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Thread: Prolific Prog - Yes - The First 12 Years

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    Member yesman1955's Avatar
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    Prolific Prog - Yes - The First 12 Years

    I've been listening to the Progeny Highlights CD today and it got me turning my thoughts back to the days when YES were an awesomely kick-ass rock band. Running through their discography mentally, a pattern of prolific writing, recording and touring emerges starting in 1968 with their S/T album (with the naked lady cover) all the way through to Drama in 1980. Almost every year (except 1976 - the Solo Album year) YES released a new album of original music and did extensive touring in support of previous work and whatever album had most recently appeared. Their concerts were the stuff of legend as visual & aural feasts, only to be challenged by the likes of Genesis & Pink Floyd. We talk here often about how busy SW keeps himself with multiple projects, but YES seem like they were the busiest rock band of the 70's. Look at what they accomplished in a twelve-year time-span. You may not like all of the music they made during this time period, but it's an absolutely stellar time of creativity for them. If they had decided to quit after Drama, they would have left an amazing body of work behind for us to enjoy into the future. Thanks for listening.

    1968 - YES
    1969 - Time & A Word
    1970 - The YES Album
    1971 - Fragile
    1972 - Close to the Edge
    1973 - Tales from Topographic Oceans - Yessongs (Live)
    1974 - Relayer
    1975 - Relayer Tour & The Solo Albums
    1976 - The Solo Albums Tour
    1977- Going for the One
    1978- Tormato
    1979- Tormato Tour
    1980 - Drama - Yesshows (Live)

  2. #2
    Prolific indeed. But there's still no topping Elton John who made eleven studio albums including two double LP's, plus two live albums and a bunch of non-LP singles between 1969-1976.

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    Jazzbo manqué Mister Triscuits's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by bRETT View Post
    Prolific indeed. But there's still no topping Elton John who made eleven studio albums including two double LP's, plus two live albums and a bunch of non-LP singles between 1969-1976.
    Frank Zappa released 16 albums, three of them doubles, during that same period, and recorded a shitload of other stuff that didn't come out until later!

  4. #4
    Quote Originally Posted by yesman1955 View Post
    I've been listening to the Progeny Highlights CD today and it got me turning my thoughts back to the days when YES were an awesomely kick-ass rock band. Running through their discography mentally, a pattern of prolific writing, recording and touring emerges starting in 1968 with their S/T album (with the naked lady cover) all the way through to Drama in 1980. Almost every year (except 1976 - the Solo Album year) YES released a new album of original music and did extensive touring in support of previous work and whatever album had most recently appeared. Their concerts were the stuff of legend as visual & aural feasts, only to be challenged by the likes of Genesis & Pink Floyd. We talk here often about how busy SW keeps himself with multiple projects, but YES seem like they were the busiest rock band of the 70's. Look at what they accomplished in a twelve-year time-span. You may not like all of the music they made during this time period, but it's an absolutely stellar time of creativity for them. If they had decided to quit after Drama, they would have left an amazing body of work behind for us to enjoy into the future. Thanks for listening.

    1968 - YES
    1969 - Time & A Word
    1970 - The YES Album
    1971 - Fragile
    1972 - Close to the Edge
    1973 - Tales from Topographic Oceans - Yessongs (Live)
    1974 - Relayer
    1975 - Relayer Tour & The Solo Albums
    1976 - The Solo Albums Tour
    1977- Going for the One
    1978- Tormato
    1979- Tormato Tour
    1980 - Drama - Yesshows (Live)
    '70s recording schedules had a lot more to do with record labels and contract fulfillment than creativity. Most artists release more when they are younger, but many interviews from a variety of the major '70s artists touch on the crazy album-a-year pace they were expected to be on.

    Much more of note, IMO, are any particularly busy recording schedules of more contemporary musicians, since they are not put to the same kinds of pressures (Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, formerly of Mars Volta renown, has tripled the release pace of Yes's first 10 years, over the last 10 years).
    Last edited by Facelift; 01-07-2016 at 05:45 PM.

