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{{Short description|Genre of rock music}}
{{For|the radio format|Progressive rock (radio format)}}
{{Redirect|Classical rock|"classic rock" as a radio format |classic rock|other uses|Classic Rock (disambiguation)}}
{{Good article}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{Infobox music genre
| name              = Progressive rock
| other_names       = * [[Art rock]]
* classical rock
* prog
* symphonic rock
| stylistic_origins = * [[Rock music|Rock]]
* [[Psychedelic music|psychedelia]]
* [[progressive music]]
* [[jazz]]
* [[folk music|folk]]
* [[classical music|classical]]
| cultural_origins  = Mid to late 1960s, United Kingdom<ref name="AMProg" />
| derivatives       = * [[Krautrock]]<ref>{{cite web|author1=Anon|title=Kraut Rock|url=http://www.allmusic.com/subgenre/kraut-rock-ma0000002687|website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=25 January 2017|date=n.d.|archive-date=2 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202185929/http://www.allmusic.com/subgenre/kraut-rock-ma0000002687|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[new-age music]]{{sfn|Macan|1997|pp=22, 140}}
* [[occult rock]]<ref name="Paperlate">{{cite web |last1=Lloyd-Davis |first1=Isere |title=Paperlate: the modern witch goes prog |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/paperlate-the-modern-witch-goes-prog |website=[[Prog (magazine)|Prog]] |date=16 February 2017 |access-date=17 June 2018 |archive-date=19 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619113008/https://www.loudersound.com/features/paperlate-the-modern-witch-goes-prog |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[post-rock]]<ref name="allmusic">{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/style/post-rock-ma0000002790|title=Post-Rock|website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=31 January 2017|archive-date=1 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200401155732/https://www.allmusic.com/style/post-rock-ma0000002790|url-status=live}}</ref>
* [[Progressive pop#Symphonic pop|symphonic pop]]{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=187}}
* [[synth-pop]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.classicpopmag.com/2022/10/birth-of-synth-pop/ |title=Things that dreams are made of: The birth of synth-pop |work=Classic Pop |date=20 October 2022 |access-date=22 January 2025}}</ref>
| subgenres         = * [[Canterbury scene]]<ref name="AllMusicAvantProg"/>
* [[neo-prog]]<ref>{{cite web | url= http://www.allmusic.com/subgenre/neo-prog-ma0000012218 | title= Neo-Prog | website= [[AllMusic]] | access-date= 19 November 2016 | archive-date= 4 September 2015 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150904053727/http://www.allmusic.com/subgenre/neo-prog-ma0000012218 | url-status= live }}</ref>
* [[Rock in Opposition]]<ref name="AllMusicAvantProg">{{cite web|title=Pop/Rock " Art-Rock/Experimental " Avant-Prog|url=http://www.allmusic.com/style/avant-prog-ma0000011969|website=[[AllMusic]]|access-date=14 October 2016|archive-date=27 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161027103036/http://www.allmusic.com/style/avant-prog-ma0000011969|url-status=live}}</ref>
| fusiongenres      = * [[Avant-prog]]
* [[progressive metal]]
* [[progressive soul]]
| local_scenes      = 
| regional_scenes   = 
| other_topics      = * [[Alternative rock]]
* [[arena rock]]
* [[art music]]
* [[concept album]]
* [[experimental rock]]
* [[folk rock]]
* [[hard rock]]
* [[new wave music|new wave]]
* [[post-progressive]]
* [[post-punk]]
* [[progressive country]]
* [[progressive folk]]
* [[progressive pop]]
* [[proto-prog]]
* [[recording studio as an instrument]]
* [[rock opera]]
* [[space rock]]
}}

'''Progressive rock''' (shortened as '''prog rock''' or simply '''prog''') is a broad [[genre]] of [[rock music]]{{sfn|Martin|1998|pp=71–75}} that primarily developed in the United Kingdom<ref name="AMProg" /> through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed "[[progressive pop]]", the style emerged from [[psychedelic music|psychedelic]] bands who abandoned standard [[pop music|pop]] or [[Rock_Music|rock]] traditions in favour of [[Instrumentation (music)|instrumental]] and [[Composition (music)|compositional]] techniques more commonly associated with [[jazz]], [[folk music|folk]], or [[classical music]], while retaining the instrumentation typical of [[rock music]]. Additional elements contributed to its "[[progressive music|progressive]]" label: lyrics were more poetic, technology was harnessed for new sounds, music approached the condition of "[[art music|art]]", and the studio, rather than the stage, [[Recording studio as an instrument|became the focus of musical activity]], which often involved creating music for listening rather than dancing.

Progressive rock includes a fusion of styles, approaches and genres, and tends to be diverse and [[eclecticism in music|eclectic]]. Progressive rock is often associated with long solos, extended pieces, fantastic lyrics, grandiose stage sets and costumes, and an obsessive dedication to technical skill. While the genre is often cited for its merging of [[high culture]] and [[low culture]], few artists incorporated classical themes in their work to a significant degree, and only a handful of groups, such as [[Emerson, Lake & Palmer]] and [[Renaissance (band)|Renaissance]], intentionally emulated or referenced classical music.

The genre arose during the mid-1960s. In the early-to-mid-1970s, progressive rock groups such as [[Yes (band)|Yes]] and [[Genesis (band)|Genesis]] experienced great worldwide success; in the late 1970s, progressive rock experienced declining popularity, from which it has never fully recovered.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=1}} Music critics, who often labelled the style of progressive rock as "pretentious" and the sounds as "pompous" and "overblown", tended to be hostile towards the genre or to completely ignore it.{{sfn|Lucky|2000|p=7}} After the late 1970s, progressive rock fragmented into numerous forms. Some bands achieved commercial success well into the 1980s (albeit with changed lineups and more compact song structures) or crossed into [[symphonic pop]], [[arena rock]], or [[new wave music|new wave]].

Early groups who exhibited progressive features are retroactively described as "[[proto-prog]]". The [[Canterbury scene]], originating in the late 1960s, denotes a subset of progressive rock bands who emphasised the use of [[wind instrument]]s, complex chord changes and long improvisations. [[Rock in Opposition]], from the late 1970s, was more [[avant-garde]], and when combined with the Canterbury style, created [[avant-prog]]. In the 1980s, a new subgenre, [[neo-prog]], enjoyed some commercial success, although it was also accused of being derivative and lacking in innovation. [[Post-progressive]] draws upon newer developments in popular music and the avant-garde since the mid-1970s.

