Category Archives: Progressive Rock

Grandmasters Unite in Tokyo

Posted on by Musicofourheart
English: Keith Emerson 日本語: キース・エマーソン

English: Keith Emerson 日本語: キース・エマーソン (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Today’s blog post is inspired from a photograph that captures the inherent joy evident inside the music of our hearts. Standing together these musical legends are joined in common bond of the Moog synthesizer and music composition.

The Grandmasters pictured below from left to right are Maestro Sachio Fujioka, Takashi Yoshimatsu, Isao Tomita, and Keith Emerson. This conclave of wizards took place at the Orchestral “Tarkus” Concert in Tokyo.

According to the Official Keith Emerson Website:

Keith Emerson attended the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra‘s performance of “Tarkus” in Tokyo on March 20th, 2013 to celebrate the 60th birthday of a renowned composer, Mr. Takashi Yoshimatsu, who arranged “Tarkus”. His arrangement was used on the weekly epic drama on national TV station, “Tairano Kiyomori” in Japan last year. This will be the first time Keith hears this particular version of orchestral “Tarkus” performed live by a full orchestra.

The concert was held at Tokyo Opera City Concert Hall on March 20, 2013

Tarkus – Classic Meets Rock

This is a fantastic composition performed by the Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra. Takashi Yoshimatsu has extended Tarkus creating a further masterpiece in the process.

Should you wish to listen to the original work Tarkus by Emerson, Lake and Palmer I strongly urge you to avail yourself of the Deluxe Edition. It has been remastered by yet another wizard of progressive rock, Steven Wilson. Listen to it in 5.1 surround sound.

This is my signed copy of the original audio CD by Carl Palmer.

Tarkus Signed By Carl Palmer

This Grandmaster’s photograph has also rekindled my interest in Tomita. I listened happily today to his classic recording, Snowflakes Are Dancing. I was reminded how picturesque and poetic Tomita’s Moog synthesizer compositions are to the music of our heart. One of the great treasures of all time is Isao Tomita.

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Pink Floyd 40th Anniversary, Unite to Darken the Moon

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Wow has it been 40 years already since the release of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon? I remember well March 17, 1973 when that recording debuted (US release date according to Capitol Records). The FM radio station I listened to out of New York City, WNEW-FM 102.7 leaned on it strongly. I bought my vinyl LP copy on  the Saturday afternoon it was released here in the States.  On the following day, Sunday the 18th of March 1973 I was fortunate to witness Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon 1973 Tour. They performed at The Palace in Waterbury, Ct. I wrote about that experience in the blog post hyper-linked below.

Pink Floyd In Concert 1973 – The Dark Side of the Moon Tour

Pink Floyd and EMI Music will mark the 40th Anniversary of the original UK release of The Dark Side of The Moon on 24 March 2013, as fans around the globe unite to turn a specially designed moon dark. Centred around a global playback of the album on PinkFloyd.com, each memory, thought and photo tweeted as fans rediscover the album will count towards the creation of a dark side of the moon.

Starting at 00:01am GMT on 24 March 2013, for the entire day fans all over the world will be able to share thoughts and comments via twitter using #DarkSide40 and witness the impact as the volume of messages combine to turn the moon dark.

DSOTM

Storm Thorgerson

When it comes to branding and logo there may not be a more discernible icon than the Pink Floyd, Dark Side of the Moon “Prism”.  (Well perhaps the Rolling Stones Lips might top it…) It was designed by Storm Thorgerson when he was with Hipignosis. I have been a major fan of Storm Thorgerson for decades.

I wish I could afford the deluxe edition of his collectible book, Taken By Storm, The Album Art of Storm Thorgerson by the high-end music book publishing house Genesis Publications.

Keep watching the Pink Floyd Web page, http://darkside40.pinkfloyd.com/ for the variants of the Dark Side of the Moon prism. Each day another square in the diagram gets filled in and I’ll see you on the dark side of the moon ;)

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Greg Lake, Autobiography:Lucky Man & CD:Songs of a Lifetime

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Greg Lake has a wonderful voice with memorable inflection and hauntingly wonderful tonality. He is a vital vocal energy in the music of our heart.

Lucky Man – Autobiography

I keep discovering audio books to listen to which help pass time illuminated by the spoken word. Greg Lake is the midst of writing his autobiography ‘Lucky Man’ which is projected to be completed by the end of this year. As good fortune would have it you can buy Volume 1 of his book now as a USB guitar collectible (Click the image for ordering information). Greg Lake is our reader which adds a special intimacy to the listening/fan experience.

