Steve Hackett, the greatest solo prog artist?

One particular aspect to Steve Hackett's style is his songwriting. I'm talking about actual singer songwriting type of stuff which traditionally consists of an intro, 2 or 3 verses a bridge and a couple of chorus...which people like Tony Banks enjoyed The Kinks for that reason.

The verses , bridge and chorus don't always have to be in the same order. The idea of attempting a song can sometimes be more difficult than composing an instrumental. It depends on what you're hearing in your head and trying to produce that sound on different instruments...however some songs are complete when they are inspiring you as you sit out in a field with an acoustic guitar.

Steve Hackett's songwriting improved immensely by Darktown or To Watch Storms. Cured felt like an experiment with commercial songwriting. "Funny Feeling" wasn't exactly up to par with the songs Michael Rutherford wrote for Smallcreeps Day nor was it comparable to the level of Anthony Phillips attempt at being Pop.

However by the time Steve Hackett's Guitar Noir came out..you could hear that he made a quantum leap as a songwriter. In another sense certain songs that he wrote for Please Don't Touch such as "Narnia " and "Racing In A" were very solid and on the level of Genesis back in 76'.

"Everyday" was a good song which was about his girlfriend who had unfortunately died from drugs. The song contained a long jam at the end and overall it was nowhere near the level and impact that "Narina" had. On Defector "The Show" and "Time To Get Out" were decent but not genuine songwriting work of art like "Narnia "..imo

His songwriting improved on his later albums. Now he seems more crafted ...not unlike Todd Rundgren or 10CC. As an instrumentalist he has always been top notch! From Voyage Of The Acolyte onward his instrumental composition is surely comparable to The Enid . He was already on that level while in Genesis. His songwriting gradually developed overtime

Edited by Jacob Schoolcraft - March 06 2024 at 13:22

I dig Steve Hackett's work, but I never quite felt the same spark as others with his solo works. Much prefer some of the works of Peter Gabriel, Fish, and Omar Rodriquez Lopez for my prog solo moods.

His playing is INCREDIBLE!!!! No doubt, but I liken his solo efforts the same I do with Ritchie Blackmore, very boring and tough to get into. Blackmore as well an amazing guitarist.

richardh wrote: Well I need to get my ears seen to

Catcher10 wrote: richardh wrote: Well I need to get my ears seen to  No, we all like what we like and don't like what we don't like.......Remember my position on the Fab Four, and my ears are perfectly fine!

richardh wrote: Catcher10 wrote: richardh wrote: Well I need to get my ears seen to  No, we all like what we like and don't like what we don't like.......Remember my position on the Fab Four, and my ears are perfectly fine!  So boring means 'don't like'? So does that mean everything you don't like is boring?

Catcher10 wrote: richardh wrote: Catcher10 wrote: richardh wrote: Well I need to get my ears seen to  No, we all like what we like and don't like what we don't like.......Remember my position on the Fab Four, and my ears are perfectly fine!  So boring means 'don't like'? So does that mean everything you don't like is boring? No...boring is just that boring. A lot of what I don't like can be boring but not everything. If I don't like something because I think it's useless krapp, that does not mean its boring.

Devin Townsend
Neal Morse
Steven Wilson
Arjen Lucassen
...

I don't think there is a greatest. What would be, of course, in Prog would depend on one's own Prog parameters/ music expectations. Many of my favourite artists in PA I might not consider Prog to be an ideal term to describe them (like Klaus Schulze in Electronic, Kate Bush in Crossover, various in folk, or Miles Davis in Prog which would be a real stretch, or David Bowie in related...). Some other names I might consider are Robert Wyatt, Toby Driver William D. Drake, Peter Gabriel. Were I to choose one then I would say, with uncertainty, Peter Hammill.