Prog Rock FAQ by Will Romano

I found this book at a local bookstore on the weekend, and thought I'd start this thread (since there doesn't seem to be one yet).

The book is one of an ongoing series of "FAQ" books from the publisher (Backbeat Books), so that explains the title.

However, a quick flip through the book suggests it is in fact no "FAQ" - it's more a digest of wildly varying material including interviews, essays and annotated "lists". Perhaps this aggregation of data will answer some FAQ in passing, but not more than that. It's more like a magazine in book form really.

So far, some items have been of interest (e.g. the essay about mellotrons, the interview with David Jackson of VDGG), some of it less so (in general, the lists and analysis/opinion pieces, though there are some interesting facts spread throughout). The level of interest will of course depend on the specific interests of the reader.

The 15 page Introduction which a reader might initially think would give an overview of Prog Rock, or maybe even an overview of the book itself, instead flaps briskly through a "mixed bag" of mini essays, including a selection of modern prog record labels, Christian Prog Rock, Kings X/Grunge and finishes with a tribute to Peter Banks.

After that, Chapter 1 is an exhaustive essay on the proto-prog band Clouds; worthy but not really what I'd expect to find as the first chapter of an "FAQ" on progressive rock.

I've made it up to chapter 7 (an interview with the artist who did the cover artwork of "Lizard" for King Crimson).

With it's "grab bag" approach and content, it seems like the kind of book which would be bought as a Christmas present (or a birthday present, given that Christmas is recently behind us), rather than the kind of book which a reader would buy for themselves.

Here are the chapter titles, which should give a good idea of the content of the book:

Introduction: Signs of the Aprogalypse
1 Clockwork Soldiers: Are Proto-Prog Rockers Clouds the True Fathers of a Musical Movement?
2 Of Pawn Hearts and Horn Parts: A Q&A with Former Van der Graaf Generator Saxophonist David Jackson
3 The Mellotron: Raising the Mammoth
4 Mindcrimes and Misconceptions: Concept Albums (That Are and Aren't)
5 Move On Alone: A Q&A with Mick Abrahams
6 The Gates of Delirium: Top 20 BIG Compositions
7 King Crimson's Lizard: Beyond the Bizarre and Beautiful Album Cover Artwork
8 Escapist Artists: Designing and Creating Prog Rock's Wondrous Visuals
9 The Cinema Show: Prog's Celluloid Heroes
10 Italian Cult Bands: Inside the Making of Two Classic Records
11 Crafty Hands: Happy the Man
12 Blinded by the Lite? A Look Inside Prog's Number-One Song
13 Prog Gets Punk'd: What Caused the Decline of the Genre?
14 Heavy Horsesh#$!: Examining Prog's Criminal Record and Critiquing Critical Reaction
15 Yes, an Implosion? The Behind-the-Scenes Drama of a Rock Powerhouse
16 Wise After the Event: An Anthony Phillips Q&A
17 Shock to the System: Henry Cow and Rock in Opposition
18 Jack the Ripper and Other Musical Villains: Univers Zero's Daniel Denis
19 The Defector's Dream Team: Steve Hackett---His Exit from Genesis and His Musical Triumphs
20 Any Colour You Like: Tull, Eddie Jobson, and the Mysterious Pink Album
21 My Own Time: Highlights of John Wetton's Journeyman Career
22 Asia "Minor"? John Payne Discusses His (Largely Underappreciated) Years with the Prog-Pop Band Asia
23 ELP's Black Moon Rising: Romantic Warriors in Enemy Territory
24 Anglagard: Riding the Third Wave
25 District 97 Q&A: Gender Politics and Prog
26 It's Worth Repeating: Minimalism, Steve Reich, and Radiohead
27 Collins' Cosmos: Who, or What, Is Dimensionaut?
28 Scale the Summit: Sense the Adventure Metal---A Q&A with Chris Letchford


Edited by David64T - January 04 2016 at 08:03

altaeria wrote: I just stumbled upon this book also.  It is definitely worth purchasing.  After years of listening to (and reading about) Prog Rock,  this is my first exposure to Billy Ritchie and 1-2-3/Clouds.  If the information (and opinions) provided by the author is remotely accurate,  then it sure does seem like Billy Ritchie ushered in the Symph Prog keyboard era.

Absolutely true and fair to say that music is purely subjective - Good to hear someone acknowledge that! So much criticism is unfair and prejudiced by personal taste, it's unhealthy (and very stupid!), but sadly, the vast majority of comments are based on that fact. We are all entitled to our personal tastes, but we should remember they are personal, not liking something doesn't mean it's necessarily bad.

Book can be heavy going at times, but worth the read. Clockwork Soldiers is a great chapter title and the stuff about 123 and Peter Banks is great, as well as the Steve Hackett bit and a lot more.

Maybe the history of Proto-Prog will not be able to be written until fifty years from now.   I think we may be too close.  There is always that "underdog syndrome," which wants to avoid people who got more popular as possibly being important innovaters.  Then there are people that are just stuck in blues scale heaven, and don't really understand what musical innovation is all about.  I've been around people that saw themselves as great composers who never had lessons and couldn't write an innovative chord progression to save their lives, lol.   Music means something special, and doesn't mean "everything and the kitchen sink."   Progressive rock music also doesn't mean playing around in blues scales but having pauses differently than regular bands, and other such things that aren't related to mode and chord structure.   Music criticism is always a mean business I guess, as is success and failure in music. But how can you talk about it without having opinions on people's tastes in music? 

Edited by brainstormer - April 07 2016 at 20:27

I rather found the book to be all over the place. It has a LOT of useful information but is difficult to read covr to cover.

I agree with many of the comments here, to me, the title is misleading, hardly an 'FAQ'. Also agree that it's not a cover to cover read, but it's a joy to read and pick pieces from, that's it's real strength. Also ahead of the curve, when you see the section on Clouds/1-2-3, anticipating the mainstream surge about the band's influence on 70s music, and that's not the only forecast contained in the book. Many interesting comments and sections about other pioneers and unsung heroes. Daring and insightful. A good book to have on the shelf.