For many people, the idea of progressive rock is the likes of Emerson Lake and Palmer, Yes, Gentle Giant and early Genesis. But if you were to dig deeper, you’d find many other bands who never broke through to major success. Bands like the ones on this compilation, who had their roots in psychedelic music, but took as influence many different genres to accomplish what, for me, is truly progressive rock. One thing I can guarantee, there are no excess guitar/drum/keyboard solos to be found here! So, for a slightly different take on prog rock, and to hopefully draw in those who shy away from it, here is “The Worst Prog Album In The World!”. I hope you enjoy…
Tracklisting:
1. Baba Scholae – Half Day (3:56)
2. Burnin Red Ivanhoe – Avez-vous Kaskelainen? (4:45)
3. Locomotive – Rain (3:22)
4. Visitors – Visitors (3:34)
5. T2 – J.L.T. (5:50)
6. Earth and Fire – 21st Century Show (4:14)
7. Stackridge – Teatime (5:48)
8. Oho – Brown Algae Is Attractive (2:18)
9. Goblin – Profondo Rosso (3:41)
10. Shuttah – Imjin (5:00)
11. My Solid Ground – Devonshire Street W1 (3:26)
12. Hot Thumbs O’Riley – Harmless Vibration (2:35)
13. Culpeper’s Orchard – Teaparty For An Orchard (6:11)
14. Message – When I’m Home (7:44)
15. East Of Eden – Northern Hemisphere (5:04)
16. Food Brain – Liver Juice Vending Machine (3:18)
17. Galliard – In Your Mind’s Eyes (6:28)
Baba Scholae
In 1969, legendary psychedelic/early progressive rock band Baba Scholae recorded an album at IBC Sound Recording Studios in London — however, it was never officially released. The band’s leader was Jean-Yves Labat de Rossi, better known as M Frog, the synth and keyboard maestro on Todd Rungren’s early Utopia albums and coincidentally, the founder of the Ad Vitam label.
Burnin Red Ivanhoe
Burnin Red Ivanhoe was formed back in 1967, and that makes them one of the first Scandinavian prog bands. Their style was quite original from the start, blending jazz-rock with R&B, blues, psychedelia etc. their debut from 1969 (double album) M 144. Most of Burnin Red Ivanhoe’s albums have that certain Scandinavian touch, similar to early 70’s prog groups such as Wigwam, Culpeper’s Ochard and Tasavallan Presidentti.
Locomotive
Locomotive was a Birmingham-based band that went through some serious evolution in the final years of the 1960s, releasing consistently good music in several genres during their three-year history. Their early lineup included future Traffic flautist Chris Wood.
Visitors
Visitors was the brain-child of the obscure but infamous French producer/composer Jean-Pierre Massiera. In 1974 he single-handedly recruited a group of nineteen musicians (most notably Didier Lockwood, the jazz violinist who spent a brief tenure touring with Magma and made an indelible mark on their 1975 live album) to record an album of his unusual, progressive compositions. The resulting LP was a concept album on the theme of extra-terrestrial contact (hence the title Visitors) and was a truly eclectic mix of prog, psych, fusion and zeuhl elements with complex arrangements and often grandiose vocals.
T2
T2’s original line-up’s sole (officially-released) album is a collection of heavy, guitar-powered tracks with flourishes of brass tossed in at points. Reminiscent of Cream at times, the guitar playing is often frenetic, the drumming is frequently wild, and the bass–while mixed all too quietly–is top-notch.
Earth and Fire
This top notch Dutch band from The Hague had their pinnacle during the early Seventies when they delivered some outstanding 24 carat symphonic rock albums. Earth and Fire was founded by the twin brothers Chris (guitar) and Gerard (keyboards) Koerts in ’68. Soon bass player Hans Ziech, drummer Kees Kalis and singer Lisette joined them. Unfortunately Lisette had to give up singing because of a serious eye-disease and Kees Kalis left. They were replaced by Ton v/d Kley and the beautiful, very sexy Jerney Kaagman.
Stackridge
Stackridge are a British folk, pop and progressive rock group who were at the height of their success during the early 1970s. The band’s output is characterized by quirky humour and rhythmic catchy sing-along tunes. Stackridge began developing their eclectic, whimsical repertoire, with stated influences and preferences encompassing Zappa, the Beach Boys, Flanders & Swann, Syd Barrett, Igor Stravinsky, the Marx Brothers, J.S. Bach, and very significantly, the 1965-1966 Beatles.
