Top 20 best prog/art rock albums

[overkill]

Just a few thoughts. You may disagree/add according to taste. Remember it's prog/ART rock.

1) Van Der Graaf Generator - Pawn Hearts
2) Van Der Graaf Generator - Still Life
3) Yes - Fragile
4) Yes - The Yes Album
5) Yes - Closer to the Edge
6) Genesis - Lamb lies Down on Broadway
7) Genesis - Foxtrot
8) King Crimson - Court of the Crimson King
9) King Crimson - Larks Tongues in Aspic
10) King Crimson - Starless and Bible Black
11) Moody Blues - Threshold of a Dream
12) Moody Blues - To our Childrens, Childrens, Children
12) ELP - Tarkus
13) ELP - Trilogy
14) Porcupine Tree - In Absentia
15) Pink Floyd - Meddle
16) UK - UK
17) Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick
18) Jethro Tull - Aqualung
19) Roxy Music - Roxy Music
20) Roxy Music - Stranded

 

[Badger0-0]

I'd add Yes- Going for the one.
One of my all time fave albums

 

[pmc]

Funnily enough I was just playing some Ozric Tentacles and thinking about prog rock. Are we including modern stuff? In which case add

Tool - Lateralus
Ozric Tentacles - Pungent Effulgent
Opeth - Blackwater Park

 

[karkus30]

Im slightly confused because you have not included Pink Floyd -DSOTM, so am I missing something in your genre rating system ? Art Rock (i thought ) was music such as Televisions -Marquee moon

I would have to question ELPs album choice. Definitely Brain Salad Surgery IMO. No Rush ? No Camel ? PFM or gentle Giant

 

[huwg]

Purely personal taste, but I'd have King Crimson's "Red" in there, and I'd swap Foxtrot for Selling England by the Pound. I might also swap In Absentia for 'Deadwing' or 'Fear of a Blank Planet'

In mine I'd also have :-
Rush - Hemispheres
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here, & DSotM, (as well as Meddle)
The Mars Volta - Deloused in the Comatorium
Tool - Aenima
Peter Gabriel - 3

I've never really got into Yes, I think it is Jon Anderson's voice that puts me off; but somehow I can put up with Geddy Lee.

I've not listened to much ELP either.... maybe I need to visit progarchives.com for inspiration.

 

[karkus30]

I've not listened to much ELP either.... maybe I need to visit progarchives.com for inspiration.

You must be very,very careful. I have all their early output and the later CD collectors box set.

Still not sure what constitutes prog these days. I am not sure Tool really are a prog band per se.

Anyone tried Echolyn ? Definitely figures under that banner of complex, multi layered prog as opposed to Prog metal.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgaCALZR2UA

If you like/liked Yes but like the more complex/heavier/jazz inspired King Crimson sound you are gonna love this !!!!!!!!oh I should add that there is also a proportion of Keith Emerson.

and another
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&VideoID=1053999

 

[Badger0-0]

I'm slightly confused too.
What my daughter calls punk is nothing like, IMO.
But that's just time doing it's thing, I guess

 

[overkill]

Im slightly confused because you have not included Pink Floyd -DSOTM, so am I missing something in your genre rating system ? Art Rock (i thought ) was music such as Televisions -Marquee moon

I would have to question ELPs album choice. Definitely Brain Salad Surgery IMO. No Rush ? No Camel ? PFM or gentle Giant

I don't count Floyd's DSOM as prog or art rock. It's not high experimental enough for either. That's not to say it's not 'innovative' or downright excellent, just not in the category I had in mind. I.e pure prog or 'art for arts sake'.

I agree with all the additions, Camels Snow Goose for example would fit in well, however, I was thinking 'heavyweights' rather than the lesser lights. Otherwise the likes of Gentle Giant, BJH, Focus etc could have been included.

ELP's output has to be taken with care. I like them, and hence here's a star rating:-

ELP - ELP **** Great LP. Fresh and innovative.
ELP - Pictures at an Exhibition ** Tosh. Poorly recorded and conceived.
ELP - Tarkus *** I loved this in my youth but now I find it heavy going.
ELP - Trilogy **** Great LP. Back to the basics of the first album with fun tracks thrown in to lighten the mood - and they work.
ELP - Brain Salad Surgery. **** Only bettered by the first LP, and seen as their album par excellence by many.
ELP - Welcome back my Friends to the show that never ends **** Actually, a very good live album.
ELP - Works. ** It's over. Pretentious, overblown, a band that's lost the plot.
ELP - Works II * Very poor, collectors only.
ELP - Love Beach * Utter crap. Listen at your peril!

 

[karkus30]

Now, what about Alan Holdsworth's metal fatigue ?

 

[Shaldon]

The Enid - Aerie Faerie Nonsense

 

[dibdab]

Tool - Aenima and lateralus

 

[Habanero]

Marillion - Misplaced Childhood.

Nothing else comes close.

 

[karkus30]

Tool - Aenima and lateralus

See, thats the point. I dont think they really come under the art rock/prog label. Its more prog metal.........a sort of intelectual Metallica.

 

[KoThreads]

ELP - ELP **** Great LP. Fresh and innovative.
ELP - Pictures at an Exhibition ** Tosh. Poorly recorded and conceived.
ELP - Tarkus *** I loved this in my youth but now I find it heavy going.
ELP - Trilogy **** Great LP. Back to the basics of the first album with fun tracks thrown in to lighten the mood - and they work.
ELP - Brain Salad Surgery. **** Only bettered by the first LP, and seen as their album par excellence by many.
ELP - Welcome back my Friends to the show that never ends **** Actually, a very good live album.
ELP - Works. ** It's over. Pretentious, overblown, a band that's lost the plot.
ELP - Works II * Very poor, collectors only.
ELP - Love Beach * Utter crap. Listen at your peril!

