Alphataurus-Alphataurus (1973) Alusa Fallax-Intorno alla mia cattiva educazione (1974) Area- Crac! (1975) Arti & Mestieri- Tilt (Immagini per un orecchio) (1974) Banco del Mutuo Soccorso - Darwin(1972) Banco-Io Sono Nato Libero (1973) Banco del Mutuo Soccorso - Banco del Mutuo Soccorso (1972) Biglietto per l'Inferno -Biglietto per l'Inferno (1974) Campo Di Marte- Campo di Marte (1973) Celeste - Principe di un giorno (1976) Cherry Five-Cherry Five (1975) DFA-Lavori in Corso (1996) Goblin-Roller (1976) I Califfi- Fiore De Metallo (1973) I Giganti-Terra In Bocca (1971) Il Balletto di Bronzo - Ys (1972) Il Rovescio della Medaglia - Contaminazione (1973) Latte e Miele-Papillon (1973) Le Orme - Felona e Sorona (1973) Le Orme-Contrappunti (1974) Locanda delle Fate - Forse le Lucciole non si Amano piú (1977) Maxophone-Maxophone (1975) Metamorfosi - Inferno (1973) Museo Rosenbach -Zarathustra (1973) Osanna - Palepoli (1972) Premiata Forneria Marconi-Storia Di Un Minuto (1972) Premiata Forneria Marconi- L’isola di niente (1974) Quella Vecchia Locanda (1972) Quella Vecchia Locanda- Il tempo della gioia (1974) Semiramis -Dedicato a Frazz (1973)
I've loved Italian prog since discovering PFM in 1974... L'isola di niente... I have most of these albums, and a few more, but there's a few I have never heard... cool AF! I was just listening to 'Ys' and then this video drops.... Well done! BTW...Just got my newest SoT shirt today... the Dragonfly design... digging it!
Great primer list Pete! I'm so glad my local record store introduced me to this branch of Prog back in 1997. They also (and still) keep a lot of Italian Prog in stock along with the rest of their Prog.
Museo Rosenbach Banco Le Orme PFM New Trolls Osanna Jumbo Goblin Campo di Marte Il Rovescio della Medaglia Biglietto per l'Inferno Picchio dal Pozzo Quella Vecchia Locanda Garybaldi Delirium Panna Fredda Gli Alluminogeni Area Nuova Idea Formula 3 Balletto di Bronzo The Trip Pierrot Lunaire Alusa Fallax Raccomandata con Ricevuta di Ritorno Metamorfosi Locanda delle Fate Acqua Fragile Maxophone Opus Avantra Osage Tribe L'Uovo di Colombo Il Volo Arti e Mestieri Perigeo Etna Celeste Cervello Dalton Festa Mobile Il Paese dei Balocchi Jacula Semiramis J.E.T. Cherry Five Battiato El Giro Strano Pichio Dal Pozzo E.A. Poe I Giganti Il Baricentro Alan Sorrenti Tito Schipa Jr. Baffo Banfi Agora Capsicum Red Cincinnato Eneide Gruppo 2001 Grupo D'Alternativa La Seconda Genesi Le Mani Salis Sensitiva Immagine The Underground Set Lapera Bella Band Esagono Errata Corrige La Statale 17 De De Lind Alphataurus Blue Phantom Procession Reale Accademia di Musica Sensation's Fix Buon Vecchio Charlie Apoteosi Stormy Six
Top Italian Prog bands: 1 Premiata Forneria Marconi 2 Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso 3 Le Orme 4 Area 5 Goblin/Cherry Five 6 Acqua Fragile 7 Alphataurus 8 Quella Vecchia Locanda 9 Locanda Delle Fate 10 Museo Rosenbach
Here are my 20 most played Italian albums over the last 21 years. As you all can see the list is quite similar. 1. Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso (1972) 2. Alphataurus - Alphataurus (1973) 3. Museo Rosenbach - Zarathustra (1973) 4. L'Uovo di Colombo - L’Uovo di Colombo (1973) 5. Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Darwin! (1972) 6. Celeste - Principe Di Un Giorno (1976) 7. Banco - Di Terra (1978) 8. Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Io Sono Nato Libero (1973) 9. Le Orme - Felona E Sorona (1973) 10. Le Orme - Uomo di pezza (1972) 11. I Giganti - Terra in Bocca (1971) 12. PFM - L'isola Di Niente (1974) 13. Biglietto Per l'Inferno - Biglietto Per l'Inferno (1974) 14. Metamorfosi - Inferno (1973) 15. Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Come in un'ultima cena (1976) 16. PFM - Storia di un minuto (1972) 17. Il Balletto di Bronzo - YS (1972) 18. Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Seguendo le tracce (1975/2005) Live album recorded 1975. 19. Banco - Canto di primavera (1979) 20. Alusa Fallax - Intorno Alla Mia Cattiva Educazione (1974)
Two albums that are essential when talking about the best Italian prog: Arti & Mestieri - Giro Di Valzer Perigeo - Fata Morgana (Italian title: Non E Poi Cosi Lontano) Giro is equally as great as Tilt. The Perigeo album was released on CD but maybe difficult to find. A lot of U.S. LP copies around. Melodic, inventive, wonderful blend of jazz, rock, prog.
Thank you Pete. Here are some other albums in the Italian Prog and Neo-Prog genres (most of which you have recommended in the past) that I have enjoyed. Cheers. Afklarung-De' La' Tempesta ... L'Oscuro Piacere (1995) Acqua Fragile-Acqua Fragile (1973) Area-Arbeit Macht Frei (1973) Area-Gli Dei Se Ne Vanno, Gli Arrabiati Restano (1978) Barock Project-Skyline (2015) Barock Project-Detachment (2017) Barock Project-Seven Seas (2019) Dedalus-Dedalus (1973) Finisterre-Finisterre (1994) Finisterre-In Limine (1996) Goblin-Il Fantastico Viaggio Del Bagarozzo Mark (1978) Il Balletto Di Bronzo-Sirio 2222 (1970) Il Rovescio della Medaglia-Live in Tokyo (2014) Le Omre-Uomo di Pezza (1972) Locanda delle Fate-Homo Homini Lupus (1999) Osanna-Luomo (1971) Panther & C.-Il Guisto Equilibrio (2017)
Awesome video as always, thanks Pete! Here are a few of my favourites that you didn’t mention: Cervello - Melos (1973) De De Lind - Io non so da dove vengo e non so dove mai andrò. Uomo è il nome che mi han dato. (1973) Hero - Hero (1974) Reale Accademia di Musica - Reale Accademia di Musica (1972)
Great video! I would add or picked different albums from certain groups: Blocco Mentale - Poa Le Orme - Uomo di Pezza Latte e Miele . Passio Secundum Mattheum Il Volo - Essere O Non Essere Murple - Io Sono Murple Genfuoco - Dentro L'Invisibile Raccomandata Ricevuta Ritorno - Per....Un Mondo Di Cristallo Cervello - Melos Acqua Fragile - Mass-Media Stars Jumbo - Vietato Ai Minori Di 18 Anni De De Lind - Io Non So Da Dove Vengo E Non So Dove Mai Andrò, Uomo È Il Nome Che Mi Han Dato
Fantastic Video Pete. I think Italian Prog Rock should be very important for any prog rock ears. Some amazing albums you've mentioned, well worth checking out all your mentions. Here are my must have 10 Italian albums: 1. De De Lind - Io Non So Da Dove... (the longest album name I know of) - 1973 - one album band. Heavy Sabbathy guitars/vibe with flute fused with Crimson's Red era with Italian kink to it, man this is a killer. And that beautiful album cover. 2. Museo Rosenbach - Zarathustra - 1973 - one look at the album cover art. The music inside is as heavy, dark yet melodic and perfectly composed as this cover. 3. Quella Vecchia Locanda - Il Tempo Della Gioia - 1974 - again what a wonderful album cover. Enigmatic somewhat with super melodic moments, harmonies, keyboards, "A Forma Di" is enough to die for. 4. Il Paese Dei Balocchi - Il Paese Dei Balocchi - 1972 - one album band. Romantic soft prog bit jazzy with some great classical atmosphere. Yet another great album cover for the wall. 5. Alan Sorrenti - Aria - 1972 - this genius debut album will crawl under the skin and hunt the mind forever. 6. Claudio Rocchi - Volo Magico N.1 - 1971 - also here a unique journey of which patience will pay off. 7. Jumbo - DNA - 1972 - great acoustic guitars, flute, keyboards, raging electric guitars, one amazing alvaro Fella and this is only side one piece, 20 minutes of perfection. And that face on the cover art... killer. 8. Alusa Fallax - Intorno Alla Mia Cattiva Educazione - 1974 - another killer one album band, fantastically mentioned by Pete, not enough attention is paid to this hidden gem, I think. 9. Capitolo 6 - Frutti Per Kagua - 1972 - one album band (surprise...), with great album. Guitars, flutes, sax, prog/blues/jazzy, rocky and groovy with beautiful slow passages as well. 10. Il Rovescio Della Medaglia - Contaminazione - 1973 - one of the best prog rock tribute album to Bach. Keyboards from heaven, and more. Plus a cover art to lock it in. Top notch masterpiece. Yes, no album from the holy trinity of Italian prog (PFM, Banco, Le Orme) in my list. For my money, any of the above albums will swallow for breakfast any of the trinity offerings, and if pressed hard maybe Uomo Di Pezza will get a slot in second 10s round... :-)
Excellent selection, a few I don't know. One must own missing is the supergroup "Il volo" from 1974, my very favorite. 2nd album great as well, more instrumental.
