Freedom-Is More Than A Word (1972)

During much of the second half of the 1960s and the early 1970s, countless great bands emerged, barely managing to release one or two albums at most. These anonymous bands are often considered cult classics, boasting legions of collectors and fans today. They poured their hearts and souls into the few works they managed to release, only to vanish without a trace in most cases, but leaving behind recordings that are a fundamental part of rock music history. Freedom is one such band, formed by former Procol Harum members Bobby Harrison (drums and vocals) and Ray Royer (guitar), who, along with Peter Dennis (bass, keyboards, and vocals), Steve Jolly (guitar), and Roger Saunders (vocals, guitar, and keyboards), released three superb albums. "Is More Than A Word", their last and finest work, was released in 1972 on the Vertigo label. An album that boasts memorable moments like the blues-rock with a funk edge "Sweaty Feet", the expansive funky rock "Brainbox Jam", the powerful cover of Don Nix's "Going Down", the pastoral "Direction", and the complex "Ladybird". Freedom didn't achieve massive success at the time, but they offered psychedelic hard rock, and their first two albums garnered favorable reviews and comparisons to leading bands like Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, and Cream. However, their style for this third album shifted towards funkier and blues-rock sounds, gaining depth with rich nuances and greater musical versatility, at the expense of their original sound, but with too much competition surrounding them in those magical musical years.

Paul McCartney-Ram (1971)

Paul McCartney's second album sparked some controversy among his most devoted fans, mainly because it was officially credited to Paul & Linda McCartney. This led many to initially wonder why a photographer with no musical background (Linda's profession, in addition to being the heiress to the Kodak fortune) was involved in recording an album with Paul. Many were immediately reminded of the disastrous recordings of his former bandmate John Lennon and his wife Yoko Ono. But nothing could be further from the truth. On this album, the former Beatle demonstrated why he was the driving force behind the Liverpool group, creating a record that is a clear influence on many subsequent musical styles. For the recording, McCartney enlisted the help of prestigious session musicians such as guitarists Hugh McCracken and David Spinozza, and drummer Denny Seiwell, while Paul himself handled bass, vocals, keyboards, and rhythm guitars. For many, this release is clearly related to the sound of the album "Abbey Road", as is evident in the epic "Uncle Albert/Admiral Halsey", while the reminiscences of 1950s rock and roll are present in tracks like "Legs" and "Smile Away". On the other hand, the folk-infused "Ram On", the energetic "Monkberry Moon Delight", and the exquisite "The Back Seat of My Car" evoke the spirit of his main band's "White Album". Ultimately, with "Ram", Paul McCartney created a work that was both groundbreaking and influential, achieving multiple platinum records and considerable sales worldwide.

U.K.-U.K. (1978)

This short-lived supergroup was one of the last of the golden age of progressive rock in the 1970s, born from the dissolution of an original idea by John Wetton, Bill Bruford, and Rick Wakeman. However, Wakeman ultimately left the project, and his replacement was former Roxy Music keyboardist and violinist Eddie Jobson, with former Soft Machine and Gong guitarist Allan Holdsworth completing the lineup. With the definitive band in place, they entered the studio and recorded their self-titled debut album, "U.K." (1978), released on the E.G. label. This first album showcased a group of highly skilled musicians who fully lived up to the expectations of the time, displaying superb precision, great compositional inspiration, and an exceptionally high level of technical prowess. Tracks like the sweeping and Crimson-esque “In the Dead of Night”, the grandiose “Presto Vivace and Reprise”, the atmospheric “Thirty Years”, the brilliant progressive hard rock “Alaska” and the progressive jazz “Mental Medication”, made up a work that would go down in history as one of the most important of the progressive style of the late 70s.

