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The AOR-side of Prog

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suitkees View Drop Down
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    Posted: April 28 2024 at 08:04
Today I listened to a couple of albums that could be or have been qualified as AOR. On PA AOR is often belittled in discussions or in reviews, but there are also many members who appreciate a fair bit of AOR. Some bands even get into the database, either under the Prog-related umbrella (e.g. Styx) or under Crossover Prog (e.g. Supertramp, Saga...). Sometimes the classic Prog bands have released more AOR albums in their carreer (e.g. Yes' 90125), often leading to major success with a wider audience.

What would be your AOR-ish prog recommendations? Or your Prog-ish AOR recommendations? What is your REO Speedwagon of prog?


Edited by suitkees - April 28 2024 at 08:14

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TerLJack View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote TerLJack Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 09:28
Well. This is something of a passion for me. 
Without bands listed on PA, I've come up with a few options in no particular order:

Stevie Wonder - Songs in the Key of Life
The Blue Nile - Hats
Toto - Hydra
Jellyfish - Spilt Milk(maybe a hair past AOR)
Elton John - Captain Fantastic/Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
John Miles - Zaragon(APP singer and production!)
Tears For Fears - Sowing the Seeds of Love
Brent Bourgeois - A Matter of Feel
The first 4-5 Sting records, Bruce Cockburn's late 70s early 80s stuff...

That's just for starters!  I'm sure I can come up with a list of PA members who have great alternatives to more popular options.


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote suitkees Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 09:40
^ Nice, thank you! I know most of these artists, but not all albums. Nice to see The Blue Nile mentioned; should listen to that again. I very much like Hydra, Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Sting (indeed), John Miles, Tears for Fears... Don't know Brent Bourgeois; will give it a listen.

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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (2) Thanks(2)   Quote AFlowerKingCrimson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 09:55
City Boy
Be Bop Deluxe
Roxy Music
Asia
Saga (already mentioned but I agree)
Supertramp
Pavlov's Dog
Crack the Sky
Ambrosia
10CC
Art in America
Zebra
Toto (already mentioned)
Steely Dan (some anyway)
Chicago
Styx
Kansas (some)
Marillion (eg. Holidays in Eden)
Spock's Beard (Day for Night and maybe some later stuff)
Alan Parsons Project (almost the poster boy for this kind of thing)
Fish on Friday (compared to APP so they qualify ;) )
Pattern Seeking Animals
Gowan (Lost Brotherhood is a proggish album that features Alex Lifeson on guitars. Lawrence Gowan now plays with Styx).
Soma White (a rather obscure one in my collection and a more modern band but I remember it being rather good.)
Jelly Jam ( a bit of a supergroup featuring members of King's X, Dream Theater and Dixie Dregs)

That's about it for now. Maybe I'll think of more later.

Some might say XTC but I'm not that familiar with them.



Edited by AFlowerKingCrimson - April 28 2024 at 10:00
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote TerLJack Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 10:10
Yeah.
This is a good list too, for bands on PA!
Love Ambrosia's first two, 10cc, Crack the Sky, City Boy, Be-Bop Deluxe...
They don't get enough love around here in my opinion.
Second on the Gowan recommendation. Not enough people are aware of this excellent artist.
John Young is another artist that was under-valued until Lifesigns came around.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote AFlowerKingCrimson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 10:22
Yeah, there was also a band a while back called Kino who were apparently very much on the aor side of prog but I don't remember much about them and never heard much of their music. I was also thinking that some of the later Eloy stuff would qualify (such as Destination). 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Criswell Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 10:25
Originally posted by TerLJack TerLJack wrote:

Love Ambrosia's first two, 10cc, Crack the Sky, City Boy, Be-Bop Deluxe...
They don't get enough love around here in my opinion.

A perfect list there...
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Saperlipopette! Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 10:26
This always sounded like a mid-1970's AOR (Soft Rock) monster-hit to me, but it didn't even chart anywhere (and has less than a million streams on Spotify).

 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote Logan Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 10:58
Not suggesting these because I think them good, although I quite like Presto.

Rush - Presto
ELP - Black Moon and In the Hot Seat
It Bites - Once Around the World
Rose - A Taste of Neptune (tastes better than Jupiter, Saturn, or Uranus I suppose)



Edited by Logan - April 28 2024 at 11:05
Two tracks per many of my fave acts: A Youtube Playlist
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote AFlowerKingCrimson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 11:56
Yeah, Tall Ships by It Bites would be a good example. I have one of their earlier albums too but didn't like it much (something about a Windmill).
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Floydoid Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 13:41
Apart from their first two albums which are fairly proggy, I'd say most of the rest of ELO's 1970's output is pretty much decent AOR.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote Jeffro Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 15:24
Originally posted by TerLJack TerLJack wrote:

The first 4-5 Sting records, 

Originally posted by AFlowerKingCrimson AFlowerKingCrimson wrote:

Jelly Jam ( a bit of a supergroup featuring members of King's X, Dream Theater and Dixie Dregs)

Nice to see two of my favorites listed. Those earlier Sting records are really good stuff.

