To quote an over cliched platitude 'classical music reaches the parts that other genres cannot reach'. It reaches the Inner Person not just the surface. This of course isn't a sweeping fact it is merely my own experience. It's a bit like comparing Cricket to Football- Cricket is a fine game whereas Football is beautifully unpredictable, the quick fix, but it excites us and that my Deer Blogfans is sometimes the tonic we need so much. This world exudes stress and music is the perfect antidote for that. I mostly listen to Progressive rock in the car, reason being, in short bursts you can't get immersed in a Schubert symphony or a Shostakovich string quartet. That brings me on to the Keynote question.... What is Progressive Rock?

Short answer- Progressive Rock is Rock music that is completely devoid of any commercial influences.

Long answer- well for a start the obligatory radio friendly three minute airplay is out the window! With the time barrier removed, composition and ideas can flourish- the music can go in a classical direction, or jazz, fusion, experimental, whatever it just isn't an issue. There can be improvisations or extended portions to showcase an individuals virtuosity. Songs can be segmented into several sections that take up half an album, a whole album or more! There are no limits, it's all about going forward, extending the boundaries.

Incidentally the pictures are totally random and abstract, having nothing whatsoever to do with the music. Okay so, here we go...

10. The Undercover Man- Van der graf Generator ( from, Godbluff)

This band is the brainchild of lyricist and lead vocalist Peter Hamil of whom Robert Fripp said "Peter Hamil has done for the voice what Jimi Hendrix did for the guitar".  Hamil has a multi octave vocal range that pervades anything from delicate harplike strains to the screamings of a raving madman! This track is about the pain of having to grow up and face adulthood. Intelligent lyrics as well as the savage and beautiful ring forth in this musical landscape.

9. Nine feet underground - Caravan ( from, In the Land of Grey and Pink)

This piece took up the entire second side of the album, it is split up into eight sections which have bizarre titles like 'dance of the seven paper hankies' and 'holding Grandad by the nose'. This is loungy Jazz with a rock driven underpinning. The core instruments seem to be the Sax and Hammond organ, they bounce off everything else giving the piece an English rustic quality to it. The subject matter ranges from the vagaries of the weather to finding jigsaws in trees!

8. Ommadawn - Mike Oldfield.

I prefer Ommadawn to it's high flying predecessor, Tubular Bells because it captures the heart of the listener. A gorgeous depth glows through several invocative passages. The pinnacle of the piece is like effortlessly gaining height on a mountain as the mist lifts and the view positively explodes in scale, then comes the 'horse' rhythm, the sun is shining , you can't fail to be happy. You have the chance to wallow in childlike nostalgia in 'On Horseback' and hearing Children sing the chorus is a sheer joy!

7. VROOOM - King Crimson (from, Thrack)

Artistic expansion here even begins with the title of the track - that is not a conventional title! Here is a slice of heavy sophisticated prog rock that has an inner sense of stamina, that discordant lead guitar inspires the mind to be energetic! Listen out for that well defined 'boom boom' from the bass too, making it great fun to drive to. This is basically a re-working of an early K.C classic called 'Red' - I chose this track because it's more youthful and vivacious.

6. Xanadu - Rush  (from, A farewell to Kings)

It takes a long time to build up to the main chorus riff but not a single bar is wasted in this epic. It ebbs and flows through a soaring and imaginative take on Coleridge-Taylors poem, Kubla Khan. It amazes me how there's only three players in this band! Best drummer in the world bar none! (in my opinion) While your sonically focused on a whimsical theme on the keyboards, just listen to what's happening on the percussion. This has to be also one of the best endings in Rock music.

 5. Music inspired by the Snowgoose - Camel

Apart from the engaging wordless chorus this work is entirely instrumental. This was their third album and it turned out to be a seminal one. Camel were on top of their game - the music really speaks for itself. You're perpetually drawn into the sumptuous melodies, there's a wistful flute, a wind section and a couple of guitar solos that just melt your heart - the instrument actually sings to you! These are just some moments that twinkle in this aural soundscape. There's no low point.

4. Echoes - Pink Floyd (from, Meddle)

This is more than just music, this is Art! At 23"31' this is of Classical proportion and it is symphonic in form, that is in four basic parts - albeit the sounds gracefully collide into each other like clouds on a mountain but this only enhances the psychedelic abstraction that percolates from every bar. It can be interpreted in many ways, I liken it to the four parts of the day, around some lonely beach location in the Southern hemisphere. Perhaps best to just go where the music takes you.

3. Close to the edge - Yes

This piece is so compositionally outstanding because the pieces that make up the whole are so conflictingly  incoherent, anything from Beatlesque harmonies to a Church organ! Yet they all meld together like some Tate modern collage of surging musical psychodelia! With constant time switches and key changes the music is like a cascading waterfall over your head, especially with headphones, listen to it and you'll know what I mean. Pure Prog.

2. Gryphon - Midnight Mushrumps

Who (?!) Well let me tell you this band are a class act. There array of instruments include Crumhorns, Bassoon, Baroque recorders, mandolins and a Kettle! Any band with King Henry 8th in the song credits will raise eyebrows. When we saw them and they played this track the audience, as one, gave a standing ovation after about the first three notes! At 18"58' it is a truly extraordinary composition full of heart rending song structures and gorgeous tunes from start to finish.

1. Shine on you crazy diamond - Pink Floyd (from, Wish you were Here)

It just couldn't be anything else for me. Split into nine sections this music will hold you in the palm of it's hand. The iconic bluesy guitar work over an organ backdrop is a masterstroke that creates an impression that has to be felt rather than heard. The track takes you on a journey where emotions range from comfort to fear! But the last section pours out beauty and serenity from every note of every bar. A fitting way to conclude a fine piece of music.


Would love to hear your opinions.

Toodles, Marky.