About 25 years ago I became obsessed with Tangerine Dream and bought a lot of their albums. When I got beyond the 80's and into having more than 20 albums I thought I had better stop.
The pureness of the "Rubicon" era albums is just genius ... so exquisite and elegant. But the range and humour in 'Force Majeure' makes that my favourite by TD.
I was just reading through the comments and realised no one has mentioned Opeth (yet, as of my comment) I realise they might be too metal for tastes here but they are most definitely progressive rock too. And they would be one of my favourite European ‘prog’ bands along with Flower Kings and Wobbler.
I saw PFM in 1974 along with 250k other folks, and ELP, here in Charlotte, North Carolina at a rock festival called "August Jam". I was already a fan of both bands, as well as the other prog classics, but including Faust and Froese and Fripp. Their big hit at the time was "Celebration" which remains a favorite. Great show. Looking forward to diving into Magma. Orff + Coltrane is just too tempting. Trane is from North Carolina as well as Nina Simone, Thelonious Monk, Roberta Flack, James Taylor, and Squirrel Nut Zippers.
Attakh is my favorite Magma album too! Nice to hear you on Faust and Can, two absolute giants. If it were my list, I'd include Neu! (La Dusseldord and Harmonia), Cluster and Kraftwerk too; with Faust and Can, the absolute best of German prog/experimental, IMHO. Best wishes!
Is that one of the Décamps brothers of the french band "Ange" who appears in the thumbnail? If you don't know them, check out their albums "Le cimetière des arlequins", "Au-delà du délire" and "Émile Jacotey", they're somewhat medieval influenced and very poetic. I believe they performed in England in the early seventies and even opened for Genesis at some point. I also heard that Peter Gabriel used to really like their music. Sadly they're not as well known as other epic bands like Magma.
Christian Vander had a side project called "Offering" which highlights the more spiritual jazz elements of Magma. If you enjoy Magma and spiritual Jazz I would highly recommend. They had 3 LP's but also a box set which includes all of their LP's.
Love, and I mean love, the most melodic stuff he did with Offering. "Spiritual" is indeed the right word. And also very energetic, I would say. Things like "A fiëh" are a continuation of the "spiritual" stuff he was doing with Attahk and also Merci. Vocal arrangements, progression, tension building, resolution...Then, there's always on each one of those albums a couple of dissonant bits or tracks I tend to skip but who cares when the rest is so good and so "only them". Here's A fiieh in case someone would be interested : ua-cam.com/video/cAMwrKouss4/v-deo.html Thanks for making me listen again to this and other celestial or jazzy masterpieces ( Love in the darkness, C'est pour nous, Tilim m'dhom, Another Day, etc )...
The Netherlands has a great prog scene. Supersister, Kayak, Focus, Earth & Fire, Nits, Ayreon, Delain, Within Temptation. To The Highest Bidder, Royal Bed Bouncer, Moving Waves, Song of the Marching Children, In The Dutch Mountains, Into The Electric Castle, Moonbathers, Hydra are great progressive albums.
Andy, if you like Magma, you may want to check out: Christian Vander, Offering - Offering I - II In particular the track "Joïa". The best way that I can describe it, is Christian Vander singing like a John Coltrane solo. And he sings over a very simple piano chord change. I think that it is really special. Keep up the good work
Good to see other Offering fans. Joia wouldn't be the priority for me. Although I don't dislike it. What about A fiieh or C'est pour nous or Another Day ?
Check out the 70s Finnish band Wigwam (Fairyport, Being) and especially the solo work of their bassist Pekka Pohjola (Pihkasilma kaarnakorva, Harakka Bialoipokku). Very Zappa influenced, and definitely pushing the boundaries.
To add to the suggestions of _Sammla Mammas Manna_ , if you want something to put a smile on your face (but prog as prog can be, too - although they were apparently criticized for their levity in the serious scene) try their *Dundrets Frojder* ua-cam.com/video/gwouLphkxiA/v-deo.html (If you have your doubts about the suggestion, and need to take a little peek ahead, you might go to 2:55 or thereabouts, and see if you like where that seems to be heading.) (You have to go to about 5:00 or so for it to get properly silly, though.) (It depends heavily on percussive effects. That should seal the deal?)
Oh the memories! PFM was my 1st club concert, at the little Golden Bear in S California around 1978. They got some airplay with an album called *Cook* (I think it's called "PFM Live" outside N America). Another Italian band that got a bit of fame here was Goblin (maybe you mentioned them in your "Prog goes to the movies" video), who did the soundtrack for "Suspiria." My favorite (well, next to Kraftwerk) of the German '70's groups might be Triumvirat, who had little in common with their fellow countrymen although they worked with Conny Plank & wrote lyrics that commented on W German social issues.
Triumvirat ! Now there's a German prog band! Them and Kraan were probably the most virtuoso of any German band, maybe apart from Splifl.,l;f. But what a way to die for Helmut Köllen, listening to the demo of his forthcoming solo album and suffocating from carbon monoxide poisoning...
I wouldn't necessarily put it in top 10, but Pekka Pohjola/WigWam also had some unique proggy stuff going on. Check out Pohjola's "Visitation" from '79 or Wigwam's "Being" from '74 👍
hi Bert, Samla was to far away for us in the 70s. Eloy was only the nr.2 for us, in the early 70s we said "the best german genre band is from Austria": eela graig (Hubert Bognermayr).
Banco is the most easy listen and best prog band from Italia , and is on part with the best in the world . PFM is also good but have a smaller list of excellent songs . VDDG was big in Italia for a reason . Italians have good taste
Think you meant Jaki Liebezeit (which may or may not translate to “loves time”, which is very zen). Lots in there to unpack and listen to - cheers Andy!
My top 13 European prog bands: Tasavallan Presidentti (Finland), Can (Germany), Agitation Free (Germany), PFM (Italy), Le Orme (Italy), Banco (Italy), Ange (France), Gong (France), Eloy (Germany), Focus (Holland), Guru Guru (Germany), Modry Effekt (Czech), Samla Mammas Manna (Sweden). I would add about 10-20 to the Tier 2 list of top euro prog bands (Anglagard, Neu!, Anekdoten, Wigwam, Embryo, Magma, Amon Duul, ExMagma etc). I agree Kraut rock should get an episode of its own. Sorry to blow this zit but Can is probably 10 levels above Faust... Imho.
@@AndyEdwardsDrummer LOL....since i got to know your channel i am now much more knowledgeable about jazz rock, fusion and straight jazz. I think I am drifting a bit away from the classic prog now...
Bill bruford actually played drums in G Ong for a while. Also what about nectar? I heard they were a German band who eventually moved to Britain or was it vice versa I'm not really sure.