==Definition and characteristics==
{{Further|Progressive music}}

===Scope and related terms===
{{See also|Progressive pop|Art rock}}
The term "progressive rock" is synonymous with "[[art rock]]", "classical rock" (not to be confused with [[classic rock]]), and "symphonic rock".{{sfn|Covach|1997|p=5}} Historically, "art rock" has been used to describe at least two related, but distinct, types of rock music.{{sfn|Bannister|2007|p=37}} The first is progressive rock as it is generally understood, while the second usage refers to groups who rejected [[psychedelia]] and the [[Counterculture of the 1960s|hippie counterculture]] in favour of a [[modernist]], [[avant-garde]] approach.{{sfn|Bannister|2007|p=37}}{{refn|group=nb|In the rock music of the 1970s, the "art" descriptor was generally understood to mean "aggressively avant-garde" or "pretentiously progressive".<ref name="ArtPunkMurray">{{cite web|last1=Murray|first1=Noel|title=60 minutes of music that sum up art-punk pioneers Wire|url=http://www.avclub.com/article/60-minutes-music-sum-art-punk-pioneers-wire-219113|website=[[The A.V. Club]]|date=28 May 2015|access-date=16 February 2017|archive-date=31 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151031075059/http://www.avclub.com/article/60-minutes-music-sum-art-punk-pioneers-wire-219113|url-status=live}}</ref>}} Similarities between the two terms are that they both describe a mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility. However, art rock is more likely to have experimental or avant-garde influences.<ref name="AMProg">{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/subgenre/prog-rock-ma0000002798|website=[[AllMusic]]|title=Prog-Rock|access-date=23 July 2016|archive-date=8 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160208051215/http://www.allmusic.com/subgenre/prog-rock-ma0000002798|url-status=live}}</ref> "Prog" was devised in the 1990s{{sfn|Robinson|2017|p=223}} as a shorthand term, but later became a transferable adjective, also suggesting a wider palette than that drawn on by the most popular 1970s bands.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=9}}

Progressive rock is varied and is based on fusions of styles, approaches, and genres, tapping into broader cultural resonances that connect to avant-garde art, [[classical music]] and [[folk music]], performance and the moving image.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=13}} Although a unidirectional English "progressive" style emerged in the late 1960s, by 1967, progressive rock had come to constitute a diversity of loosely associated style codes.{{sfn|Cotner|2000|p=90}} When the "progressive" label arrived, the music was dubbed "[[progressive pop]]" before it was called "progressive rock",{{sfn|Moore|2004|p=22}}{{refn|group=nb|From about 1967, "pop music" was increasingly used in opposition to the term "rock music", a division that gave generic significance to both terms.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Gloag|first1=Kenneth|editor1-last=Latham|editor1-first=Alison|title=The Oxford Companion to Music|date=2006|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=Oxford|isbn=0-19-866212-2|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780198662129}}</ref>}} with the term "progressive" referring to the wide range of attempts to break with standard pop music formula.{{sfn|Haworth|Smith|1975|p=126}} A number of additional factors contributed to the acquired "progressive" label: lyrics were more poetic; technology was harnessed for new sounds; music approached the condition of "art"; some harmonic language was imported from jazz and [[Romantic music|19th-century classical music]]; [[Album Era|the album format overtook singles]]; and the studio, rather than the stage, became the focus of musical activity, which often involved creating music for listening, not dancing.{{sfn|Moore|2016|pp=201–202}}

{{quote box
|align=right
|quote=One of the best ways to define progressive rock is that it is a heterogeneous and troublesome genre – a formulation that becomes clear the moment we leave behind characterizations based only on the most visible bands of the early to mid-1970s
|source=– [[Paul Hegarty (musician)|Paul Hegarty]] and Martin Halliwell{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=13}}
|width=25%
}}

Critics of the genre often limit its scope to a stereotype of long solos, overlong albums, fantasy lyrics, grandiose stage sets and costumes, and an obsessive dedication to technical skill.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=2}} While progressive rock is often cited for its merging of high culture and low culture, few artists incorporated literal classical themes in their work to any great degree,{{sfn|Holm-Hudson|2013|pp=16, 85–87}} and only a handful of groups purposely emulated or referenced classical music.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=13}} Writer Emily Robinson says that the narrowed definition of "progressive rock" was a measure against the term's loose application in the late 1960s, when it was "applied to everyone from [[Bob Dylan]] to [[the Rolling Stones]]". Debate over the genre's criterion continued to the 2010s, particularly on [[Internet forum]]s dedicated to prog.{{sfn|Robinson|2017|p=223}}

According to musicologists [[Paul Hegarty (musician)|Paul Hegarty]] and Martin Halliwell, [[Bill Martin (philosophy)|Bill Martin]] and Edward Macan authored major books about progressive rock while "effectively accept[ing] the characterization of progressive rock offered by its critics. ... they each do so largely unconsciously."{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=2}} Academic John S. Cotner contests Macan's view that progressive rock cannot exist without the continuous and overt assimilation of classical music into rock.{{sfn|Cotner|2000|p=90}} Author Kevin Holm-Hudson agrees that "progressive rock is a style far more diverse than what is heard from its mainstream groups and what is implied by unsympathetic critics."{{sfn|Holm-Hudson|2013|p=16}}

===Relation to art and social theories===
{{See also|Formalism (music)|Eclecticism in music}}
In early references to the music, "progressive" was partly related to [[progressive politics]], but those connotations were lost during the 1970s.{{sfn|Robinson|2017|p=223}} On "progressive music", Holm-Hudson writes that it "moves continuously between explicit and implicit references to genres and strategies derived not only from European art music, but other cultural domains (such as East Indian, Celtic, folk, and African) and hence involves a continuous aesthetic movement between [[formalism (art)|formalism]] and [[Eclecticism in music|eclecticism]]".{{sfn|Holm-Hudson|2013|pp=85–87}}{{refn|group=nb|Formalism refers to a preoccupation with established external compositional systems, structural unity, and the autonomy of individual art works. Eclecticism, like formalism, connotes a predilection towards style synthesis, or integration. However, contrary to formalist tendencies, eclecticism foregrounds discontinuities between historical and contemporary styles and electronic media, sometimes referring simultaneously to vastly different musical genres, idioms and cultural codes. Examples include [[the Beatles]]' "[[Within You Without You]]" (1967) and [[Jimi Hendrix]]'s 1969 version of "[[The Star-Spangled Banner]]".{{sfn|Cotner|2000|p=93}}}} Cotner also says that progressive rock incorporates both formal and eclectic elements, "It consists of a combination of factors – some of them intramusical ('within'), others extramusical or social ('without')."{{sfn|Cotner|2000|p=91}}

