In the early ’70s, prog-rock yielded a trove of side-long epics. The songs, which literally took up an entire side of vinyl, ranged from classical interpretations by Emerson, Lake & Palmer to pioneering guitar suites by King Crimson. In the years since, improvisational jam bands and hard-rock groups have made their own mark on the form, defying the trend toward gearing music to short attention spans. Today, epic compositions live on in bands such as Dream Theater and Mars Volta.
Below are 10 of the all-time best.
“In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida,” Iron Butterfly (1968)
So-called acid rock reached its apex with this 17-minute opus. Crafted around a droning, dirge-like minor key riff, the song fused psychedelia and heavy metal in a way that had never before been done. Originally titled “In a Garden of Eden,” the track was renamed after keyboardist Doug Ingle slurred the phrase while intoxicated.
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“Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence,” Dream Theater (2002)
This 42-minute title track from Dream Theater’s sixth full-length studio album framed a well-traveled theme (specifically, mental illness) in a suite of monumental musical proportions. Introduced by sweeping orchestration, the multi-part song segues through a range of styles that showcase the group’s dazzling virtuosity. Such disparate influences as Styx, Yes and Pink Floyd surface along the way, but the coherence and sustained power are all Dream Theater’s. (Recorded long after the heyday of vinyl, the song fills an entire CD.)
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“Echoes,” Pink Floyd (1971)
Written in 1970 by all four members of post-Syd Barrett Pink Floyd, “Echoes” in many ways comprised a template for the tightened-up “found sound” approach employed on The Dark Side of the Moon. The track was pieced together from a collection of separate musical experiments embarked upon by each member of the band. The electronic “screams” in the middle section were inadvertently stumbled upon by Dave Gilmour when he mistakenly reversed the cable to his wah pedal.
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“Mountain Jam,” The Allman Brothers Band (1972)
Originally appearing on The Allman Brothers Band’s 1972 Eat a Peach album, “Mountain Jam” ranks as one of rock’s greatest-ever improvisational jams. Every member of the group gets his turn to solo, but it’s Duane, especially during the slide-driven climax, who shines brightest on this version, which was lifted from the 1971 Fillmore shows. As the title implies, the jam was loosely based on Donovan’s 1967 hit single, “There is a Mountain.”
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“Thick as a Brick,” Jethro Tull (1972)
Filling two sides of a single disc, “Thick as a Brick” was an intended parody that instead became a tour-de-force. Sporting an intricate musical structure, the composition featured such unlikely instrumentation as a harpsichord, lute and xylophone, in addition to Ian Anderson’s minstrel flute flourishes and Martin Barre’s virtuosic guitar playing (both acoustic and electric). Anderson has since characterized the epic as a spoof of prog-rock, saying it was to prog what the film Airplane! was to Airport. Far from a simple lampoon, however, “Thick as a Brick” is now regarded as a masterpiece.
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“2112,” Rush (1976)
Ironically, in defying pressure from their record label to move in a more “commercial” direction, Rush broke through to the mainstream with the ambitious title track from their fourth album. Spanning seven sections, “2112” kicks off with a stunning instrumental piece that features a guitar adaptation of music from Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture. Prog and hard rock were never merged more effectively than on this landmark opus.
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“Sad-Eyed Lady of the Lowlands,” Bob Dylan (1966)
This beautiful ballad from Dylan’s 1966 masterpiece, Blonde on Blonde, is loaded with poetic references to the legendary songwriter’s then-wife, Sara. Ten years later, on his Desire album, Dylan acknowledged the former Sara Lownds as the prime inspiration with the lines: “Stayin’ up for days in the Chelsea Hotel / Writin’ ‘Sad-Eyed Lady of the Lowlands’ for you.” Dylan has never performed the song on stage.
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“Dazed and Confused,” Led Zeppelin (1976)
Originally performed by The Yardbirds, “Dazed and Confused” appeared on Led Zeppelin’s debut album and subsequently became the centerpiece of the band’s live shows. By the time the song appeared on the 1976 live set (recorded in ’73), The Song Remains the Same, the track had evolved into a half-hour epic including 12 sections. In this concert version, as in all its live incarnations, “Dazed and Confused” hits its high mark when Jimmy Page breaks out the bowed guitar segment.
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“Karn Evil 9,” Emerson, Lake & Palmer (1973)
Emerson, Lake & Palmer’s prog-rock ambitions reached an apex with this half-hour track from their best-selling album, Brain Salad Surgery. Composed by Keith Emerson, Greg Lake and former King Crimson lyricist Peter Sinfield, the three-part epic showcased Emerson’s multi-faceted keyboard talents as never before. The composition’s title, which Sinfield insisted upon, was meant to convey the carnival-esque nature of the music.
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“Close to the Edge,” Yes (1972)
In early 1972, many Yes fans felt the band’s breakthrough masterpiece, Fragile, could never be topped. A mere six months later, however, the prog-rock pioneers unleashed a disc with a title track so ambitious it prompted at least one reviewer to liken Fragile to a James Gang LP in comparison. Complex, virtuosic and yet melodic enough to be accessible to mainstream listeners, “Close to the Edge” remains one the greatest-ever examples of ensemble musical interaction.