Thank you, Pete, for such a jam packed show on this topic and providing the list in the comments section. Your passion for this category really comes through as you discuss these albums and then decide to pick a top 5 for the show. Looking forward to using your list. Thanks again.
I can add: Reale Accademia Di Musica 1972, and Napoli Centrale 1975. I'm a big fan of Le Orme and PFM. I was shopping in many record stores in Italy five years ago, that was a lot of fun.
GRAZIE...excellent list. Celeste’s “Principe di un Giorno” and Locanda Delle Fate’s “Forse Le Lucciole...” are sublime Italian prog...extreme musical beauty. The Italian trinity PFM+Banco+Le Orme could beat the British bands at their own game any time! Auguri!!
I’ve been a huge Goblin fan since seeing Deep Red for the first time. Roller is mind blowing. Probably my favorite Prog album after Selling England by the Pound. I will also definitely check these other albums out.
20 more albums from bands/aritsts that Pete didn't include in his list, to make the whole a round 50. Acqua Fragile - Acqua Fragile (1973) Alan Sorrenti - Aria (1972) Apoteosi - Apoteosi (1975) Blocco Mentale - Πόα (Poa) (1973) Cervello - Melos (1973) De De Lind - Io non so da dove vengo e non so dove mai andrò. Uomo è il nome che mi han dato. (1973) Festa Mobile - Diario di viaggio della Festa mobile (1973) Finisterre - In Ogni Luogo (1999) Gruppo D'alternativa - Ipotesi (1972) Ibis - Canti d'innocenza, canti d'esperienza (1973) Ibis - Sun Supreme (1974) Il Paese dei balocchi - Il Paese dei balocchi (1972) Il Volo - Il Volo (1974) Il Volo - Essere o Non Essere? (1975) I Teoremi - I Teoremi (1972) Osage Tribe - Arrowhead (1972) Perigeo - Abbiamo tutti un blues da piangere (1973) Pierrot Lunaire - Pierrot Lunaire (1974) Raccomandata Ricevuta Ritorno - Per... un mondo di cristallo (1972) Reale Accademia di Musica - Reale Accademia di Musica (1972) Honorable mentions: Panna Fredda - Uno (1971) Nuova Idea - Clowns (1973) Zauber - Zauber (1978) Fabrizio de André - In concerto: Arrangiamenti PFM (1979) (This is a special record in which italian pop-folk legend Fabrizio de André teams up with the guys from PFM to record his songs with new "proggier" arrangements. It has a legendary status in Italy and comes in two parts) Also you can check out the work of Franco Battiato. Although not a prog artist "per se" at the start of his career he made a string of highly experimental albums, which at the time were categorized as progressive rock. Check out Fetus (1972), Pollution (1972) and Sulle Corde di Aries (1973). I have a Spotify playlist with basically songs from all of Pete's albums (if they are on Spotify of course) and mine. You can check it out here: open.spotify.com/playlist/1BQA45bVsi9ZFkV0z5XT0A?si=r9il3VzXTZ--u4ttnGNjGQ
Top 11 album sales Italy march 1972: 1. Van Der Graaf Generator: Pawn Hearts 2. Premiata Forneria Marconi: Storia Di Un Minuto 3. Emerson, Lake & Palmer: Pictures At An Exhibition 4. Genesis: Nursery Cryme 5. King Crimson: Islands 6. Fabrizio de André: Non al Denaro ..... 7. George Harrison: Concert For Bangla Desh 8. John Lennon: Imagine 9. Mina: Mina 10. Led Zeppelin: IV 11. Yes: Fragile What a great list. Almost unbelievable.
Wow.... VDGG first place in Italy back than. Respect. For me Pawn Hearts is their magnum opus and is the absolute highest peak of english prog. There are many great prog bands, some of them (Renaissance, Genesis, King Crimson, Yes, Caravan, Camel, Mike Oldfield, Robert Wyatt, Jethro Tull, Gong) are touching on perfection for a while, however Pawn Hearts is always few levels beyond. Untouchable.
@@chickpea5966 Pawn Hearts for my is indeed the magnum opus of Van Der Graaf Generator. 7 out of 11 progressive rock albums in Italy back than in 1972. It's totally amazing.
Hi. "Contaminazione" by Rovescio della Medaglia, is a másterwork. I was 16 years old, in 7 grade in my Music School, for me was amazing this álbum. I'm a Bach's fan, and hear how them created this LP, with Bach's inspiracion.The voices, the arrangement, the counterpoint, beautiful.!!
GREAT video! You covered pretty much all the great ones (only notable exception off the top of my head is Sensitiva Immagine), and you skipped a lot that I'm glad you didn't include like Acqua Fragile, New Trolls, etc. Very well done - cheers! :)
Great list but nothing comes close to Il Balletto Di Bronzo's YS in my opinion. It's head and shoulders above all others. Best drumming, keyboards and vocals I've ever heard from the genre. Perfect gothic Italian masterpiece.
Rock Progressivo Italiano: Incredible scene -amazing bands! A homage to the krautrock scene would be a wonderful video and a guide for many people. Greetings from Greece, Pete! Keep up the good work.
Great overview Pete. My impression with the early Italian prog is it harkens back to the great musical tradition of opera. Italy does account for (arguably) the greatest composers of that genre: Verdi, Puccini, and Rossini. The band from across the English Channel that would have exerted great influence is Van der Graaf Generator; with the manic/partially operatic vocals of Peter Hammill. In the early 70's VdGG were immensely popular in Italy. While none of the bands may sound like them; the influence and expressiveness is there. Spot on with the holy trinity (PFM, Le Orme, Banco).
Great topic - great list. In addition to the mentioned albums in the video I can recommend: Cervello - Melos Jumbo - Vietato Ai Minori Di 18 Anni? Realle Accademia Di Musica - Realle Accademia Di Musica
Thank you very much for this list! I love Italian Prog and I think you did a great job covering all those bands. My 10 favourites: 1 Museo Rosenbach Zarathustra (1973) 2 Premiata Forneria Marconi Per un amico (1972) 3 Quella Vecchia Locanda Il tempo della gioia (1974) 4 Locanda delle Fate Forse le lucciole non si amano più (1977) 5 Premiata Forneria Marconi Storia di un minuto (1972) 6 Banco del Mutuo Soccorso Darwin! (1972) 7 Quella Vecchia Locanda Quella Vecchia Locanda (1972) 8 Maxophone Maxophone (1975) 9 Premiata Forneria Marconi L'isola di niente (1974) 10 Celeste Celeste (1976)
Four 5 star Italian Progressive albums Buon Vecchio Charlie... S/T (1999) Opus Avan tra/Introspezione (1974) Le Orme/L'infinito (2004) Cherry Five/IL pozzo dei giganti (2015)
Pete does inestimable public service with this channel. Lots of incredible music on this episode, and several records I need to check out. Area is insane, man. Demetrio Stratos is an amazing figure in prog, check out his VERY strange solo album!