Thanks for that list, Andy. I was one of the people waiting for your consideration of non-English/Continental European progressive rock bands and albums. There is little doubting the greatness of PFM. Personally, though, my interest is mainly in the German ‘Krautrock’ branch, which you well represented with Can, Faust, and Tangerine Dream. I couldn't agree with you more, however, that Krautrock is a whole other world, certainly progressive for the most part, but much more experimental than it's English prog-rock brethren. There is probably more of a range with Krautrock in terms of virtuosity, from a rather low level to a very high level. But shows of virtuosity are not really what Krautrock is about. I would be very interested in listening, somewhere down the road, to an in-depth video on Krautrock. There’s so much to it besides the brilliance of the fairly familiar three, Tangerine Dream, Can, and Kraftwerk, whom you mentioned. I’m talking about Agitation Free, Ash Ra Tempel, Cluster/Kluster, Dzyan, Embryo, Gila, Guru Guru, Harmonia, Neu!, Popol Vuh, Xhol Caravan, and more. There are also some German jazz-rock bands of the ‘70s that are well worth checking out-Wolfgang Dauner/Et Cetera, Eiliff, Out Of Focus, Sunbirds, and a few others. Keep up the interesting work!
I would like to add a further vote for the italian prog rock band that andy sadly missed, and the finest of them all: AREA. unlike PFM or banco, AREA are not derivative of the uk prog scene, but their own style completely. much more jazzy than any of the others mentioned here, with sublime horn interplay, the only comparison that comes to mind is 1972-75 era frank zappa/mothers...and the singer, greek-born demetrio stratos is simply out of this world virtuosic. a must-hear and my personal number one for this list.
@@AndyEdwardsDrummer definitely got your priorities right there, then! Hope it was a brilliant festival. Maybe a top ten festivals for Prog fans video in the pipeline?
Inspired by the Focus video I went to see them a month ago (lucky, they played about 20 km from my home). Always was a bit weary ro go without Jan's genious guitarplay, but that was a huge mistake. Menno Gootjes is a great guitar player with his own style which fits the music perfectly. Actually all 4 were great. Baseplayer Udo Pannekeet is both solid and virtuous. Only thing (besides his looks and more difficulty walking) that shows Thijs' age is that he needs some help of Menno's guitar with the high Yodel notes. And Pierre van der Linden is tremendous. Challenging himself continuously with changing the beat and not even getting into a sweat when doing a 10 minutes blistering solo. Above that what realle came over is what fun they still have playing old and new stuff and regularly showing sincere appreciation for eachothers playing. This Friday I'm going again (luckily again pkaying within a half hour from my home 😁), now accompanied by my 14 years old K-pop loving daughter. She exclaimed (after showing her a few clips): "Such 'old stuff' I'd like to see too !!
where do you rank Italy's Arti e Mestieri??? as a side note have you delved into Argentine 70s prog/rock bands like 'Invisible' 'Pescado Rabioso' 'La Maquina de Hacer Pajaros' and 'Seru Giran' ??? would love to hear your take on those. They're comparable to the Italians in that they took the British sound and completely morphed it into its own thing, more songwriting based unlike Kraut. Anyhow CHEERS!
In 1967 in Sweden there was "Mecki Mark Men". And Pärsson Sound, later Harvester 1966-1968, in 1969 they became Träd, Gräs & Stenar ("Trees, Grass and Stones"). Älgarnas Trädgård (Garden of the moose), members formed Cosmic overdose in the 70's and finally Twice a man. The Baby Grandmothers a Swedish psych/prog rock band formed in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1967 who toured with Hendrix in 68, members went on to Jazz rock band "Made in Sweden" and "Kebnekajse". And then there was the explosive organ and drum duo Hansson and Karlsson (i used to live in the apartment next door to Bo Hansson) :) whose piece Tax Free was recorded by Hendrix... some of it. ua-cam.com/video/iH7x3BxqfNE/v-deo.html
Milano's AREA is the only band, for me, that rivals Mahavishnu Orchestra for creative, complex, and innovative jazz-rock fusion. Boundary-pushing singer/vocalist Demetrio Stratos was a force operating on a completely other level! And drummer Giulio Capiozzo and bassist Ares Tavolazzi should have been in all the discussions of the greatest jazz-rock musicians of all-time, IMO!
Those are all unarguably great, but European Prog didn't stop in 1973. We won't hold a small omission in the title against you though. My current European prog rock guru is Mariusz Duda. He's got it all. In both of his projects. With a bunch of fantastic musicians. (I shouldn't need to explain who he is.)
My problem is twofold. Firstly I count innovation bvery high when deciding on greatness. Prog is at it's peak 1979-74 and those bands created the genre and sold millions doing it and secondly, I work in the prog world and I would be showing my bias. In my scene I have worked with musicians in or connected to (in this case) Flowerkings, Pain of Salvation, Mood Safari, Karmakanic, Frank Carducci (the list goes on) so they would make my list. On my history of prog videos I discuss modern prog a lot nut I hope that explains me...plus I'm old too
In this list the band I know the most about is Tangerine Dream. I agree that I can't make up my mind whether they should be called "progressive" or not. I think they carve out the genre of "electronic music" which has grown large enough that it probably makes sense to consider that genre separate from progressive rock. I do like it a lot (the whole genre), but I think there are so many artists and albums in it, and there are people who like progressive or progressive-rock albums and who don't enjoy the electronic branch. It's tough to come up with recommendations for Tangerine Dream which all TDream fans will agree to. Back in the 1990's I would visit a local record store at least once a week, and if some customer asked about Tangerine Dream the store owner would ask me for a recommendation. I'd mention one album, and then some other customer in the store would yell out, *"No, NOT THAT ONE!!"* and provide their own recommendations. 😊 So the two you mention are fine albums, but I'd suggest a few more: _"Poland: The Warsaw Concert",_ _"Underwater Sunlight",_ _"Stratosfear",_ and _"Exit"._ But they have over 100 albums, and those albums have enough variety that any serious fan of Tangerine Dream will have their own personal idea of what are the top five titles for the group.
early TD id pretty prog like early kraftwerk totaly diff in what these bands done afterwords a complete experimental electronic instruments and were the future on how music would be mostly done nowadays
Have you heard of Il Giardino Onirico? They're interesting, as they don't have a vocalist and do either instrumental stuff or have guest singers. The album Apofenia is worth a listen.
I tried to gess what your list would look like and I got 8 out of 10. I would have include the Norwegian band Popul Vuh. Frank Zappa wanted to sign them on his label and later Genesis wanted the leadsinger to replace Peter Gabriel. Check out their debut album. It's some of the finest Prog out there, with some jazzy and even Brazilian element.
