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MYSTIC FRED

Steve Trowbridge


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SPECIAL COLLABORATOR: Honorary Collaborator

Member since: 3/13/2006 • Forum posts: 4252 • Last visit: 6/8/2013 3:58:19 AM EST
Location: Londinium

Progressive Biography

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting Hi Progfans ! My earliest musical memories are of Lonnie Donegan, Bill Haley and Perry Como coming out of that mysterious box in the corner of the room, and playing 45's round my Mum's friend's house - I also liked the Shadows and then in 1962 ...whammmm! The Beatles - I nagged my Dad to buy us a record player and finally in 1966 we got one (30 Guineas, a lot of money then!- i still have it and use it occasionally), later on I bought the "Sgt Pepper" LP and never looked back, my brother brought home all sorts of amazing stuff and I was steadily building up a collection of sorts, which has grown into a good collection now totalling well over 2000 vinyl records and CD's. Some other whammm! moments included The Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds, The Who, Cream, Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, The Groundhogs, Wishbone Ash, Hawkwind, Family, Yes, Supertramp, Rare Bird, Genesis, Focus, ELO, Dire Straits, The Moody Blues, Queen, some American artists such as Santana, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Creedence Clearwater Revival, The Doors, Gvt. Mule, Queens of the Stone Age, The Dandy Warhols, many Heavy Rock/Metal bands like Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Metallica, Nazareth, The Tygers of Pan Tang, Diamond Head and many other NWOBHM bands, Aussie rock groups AC/DC and Midnight Oil, many Britpop bands including Supergrass, Theaudience, Stereophonics, Blur and Oasis, a Classical period led me to the works of Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Mozart, Sibelius and Dvorak, also many other writers of Symphonies and Violin/Piano Concertos, a Modern Jazz period including many Blue Note artists, Miles Davis, The Bad Plus and The Lounge Lizards, American Folk from Leo Kottke, and many Prog bands such as Rush, Marillion, Porcupine Tree, Dream Theater, Anglagard, Riverside and Opeth, and thanks to PA I have caught up on a few old British bands I missed ! I have attended more live gigs than I can remember over the years, but they have included The Groundhogs, Stray, Queen, Led Zeppelin, Yes, Aerosmith, Status Quo, Deep Purple, Whitesnake, Peter Gabriel, AC/DC, Magnum, Marillion, Gary Moore, Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and The Firm, The Stereophonics, Wishbone Ash (both), Porcupine Tree, Hawkwind, Deep Purple, The Who, Rush, Dream Theater, Groundhogs and Focus - I strongly believe live concerts are an important part of the Rock experience and every rock fan should attend at least some! I first heard the expression "Progressive Rock" in 1969, I understand the meaning of the term is much more comprehensive these days but I'm pleased the spirit of Prog lives on and continues to develop - and many old bands still get the recognition they deserve.


Prog occupies a special place in my heart mainly for its musicianship, originality and diversity. I strongly believe the playback system you listen to is important, back in the 70's I heard a friend's Bang & Olufsen hifi system and was blown away, since then I have been building my system and have tried many different gadgets and units over the years and have ended up, for the time being, with the following - Linn Sondek/Ittok turntable fitted with Audio Technica AT440ML cartridge, Castle Howard S2 speakers, and a Cambridge Audio DVD89 DVD-Audio/SACD player with Azur 540Rv2 5.1/6.1 Surround Receiver using three Heybrook HB2 speakers and a bass Sub all linked together with Kimber mains cables, Kimber Timbre interconnects and Kimber 8TC speaker cables.


When I have any spare time from my busy job as a Security Officer at a local Tertiary College, I enjoy Computers, watching a bit of telly, Photography,  visiting Castles and gardens, the City of London and country backwaters, coastal fishing villages or wherever I can find some great shots!  Sometimes i go to the Pub especially if they host live bands, I also occasionally spend time playing my Roland TD-12 electronic drum kit, one which I converted from an acoustic, I'm also still trying to learn guitar, a Gibson SG Special


with Marshall JCM600 tube amp with 4x10 cabinet. I like a spot of DIY or Gardening, as well as spending some time snoozing in the shed on a hot sunny day! I enjoy being part of PA, visiting the Forums, writing reviews, discovering new bands and learning and passing on information of every sort, whether people listen or not is another matter! Prog on, peeps!


 


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Reviews distribution by sub-genre


 Sub-genreNb of reviewsAvg rating
1 Prog Related373.46
2 Crossover Prog153.80
3 Symphonic Prog103.90
4 Eclectic Prog73.57
5 Proto-Prog63.83
6 Psychedelic/Space Rock53.20
7 Heavy Prog54.00
8 Jazz Rock/Fusion54.00
9 Neo-Prog33.00
10 Indo-Prog/Raga Rock24.00
11 Progressive Metal12.00
12 Rock Progressivo Italiano14.00
13 Various Genres13.00

Reviews and Ratings

98 ratings/reviews total  Sort by By ratings | Alphabetically | Chronologically(default)

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