styx one so I thought I'd check it out - wish I hadn't 
Anyway its Band on th Run or Livin Thing or Fame but Macca got it. ------------- Help me I'm falling! |
Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 11:47
Haha. Yeah, it has that slick over-produced sound they shared with Boston. (Hmm, there's a band I forgot to add, a bit proggy as well on Foreplay/Longtime.) I'm now at the keyboard/synth solo on "Come Sail Away" at the 3.30 mark - that part is quite nice, I wish it went on longer. |
Posted By: Ivan_Melgar_M
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 11:49
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Offends? Why? Most are great songs, but I'll go with Come Sail Away, it was part of my youth, and that Moog solo is brilliant. STYX IMO should be in Xover. Iván ------------- 
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Posted By: akamaisondufromage
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 11:57
I'm a bit of a fraud i suppose as i only got to 1:36 and just knew I could do without ! Oh well def not any part of my childhood! ------------- Help me I'm falling! |
Posted By: bloodsucker
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 11:57
| Frankenstein because I've been listening to this song all week! Otherwise, this poll is really hard, I practically love them all. |
Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 12:01
I totally agree. I think this is the first time I ever *really* listened to that section, and it's amazing. I wish it went on for another couple of minutes at least :-) |
Posted By: Horizons
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 12:16
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Paul gets my votes. Hotel California gave me a giggle though. ------------- Crushed like a rose in the riverflow. |
Posted By: tszirmay
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 12:27
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Lots of pretty decent tunes here, I have a weakness for Dream Weaver and Year of the Cat, neither having any votes yet! Wright, I guess! ------------- I never post anything anywhere without doing more than basic research, often in depth. |
Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 12:32
According to one music critic I've read, "Hotel California"'s primary musical inspiration was Floyd's track "Wish You Were Here" ("The Rough Guide to Pink Floyd"). Personally I seriously doubt it; I just don't hear it at all. Surely Floyd wasn't the first band to use an acoustic 12-string guitar. The chords are different, the picking patterns are different. But maybe it's true, stranger things have happened... |
Posted By: irrelevant
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 12:32
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Many good tracks here. My vote goes to Steely Dan's FM. ------------- https://gabebuller.bandcamp.com/" rel="nofollow - New album! http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=7385" rel="nofollow - http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=7385 |
Posted By: Logan
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 12:33
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Voted For Love Lies Bleeding/ Funeral For a Friend over Fame, Band on the Run and Dreamer. Personally, I would have chosen Fool's Overrture by Supertampm ( awesome track that I find very similar to the Elton John). Bowie's my favourite act on the list, but particularly for the Berlin trilogy. By the way, I love Cartman singing Come Sail Away. I used to collect the South Park songs, and that was one of my favourites. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcmOe2geZ4Q" rel="nofollow - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JcmOe2geZ4Q |
Posted By: Foot
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 12:37
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Funeral For a Friend, hands down. It's as if Elton decided to go prog, came up with a masterpiece, declared his work done, and never returned to it. Bonus points for the early ARP synthesizer work by future Genesis producer David Hentschel. And did you know they nicked the whole opening passage note-by-note (including the wind and tolling bell) from the first scene in "Dr. Zhivago"? Styx "Come Sail Away" would be dead last for me here, just awful.
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Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 12:40
Well, I tried to choose those songs that received a lot of radio time - at least, in the U.S. when I was a child. I never heard Fool's Overture on the radio, nor anything by Bowie other than a very few tracks. (Which is criminal. Bowie was great - but mainstream America didn't get him.) I did think of going with School/Bloody Well Right (in my mind, those two songs have to go together, like We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions), or Give a Little Bit. I love all of it, it was a tough decision :-) Actually, though, I did cheat: Barclay James Harvest's track wasn't a hit - at least not in the US - and I never even heard of this band till coming to PA. However, it's such a great song, and it really should've gotten massive airplay. (Octoberon's the only album I really like by them...) |
Posted By: Moogtron III
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 12:54
| I'm Not In Love, closely followed by Band On The Run |
Posted By: octopus-4
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 12:58
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I must confess that the Year of the Cat is my favorite here. The whole album is really not bad but life is too short to spend time with pop so I don't listen to it very much. ------------- I stand with Roger Waters, I stand with Joan Baez, I stand with Victor Jara, I stand with Woody Guthrie. Music is revolution |
Posted By: Guldbamsen
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:03
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I voted for Dreamer. Love that song.
