When I get my classic prog fix, I don’t tend to venture as far back as the ’60s, simply because it was a nebulous time for the genre and progressive music hadn’t evolved into all of its trappings that I…
View More High Tide – The Complete Liberty Recordings
I became a fan of progressive rock in 2008… wait, I’ve said that before haven’t I? When I was reviewing Keith Emerson’s mammoth 20CD Variations set, I wondered what made Emerson so special when his long-time bandmate Greg Lake died…
View More Greg Lake – Magical
I became a fan of progressive rock in 2008, with my introduction to Dream Theater, which seemed to have everything I was looking for in a musical group: long songs, odd time signatures, virtuoso playing and great songwriting. I listened…
View More Keith Emerson – Variations (20CD Boxset)
Yesterday, Dream Theater announced the return of founding drummer Mike Portnoy. When I read the news, I thought it was some sort of April Fools joke or troll post, especially because of the poorly photoshopped picture of the group with…
View More Mike Portnoy Rejoins Dream Theater
About two months ago, I received two reissues of Stackridge’s albums to review. One of them, Extravaganza, delighted me so much that I decided to go back and cover all five of Stackridge’s 1970s albums, reissued this year by Esoteric…
View More Fat Grapple
He hasn’t even finished his current tour of Foxtrot at Fifty, but Steve Hackett has already announced his next tour, celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of Genesis’ The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, the controversial concept album that was the last…
View More Steve Hackett
The final outing from Stackridge – in the ’70s, at least – feels very much like the black sheep of the family, the ugly duckling that’s destined to become a beautiful swan. It’s by no means the worst of Stackridge’s…
View More Stackridge – Mr. Mick
After the delayed release of The Man in the Bowler Hat in 1974, Stackridge imploded from their lack of success, with most of the group either leaving or getting fired. It’s a miracle that any of the band remained and…
View More Stackridge – Extravaganza
This is where I began my Stackridge journey. On the first listen, I didn’t think much and presumed that this was another bland AOR band, but how wrong I was. Certain tracks on this album were utter growers and I…
View More Stackridge – The Man in the Bowler Hat
If Stackridge’s self-titled debut introduced the record-buying public to the band’s whimsical nature and penchant for playing in a myriad of different styles, then Friendliness sought to expand their sound and refine their performances. The quality of the songs here…
View More Stackridge – Friendliness