And Jelly Jam? What can I say? Great stuff, especially the first disc. 
If you like Jelly Jam, you have to check out their predecessor band, Platypus. Platypus is essentially Jelly Jam but with Derek Sherinian included on keys.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote someone_else Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 15:49
The underrated Best Kept Secret by Alquin is the first album I think of.


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote mellotronwave Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 16:44
Ambrosia
Alan Parsons Project
Supertramp
Roxy Music
10CC

Adding :
Asia
Styx
Castarnac
Archive
Radiohead


Edited by mellotronwave - April 29 2024 at 10:25
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote cstack3 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 17:30
Not all AOR "prog" hit the mark....GTR comes to mind.  

I do enjoy a bit of Asia, but it was a bit formulaic for my tastes.  Still, I always enjoy hearing John Wetton's voice! 

I would say that the debut LP by Asia would hit the mark for REO of Prog.  "Sole Survivor" is quite a fine song, here, have some! 


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (1) Thanks(1)   Quote AFlowerKingCrimson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 18:12
^ Yeah, I think the first Asia album (and the first incarnation of the band in general) gets crapped on a lot because people were (or are) expecting a full on prog album based solely because who was on it and because of those expectations it disappointed a lot of people. However, taken on it's own terms it's very good catchy aor pop prog. 

Edited by AFlowerKingCrimson - April 28 2024 at 18:13
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote mathman0806 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 18:57
I was listening to Demon - The Plague today. I think that might count. Maybe a bit on the harder side of rock.

As far as the REO Speedwagon of prog, that's got to be Moon Safari.

My favorite relatively recent (2019) AOR Prog album is Noise Floor by Spock's Beard.
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote AFlowerKingCrimson Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 20:47
^ Heh, I have Spaced Out Monkey by them. Heavy but good. Not sure how I would categorize them but apparently they were part of the NWOBHM.

Moon Safari are great. I kind of feel like I have to be in the mood for their "happy" vocal harmonies though. 
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote cstack3 Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 28 2024 at 22:21
Originally posted by mathman0806 mathman0806 wrote:

I was listening to Demon - The Plague today. I think that might count. Maybe a bit on the harder side of rock.

As far as the REO Speedwagon of prog, that's got to be Moon Safari.

I went to university in Champaign, Illinois USA (University of Illinois), where REO Speedwagon had their origin!!  In those years (1973-77), Champaign was renowned for our bands!!  REO used to play street dances and local gigs at bars, they were very popular with the students and "townies!"  A movie about that era was made, see https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLEHPP_EmL2qDHm4egl4K9v_Xen7WopVoq

The original vocalist for REO, Terry Luttrell, left REO and eventually ended up as vocalist for the Yes-like band "Starcastle!"  Starcastle were HUGELY popular in Champaign back then, and their first LP had constant rotation on college radio!!   They were an amazingly energetic and charismatic band, playing all sorts of covers by Rolling Stones, Elton John and others as well as their originals!  

BTW, I don't consider them a "Yes-Clone," their vocalization style was very much influenced by Flash vs. Yes.   Gary Strater helped to give them that Yes sound with his Rickenbacker-Squire style, and keyboardist Herb Schildt was a master of the Hammond organ!!  These were rather rare instruments for bar bands in those years. 


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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote Sean Trane Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: April 29 2024 at 04:46
there are some valid suggestion, though I haven't seen Boston in the lists yet

Interesting take on AOR, and I am surprised by most of you in what they consider as such.


Maybe mine (take) is skewed by what I lived in Canada in the second half of the 70's (era in which AOR (adult-oriented rock, not Album Oriented Radio >> which happened in the earlier 70's). Most of what I call AOR is North American bands that had success (or little of it) between 75 & 85, though it could encompass most country rock, soft rock, yacht rock, corporate rock and indeed some forms of hard rock & prog rock (70's Kansas, for ex). 
But there are a few of these names listed above that I would actually consider AOR
The bands that epitomize AOR (IMHO) would be Steve Perry's Journey (though the metamorphosing had started beforehand), REO Speedwagon, Doobie Brothers, Eagles, Toto, Foreigner,  
But it would never occur to me to include Supertramp, 10 CC (or Queen FTM), APP (at least not the first three), Saga, Elton , TFF or Stevie Wonder.



To me, MW's list, none of them would enter the AOR bracket, except Ambrosia's third album and later ones TBH, I only discovered that Ambrosia had anything to do with prog until joining PA.
I'm not sure I would call any of Logan's choices as AOR either, though he names specific albums more than bands that made them and previous & later ones.


To me, artistes like Sting were never close to AOR (we could imagine Song-Oriented Jazz)


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