Demetrio Stratos is greek. That is very important to the music of Area. As a greek myself who is fluent in italian, I can easily discern the greek accent in his italian, which makes his voice sound so strange and unique. The song "Cometa Rossa" from Caution Radiation Area is sung in greek. Also the music of Area has a lot of elements from greek traditional music.
@@nelsonshuchmacherendebo7688 Well, prog didn't catch in Greece as it did in Italy, for various reasons, so there aren't many albums to recommend. Basically you have: Kostas Tournas - Aperanta Chorafia (Κώστας Τουρνάς - Απέραντα Χωράφια) (1972). Available on TH-cam and Spotify. Like "Thick as a Brick", it has only two songs a Part I and a Part II taking all the respective record sides. Spotify offers it in the EP section as one continuous song of 35 minutes. Iraklis Triantafyllidis - Se Allous Kosmous (In Other Worlds). Written in 1973 (during the military dictatorship era) but recorded in 1976 (after the fall of the junta). P.L.J. Band - Armageddon (1982). Available on TH-cam and Spotify. And of course: Aphrodite's Child - 666 (1972). Possibly the best album of rock played by greeks ever recorded. It has reached a legendary status, lauded by musicians like Mikael Akerfeld and Steven Wilson and comes from a band that had two future international music superstars, Vangelis and Demis Roussos (both reached stardom palying things totally different from this album). If you like to learn more read this: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/666_(Aphrodite%27s_Child_album) I can't think of anything else. Now there are also two songs, from the same artist, Dionysis Savvopoulos, that can qualify as prog: "Ballos" from the album Ballos (1970) and "Mavri Thalassa" from the album Vromiko Psomi (1972) Both over 10 mins long they are possibly what someone might think greek prog should sound like, incorporating a lot of greek folk music elements. The rest of the albums is mostly psych/folk. Both albums available on Spotify.
Applies to all his Sea Of Tranquility vids. So much music that I haven't heard of and check out. Just wish people who comment would chill. They are Pete's opinions and should be respected
Thanks for this! I’ve heard a bunch of these, but you mentioned a few that I’ve not run across before, Alusa Fallax being one. Always nice to find more to explore.
Excellent job, Pete! I've been into Italian prog since 1972 and felt like I was right at home with my own cd collection, as I have and love 28 of the 30 titles you talked about. The only two I don't have and are totally new to me were I Califfi and I Giganti but I'll rectify that a.s.a.p. I was disappointed you didn't mention one of my all-time favorites, "Finest Finger" by Sensations' Fix but I realize you only have so much time to do these great shows and can't include everything.
Brilliant !! Thanks for that sir ! Zarathustra and Felona e Sorona are two of my all time favourite albums but I hadn't heard of half of the others you mentioned so plenty to keep me busy there ! Thank you again :)
Thank you Pete for doing this wonderful segment on Italian Progressive Rock. I am enjoying the different groups from your list. Would love to see a follow up with your favorite top 10-20 songs from your list. Regards, Sal Randazzo.
Hi bro I'm Italian and beside the groups compliments for your fine Italian speaking Maybe with all this music u also learned the language Very well Manu
love the show. Excellent choices. I'm a huge rock progressivo italiano aficionado with albums by more than 100 different artists and 300+ albums. You did say that you haven't been keeping up with some of the more recent stuff. I encourage you to do so because there is a lot of great italian prog happening in today's world. Barack Project, il Cerchio d'Oro, Unreal City, La Maschera di Cera, Logos to name a few.
Sono Italano, pensavo di conoscere abbastanza bene il nostro Rock Progressivo, possiedo anche un paio di libri sul genere, e invece... te inizi con 2 Album di 2 Band mai sentite. Grande Pete ! 😊👍
Van der graaf was one Of the most popular bands in Italy in early seventies . And is the most Italian like English program band. Their Equipment was stolen in Italy too. VDDG was my fist record purchase in 73 and i still love them
Fa molto piacere sapere che il ns. prog non ha niente da invidiare al prog inglese, ma che tutt'altro i nostri gruppi nutrono di grande rispetto, Grande Progressive Italiano
Thank you Peter for the great music updates. I had a number of those albums back in the 70s. My friends were big prg fans.Be the only Italian in my crowd. I found this music at international record store in downtown Toronto. The owner would preview the music for us. My first album was from IL Volo. It recieved top album for that year from our FM station. It was the second album Esere o non Esere. First time listening thank you. Those albums brought a whole lot of memories. Was able to catch PFM 3x in Toronto
Instant Like, Pete. What a great prog scene Italy was in the seventies. So much great one-shot albums and fantastic bands. People have to know prog around the world. Cheers
Museo Rosenbach Banco Le Orme PFM New Trolls Osanna Jumbo Goblin Campo di Marte Il Rovescio della Medaglia Biglietto per l'Inferno Picchio dal Pozzo Quella Vecchia Locanda Garybaldi Delirium Panna Fredda Gli Alluminogeni Area Nuova Idea Formula 3 Balletto di Bronzo The Trip Pierrot Lunaire Alusa Fallax Raccomandata con Ricevuta di Ritorno Metamorfosi Murple Locanda delle Fate Acqua Fragile Maxophone Opus Avantra Osage Tribe L'Uovo di Colombo Il Volo Arti e Mestieri Perigeo Etna Celeste Cervello Dalton Festa Mobile Il Paese dei Balocchi Jacula Semiramis J.E.T. Cherry Five Battiato El Giro Strano Pichio Dal Pozzo E.A. Poe I Giganti Il Baricentro Alan Sorrenti Tito Schipa Jr. Baffo Banfi Agora Capsicum Red Cincinnato Eneide Gruppo 2001 Grupo D'Alternativa La Seconda Genesi Le Mani Salis Sensitiva Immagine The Underground Set Lapera Bella Band Esagono Errata Corrige La Statale 17 De De Lind Alphataurus Blue Phantom Procession Reale Accademia di Musica Sensation's Fix Buon Vecchio Charlie Apoteosi Stormy Six
A well done list, Pete :) Fom Area, I do prefer the first two: "Arbeit Macht Frei" and "Caution Radiation Area". Apart from Italy, in Europe, there was also a special place for an excelent duch band: Supersister. The two first albuns are superb: "Letter from Nancy" (1970) and "To the Highest Bidder" (1971). From my country, Portugal, there is an excelent prog/folk band from the 70's: Banda do Casaco. My two favourites albums are “Do Benefício dos Vendidos no Reino dos Bonifácios” (1974) and "Hoje Há Conquilhas Amanhã Não Sabemos" (1977). Another classic portuguese prog record is Jose Cid "10.000 Anos Depois Entre Vénus E Marte" (1978).
Great selection! I will add 3 albums : 1- Bella Band : Bella Band (78) 2- Picchio Dal Pozzo : Picchio Dal Pozzo (76) 3- Banco : Di Terra (78) I consider Banco "Di Terra" as one of best progressive albums of all time.
Oh, Yeah. Been waiting for this one! Loved it! Pete's Italian pronunciations, so much better than the other America reviewers. Someday, please give us a Modern Italian Prog video.
Thanks for doing this! Once again you have put up a great archive/resource on this deep topic! I find that Italian prog just drips with emotion and power unlike any other branch of the tree. As always, cheers from Canada.
Thanks for this video, you've done us a great favor in putting all this together. It's a lot to absorb but thankfully it's all listed here in the comments. I've had my basic four PFM albums for a long time, (the first three and the live "Cook") and it took me some time to get my hands on Il Rovescio de la Medaglia's Contaminazione, Now that I have this list I have finally started digging into these titles. Thrilled to see Goblin's Roller album on here, that is their best album!
Great list. I would add, apart from Concerto Grosso as others have indicated, Alan Sorrenti’s Aria, Picchio dal Pozzo and a couple of Pooh albums (Poohlover has great tracks, the Parsifal suite on the same name album is a must). And yeah, Demetrio Stratos, Area’s vocalist, was a visionary genius.
Really pleased you've done this Pete. Italian prog can feel a little daunting at the beginning. I discovered it from an early prog rock website 20 or more years ago. I've bought 9 of the albums you've recommended plus a few other studio albums and some of the leading live albums. I don't have a problem listening to the songs in Italian but I do wish I knew what the songs were about.