One way of conceptualising [[rock and roll]] in relation to "progressive music" is that progressive music pushed the genre into greater complexity while retracing the roots of romantic and classical music.{{sfn|Willis|2014|pp=204, 219}} Sociologist [[Paul Willis]] believes: "We must never be in doubt that 'progressive' music followed rock 'n' roll, and that it could not have been any other way. We can see rock 'n' roll as a deconstruction and 'progressive' music as a reconstruction."{{sfn|Willis|2014|p=219}} Author Will Romano states that "rock itself can be interpreted as a progressive idea&nbsp;... Ironically, and quite paradoxically, 'progressive rock', the classic era of the late 1960s through the mid- and late 1970s, introduces not only the explosive and exploratory sounds of technology&nbsp;... but traditional music forms (classical and European folk) and (often) a pastiche compositional style and artificial constructs ([[concept album]]s) which suggests [[postmodernism]]."{{sfn|Romano|2010|p=24}}

==History==
{{For timeline}}

===1966–1970: Origins===
{{Further|topic=the origins of progressive rock from the perspective of its early synonyms|Progressive pop#Origins|Art rock#Origins}}

====Background and roots====
{{See also|Progressive jazz}}

In 1966, the level of social and artistic correspondence among British and American rock musicians dramatically accelerated for bands like [[the Beatles]], [[the Beach Boys]] and [[the Byrds]] who fused elements of [[cultivated music]] with the [[vernacular music|vernacular traditions]] of rock.{{sfn|Holm-Hudson|2013|p=85}} Progressive rock was predicated on the "progressive" pop groups from the 1960s who combined rock and roll with various other music styles such as Indian [[raga]]s, [[Music of Asia|oriental]] melodies and [[Gregorian chant]]s, like the Beatles and [[the Yardbirds]].{{sfn|Prown|Newquist|1997|p=78}} The Beatles' [[Paul McCartney]] said in 1967: "we [the band] got a bit bored with 12 bars all the time, so we tried to get into something else. Then came Dylan, [[the Who]], and the Beach Boys. ... We're all trying to do vaguely the same kind of thing."{{sfn|Philo|2014|p=119}} Rock music started to take itself seriously, paralleling earlier movements in jazz (such as how [[Swing music|swing]] gave way to [[Bebop|bop]], a shift appealing to smaller but devoted audiences). In this period, the [[popular song]] began signalling a new possible means of expression that went beyond the three-minute [[love song]], leading to an intersection between the "underground" and the "establishment" for listening publics.{{sfn|Moore|2016|p=201}}{{refn|group=nb|Allan Moore writes: "It should be clear by now that, although this history appears to offer a roughly chronological succession of styles, there is no single, linear history to that thing we call ''popular song''.&nbsp;... Sometimes it appears that there are only peripheries. Sometimes, audiences gravitate towards a centre. The most prominent period when this happened was in the early to mid 1960s when it seems that almost everyone, irrespective of age, class or cultural background, listened to the Beatles. But by 1970 this monolothic position had again broken down. Both [[the Edgar Broughton Band]]'s '[[Apache Dropout]]' and [[Edison Lighthouse]]'s '[[Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)|Love grows]]' were released in 1970 with strong Midlands/London connections, and both were audible on the same radio stations, but were operating according to very different aesthetics."{{sfn|Moore|2016|pp=199–200}}}}

Hegarty and Halliwell identify the Beatles, the Beach Boys, [[the Doors]], [[the Pretty Things]], [[the Zombies]], [[the Byrds]], [[the Grateful Dead]] and [[Pink Floyd]] "not merely as precursors of progressive rock but as essential developments of progressiveness in its early days".{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=11}} According to musicologist [[Walter Everett (musicologist)|Walter Everett]], the Beatles' "experimental timbres, rhythms, tonal structures, and poetic texts" on their albums ''[[Rubber Soul]]'' (1965) and ''[[Revolver (Beatles album)|Revolver]]'' (1966) "encouraged a legion of young bands that were to create progressive rock in the early 1970s".{{sfn|Everett|1999|p=95}} Dylan's poetry, [[the Mothers of Invention]]'s album ''[[Freak Out!]]'' (1966) and the Beatles' ''[[Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band]]'' (1967) were all important in progressive rock's development.<ref name="AMProg" /> The productions of [[Phil Spector]] were key influences,{{sfn|Martin|1998|p=47}} as they introduced the possibility of using the recording studio to create music that otherwise could never be achieved.{{sfn|Tamm|1995|p=29}} The same{{vague|date=September 2016}} is said for the Beach Boys' ''[[Pet Sounds]]'' (1966), which [[Brian Wilson]] intended as an answer to ''Rubber Soul''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stereogum.com/1892600/tomorrow-never-knows-how-1966s-trilogy-of-pet-sounds-blonde-on-blonde-and-revolver-changed-everything/franchises/sounding-board/|first=Ryan|last=Leas|title=Tomorrow Never Knows: How 1966's Trilogy Of ''Pet Sounds'', ''Blonde On Blonde'', And ''Revolver'' Changed Everything|publisher=[[Stereogum]]|date=5 August 2016|access-date=15 February 2017|archive-date=14 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170214190644/http://www.stereogum.com/1892600/tomorrow-never-knows-how-1966s-trilogy-of-pet-sounds-blonde-on-blonde-and-revolver-changed-everything/franchises/sounding-board/|url-status=live}}</ref> and which in turn influenced the Beatles when they made ''Sgt. Pepper''.{{sfn|Martin|1998|p=53}}{{sfn|Cotner|2001|p=30}}

Dylan introduced a literary element to rock through his fascination with the [[Surrealism|Surrealists]] and the [[Symbolism (movement)|French Symbolists]], and his immersion in the New York City art scene of the early 1960s.{{sfn|Curtis|1987|p=156-7}} The trend of bands with names drawn from literature, such as [[the Doors]], [[Steppenwolf (band)|Steppenwolf]] and [[The Ides of March (band)|the Ides of March]], were a further sign of rock music aligning itself with high culture.{{sfn|Curtis|1987|p=179}} Dylan also led the way in blending rock with folk music styles. This was followed by folk rock groups such as the Byrds, who based their initial sound on that of the Beatles.<ref>{{cite book|last=Jackson|first=Andrew Grant|title=1965: The Most Revolutionary Year in Music|year=2015|publisher=Thomas Dunne Books|isbn=978-1-250-05962-8|pages=64–65}}</ref> In turn, the Byrds' vocal harmonies inspired those of [[Yes (band)|Yes]],{{sfn|Martin|1996|p=4}} and [[British folk rock]] bands like [[Fairport Convention]], who emphasised instrumental virtuosity.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|pp=54–55}} Some of these artists, such as [[the Incredible String Band]] and [[Shirley Collins|Shirley]] and [[Dolly Collins]], would prove influential through their use of instruments borrowed from world music and [[early music]].{{sfn|Sweers|2004|p=72,204}}