Almost went for Steve Miller Band, but they were sooooo much better before they got big with Fly like an Eagle. Give me Children of the future, Sailor, You Saving Grace and Brave New World over anything they've/he's released since. ------------- “The Guide says there is an art to flying or rather a knack. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.” - Douglas Adams |
Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:09
My methodology was to quickly skim through the Billboard 100 of each year in the 1970s and pick out tracks by prog bands, or prog-like tracks by non-prog bands. Plus I did a PA search of 'crossover' bands... Sounds like a lot of work, but took less than 30 minutes... Having said that, it suddenly occurs to me that Jethro Tull had a big hit in the 70s. Oops, don't know how i missed it. "Bungle in the Jungle." [sigh] |
Posted By: Guldbamsen
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:13
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Don't worry dude, I figure these things are more for casual banter than announcing the top slot winner. ------------- “The Guide says there is an art to flying or rather a knack. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss.” - Douglas Adams |
Posted By: Hercules
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:14
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I'm not in Love for me.
Funny, in the 70s, 10cc were considered one of the archetypal prog bands alongside Genesis and Yes, yet a band like Rush wasn't (well not until c1978). ------------- A TVR is not a car. It's a way of life. |
Posted By: akamaisondufromage
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:21
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Heartbeat, increasing heartbeat
I suppose if you hadn't used the US charts you would have come up with this lot ?
------------- Help me I'm falling! |
Posted By: Snow Dog
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:22
No one I knew though 10cc prog. ------------- http://www.last.fm/user/Snow_Dog" rel="nofollow">
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Posted By: Ivan_Melgar_M
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:23
It's funny, I started the STYX bio with this phrase
And I'm convinced it's true. Come Sail Away is winning, but nobody except me, admits having voted for them.  }Iván -------------
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Posted By: Man With Hat
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:23
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This is quite a poor list.
EWG I suppose. ------------- Dig me...But don't...Bury me I'm running still, I shall until, one day, I hope that I'll arrive Warning: Listening to jazz excessively can cause a laxative effect. |
Posted By: Snow Dog
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:23
Wow. One of my favourite singles and songs of all time. Brilliant. ------------- http://www.last.fm/user/Snow_Dog" rel="nofollow">
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Posted By: akamaisondufromage
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:28
Exactly! AND you are right about 10CC nobody thought they were prog who I knew. ------------- Help me I'm falling! |
Posted By: Moogtron III
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:36
I didn't vote for it, but there's nothing wrong with liking Styx. I only discovered them a few years ago, because someone gave me a Styx best-of cd. I was happily surprised and wondered why this band is so unknown, at least in The Netherlands and Belgium. Probably because they only had minor hits in The Netherlands, and only "Babe" in Belgium. Not prog enough for the proggers, not well known enough outside that field. But they did some fine stuff.
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Posted By: Finnforest
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:39
Ha, Ivan! I love Styx and say so with no shame!  ------------- https://www.youtube.com/shorts/sQD8uhpWXCw" rel="nofollow - It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood...Road Rage Edition |
Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 13:57
Oh no, this could've gotten them lynched in some parts of the USA if they tried to perform it! LOL. Looking them up, I'm surprised to learn they were actually American, but their success was across the Atlantic. Also a connection with Todd Rundrgen. Who is here in PA, and whom I also left off the poll. Damn. "Hello It's Me" is a fine song. (Not exactly Sparks material, probably |
Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 14:02
What would your list be? Are there other prog-related stuff on the yearly Billboard 100 from the 70s that I'm unaware of? I'm sure I've missed a lot (Jethro Tull's "Bungle in the Jungle," Rundgren's "Hello It's Me" are what I've caught so far)... I did want to stay away from obvious stuff like Floyd's "Anotehr Brick in the Wall" and any late 70s Collins' era Genesis... |
Posted By: Wanorak
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 14:23
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Come Sail Away for me out of a strong list of songs. I could've gone for Hotel California, Band on the Run, Living Thing or Loves Lies Bleeding. The tipping point for Come Sail Away is the amazing vocals of Dennis de Young and the wonderfully dramatic instrumentation ------------- A GREAT YEAR FOR PROG!!! |
Posted By: Fox On The Rocks
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 15:12
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A lot of good tracks here. Steve Miller is just some great classic rock- I've always loved that album. Elton's always great. Fly Like An Eagle though, like I've grown up on that album, it's just classic. That gets my vote easily. ------------- 
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Posted By: richardh
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 15:24
Tough choice as I like several of those tracks. I voted Hotel California just because I've tried to play along on the drums on one those rock star computer games and you wouldn't believe how difficult it is.. and Don Henley used to sing at the same time. Credit due where credit due.
