INDEX C - The History

INTRODUCTION

Writing a history of Progressive Rock is quite an ambitious undertaking, and it’s hard to expect one person to know everything about the multitude of bands and musicians.

In this mini-guide to progressive music, I hope to have you discover this genre by means of four “chronicles,” each one covering one “wave” of the progressive movement. The four chronicles correspond approximately to: the end of the Sixties (PROTO-HISTORY), the Seventies (THE GOLDEN AGE), the Eighties (THE SILVER AGE and the birth of NEO-PROGressive rock), and the Nineties to the present (rebirth, and the new PROGressive METAL).

For certain groups, one will find a selection of their best albums. The interested reader will also find here some tools to dig a little deeper into the history of progressive rock. The idea here is to put maximum information at the reader’s fingertips so that, while having profited from the information provided, he can choose to add to that information.

In conclusion, I could never have written this article by myself. I relied heavily on the Web and a gigantic network and exchange of information regarding progressive rock, all of which led to the majority of the information provided below. As noted above, after an “eclipse” in the Eighties (progressive rock having had its “glory days” in the Seventies), progressive rock has been seeing a formidable rebirth - which I invite you to be part of! If you have not already done so, it is high time to discover this musical universe full of passion and unexpected richness.

Gradually yours….!

''The music’s playing, the notes are right
Put your left foot first and move into the light
The edge of this hill is the edge of the world
And if you’re going to cross you better start doing it right –
Better start doing it right''
“Dance On A Volcano” (Rutherford/Banks/Hackett/Collins)
GENESIS, “A Trick Of The Tail'' (1976)