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    Jazzbo manqué Mister Triscuits's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Facelift View Post
    Much more of note, IMO, are any particularly busy recording schedules of more contemporary musicians, since they are not put to the same kinds of pressures (Omar Rodriguez-Lopez, formerly of Mars Volta renown, has tripled the pace of Yes's first 10 years, over the last 10 years).
    And then there's John Zorn...

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    Quote Originally Posted by yesman1955 View Post
    I've been listening to the Progeny Highlights CD today and it got me turning my thoughts back to the days when YES were an awesomely kick-ass rock band. Running through their discography mentally, a pattern of prolific writing, recording and touring emerges starting in 1968 with their S/T album (with the naked lady cover) all the way through to Drama in 1980. Almost every year (except 1976 - the Solo Album year) YES released a new album of original music and did extensive touring in support of previous work and whatever album had most recently appeared. Their concerts were the stuff of legend as visual & aural feasts, only to be challenged by the likes of Genesis & Pink Floyd. We talk here often about how busy SW keeps himself with multiple projects, but YES seem like they were the busiest rock band of the 70's. Look at what they accomplished in a twelve-year time-span. You may not like all of the music they made during this time period, but it's an absolutely stellar time of creativity for them. If they had decided to quit after Drama, they would have left an amazing body of work behind for us to enjoy into the future. Thanks for listening.

    1968 - YES
    1969 - Time & A Word
    1970 - The YES Album
    1971 - Fragile
    1972 - Close to the Edge
    1973 - Tales from Topographic Oceans - Yessongs (Live)
    1974 - Relayer
    1975 - Relayer Tour & The Solo Albums
    1976 - The Solo Albums Tour
    1977- Going for the One
    1978- Tormato
    1979- Tormato Tour
    1980 - Drama - Yesshows (Live)
    Wasn't the naked lady on TAAW-in Europe anyway?

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    Insect Overlord Progatron's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by bRETT View Post
    Prolific indeed. But there's still no topping Elton John who made eleven studio albums including two double LP's, plus two live albums and a bunch of non-LP singles between 1969-1976.
    Jethro Tull released an album per year from 1968-1980, as well as live albums and compilations.
    Interviewer of reprobate ne'er-do-well musicians of the long-haired rock n' roll persuasion at: www.velvetthunder.co.uk and former scribe at Classic Rock Society. Only vaguely aware of anything other than music.

    *** Join me in the Garden of Delights for 3 hours of tune-spinning... every Saturday at 5pm EST on Deep Nuggets radio! www.deepnuggets.com ***

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    Using the British release dates, ELP did

    Debut: 11/70
    Tarkus: 6/71
    Pictures: 11/71
    Trilogy: 6/72
    Brain Salad Surgery: 11/73

    Sure, Pictures was a live album, but still, compared to TOOL, they were cranking 'em out.

    '70s recording schedules had a lot more to do with record labels and contract fulfillment than creativity. Most artists release more when they are younger, but many interviews from a variety of the major '70s artists touch on the crazy album-a-year pace they were expected to be on
    As mentioned, see: Elton John. After his second album and Your Song were huge hits, his record companies in the UK & US and his management put enormous pressure on him for "product". What blows me away is that his run of albums Empty Sky > Elton John > Tumbleweed Connection (my favorite) > Madman Across the Water > Honky Chateau > Don't Shoot Me... > Goodbye Yellow Brick Road were all really good (Empty Sky) > great (Tumbleweed Connection, Honky Chateau) albums. Caribou was a rush job but he followed that up with the excellent Captain Fantastic before burn-out and drugs kicked in and the quality started to drop, but he had one of the great songwriting streaks in pop history. I saw him live last year (not in Vegas, fortunately), he played 2:30 without a break and he could have done an entirely different set of songs and there would have been very little drop in quality, he has that much good material.
    ...or you could love

  9. #9
    Member yesman1955's Avatar
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    "Wasn't the naked lady on TAAW-in Europe anyway?"
    You are correct, sir! My mistake!

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    They made great albums for the most part because they had the best ---most original players of the time---the best---they invigorated and inspired each other--so the music was the best---after mediocre guys got in and mediocre music was made.

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    Jazzbo manqué Mister Triscuits's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by jrw View Post
    Wasn't the naked lady on TAAW-in Europe anyway?
    Never liked those first two British covers much. I've always preferred the U.S. versions with the band photos, even if they look a bit goofy on TAAW (and of course it's the wrong lineup).

