Progressive Palaver

Episode 19 – Asia Part 2, Alpha, Astra, a little bit of Aqua & a few other bits In this episode, Ken, Joe and Paul continue to explore the original lineup of Asia with the albums Alpha, Astra and Aqua. Aspects of a couple of other albums are also touched on. The discussion of Alpha centers on the evolution of mainstream prog rock both compared to Asia’s debut album and other music released at the...

Bonus Episode – Yes Revisited This bonus episode was recorded back in October at the same time as the Marillion Revisited episode. Joe had a lovely car trip through upstate New York with his iPhone full of Yes albums as we were recording the Yes episodes at that time. It provided an excellent opportunity to revisit some of the albums in that series and, in some cases, rethink them. We held off on...

Bonus Episode – Star Wars Palaver Tom, Ken, Paul and Joe go WAY off topic and discuss the latest installment in the Star Wars saga, Episode VIII The Last Jedi. While the Progressive Palaver freely admit that we are not Star Wars scholars we did think that it would be fun to delve into Star Wars in our own style and it certainly was. Tom plays the tough guy to keep the rest of us on point as he see...

Episode 18 – Asia Part 1, Asia Paul, Joe and Ken continue on with the adventures of Steve Howe and Geoff Downes as they formed Asia in the wake of Yes’ Drama. The group considers the obvious musical differences (and similarities, particularly Time Again) between Asia and Drama and what drives the creation of a prog rock supergroup. As the evolution of Steve Howe as a musician is discussed, it is p...

SCS 5 – Tori Amos – Irving TX Paul and Joe take a slight detour from the norm with a discussion of a Tori Amos concert Joe attended in November at the Toyota Music Factory in Irving TX. The Palaver includes Tori’s ever-changing setlist, the attributes of the facility and the way a Tori concert just makes the time fly by. Twitter: @progpala Email: progpala@gmail.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/ProgP...

Episode 17 - Yes Part 8, Drama Paul, Ken, Jay and Joe finish out their initial discussion of the Yes catalog with the 1980 powerhouse Drama. The group delves into the evolution of Yes music brought on by the departure of Rick and Jon and the arrival of Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes. Jay clues us in to why Drama speaks to him over some of the Yes albums. The place of Drama in the greater context of...

Bonus Episode 3 – Marillion Palaver Awards Tom, Paul, Ken and Joe revisit Marillion for a little year-end holiday cheer. Buoyed by some listener input on the story behind Three Minute Boy, the Palaver reconvenes and discuss the entire Marillion catalog with the format of some fun awards. Each category received a nomination from each participant and then the group discussed and ultimately awarded a...

Episode 16 – Yes Part 7, Tormato Paul, Joe and Ken, with the help of Jay, move on to 1978’s Yes offering, Tormato. The group struggles with how to place this album coming as it does between Going for the One and Drama. Why Don’t Kill the Whale as the single? Did marijuana use contribute to both the album itself and its popularity? Inquiring minds want to know. Ken posits an interesting theory to e...

Episode 15 – Yes Part 6, Going for the One Paul, Joe and Ken continue discuss Going for the One by a rejuvenated Yes. Themes in the conversation range from the songcraft involved in this album, to Yes being “cowboy crazy” to the virtues of Swiss telephone infrastructure in the 70’s (complete with a consideration of the economics of copper) to the respect Rick Wakeman has for the church organ. The...

Episode 14 – Yes Part 5, Tales From Topographic Oceans & Relayer Paul, Joe and Ken continue their consideration of the early Yes catalog by covering the two progrock juggernauts Tales From Topographic Oceans and Relayer. The group ponders topics like the influence of personnel changes (the departure of Bill Bruford’s big ball of influence and Rick Wakeman, the arrival of Alan White and Patrick Mor...

Episode 13 – Yes Part 4, Close to the Edge Paul, Joe and Ken discuss the seminal Yes album Close to the Edge. Ken opens the episode with a dramatic impression of Chris Squire (apologies to our UK listeners lol) before we move on to consider the role of Eddie Offord in the creation of Yes music. Paul provides a moving account of the inspiration for the song Close to the Edge, a song we finally deci...

