10 most important albums in prog's history - Progressive Rock Music Forum

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Anthony H. View Drop Down

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Posted: June 10 2011 at 23:00

These aren't in any particular order:

- King Crimson - ItCotCk
- Yes - Close to the Edge
- Miles Davis - Bitches Brew [It had more influence on jazz, but jazz and prog are intimately connected in many ways.]
- ELP - [s/t]
- Dream Theater - Images & Words
- Procul Harum - [s/t]
- The Moody Blues - Days...
- The Nice - Thoughts of Emerlist Davjack
- Jethro Tull - Aqualung [Had more of an influence then TaaB, I think.]
- The Mars Volta - De-Loused in the Comatorium [I think it be looked on that way 20 years from now.]

Prog_Traveller View Drop Down

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Posted: June 10 2011 at 21:47

Not to criticize, but I'm wondering why you think Hybris was important to prog? The same with In Absentia.

I'll answer that question by having that as the answer to this question. Wink

10) Whichever album spawned the 90's/2000's resurgence - I'm not hot on this area!

Edited by Prog_Traveller - June 10 2011 at 21:50

richardh

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Posted: June 10 2011 at 01:55

cstack3 wrote:

Actually, the most important albums in prog history may have been the ones that wounded the idiom the most!

Signal events would include:

a) Yes, "Tales From Topographic Oceans": Many music critics point to this Yes magnum opus as the decline & fall of the prog music idiom, with symphonic prog soon replaced by new wave, punk and other rebellious musical forms.

b) ELP, "Love Beach": Just bad, including the cover

c) ELP, "Works": Bad, ponderously bad....the tour with orchestra ruined them financially

d) Genesis, "ABACAB": Maybe this was the launch of the pop-prog phenomenon, but it sure put classical Genesis music deep into the crapper.

e) Yes, "90125": See ABACAB, above. Steve Howe still makes ugly faces whenever he plays "Owner of a Lonely Heart" in concert!

f) "League of Gentlemen" by R.F.: Bob's attempt to fuse prog with dance music. It was great live, but the record was weak. Bob wouldn't attempt to replicate "dance prog" again, except with a few tunes during "Discipline" which happened to be danceable.

g) Pink Floyd, "The Division Bell" : not with a bang nor a whimper, but with a *thud*

h) Styx, "Kilroy Was Here": Mr. Roboto killed Styx, somebody should tell them.

i) Yes, "Fly From Here": wait for the reviews & tour financials to come in.

I would argue that very succesfull albums can damage the genre. Once you have achieved your masterpeice where is there to go.

Alan Freeman (noted radio DJ and great friend to prog) believed the death of prog in the seventies was the natural consequence of the bands having reached their peak. Many of the albums you mention above were part of the aftermath of supreme music making when bands had nowhere to go but down.

cstack3

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Posted: June 10 2011 at 00:24

Actually, the most important albums in prog history may have been the ones that wounded the idiom the most!

Signal events would include:

b) ELP, "Love Beach": Just bad, including the cover

c) ELP, "Works": Bad, ponderously bad....the tour with orchestra ruined them financially

d) Genesis, "ABACAB": Maybe this was the launch of the pop-prog phenomenon, but it sure put classical Genesis music deep into the crapper.

e) Yes, "90125": See ABACAB, above. Steve Howe still makes ugly faces whenever he plays "Owner of a Lonely Heart" in concert!

g) Pink Floyd, "The Division Bell" : not with a bang nor a whimper, but with a *thud*

h) Styx, "Kilroy Was Here": Mr. Roboto killed Styx, somebody should tell them.

i) Yes, "Fly From Here": wait for the reviews & tour financials to come in.

Slaughternalia View Drop Down

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 21:48

WalterDigsTunes wrote:

Prog_Traveller wrote:

9. Anglagard-Hybris

Regressive, backward-looking garbage that has zero place in any conversation that pertains to progressive music.

Nothing wrong with a little well written regressive rock, as long as it's not all you listen to. Though I do agree that it has little to do with the development of the genre

Triceratopsoil View Drop Down

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 20:48

WalterDigsTunes wrote:

Prog_Traveller wrote:

9. Anglagard-Hybris

Regressive, backward-looking garbage that has zero place in any conversation that pertains to progressive music.

I like how you quote that one but not the far worse Porcupine Tree album

Alitare

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 20:10

WalterDigsTunes wrote:

Prog_Traveller wrote:

9. Anglagard-Hybris

Regressive, backward-looking garbage that has zero place in any conversation that pertains to progressive music.

And Motley Crue was riveting, original, unique, and emotionally deep? (Not that I give a damn about Anglagard, but I do love making fun of your beliefs because you never seem to have any factual evidence to support them).

Mellotron Storm View Drop Down

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 13:35

Sean Trane wrote:

Epignosis wrote:

Equality 7-2521 wrote:

Prog_Traveller wrote:

These are the albums that took people by surprise, made people say "wow, what is this?" or added new life to the prog scene or maybe were groundbreaking in some way. All of these albums are essential to any prog collection. Here's my list:

1. The Moody Blues-Days of future passed
2. King Crimson- in the court of the crimson king
3. Emerson, Lake and Palmer-same
4. Yes-The Yes album-
5. Yes-Close to the Edge
6. ELP-Brain Salad Surgery
7. King Crimson-Lark's tongues in Aspic
8. Genesis-Selling England by the Pound
9. Anglagard-Hybris
10. Porcupine Tree-In Absentia

A few honorable mentions:

Camel-snowgoose
VDGG- Pawn Hearts
Rush-Hemispheres

Not to criticize, but I'm wondering why you think Hybris was important to prog? The same with In Absentia.