====Pet Sounds and Sgt. Pepper====
{{Main|Pet Sounds|Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band}}

{{Quote box|align=right|salign=right
|quote=Many groups and musicians played important roles in this development process, but none more than [[the Beach Boys]] and [[the Beatles]]&nbsp;... [They] brought expansions in [[harmony]], [[arrangement|instrumentation]] (and therefore [[timbre]]), [[Duration (music)|duration]], [[rhythm]], and the use of [[History of multitrack recording|recording technology]]. Of these elements, the first and last were the most important in clearing a pathway toward the development of progressive rock.
|source=– Bill Martin{{sfn|Martin|1998|p=39}}
|width  = 30%
|quoted = |}}

''Pet Sounds'' and ''Sgt. Pepper'', with their lyrical unity, extended structure, complexity, eclecticism, experimentalism, and influences derived from classical music forms, are largely viewed as beginnings in the progressive rock genre{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=15,20}}{{sfn|Martin|1998|pp=39–40}} and as turning points wherein rock, which previously had been considered dance music, became music that was made for listening to.{{sfn|Covach|1997|p=3}}{{sfn|Martin|1998|p=39}} Between ''Pet Sounds'' and ''Sgt. Pepper'', the Beach Boys released the single "[[Good Vibrations]]" (1966), dubbed a "[[pocket symphony]]" by [[Derek Taylor]], the band's publicist. The song contained an eclectic array of exotic instruments and several disjunctive key and modal shifts.{{sfn|Boone|Covach|1997|pp=41–46}} Scott Interrante of ''[[Popmatters]]'' wrote that its influence on progressive rock and the psychedelic movement "can't be overstated".<ref>{{cite magazine|last1=Interrante|first1=Scott|title=The 12 Best Brian Wilson Songs|url=http://www.popmatters.com/post/193278-the-12-best-brian-wilson-songs/|magazine=[[Popmatters]]|date=20 May 2015|access-date=9 March 2016|archive-date=21 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160921125644/http://www.popmatters.com/post/193278-the-12-best-brian-wilson-songs/|url-status=live}}</ref> Martin likened the song to the Beatles' "[[A Day in the Life]]" from ''Sgt. Pepper'', in that they showcase "the same reasons why much progressive rock is difficult to dance to".{{sfn|Martin|1998|p=40}}

Although ''Sgt. Pepper'' was preceded by several albums that had begun to bridge the line between "disposable" pop and "serious" rock, it successfully gave an established "commercial" voice to an alternative youth culture{{sfn|Holm-Hudson|2008|p=10}} and marked the point at which the [[LP record]] emerged as a creative format whose importance was equal to or greater than that of the single.<ref name="pirenne1">{{cite conference |last=Pirenne |first=Christophe |title=The Role of Radio, 33 Records and Technologies in the Growth of Progressive Rock |book-title=Proceedings of the International Conference "Composition and Experimentation in British Rock 1966–1976" |year=2005 |access-date=27 June 2013 |url=http://www-3.unipv.it/britishrock1966-1976/testien/pir1en.htm |conference= |archive-date=7 July 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150707014112/http://www-3.unipv.it/britishrock1966-1976/testien/pir1en.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>{{refn|group=nb|LP sales first overtook those of singles in 1969.{{sfn|Sweers|2004|p=120}}}} [[Bill Bruford]], a veteran of several progressive rock bands, said that ''Sgt. Pepper'' transformed both musicians' ideas of what was possible and audiences' ideas of what was acceptable in music.{{sfn|Weigel|2012b|}} He believed that: "Without the Beatles, or someone else who had done what the Beatles did, it is fair to assume that there would have been no progressive rock."{{sfn|Bruford|2012|p=159}} In the aftermath of ''Sgt. Pepper'', magazines such as [[Melody Maker]] drew a sharp line between "pop" and "rock". Americans increasingly used the adjective "progressive" for groups like [[Jethro Tull (band)|Jethro Tull]], [[Family (band)|Family]], [[East of Eden (band)|East of Eden]], [[Van der Graaf Generator]] and [[King Crimson]].{{sfn|Zoppo|2014|p={{page needed|date=December 2016}}}}

====Proto-prog and psychedelia{{anchor|Symphonic rock}}====
{{Main|Proto-prog|Psychedelic rock|Acid rock}}
{{See also|Rock opera|Canterbury scene}}
{{Cite check|section|date=March 2016}}

According to [[AllMusic]]: "Prog-rock began to emerge out of the British psychedelic scene in 1967, specifically a strain of classical/symphonic rock led by [[the Nice]], [[Procol Harum]], and [[the Moody Blues]] (''[[Days of Future Passed]]'')."<ref>{{cite web|author1=Anon|title=Prog-Rock|url=http://www.allmusic.com/subgenre/prog-rock-ma0000002798|website=[[AllMusic]]|date=n.d.|access-date=23 July 2016|archive-date=8 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160208051215/http://www.allmusic.com/subgenre/prog-rock-ma0000002798|url-status=live}}</ref> The availability of newly affordable recording equipment coincided with the rise of a London [[underground (British subculture)|underground]] scene at which the psychedelic drug LSD was commonly used. Pink Floyd and [[Soft Machine]] functioned as [[house band]]s at all-night events at locations such as [[Middle Earth (club)|Middle Earth]] and the [[UFO Club]], where they experimented with sound textures and long-form songs.{{sfn|Sweers|2004|p=114–15}}{{refn|group=nb|Beatles member [[John Lennon]] is known to have attended at least one such event, a [[happening]] called [[the 14 Hour Technicolor Dream]].{{sfn|O'Brien|1999|}} [[Paul McCartney]] was deeply connected to the underground through his involvement with the [[Indica Gallery]].{{sfn|Miles|1999|}}}} Many psychedelic, folk rock and early progressive bands were aided by exposure from [[BBC Radio 1]] DJ [[John Peel]].{{sfn|Sweers|2004|p=119}} [[Jimi Hendrix]], who rose to prominence in the London scene and recorded with a band of English musicians, initiated the trend towards guitar virtuosity and eccentricity in rock music.{{sfn|Martin|1998|pp=164–65}} The Scottish band 1-2-3, later renamed [[Clouds (60s rock band)|Clouds]], were formed in 1966 and began performing at London clubs a year later. According to ''Mojo''{{'s}} George Knemeyer: "some claim [that they] had a vital influence on prog-rockers such as Yes, The Nice and Family."{{sfn|Hogg|1994|}}