I salute you, Pete! sifting through the labyrinth of Italian Prog is no easy task, and discussing 30 albums is above and beyond! this is why I subscribe to your channel. thank you
thanks Pete for this tribute to Italian prog, as an Italian myself I really appreciate it (and I have to admit you know it much better than me)! I personally put Area up there with PFM, Banco and Le Orme. Demetrio Stratos was pure talent and genius, too bad he died way too young, and the rest of the band are absolutely amazing instrumentists
Previously I was only familiar with the band PFM through Rock radio play they had in 1973 with a song called "Celebration". It was from their 3rd album "Photos Of Ghosts"(1973) but I purchased it from a live album they released around the same time titled "Cook". I love the song but never explored the band further, nor was I ever introduced to other Italian bands.
So far I’ve only listened to 2 Italian Prog albums. I like one of them and I love the other. Those are Darwin! and Come In Un’ultima Cena by Banco. I listened to Come In Un’Ultima Cena first, after hearing “Il Ragno” on a Prog Rock/Metal playlist. The rest of the album is strong, but not as energetic and exciting as “Il Ragno,” and maybe a bit more mellow than I was expecting. A few weeks ago I listened to the Darwin! album because most people say it’s Banco’s best album. It wouldn’t surprise me if that’s true because man, what an incredible album it is! Most of the album is fast and powerful, and even the slower, calmer songs (Tracks 5 & 7) are beautiful and nice breaks from the intensity of the rest of the album. Even after just one listen, I loved it, and I feel like it could break into my top 100 albums of all time with further listens. I definitely plan on listening to more Italian Prog, including the rest of Banco’s 70s material as well as their 2 latest albums, plus some stuff from PFM and Le Orme. Then we’ll see where I go from there
I've got a copy of Photos of Ghosts by PFM, and recently I heard Storia di un Minuto and Per un Amico. you are so right! the Italian versions are way superior to the Anglicized PoG (which is still a phenomenal album). the former 2 albums are INCREDIBILE!
Saw pfm a couple of times in UK and once at a gig in Italy. Went early, ended up spending the afternoon with the crew looking at the drums etc. FOH engineer was Andy Hendriksen who had just finished engineering Works by ELP
Very informative video. Looking forward to checking a few of these out. The only band here I’ve heard of before is Goblin. I’ve heard Mikael Akerfeldt mention them a couple times in interviews before. Will have to check them out first
This is a real treasure, u have mostly all Bands on your List that i also would have, I'm missing just a few and some of the solo artists from italy. I'm into italian prog since the late eighties and i'm glad to have all of your recommandations on vinyl except DFA which I never heard before. Palepoli from Osanna is among my all time top five prog albums ever made, very close to vdgg. Would like to add some gems later to the list, but for now: all the best from germany.
Good Lord, I finally thoroughly explored both Semiramis and Museo Rosenbach albums from 1973. Fantastico! I thought no one would ever compete with PFM but those two albums are that good! Also warming up to Il Baleto di Bronzo. Wild!
Just wanted to post that this episode allowed me to discover something new. After finding most of these, my favorites were: Arti E Mestieri "Tilt"; Le Orme has quite a few I like; Cherry Five/Goblin were cool; Il Baletto di Bronzo "La tua casa camoda" and Califfi "Madre domani" were really good IMO. Thx again Pete!
Has anybody ever heard of a band called "Formula Tre"? My parents introduced me to that band when I was 5 or 6. At that age I had no concept of this new term called progressive rock, lol, but I really enjoyed the music of this band.
This is Chuck Forsyth. Using the wife’s IPAD, hence the Tonya… I just discovered your site. Kinda hard to believe I didn’t find you sooner, but I didn’t play with TH-cam very much. I about crapped my drawers when I saw all the Italian album covers. I go all the way back with all these bands. I had 3.600 imports until the collections were sold. Stupid move. I worshipped the Italians, from Banco to Arti & Mestiere. Still hum many of these tunes…. Saw PFM a few times, but they played the American requested boogies and had no Mellotrons on stage… Bummer.. I could ramble, but folks like me are rare. I listen to PROG only. Gentle Giant, Octopus right now! I played in some awesome bands, was a stagehand for decades, but above all, I was fortunate, being a musician, to break away from The Beach Boys after hearing Van Der Graaf and King Crimson.. Keep it up. I also have the very last of the CD collection, and plan to sell them if you are interested in having me compiling a list!
Italian Prog Rock so underrated and so amazing, my top five (or six): MUSEO ROSENBACH - ZARATHUSTRA PFM - Per Un AMICO PFM - STORIA DI UN MINUTO LOCANDA DELLE FATE - Forse Le Lucciole Non Si Amano Più Le Orme - UOMO DI PEZZA UNIVERSAL TOTEM ORCHESTRA - MATHEMATICAL MOTHER (yeah kinda Zeuhl but so what?)
Great job Pete, even if I'm Italian I didn't get into italian prog often, apart from the "usual suspects" I should give more listening to some of the albums that you mentioned.
I’m Italian, in the 70s I’ve grown with italian prog and I can sayvthat you’ve put on this list really the best of the best. Really a great video and I canntell you that you gave me a couple of suggestion (a pair of albums you have shown I didn’t know 😄) I can suggest uou the first albuns of FRANVO BATTIATO (“Fetus”, “Pollution” and “Sulle corde di aries), the firstcrecord of IL VOLO (the supergroup of the 70s, NOT the terribkebpop trio of tifay) and, forcthe new italuan prog, the LPs of MOONGARDEN and LA MASCHERA DI CERA (expecially “Le porte del domani” that is sort if a sequel of “Felona e sorona” by Le Orme).
Thank you. I am exploring Italian prog, after over 30 years of Yes, ELP, Genesis, Gentle Giant and the like. I am Italian and to me understanding the lyrics is kinda barrier to full appreciation.
Alphataurus-Alphataurus (1973)
Alusa Fallax-Intorno alla mia cattiva educazione (1974)
Area- Crac! (1975)
Arti & Mestieri- Tilt (Immagini per un orecchio) (1974)
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso - Darwin(1972)
Banco-Io Sono Nato Libero (1973)
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso - Banco del Mutuo Soccorso (1972)
Biglietto per l'Inferno -Biglietto per l'Inferno (1974)
Campo Di Marte- Campo di Marte (1973)
Celeste - Principe di un giorno (1976)
Cherry Five-Cherry Five (1975)
DFA-Lavori in Corso (1996)
Goblin-Roller (1976)
I Califfi- Fiore De Metallo (1973)
I Giganti-Terra In Bocca (1971)
Il Balletto di Bronzo - Ys (1972)
Il Rovescio della Medaglia - Contaminazione (1973)
Latte e Miele-Papillon (1973)
Le Orme - Felona e Sorona (1973)
Le Orme-Contrappunti (1974)
Locanda delle Fate - Forse le Lucciole non si Amano piú (1977)
Maxophone-Maxophone (1975)
Metamorfosi - Inferno (1973)
Museo Rosenbach -Zarathustra (1973)
Osanna - Palepoli (1972)
Premiata Forneria Marconi-Storia Di Un Minuto (1972)
Premiata Forneria Marconi- L’isola di niente (1974)
Quella Vecchia Locanda (1972)
Quella Vecchia Locanda- Il tempo della gioia (1974)
Semiramis -Dedicato a Frazz (1973)
I've loved Italian prog since discovering PFM in 1974... L'isola di niente... I have most of these albums, and a few more, but there's a few I have never heard... cool AF! I was just listening to 'Ys' and then this video drops.... Well done!
BTW...Just got my newest SoT shirt today... the Dragonfly design... digging it!
Great primer list Pete! I'm so glad my local record store introduced me to this branch of Prog back in 1997. They also (and still) keep a lot of Italian Prog in stock along with the rest of their Prog.
Museo Rosenbach
Banco
Le Orme
PFM
New Trolls
Osanna
Jumbo
Goblin
Campo di Marte
Il Rovescio della Medaglia
Biglietto per l'Inferno
Picchio dal Pozzo
Quella Vecchia Locanda
Garybaldi
Delirium
Panna Fredda
Gli Alluminogeni
Area
Nuova Idea
Formula 3
Balletto di Bronzo
The Trip
Pierrot Lunaire
Alusa Fallax
Raccomandata con Ricevuta di Ritorno
Metamorfosi
Locanda delle Fate
Acqua Fragile
Maxophone
Opus Avantra
Osage Tribe
L'Uovo di Colombo
Il Volo
Arti e Mestieri
Perigeo
Etna
Celeste
Cervello
Dalton
Festa Mobile
Il Paese dei Balocchi
Jacula
Semiramis
J.E.T.