Jackal-Awake (1973)

Jackal was a short-lived Canadian progressive rock band that released only one album in 1973, reminiscent of bands like Kansas, Warhorse, and even their compatriots Rush. Formed in the late 1960s in Toronto by brothers Chris and James Kellesis (keyboards and drums), along with singer Charlie Shannon and guitarist Dave Bernard, their sole recording was "Awake", released by the Periwinkle label in 1973, although it appears to have been recorded two years earlier in 1971. This album showcases a wide range of influences, from American progressive rock to early 1970s British symphonic rock, with elements of Southern rock and hints of American hard rock. These influences are perfectly reflected in the opening track of this album, "At The Station", a memorable exercise in progressive rock fused with southern hard rock, while "New Day Has Arisen" is a progressive hard rock track very much in the vein of what their British contemporaries Uriah Heep or Deep Purple were doing, or in "Awake", the most progressive piece with great interactions of the Hammond organ and Bernard's powerful guitars, supported by Shannon's excellent voice.

U2-The Joshua Tree (1987)

In 1987, the Irish band U2 released their fifth album, "The Joshua Tree", considered their masterpiece and their commercial peak, with over 14 million copies sold worldwide. While their previous album, "War", showcased their most energetic side and sharpened their lyrics, denouncing social and political issues, as evidenced in the well-known "Sunday Bloody Sunday", here they presented a repertoire of more refined and elegant songs, simultaneously darker and more accessible, incorporating subtle influences of American country and blues without losing sight of their unmistakable style. The entire album is immensely enjoyable; however, the first three songs are the record's high point. “Where The Streets Have No Name”, “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” and “With or Without You”, which somehow overshadow other very high-level songs such as “Bullet The Blue Sky” or “In God’s Country”.

Nine Days´Wonder-Nine Days´Wonder (1971)

The story of the band Nine Days' Wonder began in late 1966, when its founder, Walter Seyffer, started developing a project, working on a series of original compositions that would become part of the repertoire of his band, The Graves. However, it wasn't until three years later that this idea began to take shape with a defined style. Seyffer was a German singer and drummer who had been part of different bands throughout the 1960s, and it wasn't until early 1970 that he finally managed to establish a stable and definitive lineup, forming Nine Days' Wonder. By the middle of that year, he had completed the group's lineup, composed of musicians of various nationalities. Seyffer was accompanied by German Rolf Henning on piano and guitar, Irishman John Earle on saxophone, flute, guitar, and vocals, Austrian Karl Mutschlechner on bass, and Briton Martin Roscoe on drums. All these musicians began working together to create an experimental style, based on a fusion of different elements and diverse influences converging essentially on krautrock, with a marked influence from Frank Zappa and the British progressive rock of the time. In 1971, they entered Dierks Studios and recorded their debut album, a prime example of the most extravagant and unusual German progressive rock ever recorded, clearly inspired by bands like King Crimson, Frank Zappa, Soft Machine, Traffic, Family, and Deep Purple, among many others. This fusion of styles is reflected in an album that features long and complex compositions of progressive music, jazz-rock, frenetic sounds, extravagant music, heavy blues-rock riffs, and avant-garde sounds. All of this is grounded in astonishing creative freedom, with altered vocals, psychedelic touches, sound effects, noise, and many moments of total musical frenzy. This debut album comprises four lengthy tracks, ranging from 12 to 15 minutes in length, beginning with "Fermillion", which, in a Monty Python-esque style, showcases the band's madness, dynamism, experimentation, and superb progressive instrumentation. This is followed by the intense "Moss Had Come", the humorous "Apple Tree", and the avant-garde and spacey "Drag Dilemma", undoubtedly the standout track on an outstanding and simultaneously schizophrenic album. It's worth noting that, unlike conventional progressive rock, there are no organs, mellotrons, or even synthesizers here three of the essential instruments of progressive rock which are replaced by the formidable interplay between wind instruments and guitars. In short, an album with some of the most unsettling music of the early 70s, combining the deranged sounds of Frank Zappa and Captain Beefheart, medieval and chamber music, and the powerful sensations of hard rock.

Kansas-Two for the Show (1978)

At the height of their popularity, Kansas released their first live album, the double album "Two For The Show", which followed their masterpiece "Point Of Know Return" from the previous year. Therefore, everything included here comes from the tour following that album. The tracks selected here were recorded at The Palladium in New York, the Pine Knob Music Theatre in Michigan, and the Merriweather Pavilion in Maryland between mid-1977 and early 1978, and the album was released near the end of that same year. 

