Your 'Big Six' of Prog

1. Yes

I’ve attempted this several times and got it trimmed to less than 20. The problem is that I appreciate different types of Prog. These are very rough wobbly categories. Some bands morphed into various forms.

Great songwriting: Yes, Rush, Alan Parsons Project, Kansas, Saga
Highly technical venturing into jazz: UK and Allan Holdsworth
Pushing boundaries: ELP, King Crimson, and anything Ron Jarzombek
Weaving in the old with the new: Jethro Tull and Caravan
Takes time to breathe: Pink Floyd and Camel
Sophisticated textures: Genesis, Peter Gabriel, Kate Bush, Tori Amos, and Dead Can Dance

Today’s Big Six:
Yes
Rush
Alan Parsons Project
Allan Holdsworth
Camel
ELP

^ Thank you! 😊   I’m sure my list will change tomorrow as I gravitate here and there and my music tastes morph. I’ve really been on a Camel kick lately. I mean I wasn’t kicked in the head by a camel, but rather I’ve been enjoying their highly organic style. It is a little jazzy at times … or sometimes spacey. But, they are very tasteful in what they’ve done. I like their slow build approach, almost like the music is telling a story. I think they are underrated and should’ve made it to the Big 6. The Snow Goose (based on an interesting book) and Moonmadness are top notch. As I strive to improve my own guitar phrasing, I’m looking more at artists like Andrew Latimer. He doesn’t rush things, and he puts a great deal of complexity in even the slow solos that he plays. I think of Pink Floyd with David Gilmour in a similar way, while their earlier work was more experimental (Syd Barrett). Also great, but different. Piper at the Gates of Dawn is something I listen to when I want something more chaotic.

Gentle Giant
King Crimson
Van der Graaf Generator
Pink Floyd
Yes
Genesis (up to W&W)

HM: ELP, Jethro Tull, Rush, Camel, Soft Machine

David_D wrote: TheGazzardian wrote: Mew

Here are three separate lists and based on different reasons. First one is obvious and kind of boring as it includes your typical 8-10 bands that typically makes up these type of lists. Therefore, I added a second and third list for a Big 6 tackling the OP thread question from a different angle.

Personal All Time Big 6:

1) Yes
2) Genesis
3) Rush
4) Gentle Giant
5) Emerson Lake and Palmer
6) King Crimson

More Modern List:

1) Steven Wilson
2) Big Big Train
3) Spocks Beard
4) Porcupine Tree
5) Pure Reason Revolution
6) Plini

Big 6 based on popularity and making Prog a significant genre instead of an asterisk in Rock history:

1) Pink Floyd
2) Yes
3) Rush
4) Jethro Tull
5) Emerson Lake and Palmer
6) Kansas

* Genesis outside of Pink Floyd sold more albums than any of the other bands in the Prog category. The vast majority of those albums sold, however, came during their 80s pop-rock period. The other bands had most of their significant success during their Prog Rock heyday with albums going Gold, Platinum or Multi-platinum within few years or less of their release and packed arenas and stadiums wherever they toured.

1) Rush

Big Sky wrote: Here are three separate lists and based on different reasons. First one is obvious and kind of boring as it includes your typical 8-10 bands that typically makes up these type of lists. Therefore, I added a second and third list for a Big 6 tackling the OP thread question from a different angle. Personal All Time Big 6: 1) Yes 2) Genesis 3) Rush 4) Gentle Giant 5) Emerson Lake and Palmer 6) King Crimson More Modern List: 1) Steven Wilson 2) Big Big Train 3) Spocks Beard 4) Porcupine Tree 5) Pure Reason Revolution 6) Plini Big 6 based on popularity and making Prog a significant genre instead of an asterisk in Rock history: 1) Pink Floyd 2) Yes 3) Rush 4) Jethro Tull 5) Emerson Lake and Palmer 6) Kansas * Genesis outside of Pink Floyd sold more albums than any of the other bands in the Prog category. The vast majority of those albums sold, however, came during their 80s pop-rock period. The other bands had most of their significant success during their Prog Rock heyday with albums going Gold, Platinum or Multi-platinum within few years or less of their release and packed arenas and stadiums wherever they toured.

richardh wrote: Big Sky wrote: Here are three separate lists and based on different reasons. First one is obvious and kind of boring as it includes your typical 8-10 bands that typically makes up these type of lists. Therefore, I added a second and third list for a Big 6 tackling the OP thread question from a different angle. Personal All Time Big 6: 1) Yes 2) Genesis 3) Rush 4) Gentle Giant 5) Emerson Lake and Palmer 6) King Crimson More Modern List: 1) Steven Wilson 2) Big Big Train 3) Spocks Beard 4) Porcupine Tree 5) Pure Reason Revolution 6) Plini Big 6 based on popularity and making Prog a significant genre instead of an asterisk in Rock history: 1) Pink Floyd 2) Yes 3) Rush 4) Jethro Tull 5) Emerson Lake and Palmer 6) Kansas * Genesis outside of Pink Floyd sold more albums than any of the other bands in the Prog category. The vast majority of those albums sold, however, came during their 80s pop-rock period. The other bands had most of their significant success during their Prog Rock heyday with albums going Gold, Platinum or Multi-platinum within few years or less of their release and packed arenas and stadiums wherever they toured. Thanks for the explanation about Genesis although they did become one of the biggest bands in Europe in the late seventies (not sure about the States at that time) when I would argue they will still a prog band. I know many argue they stopped being that after W&W but they still easily fit what we call Crossover nowadays and someone like Jem Godfrey takes his cues more from Duke than other Genesis albums (just check out Frost*- Falling Satellites where there is some serious Duke homaging going on!). I would still be inclined to put Genesis above Kansas at 6) but it's close. Also if we are trying to be anywhere near objective then Dream Theater should be popping up in lists a lot more!

Richard,

In the late 70s Genesis was gaining a fair bit of popularity in the Northeast of the U.S. Beginning with And Then There were Three, Genesis, because of the song "Follow You Follow Me" began to expand their base in the US. Probably with Duke and certainly by Abacab, they were a National
act in the US.

I always saw ATTWT and Duke as Prog albums. Abacab straddles the fence or just falls on the side of the fence of not being Prog. I still like Abacab though. I wished they would have done the Dodo / Lurker suite by including Naminanu and Submarine. That would have made for a nice 16 minute suite. Certainly would have been a Prog album then and allowed them to jettison the awful Who Dunnit?