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Posted By: Icarium
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 15:26
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I will vote on Dreamer, it is quite progy for a song that lasts 3:30 mins, it never plays the same thing twice songs that also is pop-prog is Good Vibration by Beach Boys, and Ladrytron by Roxymusic, and this -------------  
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Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 15:40
Right, Good Vibrations was from 1966 - I was focusing on the 70s. Also, I considered Roxy Music but I don't think they charted on Billboard (I don't remember seeing them). Roxy was another band, like Bowie, that mainstream America just didn't "get." Better to dress up as cartoon demonic aliens (a la Kiss) then wear bras, lipstick and rouge (a la Gabriel, Eno, Bowie et al, all of whom mainstream America ignored). Not to be a cultural imperialist, I was just going by the Billboard charts. :-) |
Posted By: Icarium
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 15:45
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Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 15:48
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^ Interesting, I stand corrected! |
Posted By: Icarium
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 15:51
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im a lover for 70s crossover pop/prog, it is the most interesting thing to search for, good progressive pop, have a lightness i sometimes like to listen to.
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Posted By: richardh
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 15:55
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your f***ed up round the bend |
Posted By: Metalmarsh89
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 16:03
| Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding would be my favorite from this list. Tough choice because there are many bands on this list I enjoy, especially Styx, Chicago, Queen, Supertramp, and the Beach Boys (someone mentioned them). I didn't grow up around prog at all, but I did know a lot of these songs during that time. |
Posted By: Hercules
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 16:34
They were classed as "art rock" (indeed, they were probably the defining band of that ilk), which was a branch of prog and included Supertramp, Barclay James Harvest and The Moody Blues.
Indeed, Sheet Music and The Original Soundtrack were both ranked in the top 10 progressive albums in their respective years (74 and 75) by Melody Maker (how do I remember? I shared a flat in London with one of the journalists and used to go to gigs with Chris Welch, who decided the list!!). ------------- A TVR is not a car. It's a way of life. |
Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 18:09
Who'd'a thunk it? It's up to 8 votes now and counting... I need to go back and re-listen to those old Styx albums!
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Posted By: HolyMoly
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 18:22
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These songs were all on the radio when i was a boy, and I love most of them. My favorite is the Alan Parsons one, with 10cc, Steely Dan, and ELO close behind. ------------- My other avatar is a Porsche It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle if it is lightly greased. -Kehlog Albran |
Posted By: Gallifrey
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 19:27
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Funeral for a Friend has been one of my favourite songs ever since I was 5, and still remains in my all-time top 10. ------------- http://thedarkthird.bandcamp.com/ |
Posted By: Progosopher
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 19:49
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Had to vote for Frankenstein, since I will probably never again have the opportunity to do so on this site. Great song, and a killer extended version of it on that video. I like how E.W. plays keys, sax, and drums during the performance. I was a big fan of the group way back in the day but lost interest in them when I got into more proggy stuff. Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding is also a great track. Other good ones: Dream Weaver, The World Goes On, and Band on the Run. I have a no-guilt policy for listening, so I will unashamedly say I enjoy Styx.
