My five favorite prog bands of all time

Pink Floyd, and then Yes, and then... well, I love them all.

Re Some of the comments above, there seems to have been a backlash against Rush from the prog fraternity in recent times. They were another of those 'after the fact' bands that seem to gain a lot of praise for creating prog when they actually didn't. Also on youtube some have suggested that Neil Peart is well overrated as a drummer and maybe this plays into that idea as well. I doubt though that there have been too many more influential bands. They are often given (wrongly in my opinion) credit for creating prog metal which I'm guessing is the most popular of prog genres nowadays (the metal fraternity in general dwarfs the prog fraternity). Prog forums like this are becoming ever more niche and you only have to look at the pitiful number of ratings for new albums on the site to gain an understanding of that. Of course there is going to be a sense of protecting the pillars of prog (Yes, Genesis, Floyd, Crimson are that but Rush not) and it almost feels that we are drawing in the wagons as time goes on. 

^No. Rush is the best trio ever! Has nothing to do with 'heavy prog".

Actually, jazz and fusion is my home.

^Negatory... At 65, I prefer Rush more than your other picks and shall never outgrow them.

Hrychu wrote: Doug, I was being ironic. :) No offense.

Ok, thanks, no worries....

Doug, I was being ironic. :) No offense.

Well, if I were to put my top five in order from 1-5 it would probably look like this:

AFlowerKingCrimson wrote: Poor Rush only has 7 points. How is it possible for them to be so low?

Starshiper wrote: Among the options, I voted Yes. richardh wrote: Camel made better rounded albums but were a tad 'after the fact' and not as innovative or influential (arguably). The influence of Camel on neo-prog bands is undeniable. Everybody knows that Marillion, IQ, and Pendragon were heavily influenced by mid-to-late 70s Genesis. However, neo-prog movement was nothing less influenced by the best records of Camel. Marillion, for instance, was nearly as likely to mirror Camel's taste for atmospheric soundscapes punctuated with emotional lyricism on early efforts. Likewise, IQs "The Wake" channels a Camel-like emotional intensity at their most potent.  Moreover, Camel's guitarist Andy Latimer has been especially important for Pendragon's Nick Barrett; listen to Barrett's fluid guitar, and you'll hear Latimer creeping in there. Nick Barrett used these same tactics—beautiful leads and emotive phrasing—to get listeners to feel something.

I like all the bands listed in the Poll, but none are in my top 10....