Symphonic rock artists in the late 1960s had some chart success, including the singles "[[Nights in White Satin]]" (the Moody Blues, 1967) and "[[A Whiter Shade of Pale]]" (Procol Harum, 1967).<ref name="FowlesWade2012"/> The Moody Blues established the popularity of symphonic rock when they recorded ''Days of Future Passed'' together with the [[London Festival Orchestra]].{{sfn|Macan|1997|pp=21–22}} Classical influences sometimes took the form of pieces adapted from or inspired by classical works, such as [[Jeff Beck]]'s ''[[Beck's Bolero]]'', [[Love Sculpture]]'s<ref>{{Cite web |last=Breznikar |first=Klemen |author-link=Klemen Breznikar|date=2023-08-25 |title=Pour Nous Autres {{!}} Interview {{!}} Lost Prog Rock from Montreal |url=https://www.psychedelicbabymag.com/2023/08/pour-nous-autres-interview-lost-prog-rock-from-montreal.html |access-date=2024-12-08 |website=[[It's Psychedelic Baby! Magazine]] |language=en-US}}</ref> [[L'Arlésienne (Bizet)|''Farandole (Arlésienne Suite No 2. Movement 4)'']] and parts of the Nice's ''[[Ars Longa Vita Brevis (album)|Ars Longa Vita Brevis]]''. The latter, along with such tracks as "[[Blue Rondo à la Turk|Rondo]]" and "[[America (West Side Story song)|America]]", reflect a greater interest in music that is entirely instrumental. ''Sgt. Pepper's'' and ''Days'' both represent a growing tendency towards [[song cycle]]s and suites made up of multiple [[Movement (music)|movements]].{{sfn|Macan|1997|pp=21–22}}

[[Focus (band)|Focus]] incorporated and articulated jazz-style chords, and irregular off-beat drumming into their later rock-based riffs, and several bands that included jazz-style [[horn section]]s appeared, including [[Blood, Sweat & Tears]] and [[Chicago (band)|Chicago]]. Of these, Martin highlights Chicago in particular for their experimentation with suites and extended compositions, such as the "[[Ballet for a Girl in Buchannon]]" on ''[[Chicago (album)|Chicago II]]''.{{sfn|Martin|1998|pp=163–164}} Jazz influences appeared in the music of British bands such as [[Traffic (band)|Traffic]], [[Colosseum (band)|Colosseum]] and [[If (band)|If]], together with [[Canterbury scene]] bands such as [[Soft Machine]] and [[Caravan (band)|Caravan]]. Canterbury scene bands emphasised the use of wind instruments, complex chord changes and long improvisations.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=20}} Martin writes that in 1968, "full-blown progressive rock" was not yet in existence; however, albums were released by three bands who would later come to the forefront of the music: Jethro Tull, Caravan and Soft Machine.{{sfn|Martin|1998|p=168}}

{{Listen
|pos=right
|filename=King Crimson - The Court of the Crimson King.ogg
|title="The Court of the Crimson King" (1969)
|description=Macan writes that King Crimson's album "displays every element of the mature progressive rock genre&nbsp;... [and] exerted a powerful extramusical influence on later progressive rock bands".{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=23}}
}}

The term "progressive rock", which appeared in the liner notes of Caravan's 1968 [[Caravan (Caravan album)|self-titled debut LP]], came to be applied to bands that used classical music techniques to expand the styles and concepts available to rock music.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=26}}{{sfn|Bowman|2001|p=184}} The Nice, the Moody Blues, Procol Harum and Pink Floyd all contained elements of what is now called progressive rock, but none represented as complete an example of the genre as several bands that formed soon after.{{sfn|Macan|1997|pp=22–23}} Almost all of the genre's major bands, including Jethro Tull, King Crimson, Yes, [[Genesis (band)|Genesis]], [[Van der Graaf Generator]], [[Emerson, Lake & Palmer|ELP]], [[Gentle Giant]], [[Barclay James Harvest]] and [[Renaissance (band)|Renaissance]], released their debut albums during the years 1968–1970. Most of these were folk-rock albums that gave little indication of what the bands' mature sound would become, but King Crimson's ''[[In the Court of the Crimson King]]'' (1969) and Yes' [[Yes (Yes album)|self-titled debut album]] (1969) were early, fully formed examples of the genre.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=23}}{{refn|group=nb|They are also generally credited as the first global standard-bearers of symphonic rock.<ref name="FowlesWade2012">{{cite book|last1=Fowles|first1=Paul|last2=Wade|first2=Graham|title=Concise History of Rock Music|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nW2-7BrEUOEC&pg=PA125|year=2012|publisher=Mel Bay Publications|isbn=978-1-61911-016-8|page=125|access-date=12 October 2016|archive-date=23 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170223162202/https://books.google.com/books?id=nW2-7BrEUOEC&pg=PA125|url-status=live}}</ref>}}

===1970s–1980s===

==== Peak years (1971–1976) ====
{{See also|Krautrock}}

[[File:DarkSideOfTheMoon1973.jpg|thumb|left|[[Pink Floyd]] performing ''[[The Dark Side of the Moon]]'' (1973), the best-selling album of the entire progressive rock period{{sfn|Priore|2005|p=79}}]]

Most of the genre's major bands released their most critically acclaimed albums during the years 1971–1976.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=27}} The genre experienced a high degree of commercial success during the early 1970s. Between them, the bands Jethro Tull, [[Emerson, Lake & Palmer|ELP]], [[The Moody Blues]], Yes, and Pink Floyd had five albums that reached number one in the US charts, and sixteen that reached the top ten.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=28}}{{refn|group=nb|Tull alone scored 11 [[gold album]]s and 5 [[platinum album]]s.{{sfn|Cleveland|2005|}} Pink Floyd's 1970 album ''[[Atom Heart Mother]]'' reached the top spot on the UK charts. Their 1973 album ''[[The Dark Side of the Moon]]'', which united their extended compositions with the more structured kind of composing employed when [[Syd Barrett]] was their songwriter,{{sfn|Whiteley|1992|pp=34–35}} spent more than two years at the top of the charts{{sfn|Whiteley|1992|pp=4, 38}} and remained on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]] album chart for fifteen years.{{sfn|Friedlander|1998|p=245}}}} [[Mike Oldfield]]'s ''[[Tubular Bells]]'' (1973), an excerpt of which was used as the theme for the film ''[[The Exorcist (film)|The Exorcist]]'', sold 16 million copies.<ref>{{cite news |last=DeRogatis |first=Jim |title=The Curse of 'Tubular Bells'. 1974 also saw the rise of [[Supertramp]], as the release of their third studio album saw some success in both UK and USA |newspaper=Chicago Sun-Times |date=28 February 1993}}</ref>

