Prog moments in ClassicRock

 

Todd Rundgren did a few albums which I think would have great appeal to open-minded prog fans. Not just the Utopia stuff, but 'A Wizard A True Star', which is an hour long trip (being the operative word) through various styles. There's heavy rock, psychedelia, soul, torch ballads and electronic experimentation. Prog fans would be satiated by 'Zen Archer', the whacked-out instrumental 'Flamingo' and 'International Feel'. The double album 'Todd' goes even further with the musical cross-breeding. 'Initiation' was a step too far for me when I last heard it, with its 36 minute synth-fest 'A Treatise On Cosmic Fire', but again, I dare say some prog fans would love it. His work on Meat Loaf's 'Bat Out Of Hell' was exceptional too, IMHO- the title track has some proggy moments, IMHO.

 

Phil Collins' album 'Face Value' has two very nice pieces of Weather Report-style ('Black Market'/'Heavy Weather' era) jazz rock, IMHO, in 'Droned'/'Hand In Hand'. His lengthy song 'Colours' from 'But Seriously' was pretty good too, I seem to recall, culminating in a terrific drum duet between him and Chester Thompson.

 

Check out Budgie's album 'Never Turn Your Back On A Friend'. A classic heavy rock album with a Roger Dean cover, and the epic 'Parents' is quite proggy, IMHO.

 

Paul McCartney's latest album 'Memory Almost Full' has its moments. Sure, we're not talking 'Close To The Edge'-style symphonic splendour, BUT the second half of the album was intended as a conceptual piece with several interlinking songs. The dramatic 'House Of Wax' in particular is one of his best tracks ever, IMHO, and its atmosphere has a certain proggy feel to it. A few reviews I saw picked up on this. The off-kilter art pop of 'Mr Bellamy' and 'Vintage Clothes' might be of interest, too.

 

I'll namedrop two albums by bands generally considered 'indie', Spiritualised and Mansun. Spiritualised's 'Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space' and Mansun's 'Six' are very ambitious, detailed and complex albums which did very well sales-wise too. Although the bands (like Radiohead) might well say otherwise (haven't read interviews with them though) might argue otherwise, I hear strong prog/psych influences in both albums. Nowadays, far too many British indie acts seem to have no more ambition than to go from copying The Libertines to copying Gang Of Four instead, but these albums might surprise you. I think 'Ladies And Gentlemen...' might appeal to fans of 'OK Computer' and 'Six' might be of some appeal to Coheed And Cambria/Mars Volta fans, IMHO of course.

 

Anyone ever played Van Morrison's 'Almost Independence Day' against Pink Floyd's 'Wish You Were Here'? There is a definite similarity, and though IMHO it's perhaps an unconscious one, Van's song was a few years earlier. Van's gorgeous epic 'When Heart Is Open' from his maligned (but I think it has some of his best work ever and certainly was a heck of a lot more ambitious than most of his work over the last ten years or so) 'Common One' album reminds me very much of Miles Davis' 'In A Silent Way'. And there's a very nice New Age-style instrumental called 'Scandinavia' from his album 'Beautiful Vision'.

 

As for Toto, I was told that 'Hydra' was quite proggy but all I heard was a very bland, watered down Steely Dan type album. However, their latest effort 'Falling In Between' has some proggy moments, such as the twisty-turny title track and 'Hooked', which features none other than Ian Anderson on flute.

 

As for Elton John, I very much agree on 'Funeral For A Friend'. I would also nominate the doomy 'Sixty Years On' and maybe even 'Grey Seal', one version of which has Rick Wakeman on mellotron, I believe.

 

The Grateful Dead's album 'Blues For Allah' might be relevant here too. I'm not really that big a Dead fan, BUT the 2nd side of this album is quite progressive in overall sound, IMHO. There's a very nice jazzy instrumental called 'King Solomon's Marbles' on the first side, too.