So, Who Exactly is a Member of the Big Six?

HolyMoly wrote: Reminds me, a couple of years ago I bought a used vinyl copy of “Red” and it had a “cutout” notch in the side. I remember thinking, wow, THIS was a cutout? But yeah. These albums weren’t big sellers. Even Crimso had to slum it for quite a while.

kenethlevine wrote: In my post above I do mention that "In the Court" went platinum.  I don't know when it happened.  I just remember that the fact that it took 8 years to go gold was very much celebrated at the time, an unusual occurrence.  That is, if you haven't gone gold fairly quickly, it usually didn't happen at all.

kenethlevine wrote: AFlowerKingCrimson wrote: I'm not sure maybe number 20 but I wouldn't go by them anyway. They probably have Dream Theater in the top 10. :P That said I still like the magazine and read it. My main reason for having GG as part of the big six is because when I used to go on the progressive ears website and they did those big five or big six lists at least 80 percent of the members on there had GG in their top six if not top five. While I don't care for their over all community and snobbery they definitely know their prog and if they place GG that high up that consistently then you know there's a good reason for it. Also, GG used to regularly fill large theaters of at least two thousand seats and at one point(according to one of the GG members) were about as big as Genesis before Genesis became more popular and "sold out." Also, over time they have become at least as respected in prog circles as ELP if not more so. ELPs stock has fallen over the years, which is sort of sad even though I personally dislike them. But really, many prog bands could fill 2000+ theaters during the heyday of prog.  I was there.  That isn't such a big deal.   GG may well be big 6 by some important standards but commercial popularity is not one of them, by any stretch.

Edited by AFlowerKingCrimson - September 08 2020 at 21:19

If we're considering trying to establish a new, more agreeable version of the big six...

In my humble opinion it really is 3 bands that pushed 70s prog to its absolute brilliance: Yes, Genesis and Pink Floyd. They could do no wrong in their heyday. Every single album collectively by them post 1970 and ending in the late 70s (not sure there's a specific year to cap it) is stunning, no bad songs on every album.

I cannot say the same for the other so-called "Big Six", KC ELP and Jethro Tull. It always puzzled me how bands that released the dregs/non-genre defining songs such as "Trio", "Toccata" and "A Passion Play" could be regarded in the same group as the other three.

King Crimson was just not good and way too experimental in the albums in between In the Wake of Poseidon and Starless and Bible Black. So many lineup changes, the albums in this transitional phase honestly only had one or two good songs per album, "Lizard", "Cirkus", "Islands", "Exiles" and I guess the for some reason popular LTIA.

ELP was also wildly inconsistent. If they had more than one monster of a song per album I think they would be up there. As it is, just having "Take A Pebble"/"Tarkus"/"Karn Evil 9" as the masterpiece of the album doesn't cut it. I don't even need to explain Tull, quite the one song wonder... I can't believe how massive a downfall the band had from one album to the next. Some great stuff on albums before and after TAAB but why couldn't they do something else equally as amazing as TAAB? "Aqualung" and "Baker Street Muse" are great but if those are their numbers 2 and 3 in the "masterpiece list", they pale in comparison to Yes/Gen/Pink.


When Yes's worst songs in their heyday (the songs not named "The Revealing Science of God" in Tales) are still pretty amazing, and many a Yes fan appreciates what they tried to do, it shows me that band was a giant step ahead of everyone else.

Boboulo wrote: Sacro_Porgo wrote: If we're considering trying to establish a new, more agreeable version of the big six... What are the odds anyone knows some good candidates who aren't 100% white dudes? I'm ashamed to say off the top of my head I don't, though I'm sure there must be quite a few and I've just never looked into them. Return to Forever. Why not? The Big Four are Jethro Tull, ELP, Yes and Genesis and we can add what we want to meet the Big Six requirement.

Boboulo wrote: Cristi wrote: Boboulo wrote: Sacro_Porgo wrote: If we're considering trying to establish a new, more agreeable version of the big six... What are the odds anyone knows some good candidates who aren't 100% white dudes? I'm ashamed to say off the top of my head I don't, though I'm sure there must be quite a few and I've just never looked into them. Return to Forever. Why not? The Big Four are Jethro Tull, ELP, Yes and Genesis and we can add what we want to meet the Big Six requirement. the big six requirement? REQUIREMENT?! My head hurts at such nonsense.  Oh, sorry! I'm replacing the word "requirement" with the word "figment".

Cristi wrote: Boboulo wrote: Cristi wrote: Boboulo wrote: Sacro_Porgo wrote: If we're considering trying to establish a new, more agreeable version of the big six... What are the odds anyone knows some good candidates who aren't 100% white dudes? I'm ashamed to say off the top of my head I don't, though I'm sure there must be quite a few and I've just never looked into them. Return to Forever. Why not? The Big Four are Jethro Tull, ELP, Yes and Genesis and we can add what we want to meet the Big Six requirement. the big six requirement? REQUIREMENT?! My head hurts at such nonsense.  Oh, sorry! I'm replacing the word "requirement" with the word "figment". yes, you can add what you want to meet the big 6 figment.  good for you...

Bah. Fulfill or not the OP request for a list of the bands that make "the Big Six", any "the Bix Six" set would be a figment. Just because the "Bix Six" never were as such. There were only four British Prog Rock bands from the original movement that have achieved commercial success as a current bands on the both sides of Atlantic, i.e. Jethro Tull, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Yes and Genesis as the Big Four.

Boboulo wrote: Return to Forever. Why not? The Big Four are Jethro Tull, ELP, Yes and Genesis and we can add what we want to meet the Big Six requirement.

Edited by Nogbad_The_Bad - September 09 2020 at 04:59

Boboulo wrote: Nogbad_The_Bad wrote: Boboulo wrote: Return to Forever. Why not? The Big Four are Jethro Tull, ELP, Yes and Genesis and we can add what we want to meet the Big Six requirement. Applying your own twisted logic, we can discount Jethro Tull as they have many more Blues Rock & Folk Rock albums than Prog. Yes have disbanded so many times its hard to keep track so they're out. Genesis are much more popular as a pop band and have't released a prog album since '78 so cut them. Guess our Big 6 is .... Emerson Lake and Palmer. Return to Forever certainly were more "proggy" than psychedelic rock band Pink Floyd.