[[File:Emerson, Lake & Palmer 01.jpg|thumb|right|[[Emerson, Lake & Palmer]] were one of the most commercially successful progressive rock bands of the 1970s. They are seen here performing in 1992.]]
Progressive rock came to be appreciated overseas, but it mostly remained a European, and especially British, phenomenon. Few American bands engaged in it, and the purest representatives of the genre, such as [[Starcastle]] and [[Happy the Man]], remained limited to their own geographic regions.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=185-6}} This is at least in part due to music industry differences between the US and Great Britain.<ref name="pirenne1"/>{{refn|group=nb|Radio airplay was less important in the UK, where popular music recordings had limited air-time on official radio stations (as opposed to on [[Pirate radio in the United Kingdom|pirate radio]]) until the 1967 launch of [[BBC Radio 1]].<ref name="pirenne1"/> UK audiences were accustomed to hearing bands in clubs, and British bands could support themselves through touring. US audiences were first exposed to new music on the radio, and bands in the US required radio airplay for success.{{sfn|Curtis|1987|p=296-7}} Radio stations were averse to progressive rock's longer-form compositions, which hampered [[Radio advertisement|advertising sales]].<ref>{{cite news |last=Kava |first=Brad |title=Progressive rock's Yes: band of a thousand chances |newspaper=San Jose Mercury News |place=San Jose, CA |date=15 July 2002}}</ref>}} Cultural factors were also involved, as US musicians tended to come from a blues background, while Europeans tended to have a foundation in classical music.{{sfn|Curtis|1987|p=286}}

North American progressive rock bands and artists often represented hybrid styles such as the complex arrangements of [[Utopia (band)|Todd Rundgren's Utopia]]<ref>{{cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=phsIDgAAQBAJ&dq=todd+rundgren+UTOPIA+%22PROGRESSIVE+ROCK%22&pg=PA313 | isbn=9781440835148 | title=Encyclopedia of Classic Rock | date=24 February 2017 | publisher=Abc-Clio }}</ref> and [[Rush (band)|Rush]], the eclectic psychedelia of [[Spirit (band)|Spirit]],<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/spirit-mn0000746010/biography?1686364995691 | title=Spirit Biography, Songs, & Albums | website=[[AllMusic]] }}</ref> the hard rock of [[Captain Beyond]], the [[Southern rock]]-tinged prog of [[Kansas (band)|Kansas]], the jazz fusion of [[Frank Zappa]] and [[Return to Forever]], and the eclectic fusion of the all-instrumental [[Dixie Dregs]].{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=186}}<ref>Globe Staff. "Second Time's the Charm for Dregs." ''The Boston Globe''. 21 February 1992.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/captain-beyond-mn0000944933/biography|title=Captain Beyond – Biography & History – AllMusic|website=AllMusic|access-date=15 June 2017|archive-date=14 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170814224428/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/captain-beyond-mn0000944933/biography|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/return-to-forever-mn0000463527/biography|title=Return to Forever – Biography & History – AllMusic|website=AllMusic|access-date=15 June 2017|archive-date=20 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170720071957/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/return-to-forever-mn0000463527/biography|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.allmusic.com/artist/frank-zappa-mn0000138699|title=Frank Zappa – Biography, Albums, Streaming Links – AllMusic|website=AllMusic|access-date=15 June 2017|archive-date=5 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130105033959/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/frank-zappa-mn0000138699|url-status=live}}</ref>{{text-source inline|date=March 2017}} British progressive rock acts had their greatest US success in the same geographic areas in which British heavy metal bands experienced their greatest popularity. The overlap in audiences led to the success of [[arena rock]] bands, such as [[Boston (band)|Boston]], [[Kansas (band)|Kansas]], and [[Styx (band)|Styx]], who combined elements of the two styles.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=186}}

Progressive rock achieved popularity in Continental Europe more quickly than it did in the US. Italy remained generally uninterested in rock music until the strong Italian progressive rock scene developed in the early 1970s.{{sfn|Martin|1998|pp=154–55}}{{refn|group=nb|Van der Graaf Generator were much more popular there than in their own country. Genesis were hugely successful in Continental Europe at a time when they were still limited to a [[cult following]] in Britain and the US.<ref name="spicer">{{cite conference |last=Spicer |first=Mark |title=Genesis's Foxtrot |book-title=Proceedings of the International Conference "Composition and Experimentation in British Rock 1966–1976" |date=2005 |access-date=3 July 2013 |url=http://www-3.unipv.it/britishrock1966-1976/testien/spi1en.htm |conference= |archive-date=19 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019104342/http://www-3.unipv.it/britishrock1966-1976/testien/spi1en.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>{{importance example|date=August 2023}}}} Progressive rock scene emerged in Yugoslavia in the late 1960s, dominating the [[Yugoslav rock scene]] until the late 1970s.<ref name="mirković">{{cite book|last=Mirković|first=Igor|title=Sretno dijete|year=2003|publisher=Fraktura|location=Zagreb|page=5}}</ref><ref name="žikić">{{cite book|last=Žikić|first=Aleksandra|title=Fatalni ringišpil: Hronika beogradskog rokenrola 1959-1979|year=1999|publisher=Geopoetika|location=Belgrade|pages=138–139}}</ref> Few of the European groups were successful outside of their own countries, with the exceptions of Dutch bands like [[Focus (band)|Focus]] and [[Golden Earring]] who wrote English-language lyrics, and the Italians [[Le Orme]] and [[Premiata Forneria Marconi|PFM]], whose English lyrics were written by [[Peter Hammill]] and [[Peter Sinfield]], respectively.{{sfn|Macan|1997|pp=183–84}} Some European bands played in a style derivative of English bands.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=267}}{{verify source|date=September 2016}}{{refn|group=nb|This can be heard in [[Triumvirat]], an organ trio in the style of ELP; [[Ange (band)|Ange]] and [[:it:Celeste (gruppo musicale)|Celeste]] who have had a strong King Crimson influence.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=267}} Others brought national elements to their style: Spain's [[Triana (band)|Triana]] introduced [[flamenco]] elements, groups such as the Swedish [[Samla Mammas Manna]] drew from the folk music styles of their respective nations, and Italian bands such as [[Il Balletto di Bronzo]], Rustichelli & Bordini, leaned towards an approach that was more overtly emotional than that of their British counterparts.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=184}}}}

