Funny Prog

dr wu23 wrote: I think Mick is right that Gong is consistently funny on many of their songs as well as Beefheart though his humor is a bit twisted. I think Hatfield and the North are humorous on many of their tracks ....that sly intellectual cheeky Brit style of funny. As well as Giles Giles and Fripp....though they only did the one lp as far as I know. ;)

The.Crimson.King wrote: BaldFriede wrote: I wouldn't call "Cat Food" or "NY3" "funny prog". "Cat Food" has some funny aspects but is a criticism of precooked supermarket food. Satirical, yes, but with a real background. And "NY3" is an argument between parents and an unruly daughter (the father being "sung" by Peter Hammill); I don't think this is funny at all. "NY3" has some great lines like Mother: "You're going for an abortion, baby; I never had to". Father: "No way never"! or Mother: "And you're a cocaine sniffer. And you're a cocaine sniffer. And you're a cocaine sniffer - don't you call me a slut"! You may think such lines are funny, but this is very serious stuff. PH does not appear on NY3.  Fripp recorded an actual argument he heard from his NY apartment and those are the only words that appear in the song.  I find the juxtaposition of this sampled argument on top of some ripping Fripp prog completely funny...your mileage may vary.  The fact that you seem offended that I might be amused by this would lead me to suggest perhaps you could start your own poll titled, "Prog That Is Not Funny" with NY3 and Cat Food as your first options

First of all: I am not offended at all; I merely stated an opinion about these two songs.

Maybe Fripp recorded the argument, but I could have sworn the father was PH. Oh well. But I still think this is serious stuff; Fripp's music just underlines the heated debate and is perfectly fitting for it, but funny? Not really; only if you are into schadenfreude (one of the few Germanisms in the English language).

I think Mick is right that Gong is consistently funny on many of their songs as well as Beefheart though his humor is a bit twisted.

Not on your list but i find "Billy The Mountain" from Zappa's "Just Another Band From LA" one of the most hilarious pieces of music ever laid down in prog format!

Floyd, Tull and GG.

I wouldn't call "Cat Food" or "NY3" "funny prog". "Cat Food" has some funny aspects but is a criticism of precooked supermarket food. Satirical, yes, but with a real background.

And "NY3" is an argument between parents and an unruly daughter (the father being "sung" by Peter Hammill); I don't think this is funny at all.

"NY3" has some great lines like Mother: "You're going for an abortion, baby; I never had to". Father: "No way never"! or Mother: "And you're a cocaine sniffer. And you're a cocaine sniffer. And you're a cocaine sniffer - don't you call me a slut"! You may think such lines are funny, but this is very serious stuff.

Edited by BaldFriede - March 21 2018 at 09:39

Grobschnitt is always a good laugh, Wigwam have a good sense of humour too.

First vote to Pena! (don´t know is it funny at all, most I think it´s just real mad, but great).

Edited by Mortte - March 21 2018 at 06:52

Some excellent choices here.  I kept changing my mind as I scrolled down it.  I wanted to vote for the Roxy Music, almost voted for the King Crimson, and wound up voting for the Syd Barrett.

love An Inmates Lullaby - my favorite on Glass House (which isn't among my favorites) but never knew it was funny - probably because I've not payed attention to the lyrics.