MusicMusic Commentary

Classic Rock And Prog Almanac

Tim, Shaun and Peter

Join ’old friends’ Tim and/or Shaun and/or Peter for their chats about the albums, songs and artists that have marked their lives. The podcast focuses on the artistry involved in classic rock: the musicology, the cover art, the cultural and even the philosophical resonances of the works under discussion.

https://www.patreon.com/cw/ClassicRockAndProgAlmanac

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#110
Monday · 1 hr 9 min
RANKING: Radiohead studio albums
This week, Tim and Peter ranked the Radiohead studio albums, from least to most favourite. Topics covered include: the shift from pop music to experimentalism; the importance of melody in the band's work; how the band responds retroactively to its own work; and whether Radiohead are the best British band of the last 30 years. Also: was Kid A about Tim as a kid? How easy is it to write a song in 6/8? Why did Radiohead record Treefingers? How did Peter clap at a Steve Reich concert? And what would the philosopher Hegel have thought of Radiohead?
#109
November 2 · 1 hr 8 min
RANKING: Our top ten favourite prog rock albums from 1972
This week, Tim and Shaun set out their top ten favourite progressive rock albums of 1972. Topics covered include: whether ’72 is peak prog or not, the development of prog rock musicianship and composition over the period, and whether some of these albums can be considered manifestoes for the future of prog. Also, following the prog proms, is it worth doing a prog Eurovision? Should aliens bother visiting earth? Is Wikipedia any good? Who’s the Greek chorus this week? And would anyone like a Quality Street?
#108
October 26 · 59 min
YES - Close To The Edge: Is this the greatest piece of rock music ever written?
This week, Tim tested the hypothesis that the 1972 track Close To The Edge by Yes is the best piece of rock music ever written. Topics covered include: the thematic unity of the piece, the track’s religious narrative, the way in which all the musicians and producers contribute to the writing of the track, and how the overall rhythmic structure of the track works. Also, how does one define the void? What’s the connection between Rick Wakeman and The Wizard of Oz? What do rivers represent? Which musical key best represents spiritual enlightenment? What’s a “yes creature”? And why do people take car engines apart?
#107
October 19 · 48 min
CROSBY AND NASH - Wind On The Water: The best CSNY spin-off ever made?
This week, Tim did a monologue on the second Crosby and Nash album, Wind On The Water. Topics covered include: the connection between this album and the unreleased CSNY album Human Highway, the jazz influence on the album, the division of labour between the two writers and the autobiographical nature of the lyrics. Also, are Californians metaphysical? Does flying represent erections? Is Graham Nash obsessed with carrying things? How many songs on the album are about rocks? Are lions good at multitasking? And no prizes for guessing which Wizard of Oz character David Crosby resembles…
#106
October 12 · 1 hr 27 min
RANKING: The UK studio albums of The Beatles
This week Tim, Shaun & Peter ranked the Beatles UK studio albums. Topic covered include: which Beatle writes with the most interesting chords, how to construct a Beatles canon, how much Beatles material was contractual, whether the Beatles’ career can be divided into a John phase and a Paul phase, and when they came to terms with the album as form. Also, is David Essex from Essex? On which album is Ringo’s bass drum pedal squeak featured? Which is worse, Help the album or Help the film? Did the Beatles invent goth rock? And which is better, the Shaunometer or the Petergraph? There’s only one way to find out…
#105
October 5 · 44 min
THE MOVE - Message From The Country: The greatest contractual obligation album ever made?
This week, Tim did a monologue on the fourth and final studio album by The Move, Message From The Country. Topics covered include: whether this is a concept album or not, the contrast between the chaos of the band’s career and the coherence of the record, whether The Move were one of the greatest groups of the 1960s and the significance of biblical references on the album. Also, are they the only UK band to have been sued by the Prime Minister? Exactly how much Christian eschatology is there on the album? When does a thing stop being a thing? And finally, when the band talk about a message from the country, which country exactly are they talking about?
#104
September 28 · 30 min
NICK DRAKE - Pink Moon: His greatest work?
This week, Peter did a monologue on the third album by Nick Drake, Pink Moon (for Jacob!). Topics covered include: Nick Drake’s biography, which album is Nick Drake’s best, the question of overdubbing, the guitar playing on the album, and the rediscovery of Nick Drake in the 1990s. Also, what’s the holy trinity of failure? Did Nick Drake leave the tapes for the album in the record company reception? What’s the meaning of 11? What happens if a Nick Drake song goes over 4 minutes? And the hardy perennial: is it a concept album?