The "Kosmische music" scene in Germany came to be labelled as "[[krautrock]]" internationally{{sfn|Sarig|1998|p=123}} and is frequently cited as part of the progressive rock genre or an entirely distinct phenomenon.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|pp=10, 152}} Krautrock bands such as [[Can (band)|Can]], which included two members who had studied under [[Karlheinz Stockhausen]],{{sfn|Lucky|2000|p=22}} tended to be more strongly influenced by [[20th-century classical music]] than the British progressive rock bands, whose musical vocabulary leaned more towards [[Romantic music|the Romantic era]]. Many of these groups were very influential even among bands that had little enthusiasm for the symphonic variety of progressive rock.{{sfn|Martin|2002|p=82}}

===== Progressive soul =====
{{Main|Progressive soul}}
Concurrently, Black American popular musicians drew from progressive rock's conceptual album-oriented approach. This led to a progressive-soul movement in the 1970s that inspired a newfound sophisticated musicality and ambitious lyricism in black pop.<ref>{{harvnb|Martin|1998|p=41}}; {{harvnb|Hoard|Brackett|2004|p=524}}.</ref> Among these musicians were [[Sly Stone]], [[Stevie Wonder]], [[Marvin Gaye]], [[Curtis Mayfield]], and [[George Clinton (funk musician)|George Clinton]].{{sfn|Hoard|Brackett|2004|p=524}} In discussing the development, [[Bill Martin (philosopher)|Bill Martin]] cites 1970s albums by Wonder (''[[Talking Book]]'', ''[[Innervisions]]'', ''[[Songs in the Key of Life]]''), [[War (band)|War]] (''[[All Day Music]]'', ''[[The World Is a Ghetto]]'', ''[[War Live (album)|War Live]]''), and [[the Isley Brothers]] (''[[3 + 3]]''), while noting that the Who's progressive rock-influenced ''[[Who Are You]]'' (1978) also drew from the soul variant.{{sfn|Martin|1998|pp=41, 205, 216, 244}} Dominic Maxwell of ''[[The Times]]'' calls Wonder's mid-1970s albums "prog soul of the highest order, pushing the form yet always heartfelt, ambitious and listenable".<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Kendall|first=Jo|date=5 May 2019|url=https://www.pressreader.com/uk/prog/20190305/281505047507913|title=Record Collection|magazine=[[Prog (magazine)|Prog]]|access-date=23 January 2021|via=[[PressReader]]|archive-date=30 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210130001531/https://www.pressreader.com/uk/prog/20190305/281505047507913|url-status=live}}</ref>

====Decline and fragmentation====
{{See also|Punk rock|Symphonic pop}}

Political and social trends of the late 1970s shifted away from the early 1970s [[hippie]] attitudes that had led to the genre's development and popularity. The rise in [[punk ideologies|punk cynicism]] made the utopian ideals expressed in progressive rock lyrics unfashionable.{{sfn|Martin|2002|p=78}} Virtuosity was rejected, as the expense of purchasing quality instruments and the time investment of learning to play them were seen as barriers to rock's energy and immediacy.{{sfn|Martin|2002|p=115}} There were also changes in the music industry, as record companies disappeared and merged into large [[media conglomerates]]. Promoting and developing experimental music was not part of the [[marketing strategy]] for these large corporations, who focused their attention on identifying and targeting profitable [[Niche market|market niches]].{{sfn|Martin|2002|pp=108–110}}

[[File:Robert Fripp 2.jpg|thumb|right|upright|King Crimson's [[Robert Fripp]] believed that the prog movement had gone "tragically off course".{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=177}} ]]

Four of progressive rock's most successful bands – King Crimson, Yes, ELP and Genesis – went on hiatus or experienced major personnel changes during the mid-1970s.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=177}} Macan notes the September 1974 breakup of King Crimson as particularly significant, noting that Fripp (much later) referred to 1974 as the point when "all English bands in the genre should have ceased to exist".{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=179}} More of the major bands, including Van der Graaf Generator, Gentle Giant and [[U.K. (band)|U.K.]], dissolved between 1978 and 1980.{{sfn|Macan|1997|pp=187–188}} Many bands had by the mid-1970s reached the limit of how far they could experiment in a rock context, and fans had wearied of the extended, epic compositions. The sounds of the [[Hammond organ|Hammond]], [[Minimoog]] and [[Mellotron]] had been thoroughly explored, and their use became clichéd. Those bands who continued to record often simplified their sound, and the genre fragmented from the late 1970s onwards.{{sfn|Macan|1997|pp=181–183}} In [[Robert Fripp]]'s opinion, once "progressive rock" ceased to cover new ground – becoming a set of conventions to be repeated and imitated – the genre's premise had ceased to be "progressive".{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=206}}

The era of record labels investing in their artists, giving them freedom to experiment and limited control over their content and marketing ended with the late 1970s.{{sfn|Moore|2016|p=202}} Corporate [[artists and repertoire]] staff exerted an increasing amount of control over the creative process that had previously belonged to the artists,{{sfn|Martin|1996|p=188}} and established acts were pressured to create music with simpler harmony and song structures and fewer changes in meter. A number of symphonic pop bands, such as [[Supertramp]], [[10cc]], [[the Alan Parsons Project]] and the [[Electric Light Orchestra]], brought the orchestral-style arrangements into a context that emphasised pop singles while allowing for occasional instances of exploration. Jethro Tull, Gentle Giant and Pink Floyd opted for a harder sound in the style of [[arena rock]].{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=187}}

Few new progressive rock bands formed during this era, and those who did found that record labels were not interested in signing them.<ref name="derogatis98">{{cite web |last=DeRogatis |first=Jim |title=Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About the Prog-Rock Underground (But Were Afraid to Ask) |date=1998 |access-date=23 June 2013 |url=http://www.jimdero.com/OtherWritings/Other%20Prog.htm |archive-date=6 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006041454/http://www.jimdero.com/OtherWritings/Other%20Prog.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> The short-lived supergroup U.K. was a notable exception since its members had established reputations; they produced two albums that were stylistically similar to previous artists and did little to advance the genre.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=183}} Part of the genre's legacy in this period was its influence on other styles, as several European guitarists brought a progressive rock approach to [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]] and laid the groundwork for [[progressive metal]]. [[Michael Schenker]], of [[UFO (band)|UFO]]; and [[Uli Jon Roth]], who replaced Schenker in [[Scorpions (band)|Scorpions]], expanded the modal vocabulary available to guitarists.{{sfn|Blackett|2001}}{{explain|date=December 2016}} Roth studied classical music with the intent of using the guitar in the way that classical composers used the violin.{{sfn|Gress|2007}} Finally, the Dutch-born and classically trained [[Alex Van Halen|Alex]] and [[Eddie Van Halen]] formed [[Van Halen]], featuring ground-breaking whammy-bar, tapping and cross-picking guitar performances{{sfn|Gress|1993}} that influenced "[[Shred guitar|shred]]" music in the 1980s.<ref>{{cite news |last=Miers |first=Jeff |title=Rowdy choice; Van Halen's rise to Rock Hall a breakthrough |newspaper=The Buffalo News |place=Buffalo, NY |date=12 January 2007}}</ref>

