Today's Listen

Lucifer's Friend - Lucifer's Friend (1971)

Great hard-rock/early-metal with high similarities to bands like Deep Purple and Uriah Heep with an occasional dash of Black Sabbath. Spooky name, spooky cover, and at times the music is a little eerie, but the overall product is a smokin' hot piece of metal. Although the music borders on progressive with its complex arrangements, it rocks really well the whole way through, propelled by darkly heavy guitar, sizzling organ work, and fantastic vocals that often match the talent of Ronnie James Dio. If you like early metal and/or Deep Purple, chances are you'll enjoy this too.

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Today's Listen

Joyous Lake - Pat Martino

My friends, this is fusion. If you're new to the genre and are still unsure about what exactly makes a great fusion album, then this is your answer. This is the real deal. The album has it all, starting with Martino's virtuosic electric jazz guitar flourishes (check out the opener "Line Games"); on top of that, the band behind him (all virtually unknown session men) is in exceptional form. In terms of drums and bass, this is one of the pinnacle albums, and it certainly ranks in my top 5 best rhythm section albums. The keyboardist is also highly talented, and his parts are very dynamic as well, adding lots of beautiful electric piano and effects. Absolutely fantastic stuff, so get it if you can. Let me know if you can't find it anywhere because I bet you won't. If you like fusion at all this is a MUST HAVE!

Today's Listen

Irish Tour '74 - Rory Gallagher

Irish blues-guitarist Rory Gallagher is perhaps one of the most underrated and overlooked guitarists of the '70s, but he truly ends up being one of the all-time greats in my book. This guy's ability is top-notch, and nearly all of his solos burn with fiery intensity. This album alone could put much of Eric Clapton's post-Layla work to shame, simply because of the innovation and versatility of Rory's guitar work. The band behind him is solid, and at times the keyboards remind me of The Doors. Aside from his guitar skills, it should be noted that Rory also has a great bluesy voice that often reminds me of a raspy George Thorogood. I highly recommend this album for anyone looking for a textbook definition of blues rock.

Today's Listen

ZZ Top's First Album - ZZ Top (1971)

This album rocks, like many of ZZ Top's albums; however, this one is often overlooked by many people because of their more commercially successful albums. The songs on this record are packed with bluesy solos, subtle sexual humor, and an overall bad-ass kind of feel. In other words, this a ZZ Top classic, and is a must-have for any fan of blues rock.

This Week's Top 5

The Top 5 Greatest Epics of All Time

In order to be considered an epic, the song must be very close to or over 20 minutes in length. It must show definitive structure throughout, and is not simply an extended "jam." The overall structure is very important, and should progress in stages (a unique opening, story, instrumental sections that compliment the content of the song, and a significant ending).The song's content should either explore a certain concept or tell a story.


1. "A Change of Seasons" - Dream Theater (1995)
Length: 23:09
Album: A Change of Seasons

In my opinion, this is the epic to end all epics. Instrumentally, we get some of the best classic Dream Theater material, plus the best vocals from James LaBrie ever recorded. The song is quite emotional, and it shifts through a number of different themes and atmospheres. The concept of the song is lightly based on the changing of the seasons, and the lyrics were written by Mike Portnoy in dedication to his mother who had just passed away. This song is the complete package, and it embodies everything an artist would strive to achieve in an epic piece.

2. "2112" - Rush (1975)
Length: 20:33
Album: 2112

Another masterpiece, and in my opinion the band's crowning achievement. With this song, Rush mastered the art crafting lengthy epics, and also salvaged their struggling career. The band is in top form; all three guys get plenty of room to show off their chops, and Geddy Lee's vocals are perfect. Overall, there's a lot of emotion and a lot of energy. The song has a futuristic concept, involving a man living in a world in the year 2062 being ruled by "The Priests of The Temple of Syrinx." This song is truly on of my favorite of all time.

3. "Thick as a Brick" - Jethro Tull (1972)
Length: 43:30
Album: Thick as a Brick

Yes, believe it or not, this is one song. It is an album in itself, yet it is a single song. The album catches the band in one of the best line-ups of their whole career, and the song has wonderful flow. The song received extremely positive critical praise, but this proved to be quite ironic. This album, and song, was originally conceived by band-leader Ian Anderson as a way to mock the prog rock genre. He despised being labeled as a progressive band, so he decided to spit in the faces of the prog-heads by making this album. No one had ever made a song that was the length of an entire record, and there's no doubt that it will go down in history as one of the crowning achievements of progressive rock music.

4. "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" -Pink Floyd (1975)
Length: 25:54
Album: Wish You Were Here

Although this song is split into two pieces on the album, I believe it was only split because they couldn't fit the whole thing on one side of a record (I think the maximum length for one side was 25 minutes). So, in my mind I view it as a single piece. Everything about it is fantastic, from the wholesome bluesy guitar-playing from David Gillmore, to the silky, languid keyboard work from Rick Wright, to the legendarily powerful harmonized chorus. The song is magical, and I get goose-bumps every time I hear it. The song was written by the band in memory of their ex-bandmate Syd Barret, who was slowly mentally decaying.

5. "Karn Evil 9" - Emerson, Lake, & Palmer (1973)
Length: 29:38
Album: Brain Salad Surgery

Another crowning achievement for the progressive genre, this multi-suite epic was also forced to be split on two sides. The music ranges from prog rock with classic rock influence, to extremely jazzy instrumental sections, to absolute insanity. This is definitely one of the craziest songs ever, but it fills the listener with awe and wonder. The song is based on some futuristic concepts. Kieth Emerson's keyboard work is exceptional, and highly varied in sound. This could easily be the greatest keyboard performance ever, as it shows extreme difficulty.
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Soon I will be making an entire page dedicated to a complete list of the greatest epics of all time.

Today's Listen (Part 2)

Frank Zappa - Roxy & Elsewhere (1974)

This album has been my favorite live Zappa album for a long time. It's quirky, complex, and highly entertaining. However, I'll let it be known that it would probably be a difficult listen to anyone who is unfamiliar with Zappa's ambitious live style. Like most of his music, it's chalk-full of humorous parts ("Dummy Up," "Cheepnis") and insane instrumental workouts ("Pygmy Twylyte," "Echidna's Arf (Of You)/Don't You Ever Wash That Thing?") that keep the listener quite mentally engaged with the performance. The band behind him is in exceptional form; the combination of Chester Thompson on drums and Ruth Underwood on percussion results in some of the most complex drumming I've ever heard. Napoleon Murphy Brock has the duty of lead vocals, and I must say I enjoy any Zappa record he his on because his voice is so distinctively awesome. Anybody who wants to experience some music that is really out of this world, check out this recording.

There's nothing from this album on YouTube, but you can listen to "Pygmy Twylyte" by clicking here. http://www.progarchives.com/mp3.asp?id=455

Today's Listen

Tal Wilkenfeld - Transformation (2007)


Tal Wilkenfeld is a very young, but extremely gifted fusion bassist hailing from Australia, and she composed and performed this album after just 3 years of playing bass. She has received a lot of respect in the jazz world, performing with the likes of Jeff Beck, Herbie Hancock, and Chick Corea. I have Jeff Beck's Live at Ronnie Scott's, during which she is also in stellar form. On this album though, she gets much more room to stretch out, and at times I find myself forgetting that she is the bassist because she often deliver solos that are nearly in the league of Jaco Pastorius himself. The band with her is also in good form, and the music itself turns out to be much more on the jazz side of the fusion spectrum. I definitely recommend this to anyone interested in bass.



This next video is from the Jeff Beck dvd. Tal gets a really nice solo at about 90 seconds into the song.