Prog hits

[PeterG]

There are literally thousands of bands in all genres that are one hit wonders but far less that are two hit wonders and very very few that have 3 or more top 10 hits.

Hits in prog rock, however, are generally pretty rare. Sadly most prog bands never have a single top 10 hit throughout their career.

And by hit I mean a Top 10 placing in the main UK/US/Canadian/Dutch/Italian/German charts close to the time of single/album release...not for example 5 or 10 years later.

A couple of examples that you might think made it but didn't are Tubular Bells, it didn't even get into the Top 30 in the UK. And Pink Floyd's Money only got into the Top 20 in the US but never even charted in the UK.


Some of the obvious ones that made the top 10 that immediately spring to mind for me are: Living in the Past, Whiter Shade of Pale, Nights in White Satin, Question, Another Brick in the Wall, See Emily Play, Moonlight Shadow, Oxygene Part IV, Kayleigh, Incommunicado, Lavender, Wonderous Stories, Owner of a Lonely Heart, Northern Lights, Follow You Follow Me, Abacab, Turn it on Again, Mama, Black Night, Strange Kind of Woman, Fanfare for the Common Man...and probably at least ten ELO singles.


But as said, they are few and far between.

[iguana]

SUPERTRAMP, anyone? whether prog or not – you decide. kate bush?

for an interesting variation of this question: prog hits by non-prog acts. ULTRAVOX’s “vienna” is an obvious contender.

[PeterG]

More importantly and perhaps more comforting for true prog fans is that King Crimson, Gentle Giant, Caravan never had any top 10 hits, and in their mind that is exactly as it should be for a true prog band.

I know a couple of Zappa's made it big in Europe, Bobby Brown for example. Peaches en Regalia perhaps? I'm not sure.

[bob_32_116]

Focus - Hocus Pocus
Didn't it get to No. 1 in a few places?

and I would class Bohemian Rhapsody as progressive, though I wouldn't say Queen were a prog band as such.

[JJ88]

There are more than listed here. Atomic Rooster's 'The Devil's Answer' and 'Tomorrow Night', Focus' 'Hocus Pocus' mentioned above and also 'Sylvia', East Of Eden's 'Jig A Jig', The Rattles' 'The Witch'.

Jethro Tull released non-album singles that were big hits; not just 'Living In The Past', but 'Sweet Dream', 'The Witches Promise', the EP with 'Life's A Long Song' on it. The 'Living In The Past' album was the first time those had been gathered in one place, though they are all extra-tracks on CDs now.

What needs to remembered is that at their peak, many prog bands mostly focussed on albums and scarcely bothered with singles- the singles releases were sometimes just record company concotions. Similarly there were pop groups that were mostly singles-focussed and the albums were just a piece of merchandise by comparison.

[ronmac]

Seems to me that many of those listed are hits by prog bands, but not necessarily prog hits.

Along the same lines, songs like "Roundabout" were definitely hits. But the single edit pretty much removed the prog.

[PeterG]

Focus - Hocus Pocus
Didn't it get to No. 1 in a few places?
though I wouldn't say Queen were a prog band as such.

Neither did Queen. Nor do I. They started as a hard rock band then became a pop band.

But seriously folks can we just stick to prog bands.

[PeterG]

for an interesting variation of this question: prog hits by non-prog acts. ULTRAVOX’s “vienna” is an obvious contender.

Does not compute! Vienna was a synth/new romantic hit by a synth/new romantic band.

[PeterG]

Seems to me that many of those listed are hits by prog bands, but not necessarily prog hits.

You are over analysing it.

[PeterG]

There are more than listed here.

I should hope so! I was just giving a few examples I could think of not an exhaustive list.

[PeterG]

Along the same lines, songs like "Roundabout" were definitely hits. But the single edit pretty much removed the prog.

Where & when was Roundabout a hit? This is part of what I'm getting at and part of the reason for the thread i.e. a lot of the great songs by prog bands never even got into the charts. I've already listed the only 2 Top 10 songs by Yes.

[PeterG]

There are more than listed here. Atomic Rooster's 'The Devil's Answer' and 'Tomorrow Night', Focus' 'Hocus Pocus' mentioned above and also 'Sylvia', East Of Eden's 'Jig A Jig', The Rattles' 'The Witch'.

Good call on Sylvia, Hocus Pocus only got into the top 20 in the UK, granted it probably got higher in NL and the US.

[PeterG]

SUPERTRAMP, anyone? whether prog or not – you decide. kate bush?

Top 10 for Supertramp I'm guessing Logical Song, Breakfast in America, Dreamer? And top 10 for KB I'd say Wuthering Heights, Baboshka, Running Up That Hill, Don't Give Up? I've probably missed a few of hers there.

[arj]

Solsbury Hill

[Garden Dreamer]

I got a little sick to my stomach when I heard Rush's "The Spirit of Radio" being played on WABC-AM top 40 radio back when the album was released. I doubt it got played more than a handful of times though.

[davis]

I never did like 'The Spirit of Radio" but loved 'Tom Sawyer" even though I never figured it out. just loved the sound. Queen was very experimental and did stuff in their music that nobody else was doing. They were a great example of 'commercial but good "

[bob_32_116]

Neither did Queen. Nor do I. They started as a hard rock band then became a pop band.

But seriously folks can we just stick to prog bands.

Well you mentioned songs by Deep Purple, and I'm sure many people don't particularly think of them as a "prog band" any more than Queen.

If you're going to allow Deep Purple, then you have to allow Led Zeppelin...

[señormoment]

'Valley Girl' didn't make the top ten, but it was big in the states.

[bob_32_116]

'Valley Girl' didn't make the top ten, but it was big in the states.

by?

[PeterG]

Well you mentioned songs by Deep Purple, and I'm sure many people don't particularly think of them as a "prog band" any more than Queen.

If you're going to allow Deep Purple, then you have to allow Led Zeppelin...

Whatever. I'm not getting into this. If you want to call Queen and Led Zepp prog bands, be my guest.

[PeterG]

Solsbury Hill

Good call! Also: Games Without Frontiers, Sledgehammer, Steam.

[PeterG]

'Valley Girl' didn't make the top ten, but it was big in the states.

What does that even mean? If it was big then it made the top 10, no?

As for it being a prog song...No!!! By a prog band...No!!!

It was a novelty joke song by Moon Unit Zappa

[Digital_Man]

Lucky man
Roundabout
Carry on wayward son
Wonderous Stories
Follow you follow me

[Digital_Man]

'Valley Girl' didn't make the top ten, but it was big in the states.

Great tune. It was Frank's only top forty song. Dancing fool was top fifty but not top forty.

I never thought of it as a novelty song for some reason but I suppose it could be considered one. The only other novelty song I can think of from that time period is Pacman Fever.

[perpetual strange]

Where & when was Roundabout a hit? This is part of what I'm getting at and part of the reason for the thread i.e. a lot of the great songs by prog bands never even got into the charts. I've already listed the only 2 Top 10 songs by Yes.

Serious? Roundabout was my intro to prog because it was constantly played on hit radio when I was a kid. According to wikipedia, it peaked at #13, much higher than many on your list.

I suppose one of the biggest examples would be Tubular Bells, the single which peaked at #1. Those were the days, eh?

Edit: I should clarify that this was in the U.S.