Grobschnitt. You as a drummer should check out their drummer Eroc. one of the best rest of Europe drummers... Also he is very much influencial in being the Steven Wilson of Kraut, being the best remastering/remixing engineer of re releases of tons of Kraut Rock
The title of the "Gazeuse 2" album you were looking for is _Espresso II._ I was kinda disappointed when I bought it because it's not like Gazeuse. But it's an OK album.
Last year I bought the Focus box (minus the Proby one) and a PFM box (first four English speaking albums.) I copped some great deals - 30US and 20US respectively, new. It brought me back to old times... I was a teenager in the seventies (yea, I'm geezin') Favorite albums, you ask? "Hamburger Concerto" - and yes, "Moving Waves" is a masterpiece. And I really dig the song "Mescaline" on their first album. "Jet Lag" (I know it's more fusion AND by the way, they're all good. Peace on earth.
Not European but wonder if you have ever listened to L'Heptade by Harmonium - folk prog from Quebec - from 1976 - absolutely briliiant, proggy and also melodic through and through.
@@h.m.7218 Couple of years ago bought L'Heptade after decades of no longer having it (had it on 8 track) and it still sounded fresh. Just yesterday bought two post-Harmonium cds by the main guy (Serge Fiori). Nice to run into a least one other person on this planet who remembers them.
I've dipped in and out of Italian prog rock and my fav is Banco's "Io Sono Nato Libero" which has the masterwork "Canto Nomade Per Un Prigioniero Politico" which I rank with Awaken as a fav in the Prog genre. Just incredible. Not really got into their other albums at all but that track is just something else.
I love PFM "Chocolate Kings" one of my all time favorites also "Jet Lag" 2 more Italian prog bands Just as good Acqua Fragile 2 albums a "self titled album and "Mass Media Stars" and last one of my favorite records of all time (they did only one) Maxophone...they actually produced another album in 2018 (and we thought Peter Gabriel took his sweet it between releases) but Maxophone's first album was done in 2 versions English and Italian, a truly great album. Also note: Bernardo Lanzetti was the vocalist in BOTH Acqua Fragile and PFM in the later releases.
Perfect list and completely agree with your choice of PFM ... they were fantastic and made a lot of excellent albums. I may suggest you to listen to the much more recent italian band Barock Project, they are an icredible band driven by the talented keyboard of Luca Zabbini.Listen to Detachment and Skyline to have an idea of them. Also check Arti & Mestieri (drummer is incredible ...)
Vangelis and Roussos remained friends. Roussos continued to record with him and his vocals on Blade Runner are breathtaking. Demis was a damn fine bass player too.
Great list. My personal list would have a lot of newer bands on it. But PFM is fabulous. Per Un Amico is one of my all time favorite albums. If you're reading, Andy. We have a lot of similar musical tastes. Since you've been really getting into Cardiacs. Might I suggest Major Parkinson. They are like the 2nd or 3rd favorite amongst the pondies. Them and Gong are interchangeable. Believe me. They won't let you down. I wouldn't start with their latest album though. Prog snobs don't like it. It's an ode to 80's synth pop. But it's still a great album. But all their albums are fantastic.
As somebody said, you should check out Area, jazz rock mixed with avantgarde. I'm almost sure you'll like them, Andy. Talking about Magma, I prefer their first and second albums over MDK (I don't like the mixing on the studio version). Specially 1001°centigrades, very jazzy and crazy. And one of my favorite drum performances of Vander is on the track De Futura ua-cam.com/video/a73XLkf43-s/v-deo.html
I suggest that you listen to the Italian band Area, also from the 70s, the albums Crac! or Maledetti or the live album Are(A)zione . They were prog and fusion and ... something else and they had a fabulous vocalist Demetrio Stratos. The more recent band Deus Ex Machina is a kind of follower, excellent too (singing in latin )
Great video Andy. You should check out another essencial Band from italy. His name is Area and they are a Prog rock fusion Band with a vocalist named Demetrio Stratos that IS a force of a Nature. They , with le orme, banco and pfm.are the seminals bands from italy.
Even though they only had one album, Museo Rosenbach from Italy should be mentioned. Also, the band Time from former Yugoslavia (now Croatia) deserves a mention. Also Smak from Serbia!
I am Italian and I've always been a big prog rock fan. My favourite bands were at that time Genesis, Pink Floyd, Yes, King Crimson, ELP in this order (sorry Andy however Gentle Giant were a bit too much prog for me!), but I was listening also to Colosseum, Hatfield and The North, Mike Oldfield, Caravan, Camel, Hawkwind, etc., etc.. Sorry Andy but this time I do not agree with you, for me the best Italian prog rock band was Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso. I've never been a big fan of Premiata Forneria Marconi even though "Impressioni di Settembre" is one of my favourite Italian tunes of all time. Having said that I cannot avoid to mention two bands that probably are not proper prog rock bands, maybe prog rock with some jazz add in the mix, I do not know how to define their music (I leave the hard task to the experts...): "Perigeo" and "Area", Perigeo definitely more jazz than prog . I am pretty sure that you Andy may like them. Suggested LPs: Area: "Arbeit Macht Frei" issued in 1973, "Caution Radiation Area" issued in 1974 and the live "Are(A)zione" that include a stunning version of "Cometa rossa" issued in 1975 Perigeo: (that by the way was a band from Florence, my town): "Abbiamo tutti un blues da piangere" issued in 1973, "Genealogia" (my favourite) issued in 1974 and "La valle dei templi" issued in 1975. Compliments for your channel!
Colors are a bit dull. You look a bit washed out and it looks SD not HD. So you decide what kind od quality you want to give your viewers. But I'm glad you got a heater.
Can and Faust!!! Neu-ce! 😉 Aphrodite’s Child had some great moments, they just never quite lived up to their potential Loved those early Vangelis albums too, even if they do meander at times Loved the first half of the TD catalog The thing about these bands was that they were completely different from our British/US tradition, so they were exciting to listen to, they felt like a different Darwinian evolution I loved releases through Cuneiform Records too, lots of wonderful curios out of that stable
I think this is a good classic prog list bar miss of ELOY and Triumvirate. However the whole neo prog scene of Riverside Airbag, fish on a Friday, Beardfish RPWL and even Opeth or MotorPsycho needs a separate video as European neo prog has boomed in 2000s
I agree about Can's importance. I liked them for about four years, then I could not stand them anymore (maybe because they started sounding to me a little too much like the Velvet Underground, who Irmin Schmidt heard in the United States.) There seemed to be a lack of tonal color variation, and I fell out of love with repetitive rhythms (this was around the same time I got kind of bored with minimalism, so that may be the common thread here). Of all their albums, Soon, Over Babaluma is my favorite-their guitarist, Karoli, handles the vocals. They didn't really need Mooney or Suzuki in the band. Magma (managed to see them live in 1974-they were one of the best live bands I ever saw,) I personally think deserve to be at the top of the list. Most of the other bands you mentioned are great. I would include Art Zoyd, Univers Zero and Present (the latter was an offshoot of Univers Zero, but were no like a more extreme version of a direction inspired by King Crimson's Fracture- Roger Trigaux is an incredible guitarist). PFM is incredible; I also like Area a great deal. Also, I have to mention, as often as I can, the incredible Albert Marcouer, who I view as almost a French Frank Zappa. Incredible editing in the studio, and with a lot of bizarre moments. His self titled first album and Album a Colorier (his second) are the best intros to his work. I include him as a band because he often toured and had a regular working band. Just the most eccentric and well constructed stuff. Pretty amazing!
