ALBUMS: Safety in Numbers: (1978); Animal Notes (1976)
MVC Rating Safety 4.0/$$$; Animal 4.0/$$$
What is progressive rock?
I’m having this discussion with myself as I listen to my Crack the Sky albums, which have elements of prog-rock but also traditional rock (without the roll).
Some might even say progressive rock is an oxymoron.
Rock n’ roll was music that boiled up in the 1950s as white musicians appropriated black rhythm and blues.
Mega bands like the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin made gadzillions by stealing the music, giving it a makeover (turning up the guitar and winking as they over emoted vocals to great effect). I’m being a little flip here but not untrue. Groups like the Beatles and Stones took the songs to another place; they weren’t just note-by-note renditions. But by using the old R&B as a base, they moved forward with their own sound. Besides Stones and Zep, think ZZ Top, Allman Brothers, Cream and Eric Clapton as examples.
But what about groups like King Crimson, Emerson Lake, and Palmer and the Moody Blues? Or, Queen, Soft Machine, Yes, and Electric Light Orchestra. And Pink Floyd, and Crack the Sky? These were groups that used jazz and classical concepts such as orchestral interludes, odd time signatures, and virtuoso musicianship. Some pushed it into avant-garde Dadaist music like Frank Zappa and Beefheart.
These bands either were influenced more by jazz and classical or had moved so far away from an R&B base, that it was not heard in the songs.
Of course, lots of these bands crossed over. Led Zeppelin with its fantasy themes, multi-layered guitars and psychedelia, might be deemed progressive in some contexts, like ‘Stairway to Heaven’ for example.
But I’m leaving out some key influencers: the Who with their rock operas ‘Tommy’ and ‘Quadrophenia;’ the Beach Boys’ ‘Good Vibrations’ and the Beatles who were pioneers on all of it.
From their Buddy Holly and Chuck Berry chops out of the chute in early early 1960 to ‘A Day in the Life’ in 1967 which I would consider the classic example of a progressive rock song. It’s not only complex, lyrically and musically but it also is cohesive, despite many shifting parts.
So this may be a long way of saying, it’s those Beatles again. Yet they didn’t ignore their early American influenced rock n’ roll either, or ever. In their last apearance on the top of a building in London they plaed ‘Get Back’ which is about as rock’n roll as you can get.
Crack the Sky is no Beatles. But the band’s song Safety in Numbers works well with it’s opening guitar strum and catchy chorus even if that chorus is two cliche’ s bound together: “Cause there’s safety in numbers and numbers don’t lie.’
I like it.
Animal Notes is a little meatier. Invaders from Mars sounds like a 10cc or Squeeze song. Strong progressive rock instrumentation.
There’s an interesting song about Canadian Mounties, not kidding, which apparently at one point was supposed to be worked up into a concept album. Probably good decision to abandon that idea..
Counting down my 678 records before I die of brain disease.