More than Meets the Ear

Remember the commercial slogan “There’s no single cheese like Velveeta, ’cause Velveeta is more than one single cheese." Rock & Roll is like that.

Back in the 1950's, Rock & Roll was mostly what we now call Rockabilly. Then in the 1960's, British Bands like the Rolling Stones, the Kinks, Cream and Led Zeppelin blended in the Blues, and Rock & Roll started to have a new flavor. While most bands only gave us a few flavors, the Beatles gave us an entire banquet. Real "Rock Music" was started by the Who. They played loud. They had something interesting to say and they wanted to be heard over the background noise. Because of these pioneers, Rock music now has endless possibilities.

Because a daily blog requires me to come up with something new to write about everyday, I will spend the next few blogs exploring various sub-categories of Rock music. Some have come and gone and some are still around. Let's get started.

Today's Category: PROGRESSIVE ROCK

Name your 3 favorite Progressive Rock Bands: _______, _______, _______.

Mine are: Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Jethro Tull and Pink Floyd. I'll tell you why in a minute.

Of course, I could have also mentioned other great bands like Yes, the Moody Blues, King Crimson, Wishbone Ash, Tangerine Dream, Utopia, Genesis or even newer groups like Dream Theatre or Mars Volta. What do all these bands have in common? They elevate Rock music to a higher level of artistic sensibility.

Back to my Top Three: Emerson, Lake & Palmer (ELP) channeled Classical Music through synthesizers and stacks of amplifiers. They turned Mussorgsky's "Pictures At An Exhibition" into poetic rock majestry. I remember playing their album "Brain Salad Surgery" over and over and over until the grooves on the LP were worn away. ELP had a knack for picking up classical themes and, like alchemists, created music that was vital and accessible to a new audience. And they ROCKED!

Jethro Tull, album after album, created compelling music with complexity and grandeur. Everyone knows their classic "Aqualung", but I suggest you give a listen to their other masterworks, "Thick As A Brick" or "War Child". I remember bringing my "War Child" LP to my college English professor and asking him to really listen to it. He became a Jethro Tull fan and occasionally made reference to their lyrics in class. Crazy.

Finally, Pink Floyd. "Dark Side of the Moon" is the Progressive Rock Bible. "Wish You Were Here", their tribute to their madcap genius founder Syd Barrett, was also a commercial and critical masterpiece. Some of my friends say that "The Wall" was overrated. Oh well, I liked it anyway. Plus, I also really like "Animals" because I got the concept when I was a kid, and today I understand its deeper meanings, because of a lifetime of employment in a territorial dog-eat-dog, submit-to-the-alpha-monkey existence. I think it is time for me to go listen to "One of These Days" and dance with the little people.