In this superb live recording, Kansas showcases their full instrumental brilliance, with a progressive rock sound, somewhat grandiose, inherited from British symphonic rock groups, fused with elements of American rock such as blues, country, and even bluegrass. With a powerful rhythm section consisting of drummer Phil Ehart and bassist Dave Hope, two tremendous guitarists, Rich Williams and Kerry Livgren, violinist and singer Robby Steinhardt and vocalist and keyboardist Steve Walsh, the group unfolds the best of its repertoire, reviewing not only the aforementioned album "Point Of Know Return" but also its four previous albums "Kansas", "Song For America", "Masque" and "Leftoverture". From the enormous and magnificent suite “Magnus Opus”, where each band member has their moment to shine instrumentally, to their biggest commercial hits like “Carry On Wayward Son”, “Dust In The Wind”, “Point Of Know Return”, and “Song For America”, and including the epic and progressive “Excerpt From Lamplight Symphony”, “Incomudro-Hymn To The Atman”, and “Mysteries And Mayhem”, or the superb rock tracks “The Wall”, “Icarus-Bone On Wings Of Steel”, and “Closet Chronicles”, Kansas demonstrates why they were considered the greatest American progressive rock band of all time. Following in the footsteps of its predecessor, this double album achieved immediate success, going platinum and selling well over two million copies worldwide.

Genesis-We Can´t Dance (1991)

Strictly speaking, this was Genesis's last album, and the last with Phil Collins at the helm, even though six years later they released the unforgettable "Calling All Stations" under the band's name essentially a solo project by Mike Rutherford and Tony Banks with singer Ray Wilson. Released during the height of Phil Collins's solo career, it serves as a fitting epitaph for what is considered one of the most iconic progressive rock bands of all time. Much more focused on progressive sounds than the previous, more commercially oriented "Invisible Touch", this new recording saw the trio (Collins, Rutherford, and Banks) concentrate on songs with more socially conscious lyrics (social commentary and existentialism, among other recurring themes, are addressed here, with some sarcastic and humorous songs on very hot topics of the time) and more complex instrumentation. However, tracks like "Jesus He Knows Me", "Tell Me Why", and "Hold On My Heart" were clearly written for radio, yet they retained their excellent musicianship. On the other hand, the funk-rock track "I Can't Dance" is the kind of song that would fit perfectly on any of Phil Collins' albums due to its simplicity and infectious rhythm. On the more complex side, there are tracks like "Driving The Last Spike", "Dreaming While You Sleep", "No Son Of Mine", "Way Of The World", and "Fading Lights," all of which showcase their brilliant progressive side.

Keith Cross & Peter Cross-Bored Civilians (1972)

In the early seventies, the influence of the West Coast sound of the American hippies reached England, a style that would be a major influence on many British bands of the time. However, the sunny, beachy, surfer-friendly American climate was a stark contrast to the ever-rainy Great Britain, so the so-called "British West Coast" had an unmistakable melancholic and wistful tone, directly linked to its climate, although its very personal folk style also contributed to a somewhat darker and more somber feel. One of these bands was the duo Keith Cross & Peter Cross, two brothers who came from various bands such as the progressive rock band T2 and Hookfoot, the latter being Elton John's backing band. After composing a series of songs, they recruited several musicians, including guitarists Nick Lowe, formerly of Brinsley Schwartz, and B.J. Cole, ex-Cochise, as well as Caravan saxophonist Jimmy Hastings. The only recording from this collaboration was the album "Bored Civilians", one of those rare gems highly sought after today due to the combination of its impressive lineup of musicians and its extraordinary content. Tracks in the purest CSN or Seals & Crofts style, such as "The Last Ocean Ride", folk-rock tracks seasoned with heavenly vocals like "Peace in the End" (the latter a cover of a song by the misunderstood Fotheringay), songs with a clear psychedelic jam texture like "Story to a Friend", elegant compositions such as "Loving You Takes So Long", "Pastels", "The Dead Salute", and "Bo Radley", and acoustic tracks like the irresistible "Fly Home", all combine to create an album of extraordinary quality. However, shortly after its release, the band broke up, each member pursuing independent careers, thus bringing to an end the ephemeral adventure of this magnificent and now forgotten band.