Progressive rock began in 1969 with King Crimson's album "In the Court of the Crimson King" and attempted to extend the boundaries of rock music through complex arrangements, virtuosic musicianship, innovative technology, and influences from genres like classical, jazz, and psychedelia. Key pioneering prog bands of the 1970s included King Crimson, Genesis, Emerson Lake & Palmer, and Rush. While prog waned in popularity in the late 1970s, it maintained a cult following and saw a resurgence in the 1980s with bands like Marillion gaining mainstream success. Prog continues today with classic bands, new acts, and the use of modern technology.

1. Progressive Rock

2. Introduction
 Progressive Rock or “Prog” as it is known to its fans is a
sub genre of rock music that officially begins in 1969
with the release of In the Court of the Crimson King
by King Crimson. However, several bands and artists
are credited with being the genre’s influences and
antecedents.
 Progressive Rock attempted to extend the range of the
rock song through the use of technology and virtuoso
musicianship.

3. Prog Origins
 Frank Zappa and the The Mothers of Invention.
 The Beatles album, Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club
Band.
 The Beach Boys due their experiments with studio
technology from 1967 onwards.
 The Byrds due to extended, psychedelic instrumentals.
Musically, Progressive Rock is equally influenced by
Jazz, Classical Music and Rock Music.

4. Generic Features
 Complex arrangements and unusual time signatures.
 Long songs and multi-part compositions. Genesis’
Supper’s Ready clocks in at 27 minutes.
 Instrumental virtuosity. Many Prog musicians are
considered as “the best” in their field.
 Innovative use of music technology.
 Diverse influences including Classical, Jazz, Krautrock,
Psychedelia and industrial music.
 Poetic / obscure or whimsical lyrics.
 Stylised and detailed album artwork
 Concept albums.

5. Key Bands 1969 - 1978
 King Crimson
Formed by Robert Fripp in 1968, King Crimson was
known for its fearsome musical chops and frequent
line up changes. The band existed from 1968 until
1974 and then reformed in 1981 and still remains active.

6. King Crimson
 Noted for having a different line-up for each album,
the only consistent member is Robert Fripp.
 Fripp is a classically trained guitarist who, bizarrely,
was widely criticised for playing sitting down.

7. Key Bands 1969 - 1978
 Genesis
Formed in 1967, Genesis in many ways set the standard for Progressive Rock.
Known for its lengthy compositions (a typical album would comprise of 6
songs), the band, as a trio, enjoyed commercial success from 1980 to 1997
as one of the biggest selling stadium bands of all time.

8. Genesis
 Every member of Genesis is considered to be a virtuoso musician but
lead guitarist, Steve Hackett, has been credited with inventing several
well known guitar techniques such as tapping and sliding harmonics:

9. Key Bands 1969 - 1978
 Emerson, Lake and Palmer
The world’s first supergroup, ELP comprised of members of already
successful bands. Probably the most excessive of all Prog bands with
three extremely talented musicians with egos to match. Sold millions
of albums world wide. Reunited in 2010 for a 40th anniversary tour.

10. ELP
 Keith Emerson has been described as the Jimi Hendrix
of the Hammond organ due to his drug-fuelled and
violent solos.

11. Key Bands 1969 to 1978
 Rush
This Canadian trio is renowned for its musicianship and
having sold more albums than any other Canadian artist.
At 2012, Rush’s sales have hit 40 million world wide.

12. Instruments
 Most Prog bands utilise a traditional band structure of
vocals, keyboard, bass, drums and guitar, the template laid
down by Genesis and Yes. However, acoustic instruments
such as flute and violin are often used.
 Trios are often a feature of Prog, notable examples are ELP,
Rush and Genesis (from 1977 onwards).