Sorry, but as much as I enjoyed hearing your choices, I can't agree with most of them apart from the Italian bands (I adore them) and Focus, although they've produced too many duds. The others (including Gong) are just not my cup of tea; I find them either amateurish (Can, for example) or they bore the pants off me (like Tangerine Dream). In fact I can't make it all the way through any of these albums in one sitting. Ever. But not just to be criticising, my alternative offering of the greatest European bands would be: PFM, Banco,and Le Orme (as you said), then: Anglagard, Igorrr, Grobschnitt, Opeth, Pain of Salvation, Pryapisme, and Supersister.
I have a hard time classifying synth music in the 70s as progressive rock. Maybe Heaven and Hell, but by the time the Chariots of Fire soundtrack comes along, there's nothing progressive about it. It shares a lot in common with many soundtrack composers, maybe some minimalism, pop classical. But no one was "exposed" to prog from that soundtrack. There was also Jean Michel Jarre from France and Larry Fast from the US doing synth compositions. I think it's its own genre. Calling all of that prog is like calling Steve Reich and Phillip Glass prog, even though they predated it, are from a higher music form, and don't rock at all. Also at this time was Wendy (Walter at that time) Carlos and her Switched on Bach albums. Us prog fans listened to synth classical music, minimalism, and synth music and weren't inclined to call any of it prog.
Andy may have been thinking "progressive music" when he used the "prog" label. Larry Fast did use a rock beat in quite a few songs (although nobody played guitar), as did later Tangerine Dream albums.
@@patbarr1351 But in the video Andy refrains from calling Kraftwerk prog. Yes prog is short for progressive. Anyways, labels are the boxes rock journalists like to put everything in. It's all music. At that time we all listened to Yes, Genesis as well as Roxy Music, Bowie as well as Tangerine Dream and Kraftwerk. Listening is more fun than talking about it.
My favorite italian prog band is definitely AREA. Superb musicianship, superb vocals and great lyrics. All their albums are solid.
So glad to hear Krautrock getting a mention, and Tangerine Dream, a huge part of my student years. Another fine video Andy!
Great list. All those bands deserve to be heard more.
Hi Andy. Great video. IMO Euro-prog bands worth checking out: SBB (Poland), AREA (Italy), Balletto Di Bronzo (Italy), Out of Focus (Germany).
Innovators :
ANGLAGARD ( SWEDEN)
BANCO DEL MUTUO SORCOSO ( Italy)
ANEKDOTEN ( SWEDEN)
SOLARIS ( HUNGARY)
PULSAR ( FRANCE)
ARGOS ( GERMANY)
KOTEBEL ( SPAIN)
L'ORME (Italy)
TRIUMVIRAT ( GERMANY)
FOCUS ( NETHERLANDS )
About 25 years ago I became obsessed with Tangerine Dream and bought a lot of their albums. When I got beyond the 80's and into having more than 20 albums I thought I had better stop.
"Prolific they were," said Yoda. I only found out recently that the band continues on, although Edgar Froese passed on a few years ago.
The pureness of the "Rubicon" era albums is just genius ... so exquisite and elegant.
But the range and humour in 'Force Majeure' makes that my favourite by TD.
I did the exact same thing 😂
Andy, What's your take on "Finch", the enormously talented 70s Dutch prog band? You HAVE to check it out!
"Upgrading" to a cheaper, less functional tech system has got to be a prime example of the English Aesthetic.
ha ha...only temporary
1- Magma
2- Univers Zero/ Present
3- Zao
4- Area
5- Arti+Mestieri
6- Kaipa/ The Flower Kings
7- Banco
8- PFM
9- Eloy
10- Wigwam
Awesome list! Have you heard Haikara? They were a great prog band from Finland!
@@bertkarlsson1421 i will check them out thanks!
Ok....1. What's that portrait in the back?
2. Kudos for the albums links along the video. Great addon to your already great video.
PFM also has a few King Crimson covers… they’re truly amazing. Example: Pictures of a City. What song; what a cover.
glad you talked about focus .as prog band also in the seventies we had in the netherlands another proggy band named earth & fire
I was just reading through the comments and realised no one has mentioned Opeth (yet, as of my comment) I realise they might be too metal for tastes here but they are most definitely progressive rock too. And they would be one of my favourite European ‘prog’ bands along with Flower Kings and Wobbler.
Andy's "Greatest of all Time" means from 1970 - 1980.
You got it....
I saw PFM in 1974 along with 250k other folks, and ELP, here in Charlotte, North Carolina at a rock festival called "August Jam". I was already a fan of both bands, as well as the other prog classics, but including Faust and Froese and Fripp. Their big hit at the time was "Celebration" which remains a favorite. Great show. Looking forward to diving into Magma. Orff + Coltrane is just too tempting. Trane is from North Carolina as well as Nina Simone, Thelonious Monk, Roberta Flack, James Taylor, and Squirrel Nut Zippers.
Attakh is my favorite Magma album too! Nice to hear you on Faust and Can, two absolute giants. If it were my list, I'd include Neu! (La Dusseldord and Harmonia), Cluster and Kraftwerk too; with Faust and Can, the absolute best of German prog/experimental, IMHO. Best wishes!
The camera and sound is a-okey Andy 👍
Is that one of the Décamps brothers of the french band "Ange" who appears in the thumbnail? If you don't know them, check out their albums "Le cimetière des arlequins", "Au-delà du délire" and "Émile Jacotey", they're somewhat medieval influenced and very poetic. I believe they performed in England in the early seventies and even opened for Genesis at some point. I also heard that Peter Gabriel used to really like their music. Sadly they're not as well known as other epic bands like Magma.
Au-dela du delire is epic!
Yes, Ange had a style and are worth checking out.
Saw PFM back in the 70's, really great! You missed Supersister, Fantastic Dutch band...
Christian Vander had a side project called "Offering" which highlights the more spiritual jazz elements of Magma. If you enjoy Magma and spiritual Jazz I would highly recommend. They had 3 LP's but also a box set which includes all of their LP's.
