Book The Musical Instruments of Prog Rock

This was amongst my first thoughts as I opened the solid envelope that had shipped Gerard Bassols' book over to me. Initially expecting a lightweight paperback, I was surprised to find out it weighed over 1 kg. Seeing that it is an independent release, that was an expensive decision but one that has paid off most brilliantly. It does full justice towards the marvellous contents of this book which takes a closer look at the instruments used in progressive rock, predominantly in the 70s and 80s when the genre flourished like never before.

The author of the book is Gerard Bassols, a Spanish (amateur) multi-instrumentalist who as a fan of progressive rock has passionately devoted his time for the past 45 years collecting and listening to albums, and attending countless concerts and assembling a large collection of articles and literature on the subject. Gaining extensive wisdom on the instruments associated with prog rock, he started out with a blog to put this knowledge into writing. Ultimately this evolved into a book with a first Spanish version appearing in September 2019, shortly followed by its English counterpart in December of the same year. A wise decision, for this book most certainly gleams with a global and international appeal.

The book of 286 pages, bound neatly in an inviting stylish cover, is accompanied by two subtitles: From The 1960s To The Present and An Illustrated Guide. The first one is a bit tricky, for, let's face it, progressive rock originated in the late 60s and the present, as presented in the book, will likely become outdated fairly quickly.

This is already illustrated by the absence of Steve Vai's new toy, the custom-built "The Hydra". Given other entries (e.g. Vai's own triple-neck "Heart", Uli Jon Roth's "Sky guitar" and Brain May's "Red Special") this novelty instrument fully deserves an entry, and this fate will await more instruments in light of the never-ending stream of innovations and inventive new designs, especially in the guitar department. That said, for prog-newbies this subtitle does prove its worth, providing a perfect description as to what to expect in this book.

Which is a lot, for Bassols covers everything-but-the-kitchen-sink in terms of instruments, describing them in full detail on their differences, similarities, progression, failings and other important features. He reassuringly avoids drifting away in too many technicalities, which is a definite plus, especially for a novice like me. For those willing and able to take in more specifics there are few boxed-in pages filled with further elaborations on frequencies, waveforms and other interesting aspects, mainly in the synth department, so anyone wanting a more in-depth view is well catered for as well.

Bassols has dissected the various instruments into four main sections (keys, guitars, drums and other), each segment is thereupon divided into paragraphs on individual instruments. All this is written in an easy-to-read and engaging style, complete with some funny anecdotes, interesting historic tales and eyebrow-lifting facts. The overall result is a great chronological narrative that starts out with prog's quintessential instrument: the keyboard (and its many derivatives).

This first part takes up 125 pages of the book, which is quite understandable given the revolutionary evolution of the keyboard over the years. Starting out with the Chamberlin, a predecessor to the Mellotron, Bassols works his work way through the ages and passes the familiar Moog, Hammond, Keytars, MIDI and every other kind of synthesizer offspring. Linking all instruments to the musicians known for playing them, he ultimately reaches the Synthaxe, a hybrid between synths and guitars once endorsed by Allan Holdsworth.

Surprisingly one also finds the Theremin in this section, which I was actually expecting to be included in the "others" part. Given its distinctive electronic sound it does make sense appearing here, much like the reasons as to why the guitar-synthesizer turns up moments later in the guitar section. Between all of Bassols' vast knowledge, expertise and excellently clear elaborations this specific instrument is maybe the only time there might be some sort of momentary lapse in his otherwise superbly-orchestrated tale.

As a highly nostalgic fan of Symphonic Slam's 1976 debut, a magnificent album filled with tantalising songs shaped by enticing play from Timo Laine on his polyphonic guitar synthesizer, I was anxiously awaiting this instrument to be mentioned in the book. However, when it appears Bassols mentions a real polyphonic system only came into play in 1980. A possible explanation for the difference in years might be that Laine's device was a personally built instrument, even though it bears the same company name, and it took some time before polyphonic play could eventually be achieved on a larger scale. Seeing the role played by several musicians towards developing new instruments and techniques, this isn't hard to imagine.

Showing completeness, the guitar section furthermore expands to cover every extravagantly-designed guitar/bass one can dream up. Fretless, E-bow, Lap steel, headless, triple necks, Chapman or other sticks, multi-scaled, they're all accounted for as far as I can tell.

After 30 pages of digging deeper into the various innovative aspects encountered in the history of drums and percussion (e.g. electronic drums, stainless steel drum kits, cymbals) Bassols takes a final bow with a very brief glance at miscellaneous instruments like harp, saxophone, bagpipes and sound effects. Finally this well-researched book ends with an outline towards Robert Fripp's Frippertronics, before a frequency chart closes the book. An index would have been appreciated.

Attentive readers will have noticed I haven't touched upon the "An Illustrated Guide" subtitle yet. Simply stated, these 500+ photos inserted from Bassols' personal archive are the book's greatest asset. One that elevates his passionately worded texts from a nice and insightful pass-time into a captivating "Honey-I'm-off-to-get-us-a-new-coffee-table" experience.

Every single instrument mentioned, even the obscure ones, is shown either in newspaper clippings, video stills, (action)-photos or other means of advertisement. Some stills and adverts have lost some of their sharpness over time, but overall every picture included provides a clear view of the instrument at hand. More importantly it shows the musician usually associated with the instrument captured in a memorable moment in time when they played, cherish or mistreated these timeless inventions.

So next to Ian Anderson's authentic fluting pose and Eddie Jobson showing his see-through violin, we see pictures of Chris Squire wearing his famous Rickenbacker bass, while Tony Levin demonstrates his Chapman chops, just to mention a few. Many of those bring back lovely memories, some of which I witnessed myself such as the Midi-gloves of Steve Hogarth and Mark Kelly, and the spectacular set-up of Neil Peart's drums. Best of all are the historic circumstances I missed, like the example of Keith Emerson rotating mid-air on his aerial piano, which must have been a spectacular view at the time.

These attractive images also play an enlightening part. I still wouldn't know how to rig them like Geoff Downes, Rick Wakeman or Tony Banks do (as shown on several explained overviews), but it has clarified many of the differences between all these instruments to a novice like me.

And finally, let's not forget that these pictures also illustrate the passing of time, as demonstrated by a variety of electronic instruments that in the past occupied the size of a bookcase, but through technical advances are nothing more than an IPad today.

All in all, with or without a coffee table, Bassols' beautifully-designed book is a welcome addition to any music-lover's collection. It's not aimed specifically at progressive rock fans (despite the title). However, prog fans will obviously benefit the most from Bassol's vibrant story, especially in the way it's presented and delivered. Excellent work!"