13. Vocals
 More often than not, the typical Prog vocalist will sing in his or her own
accent. Some Prog vocalists utilise a theatrical approach to
performance, incorporating costumes and / or face paint to illustrate
the lyrics.
 Notable vocalists in Prog:
Peter Gabriel – Genesis 1967 - 1975 Geddy Lee – Rush 1973 - present Fish – Marillion 1981 - 1989
Peter Nicholls – IQ 1981 - present Dave Longdon – Big Big Train Bruce Soord – The Pineapple Thief

14. Guitar
 The Prog guitarist is a virtuoso, able to hold his own with the best.
Extended soloing is a must as is the ability to play 12 stringed
instruments. Stylistically, the Prog guitarist must be very versatile able
to switch between rock and classical styles at the drop of a hat. There is
a large emphasis upon sonic exploration and creating different sounds
using music technology and unusual tunings.
 Notable guitarists in Prog:
Steve Hackett – Steve Howe – Yes 1969 - present
Genesis 1970 - 1977 Alex Lifeson – Rush 1973 - present
David Gilmour –
Pink Floyd 1969 - present

15. Keyboards
 Equal to the guitarist in the Prog pantheon and an integral part of the
Prog sound. Notable instruments used in Prog are Hammond Organ,
Mellotron and synthesiser. In days gone by, it was common to see Prog
‘boardists nestled in banks of instruments but with the advent of
digital technology, two to three will now suffice.
 Notable Prog Keyboardists.
Keith Emerson – ELP 1970 - present Tony Banks – Genesis 1967 - present Jordan Rudess – Dream Theater 1999 - present

16. Drums
 Prog drummers have to be good; they have to be able to play everything
from straight rock to jazz. Polyrhythms, awkward and unusual time
signatures are the backbone of the music. Each of the drummers
below is considered by his peers to be amongst the best in the world.
 Notable Prog Drummers.
Phil Collins – Genesis 1970 - present Neil Peart – Rush 1974 - present Mike Portnoy – Dream Theater 1985 - 2010

17. Bass
 Four, six, eight and twelve string basses are a staple of Prog.
None of this clunking away at the root note of the chord for
these guys, Prog bassists are melodic powerhouses with
fingers flying all over the fretboard.
 Notable Prog bassists:
Mike Rutherford – Geddy Lee Rush 1973 - present John Jowitt – various bands Pete Trewavas –
Genesis 1967 - present including IQ, *Frost and Arena Marillion 1981 - present

18. Prog 1978 - present
 Prog was declared dead in 1978, killed by the Punk
Rock movement and consigned to the rubbish bin of
history.
 Surviving bands such as Genesis and Yes began to
include radio friendly compositions in their albums
and survived to be multi-platinum artists.
 Prog became a four letter word, apparently reviled and
hated by the music press.

19. Prog 1978 - present
 Despite being dead, several bands began to form in the
late seventies whose sound, insistence on long songs
and musical proficiency recalled the Prog greats such
as Genesis and Yes.
 Amongst these bands were IQ, Twelfth Night, Pallas,
Marillion and Pendragon. With a harder edge, these
bands found a following amongst metal fans and
received exposure through the magazine Kerrang!
 Interest in Prog was on the up.

20. Prog is not dead
 1981: Marillion’s debut album sells 1,000,000 copies
with no mainstream media promotion.
 1980: Genesis begins a string of top ten hits and
number one albums that will end in 2002.
 1985: Marillion earn two number two singles with
“Kayleigh” and “Lavender”; the subsequent album,
Misplaced Childhood becomes a double platinum
seller.
 1984: IQ headlines Monsters of Rock (now known as
The Download Festival).
 Radiohead and Muse declare that they are Prog.
 2010: Porcupine Tree sell out New York’s prestigious
Radio City Hall for five consecutive nights

21. New Prog
 The genre is alive and kicking with the classic bands of the 70s, 80s and
90s being joined by:
Muse
Radiohead
Biffy Clyro
Coheed and Cambria
Pain of Salvation
Opeth
Mastadon
30 Seconds to Mars
Big Big Train
Porcupine Tree
Elbow
Transatlantic
Tool
and many more …

22. Supergroups
 Prog is full of these. Typically, a supergroup consists of
members who are already in famous or successful
bands. Examples are:
Transatlantic (members of The Flower Kings, Spock’s
Beard, Marillion and Dream Theater).
Kino (members of IQ, Marillion and It Bites).
Arena (members of IQ, Pendragon and *Frost).