Love, and I mean love, the most melodic stuff he did with Offering. "Spiritual" is indeed the right word. And also very energetic, I would say. Things like "A fiëh" are a continuation of the "spiritual" stuff he was doing with Attahk and also Merci. Vocal arrangements, progression, tension building, resolution...Then, there's always on each one of those albums a couple of dissonant bits or tracks I tend to skip but who cares when the rest is so good and so "only them".
Here's A fiieh in case someone would be interested :
ua-cam.com/video/cAMwrKouss4/v-deo.html
Thanks for making me listen again to this and other celestial or jazzy masterpieces ( Love in the darkness, C'est pour nous, Tilim m'dhom, Another Day, etc )...
The Netherlands has a great prog scene. Supersister, Kayak, Focus, Earth & Fire, Nits, Ayreon, Delain, Within Temptation. To The Highest Bidder, Royal Bed Bouncer, Moving Waves, Song of the Marching Children, In The Dutch Mountains, Into The Electric Castle, Moonbathers, Hydra are great progressive albums.
Andy, if you like Magma, you may want to check out:
Christian Vander, Offering - Offering I - II
In particular the track "Joïa". The best way that I can describe it, is Christian Vander singing like a John Coltrane solo. And he sings over a very simple piano chord change. I think that it is really special.
Keep up the good work
Good to see other Offering fans. Joia wouldn't be the priority for me. Although I don't dislike it. What about A fiieh or C'est pour nous or Another Day ?
if you like PFM definitely check out the live albums they made with te italian songwriter Fabrizio De Andrè! great music and wonderful lyrics!
Check out the 70s Finnish band Wigwam (Fairyport, Being) and especially the solo work of their bassist Pekka Pohjola (Pihkasilma kaarnakorva, Harakka Bialoipokku). Very Zappa influenced, and definitely pushing the boundaries.
Wigwam are great! Haikara and Tasavallan Presidentti are two other great finnish bands!
I love Wigwam and all their albums.
To add to the suggestions of _Sammla Mammas Manna_ , if you want something to put a smile on your face (but prog as prog can be, too - although they were apparently criticized for their levity in the serious scene) try their *Dundrets Frojder* ua-cam.com/video/gwouLphkxiA/v-deo.html
(If you have your doubts about the suggestion, and need to take a little peek ahead, you might go to 2:55 or thereabouts, and see if you like where that seems to be heading.)
(You have to go to about 5:00 or so for it to get properly silly, though.)
(It depends heavily on percussive effects. That should seal the deal?)
Samla is one of the greatest prog bands of all time!!!
You should do a video only about Vangelis 👍
Oh the memories! PFM was my 1st club concert, at the little Golden Bear in S California around 1978. They got some airplay with an album called *Cook* (I think it's called "PFM Live" outside N America). Another Italian band that got a bit of fame here was Goblin (maybe you mentioned them in your "Prog goes to the movies" video), who did the soundtrack for "Suspiria." My favorite (well, next to Kraftwerk) of the German '70's groups might be Triumvirat, who had little in common with their fellow countrymen although they worked with Conny Plank & wrote lyrics that commented on W German social issues.
Triumvirat ! Now there's a German prog band! Them and Kraan were probably the most virtuoso of any German band, maybe apart from Splifl.,l;f. But what a way to die for Helmut Köllen, listening to the demo of his forthcoming solo album and suffocating from carbon monoxide poisoning...
@@acatnameddoerak Intriguing music trivia! (Well, it wasn't trivial to Helmut.)
Amon Duul II ? And their mini masterpiece Wolf City????
My first album by them and my favorite. Sounds progressive to me.
I wouldn't necessarily put it in top 10, but Pekka Pohjola/WigWam also had some unique proggy stuff going on. Check out Pohjola's "Visitation" from '79 or Wigwam's "Being" from '74 👍
Thanks Andy.
Universe Zero is one of the most innovative instrumental French progressive bands.
Univers Zero are one of the greatest prog bands of all time!
Aren't they former Magma members ?
they're a Belgian band....not French.
@@patrickpeeters2637 Correct!
@@patrickpeeters2637 OK. I don't know why I linked them to Magma.
Eloy, Samla Mammas Manna, Eskaton, Univers Zero, Haikara, Pesniary, Bo Hansson are some of my favorites! I look forward to this video!!
hi Bert,
Samla was to far away for us in the 70s.
Eloy was only the nr.2 for us, in the early 70s we said "the best german genre band is from Austria": eela graig (Hubert Bognermayr).
@@narosgmbh5916 I've never heard of them. I might have to check them out.
Bist du deutscher?
Yes, but living in Belgium. Familiar with all the belgium and french musicians you know from your RIO adressbook.
Loved Univers Zero for years.
@@herculesrockefeller8969 Their debut is my favorite! 👌
Banco is the most easy listen and best prog band from Italia , and is on part with the best in the world . PFM is also good but have a smaller list of excellent songs . VDDG was big in Italia for a reason . Italians have good taste
Have a nice weekend you all! 😉👍
Think you meant Jaki Liebezeit (which may or may not translate to “loves time”, which is very zen). Lots in there to unpack and listen to - cheers Andy!
I put this off because of pronouncing all the European names
Haha, Csukay is a hard one too! Sterling job, nonetheless
My top 13 European prog bands:
Tasavallan Presidentti (Finland), Can (Germany), Agitation Free (Germany), PFM (Italy), Le Orme (Italy), Banco (Italy), Ange (France), Gong (France), Eloy (Germany), Focus (Holland), Guru Guru (Germany), Modry Effekt (Czech), Samla Mammas Manna (Sweden).
I would add about 10-20 to the Tier 2 list of top euro prog bands (Anglagard, Neu!, Anekdoten, Wigwam, Embryo, Magma, Amon Duul, ExMagma etc).
I agree Kraut rock should get an episode of its own.
Sorry to blow this zit but Can is probably 10 levels above Faust... Imho.
You are a true prog fan...I salute you!
@@AndyEdwardsDrummer LOL....since i got to know your channel i am now much more knowledgeable about jazz rock, fusion and straight jazz. I think I am drifting a bit away from the classic prog now...
Around 1970 we've listened to Edgar Broughton Band and from Danmark Savage Rose.
That's a fine list, there is Scandinavian prog too.
Bill bruford actually played drums in G Ong for a while. Also what about nectar? I heard they were a German band who eventually moved to Britain or was it vice versa I'm not really sure.
Thanks for that list, Andy. I was one of the people waiting for your consideration of non-English/Continental European progressive rock bands and albums. There is little doubting the greatness of PFM. Personally, though, my interest is mainly in the German ‘Krautrock’ branch, which you well represented with Can, Faust, and Tangerine Dream. I couldn't agree with you more, however, that Krautrock is a whole other world, certainly progressive for the most part, but much more experimental than it's English prog-rock brethren. There is probably more of a range with Krautrock in terms of virtuosity, from a rather low level to a very high level. But shows of virtuosity are not really what Krautrock is about.