The daybreak is your midnight; the colors have all died. 
Disturbing the waters of our lives, of our lives, of our lives, lives, 
Lives, lives… 
Of our lives. – Greg Lake, “Take A Pebble“

Songs of a Lifetime

Greg Lake has released a live recording of his 2012 Songs of a Lifetime Tour. He is a sheer delight to witness in concert. You will be amazed when you hear him sing how you drift back to the time when King Crimson and Emerson, Lake and Palmer graced your stereo system. He typifies the feeling that you share with him in a concert hall in the quote below. We saw him a few years back with Keith Emerson at the Ridgefield Playhouse. It was a marvelous show and C’est La Vie was our highlight that evening.

The idea for the tour came about as Lake was writing his autobiography ‘Lucky Man,’ which is due toward the end of 2013. “Behind these songs there were often stories to be told and it occurred to me that the same must be true for the audience as well,” he says in a press release. “It was then that I thought of the idea of doing a series of very small intimate concerts where I could perform these songs and exchange stories with the audience, in a way reliving the time when the music we shared together really became part of our identity and in a way became the backdrop to our lives.”

View this tasty sample of one of Greg Lake’s “Songs of a Lifetime” tour concerts in this short video, filmed and edited by noted Emerson, Lake and Palmer, Archivist and Curator Tony Ortiz.

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Steven Wilson, Prog Magazine, The Raven That Refused To Sing

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The latest issue of PROG Magazine  features a cover story on Steven Wilson that is masterfully annotated with engaging graphic design art. The article is designed to complement the superior packaged deluxe edition of The Raven That Refused To Sing (And Other Stories).  A suite of six tales that mingle murder, mortality and mystery with The Dark Side Of The Moon engineer Alan Parsons’s sonic talents. The deluxe 4 disc edition of the album has “a 128 page hardback book containing lyrics and ghost stories, illustrated by Hajo Mueller“.

CD1 – studio album

CD2 – 7 demo tracks (album tracks plus one unused idea, Clock Song)

DVD-V – 96/24 Stereo LPCM of the album, plus 2 x 5.1 mixes of album (DTS 96/24 5.1 surround & Dolby AC3 5.1 surround
Art Gallery (images by Hajo Mueller)
Photo Gallery (photographs by Lasse Hoile)
Studio Documentary (filmed and edited by Lasse Hoile)

Blu-Ray – 96/24 Stereo LPCM of the album, plus 2 x 5.1 mixes of album (96/24 5.1 LPCM & DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1)
Instrumental versions of the album tracks (96/24 Stereo LPCM),
bonus track (‘Drive Home – lounge version’, also 96/24 Stereo LPCM).
Art Gallery (images by Hajo Mueller)
Photo Gallery (photographs by Lasse Hoile)
Studio Documentary (filmed and edited by Lasse Hoile)

SW-deluxe edition

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Jordan Rudess – Digital Music Visionary

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Music is an infinite universe. I continue to marvel at the convergence of music and technology as greater levels of immediacy are achieved by digital music application companies.

Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater keyboardist) has a prominent role in the mix as a music visionary architect. I prize the apps he and Kevin Chartier (Wizdom Music) have delivered in software for the iPad.

One such app is MorphWiz which is a both an expressive musical instrument and an exciting visual experience.

It is noteable that Jordan Rudess was invited to kick off the Microsoft Build 2012 Conference in Redmond, Washington on October 30th. I am impressed to see that his company, Wizdom Music is delivering on the value proposition of cross-platform portability to Microsoft Surface and Windows 8. So far Morphwiz and Tachyon have been ported to Windows 8. Expect the rest of the Wizdom Music apps to follow suit.

I plan to write more about what Jordan Rudess, Dream Theater and what Wizdom Music are accomplishing in future posts. I hope to get the opportunity to sit down with Jordan Rudess and Kevin Chartier some time soon to learn more directly about their vision and direction.

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Jethro Tull – Thick As A Brick (40th Anniversary Special Edition)

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We recently saw Ian Anderson and Jethro Tull perform Thick As A Brick 1 & 2 at Mohegan Sun. I noticed that Thick As A Brick is being reissued on remastered CD and vinyl as a 40th anniversary edition.

I am interested in owning, listening to and reading about Thick As A Brick after experiencing the recording performed live in its entirety in concert. What motivates me even more is that Steven Wilson has engineered the remix with Ian Anderson’s help and direction. Steven Wilson is playing a pivotal role in the renaissance of progressive rock from both a historical as well as a participant level basis.

