Various: The Best Prog Rock Album In The World ...Ever! (3CD) 2003 + 5 More Prog Rock Compilations By Urban Aspirines 2024

 

The sampler itself is actually not bad at all.   It has three CDs full of superb music. One of the strong points of this sampler is that it covers the majority of the different progressive rock styles.

From space rock, via art rock to symphonic prog. This is as close to an essential prog rock taster for newbeginners a sampler can get. I am pretty sure it is the best prog rock sampler on the market today.

The guys who created this compilation feel they are the owners of the ultimate taste by naming this mixture "The Best Prog Rock Album Ever" (What a pompous name!!!). There's no use to comment the songs because 90% are masterpieces.

There's no King Crimson, no Gong, no Supertramp, no Eloy, no Jane, ect. But you can't squeeze every major prog band into a 35-track compilation.  

Notable omissions include Pink Floyd (there's a bunch of EMI material on here, but Floyd may have just been too expensive to license), King Crimson (not terribly surprising, given Fripp's territoriality), Gong (the rights to Gong's music evidently being in some confusion at the time, with material showing up, licitly or not, on many different labels), Renaissance, The Nice, Strawbs...

But getting upset about that is special pleading on behalf of one's favored groups- they had limited space and budget to work with, and made the most of it.
                         

Various – The Best Prog Rock Album In The World …Ever!
Label: Virgin – VTDCD 533, EMI – VTDCD 533, Virgin – 7243 584895 2 1, EMI – 7243 584895 2 1
Series: The Best...Album In The World...Ever!
Format: 3 x CD, Compilation
Country: UK
Released: 2003
Genre: Electronic, Jazz, Rock, Blues
Style: Hard Rock, Classic Rock, Prog Rock

CD1.

                   

01. Van Der Graaf Generator–Theme 1   3:01
Producer – John Anthony
Written-By – George Martin
02. Genesis–Dancing With The Moonlit Knight   8:07
Producer – Genesis, John Burns
Written-By – Mike Rutherford, Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, Steve Hackett, Tony Banks
03. Yes–Roundabout   8:34
Producer – Eddie Offord, Yes
Written-By –Jon Anderson, Steve Howe
04. Manfred Mann's Earth Band–Joybringer   3:25
Written-By – Slade, Holst, Mann, Rogers
05. Curved Air–Back Street Luv   3:39
Producer – Colin Caldwell, Curved Air
Written-By – Way, Eyre, Linwood
06. Hawkwind–Silver Machine   4:40
Written-By – Dave Brock, Robert Calvert
07. Jethro Tull–Locomotive Breath   4:27
Producer – Ian Anderson, Terry Ellis
Written-By – Ian Anderson
08. Focus–Hocus Pocus   6:41
Written-By – J. Akkerman, T. Van Leer
09. Emerson, Lake & Palmer–    Hoedown   3:46
Arranged By – Emerson, Lake & Palmer
Written-By – Copeland
10. Atomic Rooster–Tomorrow Night   3:59
Written-By – Crane
11. Deep Purple–Child In Time   10:20
Producer – Deep Purple
Written-By – Ian Gillan, Ian Paice, Jon Lord, Ritchie Blackmore, Roger Glover
12. Colosseum–Valentyne Suite   16:53
Written-By – Greenslade, Heckstall-Smith, Hiseman

Flac Size: 461 MB

CD 2.

                

01. Peter Gabriel – Here Comes The Flood   5:53
Written By, Producer – Peter Gabriel
02. Mike Oldfield – Tubular Bells (Part 1)   4:59
Producer – Mike Oldfield, Simon Heyworth, Tom Newman
Written By – Mike Oldfield
03. Caravan – Winter Wine   7:39   
Producer – David Hitchcock
Written-By – David Sinclair, Pye Hastings, Richard Coughlan
04. Kevin Ayers & The Whole World – May I?   4:02
Written-By – Kevin Ayers
05. Rare Bird – Sympathy   2:44
Producer – Danny Thompson, John Anthony
Written-By – Rare Bird
06. Procol Harum – A Salty Dog   4:41
Written-By – Gary Brooker, Keith Reid
07. Barclay James Harvest – Mocking Bird   6:38
Producer – Norman Smith
Written-By – John Lees, Les Holroyd, Melvyn Pritchard, Stuart Wolstenholme
08. Anthony Phillips With Mike Rutherford & Phil Collins – Which Way The Wind Blows   5:53
Instruments – Mike Rutherford
Producer – Anthony Phillips, Michael Rutherford, Simon Heyworth
Vocals – Phil Collins
Written-By – Anthony Phillips
09. Emerson, Lake & Palmer – Lucky Man   4:38
Written-By – Lake
10. Roxy Music – In Every Dream Home A Heartache   5:29
Producer – Chris Thomas, Roxy Music
Written-By – Bryan Ferry
11. Electric Light Orchestra – 10538 Overture   5:29
Written-By – Jeff Lynne
12. Hatfield And The North – Mumps   20:25
Written-By – D. Stewart

Flac Size: 454 MB

CD 3.