Oho
The unique progressive style of Oho should appeal to fans of the Frank Zappa, Captain Beefheart, Gentle Giant school of progressive music as well as those looking for something original and/or bizarre and daring. Were they musical geniuses or just completely zonked out on acid?
Goblin
The fact that Goblin was an Italian progressive rock band already makes them somewhat unique, but they also pursued an intriguingly unorthodox career path, recording the majority of their music for horror film soundtracks, many with director Dario Argento. Internationally, they’re probably best-known for their work on the Night of the Living Dead sequel, Dawn of the Dead (where they were credited as the Goblins), though their work on Profondo Rosso (aka Deep Red) and Suspiria is generally more acclaimed.
Shuttah
What we do know about this English group of organ, drums, guitar, bass, horns and voice is that they created an underground concept record when that notion was still new, or at least warm, and it’s overflowing with big, adventurous ideas, story development, atmosphere and a sophistication missing from much psych rock at a time when the form was near exhaustion. Their one and only album, ‘The Image Maker Vol. 1 & 2’, has an acid-blues foundation but shakes things up all the way through with surprising classical fugues, sound effects, theatrical fun and quality musicianship.
My Solid Ground
In 1968, at age 14, he had learned how to play guitar, formed his own band and three years later released an album whom many still consider a psychedelic Krautrock classic. Not bad for a small-town German boy who is now producer, composer and music lecturer at Maintz University. He is Bernhard Rendel, founder of My Solid Ground; the other band members were keyboard player Ingo Werner, bassist Karl-Heinrich Dorfler and drummer Andreas Wursching.
Hot Thumbs O’Riley
Ex-pat Englishmen Jim Pembroke moved to Finland in the 1960’s and found himself at the centre of a progressive musical explosion. He went on to become an integral part of the legendary band Wig Wam but quickly realized that even they would not be enough to satisfy his more esoteric creative urges. As a result, he began to issue occasional solo works, the first of which was “Wicked Ivory”. Backed by other Wig Wam members, this album comes across as almost a lost Wig Wam release, although far more quirky and yet somehow laid back.
Culpeper’s Orchard
Culpeper’s Orchard is one of those pivotal group from Denmark. not that they became very popular or had an impressive release catalogue, but they made with this debut , an album that sort of set the standard for Danish bands for years to come. Not particularly prog if you are to compare it with the prog classic from England of those same years , but progressive enough AND A DAMN GOOD ROCK’N ROLL ALBUM!!!!
Message
Their first album was recorded under the direction of the famous musical engineer Dieter Dierks. The result sounds remarkably as British progressive rock of the moment. Very melodic, with a ravishing and an accomplished lyrical sense of composition. Their following album is as great as the previous one, delivering impressive, extended, mainly instrumental heavy/ space rock tracks which can be compared (in some parts) to Nektars first effort.
East Of Eden
East of Eden is a perfect illustration of the futility that England’s Decca Records faced in cultivating progressive rock (apart from the Moody Blues). A critically acclaimed jazz-fusion band with a strong Eastern music influence, they were a natural for stardom during the late ’60s; indeed, they might’ve taken the wind out of the sails of the Mahavishnu Orchestra very fast, but they never became more than a cult act in England, with a strong local following in London.
Food Brain
Food Brain was named by Shinki Chen – a charismatic Japanese guitarist – and is known as a novel rock project by Polydor Japan (according to rumour the project was originally to be named Brain Food – but Shinki made a mistake). Ikuzo Orita, a director of Polydor, had pictured some projects of Japanese progressive rock in his mind. To realize one of them, he persuaded Shinki to be the front man, and gathered some renowned Japanese musicians – Hiro Tsunoda (drums & percussion), Hiro Yanagida (keyboard & organ), Masayoshi Kabe (bass) – around him.
Galliard
Galliard is a sextet formed in the summer of 68, and developed a psychedelic type of brass rock, fronted by twin wind players Caswell and Smith and singer Geoff Brown. They recorded two albums on the Deram Nova label (the subsidiary prog label of Decca records) around the turn of the 70’s decade, when brass rock was the rage.