The 40th Anniversary Edition features a new 5.1 stereo mix, mixed by Steven Wilson, plus a DVD containing DTS & Dolby Digital 5.1 surround mix, high quality stereos 96/24 (new mix and 1972 flat transfer), the original newspaper over 40 pages, an article by Classic Rock s Dom Lawson, rare photos from photographers Didi Zill and Robert Ellis, recording and touring mementos and much more, all contained in 104 page 7 ½ x 5 ½ hardback book.

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Steven Wilson Launches New Web Site, Wraps Up Next Solo Album

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Progressive rock has a major catalyst in Steven Wilson. He launched a new Web site yesterday with a new design and a company store.

Steven Wilson

The new Web site has lots of content, pictures, and video about his next solo album which is due to be released in February 2013. It was produced by Alan Parsons.

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Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson Plays Thick As A Brick 1 & 2

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We were invited by the Mohegan Sun Player’s Club to attend  Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson Plays Thick As A Brick 1 & 2 concert at the Mohegan Sun Casino Arena free. This was the third “free” concert we have attended at Mohegan Sun this year. We witnessed Kenny Loggins in a secret show on July 18. We also go to see the Summerland Tour (90′s Hitmakers) on July 29 featuring Everclear, Sugar Ray, Gin Blossoms, Lit, and Marcy Playground.

I have been a fan of Jethro Tull since their first album This Was in 1968. This was my sixth Tull concert. If I count the two Ian Anderson Rubbing Elbows concerts that would make eight Jethro Tull/Ian Anderson concerts in 43 years.

The concert this night proved to be unique compared to past Jethro Tull concerts. I have seen the Stand Up, Benefit, Aqualung, and A Passion Play tours. I have also seen Jethro Tull in concert where they play a cross-section of their discography.

Thick as a Brick Live in 2012

I liked the idea that Jethro Tull would do Thick As A Brick 1 & 2 in their entirety. It was a different band than I was accustomed to seeing. The past five times I have witnessed Jethro Tull the guitarist was Martin Barre. He is not a member of Jethro Tull now so the lead guitar was handled by Florian Opahle. I missed Martin Barre not being in the band but I soon adjusted to Florian Opahle in that role.

The first segment of the show began with several people with cashmere overcoats and caps milling about in a warehouse. We soon learned this was the band as they removed their coats and were joined by Ian Anderson at the microphone, flute in hand. The years have ravaged Ian Anderson’s vocal range and he struggled to reach some of the upper register notes in “Thick As A Brick”. I credit Ian Anderson with the idea of adding vocalist, mime Ryan O’Donnell who serves as Gerald Bostock in the show. For the unitiated Gerald Bostock is the central fictional character of Thick As A Brick 1 & 2.

Ian Anderson is still very much the knave as he pranced about flute in hand, playing on one leg, knee bent and leg/foot dangling. His flute musicianship is superb. He grounds the group in his legendary central role which was heartfelt to see. He brought back many memories whilst he performed. All in all, Act 1, Thick As A Brick came across well and set the stage for the second act.

Thick As A Brick 2 is the new recording released this year. It is better engineered for Iam Anderson’s revised vocal range. The band that performs with Ian Anderson recorded Thick As A Brick 2 with him so the co-operation is much tighter than Thick As A Brick. I was enchanted by the theatrics in Thick As A Brick 2, such as the multimedia use of various videos and graphics on the large screen behind the group. There was always something going on to keep the audience engaged and focused.

I liked the group’s cohesiveness. Thick As A Brick 2 unfolded nicely in a concert setting. I found myself intrigued by the new songs and the further story of Gerald Bostock growing up to become an adult. It was crafty of Ian Anderson to revisit the Thick As A Brick concept recording to shed more light on the character and what befalls him next.

My favorite songs on Thick As A Brick 2 are “Wootton Bassett Town” and “Banker Bets, Banker Wins”.

Jethro Tull encored with an instrumental “Aqualung” followed by “Locomotive Breath“. It was the icing on the cake of a rewarding and entertaining evening.

Pink Floyd In Concert 1973 – The Dark Side of the Moon Tour

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Bootleg concert t-shirt logo, now sold as official Pink Floyd merchandise

One of the most historic concerts I have seen over the decades was the original Pink Floyd performing Dark Side of the Moon on tour. The date for that concert was March 18th, 1973. The venue was the Palace Theater in Waterbury, Connecticut.

Dark Side of the Moon was released on March 17, 1973. The album gathered momentum quickly but was not yet being played in its entirety on progressive FM radio stations. The song “Money” was an immediate hit and the crowd that night cheered loudly when it was performed.