Cherry Five
Battiato
El Giro Strano
Pichio Dal Pozzo
E.A. Poe
I Giganti
Il Baricentro
Alan Sorrenti
Tito Schipa Jr.
Baffo Banfi
Agora
Capsicum Red
Cincinnato
Eneide
Gruppo 2001
Grupo D'Alternativa
La Seconda Genesi
Le Mani
Salis
Sensitiva Immagine
The Underground Set
Lapera
Bella Band
Esagono
Errata Corrige
La Statale 17
De De Lind
Alphataurus
Blue Phantom
Procession
Reale Accademia di Musica
Sensation's Fix
Buon Vecchio Charlie
Apoteosi
Stormy Six
@@brunosamppa Murple
@@JoeChewBaca
I will always forget some name. Great band indeed. Thanks
Italian Prog, feel like it NEVER gets its due or respect. So many great bands, thanks for covering this Pete🙏🏽
Top Italian Prog bands:
1 Premiata Forneria Marconi
2 Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso
3 Le Orme 4 Area
5 Goblin/Cherry Five
6 Acqua Fragile
7 Alphataurus
8 Quella Vecchia Locanda
9 Locanda Delle Fate
10 Museo Rosenbach
As an Italian, I have to say that I am impressed. You mentioned quite a few bands that I had never known. Thank you.
Daje
I just bought Le Orme cd last night
Here are my 20 most played Italian albums over the last 21 years.
As you all can see the list is quite similar.
1. Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso (1972)
2. Alphataurus - Alphataurus (1973)
3. Museo Rosenbach - Zarathustra (1973)
4. L'Uovo di Colombo - L’Uovo di Colombo (1973)
5. Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Darwin! (1972)
6. Celeste - Principe Di Un Giorno (1976)
7. Banco - Di Terra (1978)
8. Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Io Sono Nato Libero (1973)
9. Le Orme - Felona E Sorona (1973)
10. Le Orme - Uomo di pezza (1972)
11. I Giganti - Terra in Bocca (1971)
12. PFM - L'isola Di Niente (1974)
13. Biglietto Per l'Inferno - Biglietto Per l'Inferno (1974)
14. Metamorfosi - Inferno (1973)
15. Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Come in un'ultima cena (1976)
16. PFM - Storia di un minuto (1972)
17. Il Balletto di Bronzo - YS (1972)
18. Banco Del Mutuo Soccorso - Seguendo le tracce (1975/2005) Live album recorded 1975.
19. Banco - Canto di primavera (1979)
20. Alusa Fallax - Intorno Alla Mia Cattiva Educazione (1974)
Grazie mille....this was amazing....greetings from Italy...great pronunciation Pete..you rule!
I live in Brazil and i love italian progressive rock. One of my favorites albums is Area "Arbeit Macht Frei"
Two albums that are essential when talking about the best Italian prog:
Arti & Mestieri - Giro Di Valzer
Perigeo - Fata Morgana (Italian title: Non E Poi Cosi Lontano)
Giro is equally as great as Tilt.
The Perigeo album was released on CD but maybe difficult to find. A lot of U.S. LP copies around.
Melodic, inventive, wonderful blend of jazz, rock, prog.
Museo Rosenbach is one of my favorite prog groups.
I'm only familiar with Italian prog because of Dario Argento films, so this vid is going to come in handy. Thanks, Pete!
Thank you Pete. Here are some other albums in the Italian Prog and Neo-Prog genres (most of which you have recommended in the past) that I have enjoyed. Cheers.
Afklarung-De' La' Tempesta ... L'Oscuro Piacere (1995)
Acqua Fragile-Acqua Fragile (1973)
Area-Arbeit Macht Frei (1973)
Area-Gli Dei Se Ne Vanno, Gli Arrabiati Restano (1978)
Barock Project-Skyline (2015)
Barock Project-Detachment (2017)
Barock Project-Seven Seas (2019)
Dedalus-Dedalus (1973)
Finisterre-Finisterre (1994)
Finisterre-In Limine (1996)
Goblin-Il Fantastico Viaggio Del Bagarozzo Mark (1978)
Il Balletto Di Bronzo-Sirio 2222 (1970)
Il Rovescio della Medaglia-Live in Tokyo (2014)
Le Omre-Uomo di Pezza (1972)
Locanda delle Fate-Homo Homini Lupus (1999)
Osanna-Luomo (1971)
Panther & C.-Il Guisto Equilibrio (2017)
Awesome video as always, thanks Pete!
Here are a few of my favourites that you didn’t mention:
Cervello - Melos (1973)
De De Lind - Io non so da dove vengo e non so dove mai andrò. Uomo è il nome che mi han dato. (1973)
Hero - Hero (1974)
Reale Accademia di Musica - Reale Accademia di Musica (1972)
Great video! I would add or picked different albums from certain groups:
Blocco Mentale - Poa
Le Orme - Uomo di Pezza
Latte e Miele . Passio Secundum Mattheum
Il Volo - Essere O Non Essere
Murple - Io Sono Murple
Genfuoco - Dentro L'Invisibile
Raccomandata Ricevuta Ritorno - Per....Un Mondo Di Cristallo
Cervello - Melos
Acqua Fragile - Mass-Media Stars
Jumbo - Vietato Ai Minori Di 18 Anni
De De Lind - Io Non So Da Dove Vengo E Non So Dove Mai Andrò, Uomo È Il Nome Che Mi Han Dato
Fantastic Video Pete. I think Italian Prog Rock should be very important for any prog rock ears.
Some amazing albums you've mentioned, well worth checking out all your mentions.
Here are my must have 10 Italian albums:
1. De De Lind - Io Non So Da Dove... (the longest album name I know of) - 1973 - one album band. Heavy Sabbathy guitars/vibe with flute fused with Crimson's Red era with Italian kink to it, man this is a killer. And that beautiful album cover.
2. Museo Rosenbach - Zarathustra - 1973 - one look at the album cover art. The music inside is as heavy, dark yet melodic and perfectly composed as this cover.
3. Quella Vecchia Locanda - Il Tempo Della Gioia - 1974 - again what a wonderful album cover. Enigmatic somewhat with super melodic moments, harmonies, keyboards, "A Forma Di" is enough to die for.
4. Il Paese Dei Balocchi - Il Paese Dei Balocchi - 1972 - one album band. Romantic soft prog bit jazzy with some great classical atmosphere. Yet another great album cover for the wall.
5. Alan Sorrenti - Aria - 1972 - this genius debut album will crawl under the skin and hunt the mind forever.
6. Claudio Rocchi - Volo Magico N.1 - 1971 - also here a unique journey of which patience will pay off.
7. Jumbo - DNA - 1972 - great acoustic guitars, flute, keyboards, raging electric guitars, one amazing alvaro Fella and this is only side one piece, 20 minutes of perfection. And that face on the cover art... killer.
8. Alusa Fallax - Intorno Alla Mia Cattiva Educazione - 1974 - another killer one album band, fantastically mentioned by Pete, not enough attention is paid to this hidden gem, I think.
9. Capitolo 6 - Frutti Per Kagua - 1972 - one album band (surprise...), with great album. Guitars, flutes, sax, prog/blues/jazzy, rocky and groovy with beautiful slow passages as well.
10. Il Rovescio Della Medaglia - Contaminazione - 1973 - one of the best prog rock tribute album to Bach. Keyboards from heaven, and more. Plus a cover art to lock it in. Top notch masterpiece.
Yes, no album from the holy trinity of Italian prog (PFM, Banco, Le Orme) in my list.
For my money, any of the above albums will swallow for breakfast any of the trinity offerings, and if pressed hard maybe Uomo Di Pezza will get a slot in second 10s round...
:-)
Excellent selection, a few I don't know. One must own missing is the supergroup "Il volo" from 1974, my very favorite. 2nd album great as well, more instrumental.
Thank you, Pete, for such a jam packed show on this topic and providing the list in the comments section. Your passion for this category really comes through as you discuss these albums and then decide to pick a top 5 for the show. Looking forward to using your list. Thanks again.
