A new book has recently been released that has brought some well deserved attention to the often overlooked genre of progressive rock. The book, The Show That Never Ends, written by David Weigel, takes a broad look at the history of progressive rock from its early beginnings with bands like The Moody Blues, Procol Harum, and The Beatles, through its heyday of Yes, Genesis and Pink Floyd.
It is interesting that, as a website that largely focuses on newer progressive bands with a nod here and there to what the classic bands are still doing, to once again see the focus spent on how the genre all got started. There certainly have been no shortage of books on Yes, Rush, Pink Floyd, and the like. However, Weigel, presents an interesting view of the genre as a whole, not spending too much time on each band, but rather focusing on some of the genre’s most significant highlights from the creation of “Supper’s Ready” and the infamous 9/8 time signature to re-formation of Yes in the 80s. A lot of time is spent on the influence created by King Crimson, as well as ELP, and deservedly so.
Weigel creates the narrative through interviews with the key players and provides his own analysis racing through more than 40 years of a genre once thought to be left for dead. Unfortunately, there is only a brief acknowledgment to the bands that came after, the obvious ones being Marillon, Dream Theater, and Porcupine Tree. But Weigel does champion the music and its rightful spot among the revered musical tastes of the public. For the fan who knows the history of the genre and its bands well, there might not be too much here that is a revelation, but it is a good, easy read, that points out just how much good music there was made by these bands and the significance they had. What the book has done is remind those outside of the reading of Prog magazine, that this genre did exist and in some form still does, and for that it is certainly a worthy addition to your bookshelf.
To order The Show That Never Ends with a 25% discount and free shipping please visit wwnorton.co.uk, quoting reference WN518 at the checkout.