I would be very interested in listening, somewhere down the road, to an in-depth video on Krautrock. There’s so much to it besides the brilliance of the fairly familiar three, Tangerine Dream, Can, and Kraftwerk, whom you mentioned. I’m talking about Agitation Free, Ash Ra Tempel, Cluster/Kluster, Dzyan, Embryo, Gila, Guru Guru, Harmonia, Neu!, Popol Vuh, Xhol Caravan, and more. There are also some German jazz-rock bands of the ‘70s that are well worth checking out-Wolfgang Dauner/Et Cetera, Eiliff, Out Of Focus, Sunbirds, and a few others. Keep up the interesting work!
I thought you might put triumvirate in there. They definitely deserve the mention.
I would like to add a further vote for the italian prog rock band that andy sadly missed, and the finest of them all: AREA. unlike PFM or banco, AREA
are not derivative of the uk prog scene, but their own style completely. much more jazzy than any of the others mentioned here, with sublime horn
interplay, the only comparison that comes to mind is 1972-75 era frank zappa/mothers...and the singer, greek-born demetrio stratos is simply out
of this world virtuosic. a must-hear and my personal number one for this list.
Eloy and triumvirat, you don’t get much proggier than these guys they’re phenomenal
Criminal you didn’t include Principe Di Un Giorno by Celeste, a pastoral Prog gem!
Celebration! Great list again Andy. Not sure the new technology worked too well, though - shades of Tormato? 😅
I was a bit pushed for time filming these as I was at a Prog festival.
@@AndyEdwardsDrummer definitely got your priorities right there, then! Hope it was a brilliant festival. Maybe a top ten festivals for Prog fans video in the pipeline?
Inspired by the Focus video I went to see them a month ago (lucky, they played about 20 km from my home).
Always was a bit weary ro go without Jan's genious guitarplay, but that was a huge mistake.
Menno Gootjes is a great guitar player with his own style which fits the music perfectly.
Actually all 4 were great.
Baseplayer Udo Pannekeet is both solid and virtuous.
Only thing (besides his looks and more difficulty walking) that shows Thijs' age is that he needs some help of Menno's guitar with the high Yodel notes.
And Pierre van der Linden is tremendous.
Challenging himself continuously with changing the beat and not even getting into a sweat when doing a 10 minutes blistering solo.
Above that what realle came over is what fun they still have playing old and new stuff and regularly showing sincere appreciation for eachothers playing.
This Friday I'm going again (luckily again pkaying within a half hour from my home 😁), now accompanied by my 14 years old K-pop loving daughter.
She exclaimed (after showing her a few clips): "Such 'old stuff' I'd like to see too !!
Thanks for this report
where do you rank Italy's Arti e Mestieri???
as a side note have you delved into Argentine 70s prog/rock bands like 'Invisible' 'Pescado Rabioso' 'La Maquina de Hacer Pajaros' and 'Seru Giran' ??? would love to hear your take on those. They're comparable to the Italians in that they took the British sound and completely morphed it into its own thing, more songwriting based unlike Kraut. Anyhow CHEERS!
i will check them out
In 1967 in Sweden there was "Mecki Mark Men". And Pärsson Sound, later Harvester 1966-1968, in 1969 they became Träd, Gräs & Stenar ("Trees, Grass and Stones"). Älgarnas Trädgård (Garden of the moose), members formed Cosmic overdose in the 70's and finally Twice a man. The Baby Grandmothers a Swedish psych/prog rock band formed in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1967 who toured with Hendrix in 68, members went on to Jazz rock band "Made in Sweden" and "Kebnekajse". And then there was the explosive organ and drum duo Hansson and Karlsson (i used to live in the apartment next door to Bo Hansson) :) whose piece Tax Free was recorded by Hendrix... some of it.
ua-cam.com/video/iH7x3BxqfNE/v-deo.html
Milano's AREA is the only band, for me, that rivals Mahavishnu Orchestra for creative, complex, and innovative jazz-rock fusion. Boundary-pushing singer/vocalist Demetrio Stratos was a force operating on a completely other level! And drummer Giulio Capiozzo and bassist Ares Tavolazzi should have been in all the discussions of the greatest jazz-rock musicians of all-time, IMO!
Bo Hansson was a pioneer! Sagan om Ringen was recorded in late 1969 and released in 1970!
Those are all unarguably great, but European Prog didn't stop in 1973. We won't hold a small omission in the title against you though.
My current European prog rock guru is Mariusz Duda. He's got it all. In both of his projects. With a bunch of fantastic musicians. (I shouldn't need to explain who he is.)
My problem is twofold. Firstly I count innovation bvery high when deciding on greatness. Prog is at it's peak 1979-74 and those bands created the genre and sold millions doing it and secondly, I work in the prog world and I would be showing my bias. In my scene I have worked with musicians in or connected to (in this case) Flowerkings, Pain of Salvation, Mood Safari, Karmakanic, Frank Carducci (the list goes on) so they would make my list. On my history of prog videos I discuss modern prog a lot nut I hope that explains me...plus I'm old too
@@AndyEdwardsDrummer I bet you aren't as old as me 😆
Great topic. Good content. Sound quality is the only problem.
this was a one off as I did not have much time to film this as i was at a prog festival....
Eloy, Earth and Fire, Song of the marching children, Gate to infinity, Atlantis) Amon Duul2 (Tanz der lemmingen), Birth Control etc.
One of my favorite prog albums ever is Ange's "Le Cimetière des arlequins" (1973).
In this list the band I know the most about is Tangerine Dream. I agree that I can't make up my mind whether they should be called "progressive" or not. I think they carve out the genre of "electronic music" which has grown large enough that it probably makes sense to consider that genre separate from progressive rock. I do like it a lot (the whole genre), but I think there are so many artists and albums in it, and there are people who like progressive or progressive-rock albums and who don't enjoy the electronic branch.
It's tough to come up with recommendations for Tangerine Dream which all TDream fans will agree to. Back in the 1990's I would visit a local record store at least once a week, and if some customer asked about Tangerine Dream the store owner would ask me for a recommendation. I'd mention one album, and then some other customer in the store would yell out, *"No, NOT THAT ONE!!"* and provide their own recommendations. 😊
So the two you mention are fine albums, but I'd suggest a few more: _"Poland: The Warsaw Concert",_ _"Underwater Sunlight",_ _"Stratosfear",_ and _"Exit"._ But they have over 100 albums, and those albums have enough variety that any serious fan of Tangerine Dream will have their own personal idea of what are the top five titles for the group.
early TD id pretty prog like early kraftwerk totaly diff in what these bands done afterwords a complete experimental electronic instruments and were the future on how music would be mostly done nowadays
PFM are great indeed. And Attahk is for me as much a spiritual experience as it is a musical one.