I can add: Reale Accademia Di Musica 1972, and Napoli Centrale 1975. I'm a big fan of Le Orme and PFM. I was shopping in many record stores in Italy five years ago, that was a lot of fun.
GRAZIE...excellent list. Celeste’s “Principe di un Giorno” and Locanda Delle Fate’s “Forse Le Lucciole...” are sublime Italian prog...extreme musical beauty. The Italian trinity PFM+Banco+Le Orme could beat the British bands at their own game any time! Auguri!!
Great primer. I’m belatedly getting into this stuff, having dipped a toe a few years back. This was a rich vein of wonderful music. Thank you.
This was a really informative show Pete.
I know nothing outside of PFM, so this is exactly what I needed.
I’ve been a huge Goblin fan since seeing Deep Red for the first time. Roller is mind blowing. Probably my favorite Prog album after Selling England by the Pound. I will also definitely check these other albums out.
20 more albums from bands/aritsts that Pete didn't include in his list, to make the whole a round 50.
Acqua Fragile - Acqua Fragile (1973)
Alan Sorrenti - Aria (1972)
Apoteosi - Apoteosi (1975)
Blocco Mentale - Πόα (Poa) (1973)
Cervello - Melos (1973)
De De Lind - Io non so da dove vengo e non so dove mai andrò. Uomo è il nome che mi han dato. (1973)
Festa Mobile - Diario di viaggio della Festa mobile (1973)
Finisterre - In Ogni Luogo (1999)
Gruppo D'alternativa - Ipotesi (1972)
Ibis - Canti d'innocenza, canti d'esperienza (1973)
Ibis - Sun Supreme (1974)
Il Paese dei balocchi - Il Paese dei balocchi (1972)
Il Volo - Il Volo (1974)
Il Volo - Essere o Non Essere? (1975)
I Teoremi - I Teoremi (1972)
Osage Tribe - Arrowhead (1972)
Perigeo - Abbiamo tutti un blues da piangere (1973)
Pierrot Lunaire - Pierrot Lunaire (1974)
Raccomandata Ricevuta Ritorno - Per... un mondo di cristallo (1972)
Reale Accademia di Musica - Reale Accademia di Musica (1972)
Honorable mentions:
Panna Fredda - Uno (1971)
Nuova Idea - Clowns (1973)
Zauber - Zauber (1978)
Fabrizio de André - In concerto: Arrangiamenti PFM (1979) (This is a special record in which italian pop-folk legend Fabrizio de André teams up with the guys from PFM to record his songs with new "proggier" arrangements. It has a legendary status in Italy and comes in two parts)
Also you can check out the work of Franco Battiato. Although not a prog artist "per se" at the start of his career he made a string of highly experimental albums, which at the time were categorized as progressive rock. Check out Fetus (1972), Pollution (1972) and Sulle Corde di Aries (1973).
I have a Spotify playlist with basically songs from all of Pete's albums (if they are on Spotify of course) and mine. You can check it out here: open.spotify.com/playlist/1BQA45bVsi9ZFkV0z5XT0A?si=r9il3VzXTZ--u4ttnGNjGQ
The English lyrics for two PFM albums were written by Pete Sinfield, original lyricist for King Crimson and ELP.
Thank you for mentioning your favorite Italian progressive rock albums. I enjoyed listening to your suggestions. 🎼🎤🎸🎵🥁
Top 11 album sales Italy march 1972:
1. Van Der Graaf Generator: Pawn Hearts
2. Premiata Forneria Marconi: Storia Di Un Minuto
3. Emerson, Lake & Palmer: Pictures At An Exhibition
4. Genesis: Nursery Cryme
5. King Crimson: Islands
6. Fabrizio de André: Non al Denaro .....
7. George Harrison: Concert For Bangla Desh
8. John Lennon: Imagine
9. Mina: Mina
10. Led Zeppelin: IV
11. Yes: Fragile
What a great list. Almost unbelievable.
Wow.... VDGG first place in Italy back than. Respect.
For me Pawn Hearts is their magnum opus and is the absolute highest peak of english prog.
There are many great prog bands, some of them (Renaissance, Genesis, King Crimson, Yes, Caravan, Camel, Mike Oldfield, Robert Wyatt, Jethro Tull, Gong) are touching on perfection for a while, however Pawn Hearts is always few levels beyond. Untouchable.
@@chickpea5966 Pawn Hearts for my is indeed the magnum opus of Van Der Graaf Generator. 7 out of 11 progressive rock albums in Italy back than in 1972. It's totally amazing.
Hi. "Contaminazione" by Rovescio della Medaglia, is a másterwork. I was 16 years old, in 7 grade in my Music School, for me was amazing this álbum. I'm a Bach's fan, and hear how them created this LP, with Bach's inspiracion.The voices, the arrangement, the counterpoint, beautiful.!!
GREAT video! You covered pretty much all the great ones (only notable exception off the top of my head is Sensitiva Immagine), and you skipped a lot that I'm glad you didn't include like Acqua Fragile, New Trolls, etc. Very well done - cheers! :)
Great list but nothing comes close to Il Balletto Di Bronzo's YS in my opinion. It's head and shoulders above all others. Best drumming, keyboards and vocals I've ever heard from the genre. Perfect gothic Italian masterpiece.
Rock Progressivo Italiano: Incredible scene -amazing bands! A homage to the krautrock scene would be a wonderful video and a guide for many people. Greetings from Greece, Pete! Keep up the good work.
Great overview Pete. My impression with the early Italian prog is it harkens back to the great musical tradition of opera. Italy does account for (arguably) the greatest composers of that genre: Verdi, Puccini, and Rossini. The band from across the English Channel that would have exerted great influence is Van der Graaf Generator; with the manic/partially operatic vocals of Peter Hammill. In the early 70's VdGG were immensely popular in Italy. While none of the bands may sound like them; the influence and expressiveness is there. Spot on with the holy trinity (PFM, Le Orme, Banco).
Great topic - great list.
In addition to the mentioned albums in the video I can recommend:
Cervello - Melos
Jumbo - Vietato Ai Minori Di 18 Anni?
Realle Accademia Di Musica - Realle Accademia Di Musica
Thank you very much for this list! I love Italian Prog and I think you did a great job covering all those bands.
My 10 favourites:
1
Museo Rosenbach
Zarathustra (1973)
2
Premiata Forneria Marconi
Per un amico (1972)
3
Quella Vecchia Locanda
Il tempo della gioia (1974)
4
Locanda delle Fate
Forse le lucciole non si amano più (1977)
5
Premiata Forneria Marconi
Storia di un minuto (1972)
6
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso
Darwin! (1972)
7
Quella Vecchia Locanda
Quella Vecchia Locanda (1972)
8
Maxophone
Maxophone (1975)
9
Premiata Forneria Marconi
L'isola di niente (1974)
10
Celeste
Celeste (1976)
Ottimo lavoro Pete. Non dimentichiamo New Trolls - Concerto Grosso
Four 5 star Italian Progressive albums
Buon Vecchio Charlie... S/T (1999)
Opus Avan tra/Introspezione (1974)
Le Orme/L'infinito (2004)
Cherry Five/IL pozzo dei giganti (2015)
I've had the cherry five cd for about 15 years and I love it. The singer actually sings in English which is nice. Great prog music!
PFM is a terrific band. Amazing songs. I really dig them for many decades.
Pete does inestimable public service with this channel. Lots of incredible music on this episode, and several records I need to check out. Area is insane, man. Demetrio Stratos is an amazing figure in prog, check out his VERY strange solo album!
Demetrio Stratos is greek. That is very important to the music of Area. As a greek myself who is fluent in italian, I can easily discern the greek accent in his italian, which makes his voice sound so strange and unique. The song "Cometa Rossa" from Caution Radiation Area is sung in greek. Also the music of Area has a lot of elements from greek traditional music.
@@TassosFragou very cool, man! Do you have some Greek prog recommendations for us?
@@nelsonshuchmacherendebo7688 Well, prog didn't catch in Greece as it did in Italy, for various reasons, so there aren't many albums to recommend. Basically you have:
Kostas Tournas - Aperanta Chorafia (Κώστας Τουρνάς - Απέραντα Χωράφια) (1972). Available on TH-cam and Spotify. Like "Thick as a Brick", it has only two songs a Part I and a Part II taking all the respective record sides. Spotify offers it in the EP section as one continuous song of 35 minutes.