#103
September 21 · 1 hr 11 min
RANKING: Our Top Ten Favourite Progressive Rock Albums of 1971
This week, Tim and Shaun discussed their top ten favourite progressive rock albums from 1971. Topics covered include: the importance of virtuosity in prog, whether album covers are important for an album, the role of improvisation in progressive rock music, whether early minimalism was an influence on prog and the possible relationship between folk music and prog. Also, what was Prog’s Pol Pot year? Did anyone catch the prog-adjacent proms? What’s an eco-ballad when it's at home? How would Tim re-write various Yes tracks? Has Shaun brought his actuarial tables? And the question of the day: “is it prog”?
#102
September 14 · 54 min
WINGS - Greatest: The reason why God made compilation albums?!
This week, Tim did a monologue on the compilation Wings Greatest, from 1978. Topics covered include: the significance of concept albums, what musical movements Wings might be said to belong to, whether the track listing is complete and the suite-like and programmatic nature of the compositions. Also, to what genre do Paul and Linda’s haircuts belong? What’s the opposite of lo-fi? How far is it physically possible to get from Allen Klein? Who’s Uncle Ian when he’s at home? And what’s the name of the Director of Man On The Run? If only we knew...
#101
September 7 · 1 hr 17 min
RANKING: Our top ten favourite progressive rock albums from 1970
This week, Tim and Shaun discussed their top ten favourite progressive rock albums of 1970. Topics covered include: what prog actually is, how you would decide it one way or the other, what postmodernism is, the eclectic sound of the bands under discussion, and how these albums relate to later works by the same bands. Also, what’s our favourite song about fountains? Can we avoid mentioning the prog proms? What’s the most existentially stark rock track ever written? Who’s the HR rep for Yes? And, crucially, what would Stumpy do?
#100
August 31 · 1 hr 29 min
THE KINKS - Arthur: Is it their best album?
This week, Tim, Peter and Shaun discussed the seventh studio album by The Kinks, Arthur or The Decline And Fall Of The British Empire. Topics covered include: whether it’s the band's greatest album or not, the difference between the American and British reception of the band, whether Arthur is a concept album or not, what historical period it covers, and whether the lyrics make sense. Also, did King Arthur really exist? What’s the name of the teapot on the cover? Was Tim’s Great Grandmother (who died in 2004) a Victorian? Is Shaun planning to write the album up into a play? What is plus-de-jouir when it’s at home? And what’s the problem with the world today?
#99
August 24 · 47 min
FLEETWOOD MAC - Tusk: How do you follow one of the most famous albums of all time?
This week, Tim discussed Tusk, the twelfth studio album by Fleetwood Mac. Topics covered include: the problem of following up a mega-hit album, the deconstructionist and situationist nature of Tusk, how the track listing could have been improved, which of the three main songwriters did their best work on this album and the influence of punk and new wave on the band at the time. Also, if Peter Green really played on one track, why can’t anyone remember him actually being there? What would Samuel Beckett have thought of the album? Did Lindsey really cut his hair with nail scissors? In what way is the album like a tortilla? Why did the band keep excluding Stevie Nicks songs? And is that Mick Fleetwood, or is it a Kleenex box? https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2uYVm0J7KdZsk04ioZ7C6D?si=GSCYDjR9Td-f6GruvjyzXA&utm_source=copy-link&pi=6rbryv-URACd5
#98
August 17 · 40 min
RUSH - Caress Of Steel: Why it's better than 2112!
This week, Tim did a monologue on the third Rush album, Caress Of Steel. Topics covered include: Rush’s relation to the prog rock canon, the influence Rush had on bands like Metallica, Rush’s arrangement gift, the nostalgic nature of some of the words, and how the album matches up to Rush’s more famous album, 2112. Also, are drum solos on albums ever a good idea? Can Thomas More’s Utopia be found in Canada? What would Woody Allen think of Rush? Who is the Greek God of having fun? Which bit of the album can be described as ur-Lifeson? And where do you find Ontario on the maps of Middle Earth?
#97
August 10 · 1 hr 12 min
RANKING: Our top five albums of 1969
