The Prog Premier League - The Final League Table

[C]

Renaissance (1st incarnation)

You are placing them on the high table - top 5, based on one album....?!

I'll do the same for Quatermass then

Behave Yves....!




.

[C]

Are Strawbs prog, I wouldn’t have thought so?

.

Well Rob, this is the discussion we knew we were going to have to have!

They certainly made some proggish albums as did Jethro Tull.

Are TD, AD2 prog....? Possibly, the latter more

Hawkwind? probably not

Tull...? Sometimes

Traffic? Yes for the last four albums

Perhaps we could focus on those that we ALL agree are 100% pure prog

Genesis became bland pop.

The 'purists' would be:

Yes
VdGG
Gentle Giant
King Crimson
Gong
Barclay James Harvest



.

[robertff]

Draft 2

I've decided Hawkwind are 'prog'...(!)

Pink Floyd need to go in somewhere but if regularity of playing is a factor they would be near the bottom!

1. Jethro Tull
2. Gentle Giant
3. Genesis
4. Soft Machine
5. King Crimson
6. Gong
7. Yes
8. VDGG
9. Strawbs
10. Focus
11. Hawkwind
12. Camel
13. Caravan
14. The Nice
15. Moody Blues
16. Audience
17. PFM
18. Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
19. Barclay James Harvest
20. Emerson, Lake & Palmer
21. Hatfield & The North
22. Mike Oldfield




.

Are Strawbs prog, I wouldn’t have thought so?



.

Interesting to see if we get any kind of agreement on the top 5, JT, KC and Genesis perhaps. Would be surprised if we got agreement on GG and SM. Don’t see how Audience could get into a top twenty, they only made one really decent album, the others were mediocre.


.


.

[robertff]

Are Strawbs prog, I wouldn’t have thought so?

.

Well Rob, this is the discussion we knew we were going to have to have!



Genesis became bland pop.


.

Agree totally but for a while and for a number of well received albums (as you have already posted) they were prog incarnate, forget the pop bland. Trying to be fair-minded here and you know how much I like Genesis, NOT!



.


.

[C]

Don’t see how Audience could get into a top twenty, they only made one really decent album, the others were mediocre.

.

You’re ‘aving a laff lad…..!!!!!





.

[C]

Agree totally but for a while and for a number of well received albums (as you have already posted) they were prog incarnate, forget the pop bland. Trying to be fair-minded here and you know how much I like Genesis, NOT!


.

Yes, Genesis deserve to be top 5.

Incidentally, I thought all the Floyd fans would be jumping up and down….!



.

[Hugh]

20 The Pineapple Tree

Who??

Well, you know what I mean

[Hugh]

you’ll be suggesting Starcastle next!

Ouch!

I did consider Starcastle

The may be unashamed Yes rip offs but their first album is full of great tunes.

[trans-chigley express]

Perhaps we could focus on those that we ALL agree are 100% pure prog

Genesis became bland pop.

The 'purists' would be:

Yes
VdGG
Gentle Giant
King Crimson
Gong
Barclay James Harvest



.

BJH became bland pop too. Far blander than anything Genesis released in fact.

[Hugh]

BJH are the most mediocre band in the world.

[Walk In My Shadow]

Renaissance (1st incarnation)

You are placing them on the high table - top 5, based on one album....?!

I'll do the same for Quatermass then

Behave Yves....!




.

But you can have Quatermass (I should've thought of them).

I rate Renaissance for two albums (Illusion) and highly too.

A band doesn't have to have 30 odd albums to make 'em top 5.

[ChrisB]

BJH are the most mediocre band in the world.

At last! A soulmate!

[Matt Wilson]

Top Five

1 Yes
2 Genesis
3 Crimson
4 Floyd
5 Tull

[Lord Rother]

Radiohead is definitely a good shout, they are up there near the top of the league. Surely we need to consider those who have made the most impact, been successful and had a good run of well received albums. We need to put personal faves aside and really consider who has done the most to advance prog rock surely?