Episode 12 – Yes Part 3, Fragile Paul, Joe and Ken discuss Fragile. The conversation gets started with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction (where Alan White gets invited to the dinner club) before moving into the album proper. The discussion obviously centers around the musical interactions among this, the arguably “best” Yes lineup. The magic of Bill Bruford, is Rick Wakeman subtle and how g...

Episode 11 – Yes Part 2 The Yes Album Paul, Joe and Ken discuss The Yes Album, the genesis of the truly classic Yes. The group considers the impact of adding Steve Howe (and his myriad instruments) to the lineup and discuss the meaning of Yours Is No Disgrace. Paul revels in the Hammond work of Tony Kaye and Peter Banks is ultimately invited to join the dinner club. Tweet us @progpala. Write us at...

Episode 10 – Yes Part 1 “Yes Preamble” Paul, Joe and Ken begin their discussion of the early Yes catalog (through Drama) with an overview of their thoughts on Yes. Joe explains his biases and the group explains how each discovered Yes. Bill Bruford is discovered, Tony Kaye is redeemed and Joe needs to buy Jay Schellen dinner. Tweet us @progpala. Write us at progpala@gmail.com. Follow Progressive P...

Joe and Paul discuss Joe's recent experience seeing Toad the Wet Sprocket in Dallas, TX. Topics include Jonathan Kingham, outstanding live sound, and whether Toad are progressive (spoiler - they really aren't prog, but they are spectacular).

On the advice of one of our listeners, the Palaver go back into the Marillion catalog to look at the Less Is More album while also giving some attention to B'Sides Themselves and Remixatosis. While discussing Less Is More Joe and Ken contemplate the effect of Marillion revisiting these songs outside of the standard progrock band setup and whether or not the songs benefit from this different treatm...

"The mother of all mantras" - In this episode of Progressive Palaver Paul, Joe and Ken discuss Marillion's latest album FEAR in some detail. While diving deep into the music and lyrical imagery on the album, the group also takes time to discuss Paul's campaign to update Wikipedia, the issue of CD indexing and the size of Bill Bruford's sphere. Where does FEAR rank in all the Marillion albums? List...

Sometimes you just have to share. After finding himself on a long drive with a phone full of Marillion albums, Joe has some extra thoughts to share on Sounds That Can't Be Made and Marbles. You can tweet us @progpala. Our email is progpala@gmail.com. We are on instagram, youtube and facebook as Progressive Palaver.

A true bonus episode. The Palaver managed to convene in person to have some dinner before one of the Yes featuring ARW shows in October. This bonus episode is a recording of the conversation during that dinner. Just something fun but definitely not our usual format. Tweet us @progpala, email us at progpala@gmail.com. Follow Progressive Palaver on iTunes, GooglePlay, Soundcloud, Instagram and Faceb...

The Palaver continues as Joe, Paul and Ken consider Marillion's Somewhere Else, Happiness is the Road, and Sounds That Can't Be Made. The group searches for common themes in this later portion of the Marillion catalog between where the band has been and where they are heading.

In this episode the group discusses the masterpiece of progressive rock that is Marillion's Marbles.

The third installment in the Special Concert Series of Progressive Palaver finds Paul and Joe discussing the Yes Featuring ARW show in Philadelphia from October 1. Much was talked about including the Kimmel Center for Performing Arts, Rick Wakeman's wardrobe, the simple majesty of Awaken and Rick's stand-up talents.

Joe and Paul discuss their second Yes featuring ARW show in as many nights. Topics include parking in Trenton, the ARW Fun Competition, Lee Pomeroy (with greatest apologies), Jon's joy in performing and Jon's chimes.

Tremendous apologies to Lee Pomeroy for this episode. In my defense I had had a VERY rough travel day to get to this show! :) This first installment in the Special Concert Series sees Paul and Joe begin their journey to experience Yes featuring ARW in three cities on three consecutive nights. The group covers the show in Reading PA on Sept 29 complete with clips from the show.

Salvage.com - Ken, Tom, Paul and Joe look for gems among the next set of Marillion albums including This Strange Engine, Radiation, marillion.com and Anoraknophobia.