23. Albums
 Prog bands are generally album bands as opposed to singles bands. Many Prog albums
are either Concept Albums (the songs link together to tell a story) or Conceptual Albums
(the songs link together to form a theme or explore an idea).
 Key Prog Albums:
Nursey Cryme – Genesis (1971) In the Court of the Crimson King – King Crimson (1969)
Tales of Topographic Oceans – Yes (1974) Brain Salad Surgery - ELP(1973)
Script for a Jester’s Tear – Pepper’s Ghost – Arena (2005) The Underfall Yard – Dark Matter – IQ (2001)
Marillion (1981) Big Big Train (2007)

24. New Technology
 Prog was the first genre of music to use:
o The ebow (Robert Fripp).
o The Mellotron (Tony Banks).
o The Moog Synthesiser (Keith Emerson).
o Guitar synthesisers (Steve Hackett).
o Electronic percussion (Bill Bruford).
o Digital synthesisers, including sequencers (Tony
Banks).
o Samples (Peter Gabriel).
o Ambient sounds (Genesis).
o Back projections and other multi media sources in
concert (Pink Floyd).

25. New Technology
 Prog was one of the first genres to fully exploit the internet.
Without much mainstream media exposure, bands reached out
to their fan bases using the World Wide Web.
o Finding themselves without a record deal, in 2001 Marillion
emailed 1500 fans and asked them to pre-order their next,
unrecorded album, raising £15,000.
o One of the first widely available podcasts was the Silhobbit
Progressive Progressive Podcast.
o Fish (former singer with Marillion) was one of the first internet
bloggers, keeping his fan base in the loop with regard to new
releases and tours.
o Radiohead distributed its album, In Rainbows via the official
website, asking fans to pay what they thought it was worth.
o Using Myspace, IQ encouraged its fan base to buy its new single.
In one week it had sold 30,000 copies, propelling it into the top
40 and forcing Radio 1 to play it. The single eventually reached
Number 3.

26. Odd Facts
 Prog has been responsible for introducing two christian names
in to the English Language.
 Rush bassist and vocalist Geddy Lee’s real name is Gary Lee
Weinrib however, he was known at school as Geddy due to his
mother’s strongly Hungarian accented pronunciation of Gary.
There are now said to be around 500,000 Geddys alive today but
no instance of the name before 1980, coinciding with Rush’s first
major singles chart success, The Spirit of Radio.
 Marillion’s 1985 number two hit single, Kayleigh was about Fish’s
ex girlfriend who was called Kay Lee. The name change came
about when EMI became worried about Lee’s potential to sue the
band. Fish invented the name Kayleigh to avoid rewriting the
song’s lyrics. There are said to be 5 million Kayleighs world wide
but none born before 1985.

27. Odd Facts
 Have a Progging Merry Christmas.
Many Prog bands and artists related to Prog have produced or been
involved in classic Christmas hits that you probably know:
 Greg Lake (ELP): I Believe in Father Christmas (They said there’d
be snow this Christmas, they said there’d be peace on earth).
 Wizzard: I Wish it Could be Christmas Every Day (Roy Wood -
singer- was a founder member of The Electric Light Orchestra).
 Paul McCartney: Wonderful Christmas Time (the Beatles
influenced Prog).
 Band Aid: Do they know it’s Christmas? Phil Collins drums on
that song.
 Frankie Goes to Hollywood: The Power of Love (produced by
Trevor Horn, one time member of Yes).
 In Dulce Jubilo: Mike Oldfield (Prog God).
 Ring out Solstice Bells: Jethro Tull (no history of Prog is
complete without this band).

28. Prog Facts
 Prog is good for you. Music with unusual time
signatures and frequent changes in style stimulates
alpha waves in the brain, which aids concentration.
 Jimi Hendrix almost joined Emerson, Lake and
Palmer, which would have made them HELP.
 Pat Mastellotto (current King Crimson drummer)
plays drums on the theme song of Friends.
 The 2010 High Voltage Festival’s Prog Stage sold out
before any other stage, demonstrating the genre’s
continued popularity.