Have you heard of Il Giardino Onirico? They're interesting, as they don't have a vocalist and do either instrumental stuff or have guest singers. The album Apofenia is worth a listen.
Going to be seeing Focus in June in Leeds :)
You won't be disappointed.
Saw them last month (just put that in a reaction), they were great.
I tried to gess what your list would look
like and I got 8 out of 10.
I would have include the Norwegian band
Popul Vuh.
Frank Zappa wanted to sign them on his label and later Genesis wanted the leadsinger to replace Peter Gabriel.
Check out their debut album.
It's some of the finest Prog out there,
with some jazzy and even Brazilian element.
Grobschnitt. You as a drummer should check out their drummer Eroc. one of the best rest of Europe drummers... Also he is very much influencial in being the Steven Wilson of Kraut, being the best remastering/remixing engineer of re releases of tons of Kraut Rock
Here's some great European prog you've missed:
1. Popol Vuh
2. Agitation Free
3. Finch
4. Grobschnitt
5. Supersister
6. Alquin
7. Isildurs Bane
Force Majeure is the proggiest Tangerine Dream record
And one of their best.
With Stratosfear.
But you're right Force Majeure is an amazing prog record.
The title of the "Gazeuse 2" album you were looking for is _Espresso II._
I was kinda disappointed when I bought it because it's not like Gazeuse. But it's an OK album.
Some great bands on your list!
Last year I bought the Focus box (minus the Proby one) and a PFM box (first four English speaking albums.)
I copped some great deals - 30US and 20US respectively, new.
It brought me back to old times... I was a teenager in the seventies (yea, I'm geezin')
Favorite albums, you ask?
"Hamburger Concerto" - and yes, "Moving Waves" is a masterpiece.
And I really dig the song "Mescaline" on their first album.
"Jet Lag" (I know it's more fusion AND by the way, they're all good.
Peace on earth.
Tl;dw version:
10. Le Orme (Felona E Sorona)
9. Banco (Darwin)
8. Vangelis/Aphrodite's Child (Heaven and Hell/666)
7. Can (Tago Mago)
6. Faust (IV)
5. Tangerine Dream (Phaedra; Rubicon)
4. Magma (Attahk)
3. Focus (Moving Ways)
2. Gong (Gazeuse, Time is the Key)
1. PFM, Premiata Forneria Marconi (Per un Amico)
Not European but wonder if you have ever listened to L'Heptade by Harmonium - folk prog from Quebec - from 1976 - absolutely briliiant, proggy and also melodic through and through.
I know at least a couple albums by Harmonium, can't remember the titles, but they're good.
@@h.m.7218 Couple of years ago bought L'Heptade after decades of no longer having it (had it on 8 track) and it still sounded fresh. Just yesterday bought two post-Harmonium cds by the main guy (Serge Fiori). Nice to run into a least one other person on this planet who remembers them.
@@PaulBergen Well, UA-cam is a treasure trove for music lovers. That's where I discovered them if I remember well.
I've dipped in and out of Italian prog rock and my fav is Banco's "Io Sono Nato Libero" which has the masterwork "Canto Nomade Per Un Prigioniero Politico" which I rank with Awaken as a fav in the Prog genre. Just incredible. Not really got into their other albums at all but that track is just something else.
Di Terra is their masterpiece IMHO.
I'd say the drop in video quality is a bit too much. 720p is still good. 360p is cringeworthy.
Yes I agree
PFM "Jetlag" is a great proggy Fusion album!!!
I love PFM "Chocolate Kings" one of my all time favorites also "Jet Lag" 2 more Italian prog bands Just as good Acqua Fragile 2 albums a "self titled album and "Mass Media Stars" and last one of my favorite records of all time (they did only one) Maxophone...they actually produced another album in 2018 (and we thought Peter Gabriel took his sweet it between releases) but Maxophone's first album was done in 2 versions English and Italian, a truly great album. Also note: Bernardo Lanzetti was the vocalist in BOTH Acqua Fragile and PFM in the later releases.
Perfect list and completely agree with your choice of PFM ... they were fantastic and made a lot of excellent albums. I may suggest you to listen to the much more recent italian band Barock Project, they are an icredible band driven by the talented keyboard of Luca Zabbini.Listen to Detachment and Skyline to have an idea of them. Also check Arti & Mestieri (drummer is incredible ...)
PFM can be described as "good taste applied to prog rock".
By the way you must do a list for the must have bands from the cantebury scene, a Prog genre só important and só english
Vangelis and Roussos remained friends. Roussos continued to record with him and his vocals on Blade Runner are breathtaking. Demis was a damn fine bass player too.
FOCUS!! 👍👍👍
Great list. My personal list would have a lot of newer bands on it. But PFM is fabulous. Per Un Amico is one of my all time favorite albums. If you're reading, Andy. We have a lot of similar musical tastes. Since you've been really getting into Cardiacs. Might I suggest Major Parkinson. They are like the 2nd or 3rd favorite amongst the pondies. Them and Gong are interchangeable. Believe me. They won't let you down. I wouldn't start with their latest album though. Prog snobs don't like it. It's an ode to 80's synth pop. But it's still a great album. But all their albums are fantastic.
i'm reading...what album should I start with?
@@AndyEdwardsDrummer "Songs from a Solitary Home"
You should also try K.A. by Magma from 2004.
As good as any of their earlier stuff.
A very helpful list, Andy. Thanks!
Your timeline (1970-80) will exclude Iceland's Sigur Rós and their majestic Ágætis byrjun from 2001.
As somebody said, you should check out Area, jazz rock mixed with avantgarde. I'm almost sure you'll like them, Andy.
Talking about Magma, I prefer their first and second albums over MDK (I don't like the mixing on the studio version). Specially 1001°centigrades, very jazzy and crazy.
And one of my favorite drum performances of Vander is on the track De Futura
ua-cam.com/video/a73XLkf43-s/v-deo.html
Magma may well the most prog there has ever been...
@@AndyEdwardsDrummer
Die ich rief, die Geister
Werd ich nun nicht los
J.W.Goethe
I suggest that you listen to the Italian band Area, also from the 70s, the albums Crac! or Maledetti or the live album Are(A)zione . They were prog and fusion and ... something else and they had a fabulous vocalist Demetrio Stratos. The more recent band Deus Ex Machina is a kind of follower, excellent too (singing in latin )
Absolutely agree.
Area is on the same league of Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever and Weather Report.
MANDATORY LISTEN ANDY ;o)
Agree. And......something else.
Great video Andy. You should check out another essencial Band from italy. His name is Area and they are a Prog rock fusion Band with a vocalist named Demetrio Stratos that IS a force of a Nature. They , with le orme, banco and pfm.are the seminals bands from italy.
yep that would be up Andy's street. A bit of a fusion vibe.