  12. #12
    And not to forget Rush....

    They made 7 albums in 7 years in the 70s.

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    Studmuffin Scott Bails's Avatar
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    Chicago released 16 albums between 1969-1982, many of them multiple LPs.

    That was just a crazy-prolific time for artists.
    Music isn't about chops, or even about talent - it's about sound and the way that sound communicates to people. Mike Keneally

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    Highly Evolved Orangutan JKL2000's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by bRETT View Post
    Prolific indeed. But there's still no topping Elton John who made eleven studio albums including two double LP's, plus two live albums and a bunch of non-LP singles between 1969-1976.
    Klaus Schulze?

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    Member mnprogger's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Mister Triscuits View Post
    And then there's John Zorn...
    or Buckethead...

  16. #16
    1969-1980 - Todd Rundgren: 18 albums (including 2 doubles and 2 lives and Nazztopia).

    A phenomenal period of music for so many great musicians.

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    They made great albums for the most part because they had the best ---most original players of the time---the best---
    Nah, Steve Howe was Chet Atkins with a rock influence, Robert Fripp was far more original and could play just as well as Howe did. The keyboard players, every one of them, were no match for Keith Emerson either in technique or originality or innovation with the Moog. Lake and Peter Hammill could sing circles around Anderson, Bruford was good but so was 20 year old Carl Palmer. I'll give you Chris Squire though. The music itself was a mix of The Association and Simon & Garfunkel in the vocals and The Nice, King Crimson, The Beatles and others in the music.
    ...or you could love

  18. #18
    Quote Originally Posted by Luckie View Post
    1969-1980 - Todd Rundgren: 18 albums (including 2 doubles and 2 lives and Nazztopia).

    A phenomenal period of music for so many great musicians.
    If you factor all the albums he produced (on which he generally did a lot of writing and playing) then Todd may even beat Zappa..

  19. #19
    Quote Originally Posted by Progatron View Post
    Jethro Tull released an album per year from 1968-1980, as well as live albums and compilations.
    ^THIS^. I think Tull's achievement is remarkable given that most of the music came from Ian Anderson. Yes, he had a great band and help arranging the material, but Tull's consistent run of excellent albums in that window of time is very impressive!

  20. #20
    Member Since: 3/27/2002 MYSTERIOUS TRAVELLER's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Scott Bails View Post
    Chicago released 16 albums between 1969-1982, many of them multiple LPs.

    That was just a crazy-prolific time for artists.
    it was indeed!
    I recall that, in the 70s we fans looked forward to a new album by our favorite artists every single year. It was a rare exception that an artist didn't put an album out every year.
    Why is it whenever someone mentions an artist that was clearly progressive (yet not the Symph weenie definition of Prog) do certain people feel compelled to snort "thats not Prog" like a whiny 5th grader?

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    Member Since: 3/27/2002 MYSTERIOUS TRAVELLER's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by mnprogger View Post
    or Buckethead...
    Buckethead beats everyone in prolificity

    Bill Nelson comes closest after KFCguy
    Why is it whenever someone mentions an artist that was clearly progressive (yet not the Symph weenie definition of Prog) do certain people feel compelled to snort "thats not Prog" like a whiny 5th grader?

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    Member Zeuhlmate's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Jeremy Bender View Post
    The keyboard players, every one of them, were no match for Keith Emerson either in technique or originality or innovation with the Moog.
    Dave Stewart (Egg, Khan, Hatfield, National Health) !

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    The Beatles...13 albums in 7 years including a lot of the greatest music ever recorded. 'Nuff said!

  24. #24
    Quote Originally Posted by Jeremy Bender View Post
    The keyboard players, every one of them, were no match for Keith Emerson either in technique or originality or innovation with the Moog.
    I'll take Kit Watkins over Keith any day..

  25. #25
    Quote Originally Posted by Stevie B View Post
    The Beatles...13 albums in 7 years including a lot of the greatest music ever recorded. 'Nuff said!
    Ding.. we have a winner.. Fully agree.. Beatles are unmatched with what they accomplished in their recording career..

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