Taste aside (I don't like Anglagaard whatsoever), I don't see why "Hybris" is important in prog's history. And In Absentia is not a prog album.

As an aside, I have no idea what people see in ELP's debut. It's a third prog, a third folk, and a third Emerson just playing piano or organ alone.

isn't it obvious???

Hybris is the start of the rebirth of prog!!!

I'd give a mention to Marillion's Script For A Jester's Tears as well.... but it had less effect on prog history despite being as influential and selling tons more than Hybris.

Hybris was very important to Prog in the early nineties and as Hughes says it was like a re-birth or it at least it kick started it again. Script did the same for Prog in the early eighties so both should be on that list as far as i'm concerned.
I would include Sgt. Peppers in this.It changed the rules and Prog followed in those footsteps. As much as In Absentia is one of my all time favs i wouldn't include it with these others.Just my opinion. In The Court mught be the most important of them all though.

"The wind is slowly tearing her apart"

"Sad Rain" ANEKDOTEN

esky

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 13:25

This top 10 thread (which rears its ugly head periodically on this site) is redundant; it sickens me. Long LIVE FRIPP!

WalterDigsTunes View Drop Down

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 12:35

Prog_Traveller wrote:

9. Anglagard-Hybris

Regressive, backward-looking garbage that has zero place in any conversation that pertains to progressive music.

irrelevant View Drop Down

Collaborator

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 12:34

Equality 7-2521 wrote:

Saying that prog wouldn't have existed without any number of albums is absurd.

New album!
http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=7385

Equality 7-2521 View Drop Down

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 08:44

Saying that prog wouldn't have existed without any number of albums is absurd.

"One had to be a Newton to notice that the moon is falling, when everyone sees that it doesn't fall. "

Guldbamsen View Drop Down

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 05:32

Procol Harum - s/t

Terry Riley - Rainbow in curved Air

King Crimson - In the court of the Crimson King

Amon Düül ll - Phallus Dei

Pink Floyd - Ummagumma

Marillion - Script for a jester´s tears

Frank Zappa - Freak Out

Miles Davis - Bitches Brew

Magma - Kobaïa

Dream Theater - Images & Words

“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

Sean Trane View Drop Down

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 04:24

Epignosis wrote:

Equality 7-2521 wrote:

Not to criticize, but I'm wondering why you think Hybris was important to prog? The same with In Absentia.

isn't it obvious???

Hybris is the start of the rebirth of prog!!!

I'd give a mention to Marillion's Script For A Jester's Tears as well.... but it had less effect on prog history despite being as influential and selling tons more than Hybris.

let's just stay above the moral melee
prefer the sink to the gutter
keep our sand-castle virtues
content to be a doer
as well as a thinker,
prefer lifting our pen
rather than un-sheath our sword

Sean Trane View Drop Down

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 04:20

Obviously without these... prog wouldn't have existed

1. The Moody Blues-Days of future passed

2. Procol Harum - s/t

3. The Nice - Thoughts Of Emerlist Davjack

4. Vanilla Fudge - s/t

5. Jethro Tull - Stand Up
6. King Crimson- in the court of the crimson king
7. Emerson, Lake and Palmer-same
8. Yes-The Yes Album

9. Jethro Tull - Thick As A Brick

10. Soft Machine - Vol 2

11. Miles - Bitches Brew

12. Pentangle - s/t

Aaaaaaand....

10. Anglagard-Hybris

Edited by Sean Trane - June 09 2011 at 04:28

let's just stay above the moral melee
prefer the sink to the gutter
keep our sand-castle virtues
content to be a doer
as well as a thinker,
prefer lifting our pen
rather than un-sheath our sword

thehallway View Drop Down

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 03:58

Triceratopsoil wrote:

thehallway wrote:

9) CTTE/Tales/Relayer - Representing the peak of Prog in terms of: quality, excess, and compositional competence (in that order of course).

lol?

Are you asking permission to laugh??

DavetheSlave View Drop Down

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 03:49

I think we're all missing the importance of the first Black Sabbath album guys

That 1st album was ground breaking to the heavier path of prog music in my humble opinion.

richardh

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Posted: June 09 2011 at 01:46

ELP's debut is important because its the debut by the first progressive rock supergroup. However Tarkus made possibly an even greater impact and showed a new world of possibilities. Everyone of ELP's first 5 albums is important though and could justifiably be included on a list such as this.

Prog_Traveller View Drop Down

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Posted: June 08 2011 at 18:59

Geez, we could all argue about this stuff until the cows come home. PT's in absentia not prog? Well, that's ok you could say that the FLower Kings and Spock's Beard and Arena or any neo prog isn't really prog because it's music that sounds like it's influenced by stuff from the golden era of prog and much of it is. But since PT are on here and listed as heavy prog then I think it's ok to have them listed. I personally sometimes have a hard time using the term prog for a lot of stuff that is often called prog(such as much of the catalog of the Moody Blues, lots of eighties and up songs and albums by established prog bands, much neo prog, etc etc). If I like it I like it and to me that's more important than the label.

Edited by Prog_Traveller - June 08 2011 at 19:01

Prog_Traveller View Drop Down

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Posted: June 08 2011 at 18:50

I'm going to revise my initial list here so that there's only one album per band.

Moody Blues-days of future passed (not their best imo but an important album in the development of the genre)
King Crimson- In the court of the crimson king
Pink Floyd- Wish you were here
Yes-close to the edge
Rush-Hemispheres
ELP-same
Genesis-selling England by the pound
Jethro Tull- Thick as a brick
Marillion-misplaced childhood ( i had to have something from the 80's)
Anglagard-Hybris (maybe the album that unofficially kick started the prog resurgence of the nineties)

Edited by Prog_Traveller - June 08 2011 at 18:52