You know ... at 62 ... it is not getting any easier and I am still working 40 hours weekly in front of the computer with my eyes not getting any better!

 

I really would like to do more and finish the book on progressive stuff, but it is so frustrating ... not be able to concentrate enough to get a good flow going and in many ways, you just have no idea, how important Prog Archives is for me, in helping me stay focused and work the writing in there.

 

I've also decided to do a section called "peripherals", where some oddball individualists, can be mentioned. It's strange and weird for me, that we can consider Peter Hammill, the balladeer and introverted poet, progressive, and then I find the same thing in Neil Young, done the American way ... I kow that you might think that this is bizarre, stupid and silly, but the individualistic spirit, to them, is more important than anything else ... and the time the place, the song ... have its own life because they have a 3rd dimention to live with ... which most "pop" music does not have and tries to replace it with a "meaningful lyric" (or worse ... progressive lyric!) ... !!! You can not replace the "real" with an "ideal" in the arts ... people can see and "know" the real ... the "ideal" comes and goes, and women (and men) think of Michelangelo! As such, the parallel is actually very good, and his lack of fear playing with the scrungers, is gutsy and shows how creative and unafraid an artist he is! He is NOT, however, someone that I listen to regularly, every day kind of thing like I do so many others, mainly because his voice is all over the radio here ... but you have to admire someone that is not stuck in the past, playing the same old song, and not doing new things! Even PH is more repetitive these days, than Neil is!

 

But my book will have a list of theater writers, film makers, literature, that will go as far back as 1930's ... kinda starting out with the surrealists Luis Bunuel and Salvador Dali ... the original "progressive folks, along with Stravinsky ... and that covers the most important of arts in the 20th century ... other than the wars, nothing stood out as strong as film, music and visual arts! What we call "progressive music" is the logical extension of the same thing in rock music, jazz music and pop music!

 

Case closed ... I already knew your answer, but you, too, have some wonderful stories and experiences ... btw! You would make a better book than some of these gobos! At least your London would be thorough!

It would be interesting so see what each person who has posted on this topic ranks as their top 5 favorite Krautrock groups.

My top 5

1. Tangerine Dream

2. Eloy

3. Gila

4. Wallenstein

5.  Novalis