John Mellencamp hated being called John Cougar. The only song of his I ever liked was I Need a Lover. Cool instrumental opening, well structured. I saw him get booed off stage opening for Rainbow (go figure) and he only played that one song. I was fine with it, but all the Black(ers)heads weren't. ------------- The world of sound is certainly capable of infinite variety and, were our sense developed, of infinite extensions. -- George Santayana, "The Sense of Beauty" |
Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 19:50
Me too. Please add more tracks to the list, if you can think of any
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Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 20:22
You must've saw my post before I deleted it. (The shame of mentioning John Cougar in PA was too great, so I censored myself |
Posted By: ProgMetaller2112
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 20:35
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I love Queen's You're My Best Friend quite a bit
------------- “War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.” ― George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four "Ignorance and Prejudice and Fear walk Hand in Hand"- Neil Peart |
Posted By: BrufordFreak
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 21:15
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Frankenstein is amazing! Check out Edgar Winter hopping from instrument to instrument while playing Frank live on YouTube Don Kirshner's Rock Concert. But, wait a minute: Where is Hocus Pocus? ------------- Drew Fisher https://progisaliveandwell.blogspot.com/ |
Posted By: Gallifrey
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 21:22
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If we're choosing progressive songs from related and not very progressive artists, then "March Of The Black Queen" is easily better than You're My Best Friend. One of the very few songs I rank higher than Elton's 11 minute opus. ------------- http://thedarkthird.bandcamp.com/ |
Posted By: HolyMoly
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 21:32
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I think he was just aiming for actual chart hits here. ------------- My other avatar is a Porsche It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle if it is lightly greased. -Kehlog Albran |
Posted By: Cthulhu42
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 22:13
| I love Come Sail Away, despite (or perhaps because of) how utterly cheesy it is. |
Posted By: Eria Tarka
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 22:19
| Frankenstein big time |
Posted By: The Dark Elf
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 22:44
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Hey, when an albino plays a song called "Frankenstein", you just have to listen. ------------- ...a vigorous circular motion hitherto unknown to the people of this area, but destined to take the place of the mud shark in your mythology... |
Posted By: Tom Ozric
Date Posted: February 25 2013 at 23:27
CHICAGO  !!!
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Posted By: richardh
Date Posted: February 26 2013 at 01:47
Chicago + The Beach Boys = lovely for sure I would have voted for 25 or 6 to 4 if that had been on the list. That must have achieved a high billboard placing I imagine as well.
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Posted By: The-time-is-now
Date Posted: February 26 2013 at 10:00
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I wouldn't want to be like you / Alan Parsons Project. -------------  One of my best achievements in life was to find this picture :D |
Posted By: Stool Man
Date Posted: February 26 2013 at 11:02
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Wow - since I last checked Frankenstein has stormed ahead into the lead! I wonder what this poll would be like if it were entirely based on UK chart hits....Kate Bush, Gerry Rafferty, Lieutenant Pigeon, Chicory Tip, Wizzard, etc etc ------------- rotten hound of the burnie crew |
Posted By: akaBona
Date Posted: February 26 2013 at 11:24
| ELO |
Posted By: jude111
Date Posted: February 26 2013 at 12:20
That would be cool, I'd love to see that. It could introduce us non-UKers to more cool music. I'm a fan of Kate Bush, I know of Gerry Rafferty (Baker Street and Right Down the Line were huge in the US, as was Stuck in the Middle with You), but those others, 'haven't a clue :-) I didn't think of Rafferty as being on the fringes of prog (perhaps I'm wrong, though, I don't know a lot about 'em), but Kate Bush, definitely. THE DREAMING always felt to me to be a companion piece to Gabriel's MELT album. |
Posted By: Icarium
Date Posted: February 26 2013 at 16:46
and it charted at 25th place and this came out in 77 and it have a certian similarity so 10cc songs -------------
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Posted By: Tom Ozric
Date Posted: February 27 2013 at 00:22
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Posted By: Tom Ozric
Date Posted: February 27 2013 at 00:37
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Posted By: BarryGlibb
Date Posted: February 27 2013 at 04:21
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I know you're sticking to the 70s but in 1969 (so close) Blood, Sweat and Tears (listed as Jazz/Fusion on PA) had 3, yes 3 singles that all went to #2 on the Billboard charts. These songs are "You Made Me So Very Happy", "Spinning Wheel", and "When I Die". All of these 3 songs are on their self titled album (released in 1968). I don't think many artists listed in PA can match this feat.
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Posted By: rogerthat
Date Posted: February 27 2013 at 04:59
| Voted FM off this list. Would have voted Living for the City had it been included in the poll. |
Posted By: richardh
Date Posted: February 27 2013 at 14:39
I bought the first two and then leapt forward to that album after reading an excellent review on PA extolling its virtues. Apparently the last hurrah of the more experimental Chicago before they went full on commercial.
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Posted By: richardh
Date Posted: February 27 2013 at 14:58
fantastic track. I got the album so that I could have the long version to listen to Always makes me think of the Stevie Wonder episode of the Cosby Show. The reason is right at the end of the clip (the whole clip is bloody funny btw) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0sUSkKucVg |