This week, Tim, Peter and Shaun discussed their top five favourite albums from 1969. Topics covered include: the bubbling cauldron of creativity that was the 1960s, what the best year in the history of rock was, the balance between U.K. & U.S. albums, whether the albums from this period should be considered unrepeatable experiences, and the infamous prog proms. Also, what is Lammastide when it’s at home? What’s Alain Badiou’s theory of history? What’s the best play ever written about a carpet fitter? Does anyone remember Bagpuss? Who’s your Neil Young? What was Noel Redding angry about? And it’s a welcome return (one assumes) for round-up of the week.
#96
August 3 · 44 min
REFUGEE - Refugee: A worthy successor to The Nice?
This week, Tim discussed the only studio album by the band Refugee, from 1974. Topics covered include: why the album wasn’t rubbish, the virtuosic gifts of Patrick Moraz, whether prog is modernist or post-modernist, how the band measures up to The Nice and ELP, and why they never made a second album. Also, should the band have been called Asylum Seeker? What was Lee Jackson’s ex-wife like? Is music schizophrenic? What would TripAdvisor have made of this album? Did Lee Jackson waste his time in the library? And who chose that cover?
#95
July 27 · 53 min
Which is the best Kinks album?
This week, Tim did a ranking of all 24 studio albums by The Kinks. Topics covered include: the role of genre music in the Kinks catalogue, the difference between the American and the British reception of the band, the importance of having a concept for an album, the political correctness issue, the Ray/Dave Davies dialectic and the singles/albums split. Also, how many times do you have to kill Antigone? Is there a connection between Ray Davies and Morrissey? Is Ray Davies serious when he says he hates education? Do soundtracks have to be any good? Is there any universality that isn’t subjective? And is a spectre haunting The Kinks?
#94
July 20 · 57 min
SPECIAL EPISODE: Jazz for rock fans (pt.2): 1950-1979
This week, Peter and Shaun brought their history of jazz for a rock audience up to date. Topics covered include: the relationship between individual jazz musicians and bands, whether there was a ‘golden era’ of jazz, what the ‘cultural revolution’ of the 60s meant for jazz, whether jazz is essentially an American art form, and do we like modal and free jazz? Also, does anyone remember Les Dawson? Did Frank Zappa try to put his audience off from listening to him? What’s the exact temperature of cool jazz? Can you beat jazz flute? And is something jazz just because Ginger Baker says so? Will anyone mention Miles Davis? And is it pronounced Porgy or Porky? Link to Spotify playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3DBe4plpktVOuKFyV6T9LR?si=eHnSdIR4TEyYzuqiQBVRjg&pi=iw2MwbMnRUWqU
#93
July 13 · 45 min
JACK BRUCE - Songs For A Tailor: A post-Cream masterpiece?
This week, Tim discussed the debut album by Jack Bruce, Songs For A Tailor. Topics covered include: Bruce’s eclectic musical influences, whether this is Jack Bruce’s best album, the story of Jeannie Franklin, the surrealist dimension of the album’s lyrics, the unusual harmonisations on the record and what a follow-up to Cream’s Wheels Of Fire might have sounded like. Also, which song on the album could have been played Metallica? What was Jack Bruce’s favourite local record shop? How do you represent quantum physics in R&B form? Should you tell a Beatle when he’s playing out of tune? Is Imaginary Western a tautology? And how many points do we get for mentioning the Mahavishnu Orchestra?
#92
July 6 · 52 min
SPECIAL EPISODE: Jazz for rock fans: 1920-1949
This week, Peter and Shaun give a potted history of jazz for a rock audience. Topics covered include: how the lads took the path from jazz to rock (and sometimes back), the definition of jazz itself, the influence of the 1920s in the 1960s and the chronology of jazz movements as a whole. Also, is fear the driving force in jazz? Why did jazz happen at all? Who was in Bix Beiderbecke’s gang? Can hamsters play jazz? Who is the John the Baptist of jazz? Which is the rudest pre-war jazz song? What would have happened to Hank Williams if he’d been able to shake his hips? And exactly how many shenanigans are there in jazz? Here's the episode playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3umw0kBfjdFRWGZQu9w08U?si=XKzKN9_hTOKyvJdjvu9FEA&pi=6_ux3V0eSLmYZ
#91
June 29 · 48 min
ELP - Love Beach: The album that killed prog?
This week Tim discussed the seventh studio album by ELP, Love Beach. Topics covered include: the album’s place in the ELP canon, the structural nature of the writing, the mediaevalist slant in the lyrics, the paradigm nature of some of these tracks and the classical music themes that are quoted on the album. Also, does Carl Palmer work undercover as an Estate Agent? Which track sounds like a church service? How much tax did ELP avoid by going to the Bahamas? Is Keith Emerson using his synths to subtly subvert Greg Lake’s lyrical motifs? Which is the worst lyric on the album? And is there a sexual relation?

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