Iraklis Triantafyllidis - Se Allous Kosmous (In Other Worlds). Written in 1973 (during the military dictatorship era) but recorded in 1976 (after the fall of the junta).
P.L.J. Band - Armageddon (1982). Available on TH-cam and Spotify. And of course:
Aphrodite's Child - 666 (1972). Possibly the best album of rock played by greeks ever recorded. It has reached a legendary status, lauded by musicians like Mikael Akerfeld and Steven Wilson and comes from a band that had two future international music superstars, Vangelis and Demis Roussos (both reached stardom palying things totally different from this album). If you like to learn more read this: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/666_(Aphrodite%27s_Child_album)
I can't think of anything else. Now there are also two songs, from the same artist, Dionysis Savvopoulos, that can qualify as prog:
"Ballos" from the album Ballos (1970) and
"Mavri Thalassa" from the album Vromiko Psomi (1972)
Both over 10 mins long they are possibly what someone might think greek prog should sound like, incorporating a lot of greek folk music elements. The rest of the albums is mostly psych/folk. Both albums available on Spotify.
Applies to all his Sea Of Tranquility vids. So much music that I haven't heard of and check out. Just wish people who comment would chill. They are Pete's opinions and should be respected
@@TassosFragou thank you so much for these recommendations, man. I'm on the hunt! :)
Thanks for this! I’ve heard a bunch of these, but you mentioned a few that I’ve not run across before, Alusa Fallax being one. Always nice to find more to explore.
Excellent job, Pete! I've been into Italian prog since 1972 and felt like I was right at home with my own cd collection, as I have and love 28 of the 30 titles you talked about. The only two I don't have and are totally new to me were I Califfi and I Giganti but I'll rectify that a.s.a.p. I was disappointed you didn't mention one of my all-time favorites, "Finest Finger" by Sensations' Fix but I realize you only have so much time to do these great shows and can't include everything.
Brilliant !! Thanks for that sir ! Zarathustra and Felona e Sorona are two of my all time favourite albums but I hadn't heard of half of the others you mentioned so plenty to keep me busy there ! Thank you again :)
Thank you Pete for doing this wonderful segment on Italian Progressive Rock. I am enjoying the different groups from your list. Would love to see a follow up with your favorite top 10-20 songs from your list. Regards, Sal Randazzo.
Sono sempre molto fiero quando si ascolta e apprezza musica dall'Italia
Thanks, Pete. I have about 10 of these. Now I have to start tracking down the others.
Thank you so much for this show Pete! I also look forward to the German list of Albums! Amazing infrmation
Hi bro I'm Italian and beside the groups compliments for your fine Italian speaking Maybe with all this music u also learned the language Very well Manu
A treasure trove Pete! Love trying new music sounds, going to give these a try. Great show! Thanks for your efforts on this.
Thanks for this, Pete. Appreciate this intro to Italian Prog. So much to explore.
Awesome video pete.got some homework to do.
Le Orme: Uomo di pezza is one of my all time favorite albums. Really a great show by the way Pete.
Have to agree. Many outstanding albums from Le Orme, but Uomo Di Pezza from 1972 stands head snd shoulders above all the rest, IMO.
If anyone want me to recommend one Le Orme album then that would be my #1 choice :)
love the show. Excellent choices. I'm a huge rock progressivo italiano aficionado with albums by more than 100 different artists and 300+ albums. You did say that you haven't been keeping up with some of the more recent stuff. I encourage you to do so because there is a lot of great italian prog happening in today's world. Barack Project, il Cerchio d'Oro, Unreal City, La Maschera di Cera, Logos to name a few.
Hey this video is a year old today! Love it, I just bought 3 of these on amazon last night. Storia di un minuto
Italy always seem to produce such unique music. Italian prog (along with Italian doom) being great examples.
Sono Italano, pensavo di conoscere abbastanza bene il nostro Rock Progressivo, possiedo anche un paio di libri sul genere, e invece... te inizi con 2 Album di 2 Band mai sentite. Grande Pete ! 😊👍
Van der graaf was one Of the most popular bands in Italy in early seventies . And is the most Italian like English program band. Their Equipment was stolen in Italy too. VDDG was my fist record purchase in 73 and i still love them
Fa molto piacere sapere che il ns. prog non ha niente da invidiare al prog inglese, ma che tutt'altro i nostri gruppi nutrono di grande rispetto, Grande Progressive Italiano
Thank you Peter for the great music updates. I had a number of those albums back in the 70s. My friends were big prg fans.Be the only Italian in my crowd. I found this music at international record store in downtown Toronto. The owner would preview the music for us. My first album was from IL Volo. It recieved top album for that year from our FM station. It was the second album Esere o non Esere. First time listening thank you. Those albums brought a whole lot of memories. Was able to catch PFM 3x in Toronto
Thank you Pete. I waited for this program.
Instant Like, Pete. What a great prog scene Italy was in the seventies. So much great one-shot albums and fantastic bands. People have to know prog around the world.
Cheers
Museo Rosenbach
Banco
Le Orme
PFM
New Trolls
Osanna
Jumbo
Goblin
Campo di Marte
Il Rovescio della Medaglia
Biglietto per l'Inferno
Picchio dal Pozzo
Quella Vecchia Locanda
Garybaldi
Delirium
Panna Fredda
Gli Alluminogeni
Area
Nuova Idea
Formula 3
Balletto di Bronzo
The Trip
Pierrot Lunaire
Alusa Fallax
Raccomandata con Ricevuta di Ritorno
Metamorfosi
Murple
Locanda delle Fate
Acqua Fragile
Maxophone
Opus Avantra
Osage Tribe
L'Uovo di Colombo
Il Volo
Arti e Mestieri
Perigeo
Etna
Celeste
Cervello
Dalton
Festa Mobile
Il Paese dei Balocchi
Jacula
Semiramis
J.E.T.
Cherry Five
Battiato
El Giro Strano
Pichio Dal Pozzo
E.A. Poe
I Giganti
Il Baricentro
Alan Sorrenti
Tito Schipa Jr.
Baffo Banfi
Agora
Capsicum Red
Cincinnato
Eneide
Gruppo 2001
Grupo D'Alternativa
La Seconda Genesi
Le Mani
Salis
Sensitiva Immagine
The Underground Set
Lapera
Bella Band
Esagono
Errata Corrige
La Statale 17
De De Lind
Alphataurus
Blue Phantom
Procession
Reale Accademia di Musica
Sensation's Fix
Buon Vecchio Charlie
Apoteosi
Stormy Six
Finally found a song ive been searching for weeks, thanks.
Zarathustra is without a doubt my favourite Italian prog album. One of my favourite albums of all time!
A well done list, Pete :) Fom Area, I do prefer the first two: "Arbeit Macht Frei" and "Caution Radiation Area". Apart from Italy, in Europe, there was also a special place for an excelent duch band: Supersister. The two first albuns are superb: "Letter from Nancy" (1970) and "To the Highest Bidder" (1971). From my country, Portugal, there is an excelent prog/folk band from the 70's: Banda do Casaco. My two favourites albums are “Do Benefício dos Vendidos no Reino dos Bonifácios” (1974) and "Hoje Há Conquilhas Amanhã Não Sabemos" (1977). Another classic portuguese prog record is Jose Cid "10.000 Anos Depois Entre Vénus E Marte" (1978).
New trolls,Osanna,PFM..these 3 bands is my faves
This is great, I know have a whole new world to explore.
Greetings from Italy.
Gotta love Banco del mutuo soccorso and Goblin.
Good to know that the scene has following abroad.
Wow. Super informative! 👍💯
Thanks so much Pete! I have been wanting to sample Italian prog but had no idea where to start. Great shirt too!
Great selection!
I will add 3 albums :
1- Bella Band : Bella Band (78)
2- Picchio Dal Pozzo : Picchio Dal Pozzo (76)
3- Banco : Di Terra (78)
I consider Banco "Di Terra" as one of best progressive albums of all time.
Great video! How about a scandinavian episode? Lots of great prog from Sweden and Norway too...
Awesome idea!
Absolutely!
