Obscure/Lesser Known Classic/Prog Rock Album recs (that don't suck)

[ramses]

To me, the only time a greatest hits album is worth it, is if it's a radio band, pop group, or it has a lot of unreleased music on it. Hell-... Death, Forbidden, and a few metal bands from the Noise label had greatest hits kind of albums, and at the time they were released, they only had 2 albums out!!

[Mathiäs]

Originally Posted by ShredHeadJHJ

Dude, I've been jamming the fuck out on "Tarkus" for days now.

My friend has most of those other albums you mentioned, cept' for one or two of those Yes ones. He let me borrow "The Yes Album" & a Genesis album but I haven't got around to listening to them yet. When I get through those a few times I'll borrow the other albums from him. I've really been interested in the Yes stuff.

I've had a Deep Purple Greatest Hits album forever. It's not all that great but I get the feeling they are more of an actual album band. I have heard some Rainbow w/ Blackmore that I really liked.

The Yes Album is great, but to a person new to Yes might not like it as much. This is why you should get the Ultimate Yes Collection.

Which DP GH album to you have?

[razoredge]

When Queen was in process of recording thier first album the magazines were claiming "Led Zeppelin" foot prints. Then a year or so later Rush was about to hit and the magazines were claiming "Led Zeppelin" foot prints. In 72 or 73 when Ronnie Montrose was done with the Edgar Winter Group and was putting Montrose together they were telling us about this young "kid" that was going to be the next "Robert Plant". It was all based on the wailing vocals, but when you get down to it the music was quite different. The only thing that was really common was the music was heavy and all the vocalists were capable of being high screamers. So they were like 50% correct, Zeppelin set the trend, and we would like it, but when I got those debut albums I sat there listening and thought to myself "no, this does not sound like Led Zeppelin". I still have all those debut records, but not Rushs first, just Fly by Night and Caress of Steel. All the records I mentioned are great in my opinion, they also have significant historic value in the development of heavy music, milestones I suppose.

Child in Time could be compared to Uriah Heep, about the only one I can think of right now. While its a simple lyric line Child in Time is one of Gillans ultimate vocal performances, as well as some of the stuff he did on JCS.

If you listen to old Deep Purple you will hear they had alot of Rock N Roll and Blues in them. Uriah Heep didnt boogie like Deep Purple did.

[ShredHeadJHJ]

Originally Posted by Mathiäs

The Yes Album is great, but to a person new to Yes might not like it as much. This is why you should get the Ultimate Yes Collection.

Which DP GH album to you have?

I listened to The Yes Album on my way to work today. It's pretty damn good, but it's not teh gr8st album evaR or anything. I think it might really grow on me. I'll check out my friend's greatest hits album by Yes, but I want to spin this some more.

The Deep Purple Greatest Hits album I have is called "Deepest Purple: The Very Best of Deep Purple" & it was released in 1980.

[ramses]

Don't have the first Rush album, eh? I wouldn't bother. When they started in 69, they were into Cream, The Yardbirds, and Zeppelin. The first album has a few good songs on it, but John Rutsey's drumming is just average...at best. And there's a lot of oooh babe, and yeah on it from Geddy. Their first album was delayed, and supposed to come out 2 years earlier, but there was a problem with OPEC, crude oil/gas shortages. As you know, records were made out of some kind of petroleum by-product. They were still back in the early 70's, mimicking Zep, and didn't start developing their sound till the next album. The reasons Rutsey left was that he had diabetes, and couldn't take "road food" anymore, and he wanted to go in a more Bad Company Direction. Geddy and Alex wanted to go prog like Yes, Elp...etc. I'll listen to the first album about once a year, and only listen to three tracks. I'm like you Razoredge....even though I heard the poor man's Deep Purple criticisms, I got Demons and Wizards anyway. Hell, I figured then, if they sounded like Purple great, it would be an added bonus if they did. But, no, they're not really much like DP at all, just a little. Win-win situation!! I like Deep Purple's Fireball a lot as well, you?

[razoredge]

Actually Machine Head followed closely by Made in Japan was my intro to Deep Purple and for what ever reason back then I did not dig back into their past. D&W was my intro to UH but I immeadiatly dug back, I have no reason for this, I loved Machinehead, but case you cant tell I was a hardcore Heepster and its still in me though I only listen now on occasion. I just happen to have some old DP tunes "lying around" now. Hush and Kentucky Woman got more airplay after the success of Smoke on the Water so they were like the only old DP tunes besides what MiJ had on it that I knew of at that time.

About Rush - there was only one album before Fly by Night right ? The one with Working Man on it ? Which by the way I always felt sounded like a Black Sabbath riff, great song though. Im a big Caress of Steel freak, that album had a HUGE impact on me. Seems to my tired memory that the magazines I read started talking about Rush around the time of Fly by Night.

ELP - I dont think Works is too bad ? Not as interesting, more refined or sterilized (depending on how you look at it), broke up and less daring but decent ?

Black Moon has two songs I like alot. Farewell to Arms and Footprints in the Snow. I like footprints I guess because I always like Greg Lakes songs but it also has direct personal meaning, has even caused me to shed a tear or two..... dates back to when we were a young family and had footprints in the snow. The rest could have been better though, havent played that tape in a loooong time, I should dig it out.

[razoredge]

Originally Posted by ShredHeadJHJ

I listened to The Yes Album on my way to work today. It's pretty damn good, but it's not teh gr8st album evaR or anything. I think it might really grow on me. I'll check out my friend's greatest hits album by Yes, but I want to spin this some more.

The Deep Purple Greatest Hits album I have is called "Deepest Purple: The Very Best of Deep Purple" & it was released in 1980.

If you listen to everything old with a set of standards based on the extremes of today you will never hear it for what it was worth in its time. Its not about comparing music or musical talent or virtuosity to whos the best today. Its music and individual expression or contribution not a competition. Just sayin

[ramses]

Exactly! Remember that Yes, ELP, King Crimson, etc.... were doing this kind of music first...incorporating jazz, classical, folk. Just like when Death Metal reared it's ferocious head in the mid-late 80's, nobody thought to do something like that with music.
Rush-yeah, Fly By Night was their second album. The first had Working Man on it. When they had a poll on favorite Rush era, I also posted my top 3 Rush albums
Permanent Waves
Hemispheres
Caress of Steel-so underrated.
The original artwork for the COS album was supposed to be silver, not bronze-ish. The factory botched it, wrong color. They did the same for the logo on the first album. It was supposed to be RED not pink. The other cool thing about Caress is that The Necromancer is a continuation of By-Tor and the Snowdog. They did that again with Cygnus X-1 on Farewell to Kings, then part 2 called Cygnus X-1 book 2 Hemispheres on the Hemispheres album. Early Genesis and King Crimson kind of did that as well on albums, but Rush just seemed to make it more complete to me.
With ELP, just don't get Love Beach, whatever you do!

[razoredge]

I never knew By-Tor/Necromancer ? I'll have to cue em together and check that out. Love the wrong color cover though. it was a good fuck up.

[ShredHeadJHJ]

Originally Posted by razoredge

If you listen to everything old with a set of standards based on the extremes of today you will never hear it for what it was worth in its time. Its not about comparing music or musical talent or virtuosity to whos the best today. Its music and individual expression or contribution not a competition. Just sayin

What? Did I ever compare it to modern music? Is it the greatest album you've ever heard? I said it was good, but it's not the best album I've ever heard in my life. It has some great song writing on it.

Not trying to be a tool, it just sounded like you were jumping to conclusions & you might have expected me to say it was the best album of all time just by my first few listens...