When i was at school, showing my age, i thought i was the biggest E.L.P. fan around so after reading your post i decided to give them all a spin just to jog the few brain cells left. I have all the above on CD and vinyl but played the vinyl.

ELP..........Still sounds very good
Pictures....Still sounds rough, but it was a budget album, think i payed 99p or £1.49
Tarkus.....Still my fave, side 1 got blasted for years even when i was at college and uni
Trilogy.....For some reason just never got into, and even today still doesn't sound right, maybe a mind thing from childhood.
Brain Salad...Loved it but Toccata used to drive my parents round the bend.
Welcome Back.....I always felt was poor and badly recorded. I did see them at this point with some friends in 74 or 75 and although some spectacle left me feeling they were going through the motions.
Works, Works 2.......No still do not like them, but can still listen to them, whereas
Love Beach............Dire, rearly dire.

And yes, no Camel or P.F.M? Saw PFM in 74 as they were on ELP's Manticore label and still say to this day they were the best live band i have ever seen.

Thanks Overkill, without your post i wouldn't have played them again for years.

My top twenty would have had 'In The Land of Grey and Pink' by Caravan with the brilliant 'Nine Feet Underground'.

 

[Jacksonjnr]

I'd add
Barclay James Harvest - Octoberon

 

[overkill]

When i was at school, showing my age, i thought i was the biggest E.L.P. fan around so after reading your post i decided to give them all a spin just to jog the few brain cells left. I have all the above on CD and vinyl but played the vinyl.

ELP..........Still sounds very good
Pictures....Still sounds rough, but it was a budget album, think i payed 99p or £1.49
Tarkus.....Still my fave, side 1 got blasted for years even when i was at college and uni
Trilogy.....For some reason just never got into, and even today still doesn't sound right, maybe a mind thing from childhood.
Brain Salad...Loved it but Toccata used to drive my parents round the bend.
Welcome Back.....I always felt was poor and badly recorded. I did see them at this point with some friends in 74 or 75 and although some spectacle left me feeling they were going through the motions.
Works, Works 2.......No still do not like them, but can still listen to them, whereas
Love Beach............Dire, rearly dire.

And yes, no Camel or P.F.M? Saw PFM in 74 as they were on ELP's Manticore label and still say to this day they were the best live band i have ever seen.

Thanks Overkill, without your post i wouldn't have played them again for years.

My top twenty would have had 'In The Land of Grey and Pink' by Caravan with the brilliant 'Nine Feet Underground'.

Glad it got you to shake off the cobwebs, Karkus did that for me with KC a while back. My brother got into them about the same time, so, I dusted off the vinyl, and even went out and got some of the later stuff on CD!

As before, thanks for everyones contributions, and in particular Karkus and Idoexist for PFM who I only ever heard one LP from, but the original spec was 'well known' and specifically prog. As Karkus said, many of the bands mentioned aren't strictly prog, and I include the likes of BJH and Caravan in that.

'Octoberon', 'Everyone is everybody else', 'Gone to Earth' and 'In the land of Pink and Grey' are all excellent albums, but 'I' wouldn't call any of them strictly prog. All of them are lightly folk orientated AOR. No insult intended, as I have, and like very much, all of them.

 

[Jacksonjnr]

Demis Roussos - Forever And Ever

Apparently he sang with his nuts in a vice.
How progressive is that

 

[overkill]

Demis Roussos - Forever And Ever

Apparently he sang with his nuts in a vice.
How progressive is that

Talking of prog...........did you know that Demis played in the same band as Vangelis!

 

[Jacksonjnr]

Talking of prog...........did you know that Demis played in the same band as Vangelis!

He (Vangelis) obviously liked singers with high voices. He also nearly joined Yes after Rick Wakeman left but it did'nt work out, but he became friends with John Anderson.

 

[KoThreads]

Aphrodite's Child..............666

One of the tracks the late Tommy Vance used to love. Proof Demis could rearly warble.

 

[overkill]

He (Vangelis) obviously liked singers with high voices. He also nearly joined Yes after Rick Wakeman left but it did'nt work out, but he became friends with John Anderson.

I remember that, Patrick Moraz joined instead. A bad move on his part, and perhaps proof to Vangelis that he made the right decision. Moraz's solo stuff is pretty good, but in Yes his style disappeared beneath the rest of bands ideas on Relayer. I couldn't see Vangelis, who's stuff is very idiosyncratic, wearing that.

 

[Jacksonjnr]

Aphrodite's Child..............666

One of the tracks the late Tommy Vance used to love. Proof Demis could rearly warble.

Slightly off topic

Tommy Vance, another rock legend & the best voice on radio, ever. I used to listen to the Friday Rock Show every week in my teens 10 til 12.

 

[HMHB]

Not sure if this album is classed in this group but one of my favourites is
Roxy Music - For Your Pleasure

 

[karkus30]

This site is worth a look over if you are a serious poggy. Lots of bands i have never come across. Definitely worth a good poke around http://www.progarchives.com/top-prog-albums.asp?style_id=19

 

[karkus30]

I remember that, Patrick Moraz joined instead. A bad move on his part, and perhaps proof to Vangelis that he made the right decision. Moraz's solo stuff is pretty good, but in Yes his style disappeared beneath the rest of bands ideas on Relayer. I couldn't see Vangelis, who's stuff is very idiosyncratic, wearing that.

I used to play i a lot at one time