Even though they only had one album, Museo Rosenbach from Italy should be mentioned. Also, the band Time from former Yugoslavia (now Croatia) deserves a mention. Also Smak from Serbia!
I am Italian and I've always been a big prog rock fan. My favourite bands were at that time Genesis, Pink Floyd, Yes, King Crimson, ELP in this order (sorry Andy however Gentle Giant were a bit too much prog for me!), but I was listening also to Colosseum, Hatfield and The North, Mike Oldfield, Caravan, Camel, Hawkwind, etc., etc.. Sorry Andy but this time I do not agree with you, for me the best Italian prog rock band was Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso. I've never been a big fan of Premiata Forneria Marconi even though "Impressioni di Settembre" is one of my favourite Italian tunes of all time. Having said that I cannot avoid to mention two bands that probably are not proper prog rock bands, maybe prog rock with some jazz add in the mix, I do not know how to define their music (I leave the hard task to the experts...): "Perigeo" and "Area", Perigeo definitely more jazz than prog . I am pretty sure that you Andy may like them.
Suggested LPs:
Area: "Arbeit Macht Frei" issued in 1973, "Caution Radiation Area" issued in 1974 and the live "Are(A)zione" that include a stunning version of "Cometa rossa" issued in 1975
Perigeo: (that by the way was a band from Florence, my town): "Abbiamo tutti un blues da piangere" issued in 1973, "Genealogia" (my favourite) issued in 1974 and "La valle dei templi" issued in 1975.
Compliments for your channel!
Colors are a bit dull. You look a bit washed out and it looks SD not HD. So you decide what kind od quality you want to give your viewers. But I'm glad you got a heater.
Can and Faust!!! Neu-ce! 😉
Aphrodite’s Child had some great moments, they just never quite lived up to their potential
Loved those early Vangelis albums too, even if they do meander at times
Loved the first half of the TD catalog
The thing about these bands was that they were completely different from our British/US tradition, so they were exciting to listen to, they felt like a different Darwinian evolution
I loved releases through Cuneiform Records too, lots of wonderful curios out of that stable
I think this is a good classic prog list bar miss of ELOY and Triumvirate. However the whole neo prog scene of Riverside Airbag, fish on a Friday, Beardfish RPWL and even Opeth or MotorPsycho needs a separate video as European neo prog has boomed in 2000s
1. YES
2. PINK FLOYD
3. GENESIS
4. JETHRO TULL
5. ELP
6. PORCUPINE TREE
7. KING CRIMSON
8. HAKEN
When Andy says "European" he is removing the UK from Europe. It's a tough job but someone's gotta do it. 😲😲
I agree about Can's importance. I liked them for about four years, then I could not stand them anymore (maybe because they started sounding to me a little too much like the Velvet Underground, who Irmin Schmidt heard in the United States.) There seemed to be a lack of tonal color variation, and I fell out of love with repetitive rhythms (this was around the same time I got kind of bored with minimalism, so that may be the common thread here). Of all their albums, Soon, Over Babaluma is my favorite-their guitarist, Karoli, handles the vocals. They didn't really need Mooney or Suzuki in the band.
Magma (managed to see them live in 1974-they were one of the best live bands I ever saw,) I personally think deserve to be at the top of the list.
Most of the other bands you mentioned are great.
I would include Art Zoyd, Univers Zero and Present (the latter was an offshoot of Univers Zero, but were no like a more extreme version of a direction inspired by King Crimson's Fracture- Roger Trigaux is an incredible guitarist).
PFM is incredible; I also like Area a great deal.
Also, I have to mention, as often as I can, the incredible Albert Marcouer, who I view as almost a French Frank Zappa. Incredible editing in the studio, and with a lot of bizarre moments. His self titled first album and Album a Colorier (his second) are the best intros to his work. I include him as a band because he often toured and had a regular working band.
Just the most eccentric and well constructed stuff. Pretty amazing!
I played on the bill with Present at Nearfest in 2005. They tried to sabotage our set. They are bastards
No Hansson & Karlsson? Prog in 1967. Definate prog pioneers, with their masterpiece in 1970
Absolutely! Hansson and Karlsson were pioneers! There album Monument from 1967 is a monumental early prog album from the 60s!
Fairly obvious that Focus will be included.
You could translate Banco del mutual sociology as the bank of mutual support, or if you like in English, The co-op
What about After Crying from Hungary? They are real European Prog!
Attahk ... ⚔ 😉 (finally...!!!)
I remember FAUST as a highly profitable wast disposal for Nettelbeck.
Is it art or can it be removed, asks the cleaning lady
Andy thanks for giving Amon Duul II a mention. Prog or not prog that is the question? More a Germanic pagan version of Jefferson Airplane.
Sorry, but as much as I enjoyed hearing your choices, I can't agree with most of them apart from the Italian bands (I adore them) and Focus, although they've produced too many duds.
The others (including Gong) are just not my cup of tea; I find them either amateurish (Can, for example) or they bore the pants off me (like Tangerine Dream). In fact I can't make it all the way through any of these albums in one sitting. Ever.
But not just to be criticising, my alternative offering of the greatest European bands would be: PFM, Banco,and Le Orme (as you said), then: Anglagard, Igorrr, Grobschnitt, Opeth, Pain of Salvation, Pryapisme, and Supersister.
Im from Italy check this PFM albums : Chocolate kings and Jet lag !
I have a hard time classifying synth music in the 70s as progressive rock. Maybe Heaven and Hell, but by the time the Chariots of Fire soundtrack comes along, there's nothing progressive about it. It shares a lot in common with many soundtrack composers, maybe some minimalism, pop classical. But no one was "exposed" to prog from that soundtrack. There was also Jean Michel Jarre from France and Larry Fast from the US doing synth compositions. I think it's its own genre. Calling all of that prog is like calling Steve Reich and Phillip Glass prog, even though they predated it, are from a higher music form, and don't rock at all. Also at this time was Wendy (Walter at that time) Carlos and her Switched on Bach albums. Us prog fans listened to synth classical music, minimalism, and synth music and weren't inclined to call any of it prog.
Andy may have been thinking "progressive music" when he used the "prog" label. Larry Fast did use a rock beat in quite a few songs (although nobody played guitar), as did later Tangerine Dream albums.
@@patbarr1351 But in the video Andy refrains from calling Kraftwerk prog. Yes prog is short for progressive. Anyways, labels are the boxes rock journalists like to put everything in. It's all music. At that time we all listened to Yes, Genesis as well as Roxy Music, Bowie as well as Tangerine Dream and Kraftwerk. Listening is more fun than talking about it.
@@eximusic Agreed... Music is not canned vegetables: you can't always tell what's inside from the label!
Ekseption!
Goblin, Neu?
No Triumvirat ? The rest were great !