We were fortunate to catch Pink Floyd before the updraft of chart success took them to the next level of fame in rock and roll. They were soon playing arenas and stadiums versus lesser sized concert halls like the Palace Theater where we saw them play (2,500+ seats) It was a mere two weeks later on April 1st, 1973 that Dark Side of the Moon reached No. 1 on  It then remained in the charts for 741 weeks from 1973 to 1988. It is estimated that 50 million copies have been sold. It is Pink Floyd’s most commercially successful album and one of the best-selling albums worldwide.

File:Dark Side of the Moon.png

I have several specific memories of that night. The first memory is that the event was over sold. We had real numbered seat balcony tickets but Koplik & Finkel who booked this event sold way too many tickets. We ended up sitting on the carpeted stairs in the balcony. It was a definite fire code violation situation. We did end up with a great line of sight to see the band.

File:MeddleCover.jpeg

My second memory was that they played my favorite Pink Floyd song, “Echoes” from Meddle. I love how that song builds to a crescendo force. They used a light display behind them that gave the impression of a darkened sun as it rose in the sky as they played. I always found “Echoes” powerful in its presentation. I became enraptured with the opus when I first saw Pink Floyd on the silver screen in Live at Pompeii.

My third memory was when they performed “Great Gig In the Sky“, the female singers stood in the opera boxes on the sides of the theater and spotlights reflected on their flowing white dresses. That section of the performance reverberates strongly in me even now, 39+ years later.

The Dark Side of the Moon Tour

Set List

  17. Encore:

I am thankful that I had the insight to buy tickets to this concert at the Nimbus Water Bed Shop in New Haven, they were a ticket outlet in those days. It was a historic event that my wife and I were able to witness live. :)

Traffic – My Favorite British Rock Group

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Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains. It serves as a framework grain and is used to support sand as a land mass.

Traffic is analogous to sandstone when it comes to the foundation of rock music. Progressive rock music’s roots can be directly traced to the group. We  owe a world of gratitude to Traffic’s founding members, Steve Winwood, Dave Mason, Jim Capaldi, and Chris Wood for the music they gave us.

Traffic is my favorite English rock group. The music they created appealed to my senses on so many levels. They first permeated my consciousness as folk rockers with their pivotal first two albums. Traffic showed evolution with the next phase building on folk music by adding healthy amounts of jazz improvisation with their comeback smash, John Barleycorn Must Die.

Traffic Studio Recordings

Traffic entered the English rock music scene at the same time as Cream, Jethro Tull and The Yardbirds (just to name a few) in 1967. I discovered Traffic in late 1968 when they released their second recording, Traffic. (See my earlier blog post, Traffic’s Second Studio Recording – Traffic for more details).

I soon purchased their first recording, Mr. Fantasy. I wrote about the variations of that recording in a past blog post (See Traffic’s First Recording – Mr. Fantasy). “Dear Mr. Fantasy” appeared on the first recording and it is a signature song by Traffic.

My favorite gem on Traffic’s Last Exit (May 1969) was the track “Medicated Goo”. Nonsensical as the lyrics were the music busts a move to this day.

Traffic Live

I was very fortunate to see Traffic live twice in concert. We had great seats each time, seventh row, center. I wrote about that experience at The Capitol Theatre in Portchester, NY which has just reopened as a magnificent new art deco experience. (See past blog post, Capitol Theatre in Portchester NY Plans Triumphant Return in 2012, Part 1)

An excellent live recording(Audio and Video) by Traffic is contained on The Last Great Traffic Jam recorded from the 1994 Traffic reunion concert tour.

The Traffic Icon

I have always found the Traffic icon to be compelling. I was never quite sure what it meant or how it was typified. I just know I loved its concentric woodsy nature. I have a leather edition of this symbol which I wore as a hippie necklace in the day ;)

Mr. Fantasy – The Lyrics of Jim Capaldi

Just this past week I received a surface mailing postmarked from Malta. It was a literature piece advertising the Genesis Publications Ltd., Mr. Fantasy The Lyrics of Jim Capaldi. This specialty book is a true collectors item. The price is very rich for my blood $345 British Pounds, $560 in US Dollars. Mr. Fantasy is in full bound leather, with silkscreen artwork and gold blocking. It is hand-made to order, numbered and signed by Steve Winwood, Aninha Capaldi and Robert Plant. Places it on my Christmas list just in case :)

Mr Fantasy: The Lyrics of Mr Fantasy