             

01.Frank Zappa – Peaches En Regalia   3:40
Written-By – Frank Zappa
02.Camel – Rhayader [From 'The Snow Goose']   3:06
Arranged By – David Bedford
Producer – David Hitchcock
Written-By – Andrew Latimer, Peter Bardens
03.Gentle Giant – Pantagruel's Nativity   6:53
Producer – Tony Visconti
Written-By – Derek Shulman, Kerry Minnear, Phil Shulman, Ray Shulman
04.Egg – Germ Patrol   8:33
Written-By, Producer – Egg
05.Matching Mole – O Caroline   5:08
Written-By – Sinclair, Wyatt
06.Greenslade – Bedside Manners Are Extra   6:25
Producer – Andrew McCulloch, Dave Greenslade, Dave Lawson, Tony Reeves
Written-By – D. Greenslade, D. Lawson
07. Steve Hillage – Meditation Of The Snake   3:17
Producer – Simon Heyworth, Steve Hillage
Written-By – Steve Hillage
08.Steve Hackett – Spectral Mornings   6:32
Producer – John Acock, Steve Hackett
Written-By – Steve Hackett
09.Be Bop Deluxe – Ships In The Night   3:57
Producer – Bill Nelson, John Leckie
Written-By – Bill Nelson
10.Man – Keep On Crinting   8:17
Written-By – John, Jones, Ryan, Williams
11.Van Der Graaf Generator – A Plague Of Lighthouse Keepers   23:04
Producer – John Anthony
Written-By – David Jackson, Guy Evans, Hugh Banton, Peter Hammill

Flac Size: 476 MB

Many names are unfortunately missing ... So I decided to enrich the collection by adding some very important Progressive Rock bands, creating 5 more samplers trying to fill some gaps.

You can find bands as: King Crimson, Pink Floyd, Marillion, Strawbs, Porcupine Tree, The Alan Parsons Project, Eloy and many more. I hope to satisfy you.

I would like to introduce the younger visitos of this blog in a largest idea of prog Rock. So, you can find more than about 60 names in these new samplers.

You Can find, all the bands in red colour, in Urban Aspirines and you can download them. For the other bands, just wait for a future post.

 

 

Thank you. KOSTAS
                     

PROG ROCK BY URBAN ASPIRINES 1.

                    

                     
01 - Aphrodite's Child - The Four Horsemen
02 - Vangelis - We Were All Uprooted
03 - Pink Floyd - A Pillow of Winds
04 - Porcupine Tree - Radioactive Toy
05 - King Crimson - The Court of the Crimson King (including 'The Return of the Fire Witch' and 'The Dance Of The Puppets'
06 - Verbal Delirium - So Close & Yet so far Away
07 - Archive - I Will Fade
08 - Eloy - Future City
09 - Nektar - Nelly the Elephant
10 - Jane - Earth (Angel)
11 - Goblin - Profondo Rosso
12 - Carmen - Bulerias- a) Cante (Song), b) Baile (Dance), c) Reprise
13 - Gravy Train - Dedication To Sid

Flac Size: 710 MB

PROG ROCK BY URBAN ASPIRINES 2.

                 

14 - Pavlov's Dog - Song Dance
15 - Moody Blues - Nights In White Satin
16 - Tai Phong - Games
17 - Gong - A Sprinkling of Clouds
18 - Ciccada - Eniania (Keepers of the Midnight Harvest)
19 - Strawbs - Hero and Heroine
20 - Rick Wakeman - Catherine Of Aragon
21 - The Alan Parsons Project - The Tell-Tale Heart
22 - The Dog That Bit People - Cover Me In Roses
23 - P.F.M - E' Festa
24 - Will-O-The Wisp - Internal Journey
25 - String Driven Thing - Travelling
26 - Hawkwind - Hassan I Sahba

Flac Size: 533 MB

PROG ROCK BY URBAN ASPIRINES 3.

                               

27 - Genesis - The Carpet Crawlers
28 - Klaatu -  Calling Occupants Of Interplanetary Craft
29 - Locomotive - Nobody Asked You To Come
30 - Ghosts Of Jupiter - The Great Bright Horses
31 - Renaissance - Ocean Gypsy
32a - Aragorn - Land Of Mordor
32b - Aragorn - Trees And Grass
32c - Aragorn - East Of Greyhaven
32d - Aragorn - A History Book
33 - Khan - Space Shanty
34 - Quatermass - Post War Saturday Echo
35 - Utopia - Communion With The Sun
36 - Barclay James Harvest - Poor Man's Moody Blues
37 - Spooky Tooth - Here I Lived So Well
38 - Comus - Diana
39 - Methexis - Chapter 1 - The Origin Of Blame

Flac Size: 691 MB

PROG ROCK BY URBAN ASPIRINES 4.

                  

40 - The Claypool Lennon Delirium - Blood And Rockets
41 - IQ - Awake And Nervous
42 - Marillion - Script For A Jester's Tear
43 - Gryphon - The Ploughboy's Dream
44 - The Nice - Country Pie Brandenburg Concerto No.6
45 - Supertramp - Lady
46 - Rush - Making Memories
47 - Krokodil - Light Of Day
48 - Nine Stones Cold - Threads
49 - Wobbler - This Past Presence
50 - Cockney Rebel - Ritz
51 - Kansas - Lamplight Symphony (Album Version)
52 - Kraan - Jack Steam

Flac Size: 643 MB

PROG ROCK BY URBAN ASPIRINES 5.

               

53 - Soft Machine - Why Are We Sleeping
54 - Captain Beefheart -  Moonlight On Vermont
55 - The Strawbs - Ghosts
56 - Magna Carta - I Am No More
57 - Cressida -  Depression
58 - Robert Wyatt - Little Red Robin Hood Hit The Road
59 - Mike Rutherford - At The End Of The Day
60 - Peter Hammill - Don't Tell Me
61 - The Flower Kings - My Cosmic Lover
62 - The Mars Volta - Eriatarka
63 - Triumvirat - Timothy
64 - Queen - I'm In Love With My car
65 - UK - In The Dead Of Night - By The Light Of Day
66 - Amon Duul - Pull Down Your Mask (Syntelman's March Of The Roaring Seventies)
67 - Beardfish - Dark Poet

Flac Size: 724 MB