Oh, Yeah. Been waiting for this one! Loved it! Pete's Italian pronunciations, so much better than the other America reviewers.
Someday, please give us a Modern Italian Prog video.
Thank you, Pete, for exposing me to this amazing music!
Thanks for doing this! Once again you have put up a great archive/resource on this deep topic! I find that Italian prog just drips with emotion and power unlike any other branch of the tree. As always, cheers from Canada.
Thanks for this video, you've done us a great favor in putting all this together. It's a lot to absorb but thankfully it's all listed here in the comments. I've had my basic four PFM albums for a long time, (the first three and the live "Cook") and it took me some time to get my hands on Il Rovescio de la Medaglia's Contaminazione, Now that I have this list I have finally started digging into these titles. Thrilled to see Goblin's Roller album on here, that is their best album!
Great list. I would add, apart from Concerto Grosso as others have indicated, Alan Sorrenti’s Aria, Picchio dal Pozzo and a couple of Pooh albums (Poohlover has great tracks, the Parsifal suite on the same name album is a must). And yeah, Demetrio Stratos, Area’s vocalist, was a visionary genius.
Really pleased you've done this Pete. Italian prog can feel a little daunting at the beginning. I discovered it from an early prog rock website 20 or more years ago. I've bought 9 of the albums you've recommended plus a few other studio albums and some of the leading live albums.
I don't have a problem listening to the songs in Italian but I do wish I knew what the songs were about.
A good approach, from my point of view.
Greetings!
I salute you, Pete! sifting through the labyrinth of Italian Prog is no easy task, and discussing 30 albums is above and beyond! this is why I subscribe to your channel. thank you
Goblin - Il fantastico viaggio del bagarozzo Mark (1978) is a masterpiece! I bet you've heard it. Beautiful album. Grows on you.
thanks Pete for this tribute to Italian prog, as an Italian myself I really appreciate it (and I have to admit you know it much better than me)! I personally put Area up there with PFM, Banco and Le Orme. Demetrio Stratos was pure talent and genius, too bad he died way too young, and the rest of the band are absolutely amazing instrumentists
Previously I was only familiar with the band PFM through Rock radio play they had in 1973 with a song called "Celebration". It was from their 3rd album "Photos Of Ghosts"(1973) but I purchased it from a live album they released around the same time titled "Cook".
I love the song but never explored the band further, nor was I ever introduced to other Italian bands.
Congratulazioni Pete, argomenti come questo ti rendono il migliore del gioco!
Killer list Pete!
So far I’ve only listened to 2 Italian Prog albums. I like one of them and I love the other. Those are Darwin! and Come In Un’ultima Cena by Banco.
I listened to Come In Un’Ultima Cena first, after hearing “Il Ragno” on a Prog Rock/Metal playlist. The rest of the album is strong, but not as energetic and exciting as “Il Ragno,” and maybe a bit more mellow than I was expecting.
A few weeks ago I listened to the Darwin! album because most people say it’s Banco’s best album. It wouldn’t surprise me if that’s true because man, what an incredible album it is! Most of the album is fast and powerful, and even the slower, calmer songs (Tracks 5 & 7) are beautiful and nice breaks from the intensity of the rest of the album. Even after just one listen, I loved it, and I feel like it could break into my top 100 albums of all time with further listens.
I definitely plan on listening to more Italian Prog, including the rest of Banco’s 70s material as well as their 2 latest albums, plus some stuff from PFM and Le Orme. Then we’ll see where I go from there
I've got a copy of Photos of Ghosts by PFM, and recently I heard Storia di un Minuto and Per un Amico. you are so right! the Italian versions are way superior to the Anglicized PoG (which is still a phenomenal album). the former 2 albums are INCREDIBILE!
Saw pfm a couple of times in UK and once at a gig in Italy. Went early, ended up spending the afternoon with the crew looking at the drums etc. FOH engineer was Andy Hendriksen who had just finished engineering Works by ELP
Very informative video. Looking forward to checking a few of these out. The only band here I’ve heard of before is Goblin. I’ve heard Mikael Akerfeldt mention them a couple times in interviews before. Will have to check them out first
This is a real treasure, u have mostly all Bands on your List that i also would have, I'm missing just a few and some of the solo artists from italy. I'm into italian prog since the late eighties and i'm glad to have all of your recommandations on vinyl except DFA which I never heard before. Palepoli from Osanna is among my all time top five prog albums ever made, very close to vdgg. Would like to add some gems later to the list, but for now: all the best from germany.
Good Lord, I finally thoroughly explored both Semiramis and Museo Rosenbach albums from 1973. Fantastico! I thought no one would ever compete with PFM but those two albums are that good! Also warming up to Il Baleto di Bronzo. Wild!
I did not know that Cherry Five became Goblin! I have a recent album from them that was given to me and its really good.
Just wanted to post that this episode allowed me to discover something new. After finding most of these, my favorites were:
Arti E Mestieri "Tilt";
Le Orme has quite a few I like;
Cherry Five/Goblin were cool;
Il Baletto di Bronzo "La tua casa camoda" and Califfi "Madre domani" were really good IMO.
Thx again Pete!
Has anybody ever heard of a band called "Formula Tre"? My parents introduced me to that band when I was 5 or 6. At that age I had no concept of this new term called progressive rock, lol, but I really enjoyed the music of this band.
Of course....they were pretty good, sadly, a little underrated.....great stuff here and there....
Appreciate the italic list. Grazia! How do u do it... Thousands of bands .... Thanx for the knowledge.
This is Chuck Forsyth. Using the wife’s IPAD, hence the Tonya…
I just discovered your site. Kinda hard to believe I didn’t find you sooner, but I didn’t play with TH-cam very much. I about crapped my drawers when I saw all the Italian album covers. I go all the way back with all these bands. I had 3.600 imports until the collections were sold. Stupid move. I worshipped the Italians, from Banco to Arti & Mestiere. Still hum many of these tunes…. Saw PFM a few times, but they played the American requested boogies and had no Mellotrons on stage… Bummer.. I could ramble, but folks like me are rare. I listen to PROG only. Gentle Giant, Octopus right now! I played in some awesome bands, was a stagehand for decades, but above all, I was fortunate, being a musician, to break away from The Beach Boys after hearing Van Der Graaf and King Crimson..
Keep it up.
I also have the very last of the CD collection, and plan to sell them if you are interested in having me compiling a list!
Italian Prog Rock so underrated and so amazing, my top five (or six):
MUSEO ROSENBACH - ZARATHUSTRA
PFM - Per Un AMICO
PFM - STORIA DI UN MINUTO
LOCANDA DELLE FATE - Forse Le Lucciole Non Si Amano Più
Le Orme - UOMO DI PEZZA
UNIVERSAL TOTEM ORCHESTRA - MATHEMATICAL MOTHER (yeah kinda Zeuhl but so what?)
Mathematical Mother is an amazing album!
Great job Pete, even if I'm Italian I didn't get into italian prog often, apart from the "usual suspects" I should give more listening to some of the albums that you mentioned.
I’m Italian, in the 70s I’ve grown with italian prog and I can sayvthat you’ve put on this list really the best of the best.
Really a great video and I canntell you that you gave me a couple of suggestion (a pair of albums you have shown I didn’t know 😄)
I can suggest uou the first albuns of FRANVO BATTIATO (“Fetus”, “Pollution” and “Sulle corde di aries), the firstcrecord of IL VOLO (the supergroup of the 70s, NOT the terribkebpop trio of tifay) and, forcthe new italuan prog, the LPs of MOONGARDEN and LA MASCHERA DI CERA (expecially “Le porte del domani” that is sort if a sequel of “Felona e sorona” by Le Orme).
Contrappunti masterpiece de le orme. GRANDE ALBUM.
Nice channel man! Congrats! Just subscribed.
Great choices (the ones i truly love is Arti, Goblin, PFM, Piccio dal Pozzo!) what of a German Progressive Rock Primer
Thank you. I am exploring Italian prog, after over 30 years of Yes, ELP, Genesis, Gentle Giant and the like. I am Italian and to me understanding the lyrics is kinda barrier to full appreciation.
Goblin's Roller! One of my top albums. Instrumental prog at it's finest!
Sorry to say Pete, but you forgot NEW TROLLS Concerto Grosso, amazing!!!
Yes they are amazing