Goodness, if I can accept that Genesis should be at the top or thereabouts, despite my absolute dislike of their music, then surely we can put personal faves aside and try to create a Premier Prog League worthy of its name, can’t we? Otherwise this is just a list of everyone’s top twenty, which is pointless, and this is not what this thread is all about.

So, can we agree on who should be at the top place, the champions? Following that, the next four places?

.

I assumed the idea was to collate the ratings on a points basis and get the Top 5 or Top 20 from that. Surely that's the best way because it's impossible to get 20 people to agree on who the Top 5 should be (well, it is when I'm one of them!). But if the points say it, sobeit.

Despite occasional good bits, the likes of Soft Machine, Henry Cow, Gong, Gentle Giant, Tangerine Dream, ELP are all mediocre at best, absolute tripe at worst and there is no way I would agree they should be anywhere near a Top 20 Prog bands when to my mind there are bands making music today that are far far better. Again, but if the overall points say they are, then sobeit.

If you want to restrict it to bands from the 70s so nothing modern gets a look in (despite them making music with tunes rather than largely experimental cacophanous rubbish), then you need to stipulate that.

[robertff]

Top Five

1 Yes
2 Genesis
3 Crimson
4 Floyd
5 Tull

Think I could agree with that Matt although I'm not sure if ELP shouldn't be in there somewhere and I might have had Floyd in there above KC although I'm not that fussed but I think that's a pretty could top 5.

Let's see if there are any dissenters, bearing in mind we are putting personal feelings and favourites aside for the time being and trying to create a genuine list of a prog premier league, considering impact and influence on prog, strong run of albums, popularity and dare I say it record sales.

Anyone considered Rush?


.

[naughty boy]

Despite occasional good bits, the likes of Soft Machine, Henry Cow, Gong, Gentle Giant, Tangerine Dream, ELP are all mediocre at best, absolute tripe at worst and there is no way I would agree they should be anywhere near a Top 20 Prog bands when to my mind there are bands making music today that are far far better

Big Big Train!

[Matt Wilson]

Top Five

1 Yes
2 Genesis
3 Crimson
4 Floyd
5 Tull

Think I could agree with that Matt although I'm not sure if ELP shouldn't be in there somewhere and I might have had Floyd in there above KC although I'm not that fussed but I think that's a pretty could top 5.

Let's see if there are any dissenters, bearing in mind we are putting personal feelings and favourites aside for the time being and trying to create a genuine list of a prog premier league, considering impact and influence on prog, strong run of albums, popularity and dare I say it record sales.

Anyone considered Rush?


.

Love Rush, but above the others? They're more top ten than top five. Same with ELP. What you should do is just ask everyone to nominate their top five and then tally the choices.

[trans-chigley express]

Probably too broad church but this is my list of acts that mean most to me and I included several electronic acts that I listen to a lot. I may refine the list if I have was to (reluctantly) include acts based on success and influence. I hate ELP for example but can't deny they were a huge act. VdGG have just never clicked with me but I'm prepared to accept they are important. I'm really enjoying listening to PFM at the moment but don't feel I know them well enough to include. I almost added Can too. This list can be regarded as my first draft . Top 5 will not change though. In fact top 6 is probably set in stone, the rest are largely interchangeable depending on my mood.

1. Yes
2. Genesis
3. Pink Floyd
4. Steven Wilson/Porcupine Tree
5. Jethro Tull
6. Mike Oldfield
7. Hawkwind
8. Strawbs
9. King Crimson
10. Rush
11. Gentle Giant
12. Caravan
13. Marillion
14. Focus
15. Vangelis
16. Tangerine Dream
17. Steve Hackett
18. Renaissance
19. Jean-Michel Jarre
20. Camel

[Matt Wilson]

Again, if everyone would nominate their top five we could establish that first, and then move on to the top ten.

[C]

Top Five

1 Yes
2 Genesis
3 Crimson
4 Floyd
5 Tull

That's not bad Matt but GG need to be in there too.

They are certainly more 'prog' than Tull





.




.