=====Commercialisation=====
{{quote box
|align=right
|quote=By the early 1980s, progressive rock was thought to be all but dead as a style, an idea reinforced by the fact that some of the principal progressive groups had developed a more commercial sound. ... What went out of the music of these now ex-progressive groups ... was any significant evocation of art music.
|source=– John Covach{{sfn|Covach|1997|p=5}}
|width=25%
}}

Some established artists moved towards music that was simpler and more commercially viable.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=182}}{{verify source|date=June 2016}}{{sfn|Covach|1997|p=5}} Arena rock bands like [[Journey (band)|Journey]], [[Kansas (band)|Kansas]], [[Styx (band)|Styx]], [[GTR (band)|GTR]], [[Electric Light Orchestra|ELO]] and [[Foreigner (band)|Foreigner]] either had begun as progressive rock bands or included members with strong ties to the genre. These groups retained some of the song complexity and orchestral-style arrangements, but they moved away from lyrical mysticism in favour of more conventional themes such as relationships.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|pp=181–182}} These radio-friendly groups have been called "prog lite".{{sfn|Cateforis|2011|pp=154–159}} Genesis transformed into a successful pop act, the prog supergroup [[Asia (band)|Asia]] (consisting of members of Yes, King Crimson, and ELP) scored a number-one album in 1982,<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2 January 2013 |title=Billboard 200 |url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/billboard-200/1982-05-15/ |access-date=16 February 2023 |website=[[Billboard charts|Billboard]] |language=en-US}}</ref> and a re-formed Yes released the relatively mainstream ''[[90125 (album)|90125]]'' (1983), which yielded their only US number-one single, "[[Owner of a Lonely Heart]]". One band who remained successful into the 1980s while maintaining a progressive approach was Pink Floyd, who released ''[[The Wall]]'' late in 1979. The album, which brought punk anger into progressive rock,{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=174}} was a huge success and was later filmed as ''[[Pink Floyd – The Wall]]''.{{refn|group=nb|Pink Floyd were unable to repeat that combination of commercial and critical success, as their sole follow-up, ''[[The Final Cut (album)|The Final Cut]]'', was several years in coming{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=188}} and was essentially a [[Roger Waters]] solo project<ref name="merc">{{cite news |author=Anonymous |title=The Mag: Play: The Final Cut (EMI) Pink Floyd. (Features) |newspaper=Sunday Mercury |place=Birmingham, England |date=4 April 2004}}</ref> that consisted largely of material that had been rejected for ''The Wall''.<ref name="tsmith">{{cite news |last=Smith |first=Tierney |title=Whatever Happened to Pink Floyd? The Strange Case of Waters and Gilmour |work=Goldmine |publisher=Krause Publications |date=Apr 2011}}</ref> The band later reunited without Waters and restored many of the progressive elements that had been downplayed in the band's late-1970s work.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=195}} This version of the band was very popular,<ref name="harrington87">{{cite news |last=Harrington |first=Richard |title=Pink Floyd, By Any Name; Minus a Longtime Leader, The Band Stays the Course |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=19 October 1987}}</ref> but critical opinion of their later albums is less favourable.<ref name="graves">{{cite magazine |last=Graves |first=Tom |title=Pink Floyd: The Division Bell |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=16 June 1994 |access-date=4 July 2013 |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/the-division-bell-19940616 |archive-date=16 January 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140116065204/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/the-division-bell-19940616 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="wyman">{{cite web |last=Wyman |first=Bill |title=The four phases of Pink Floyd |work=The Chicago Reader |date=14 January 1988 |access-date=4 July 2013 |url=http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/the-four-phases-of-pink-floyd/Content?oid=871627 |archive-date=12 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140812173644/http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/the-four-phases-of-pink-floyd/Content?oid=871627 |url-status=live }}</ref>}}

====Post-punk and post-progressive====
{{Main|Post-punk|Post-progressive}}
{{See also|New wave music}}

Punk and progressive rock were not necessarily as opposed as is commonly believed. Both genres reject commercialism, and punk bands did see a need for musical advancement.{{sfn|Martin|1996|pp=189–190}}{{refn|group=nb|[[Sex Pistols]] frontman [[John Lydon|Johnny Rotten]] famously wore a T-shirt that read "I hate Pink Floyd",<ref name="derogatis98"/> but he expressed admiration for Van der Graaf Generator,<ref name="boros">{{cite web |last=Boros |first=Chris |title=Peter Hammill: Prog Rock's Unsung Hero |work=NPR |date=6 November 2008 |access-date=23 June 2013 |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=96712715 |archive-date=20 October 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020022846/http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=96712715 |url-status=live }}</ref> Can,<ref name="lydon">{{cite interview |last=Lydon |first=John |interviewer=Will Hodgkinson |title=John Lydon: Soundtrack of my Life |work=The Guardian |date=31 October 2009 |access-date=23 June 2013 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2009/nov/01/sexpistols |archive-date=8 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161108192349/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2009/nov/01/sexpistols |url-status=live }}</ref> and many years later, Pink Floyd themselves.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/feb/18/john-lydon-pink-floyd|title=John Lydon: I don't hate Pink Floyd|author=Sean Michaels|work=the Guardian|date=18 February 2010|access-date=16 December 2016|archive-date=8 November 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161108192347/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/feb/18/john-lydon-pink-floyd|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Brian Eno]] expressed a preference for the approach of the punk and new wave bands in New York, as he found them to be more experimental and less personality-based than the English bands.{{sfn|Tamm|1995|p=30}}}} Author Doyle Green noted that [[post-punk]] emerged as "a kind of 'progressive punk{{' "}}.{{sfn|Greene|2014|p=173}} Post-punk artists rejected the high cultural references of 1960s rock artists like the Beatles and Bob Dylan as well as paradigms that defined rock as "progressive", "art", or "studio perfectionism".{{sfn|Bannister|2007|pp=36–37}} In contrast to punk rock, it balances punk's energy and skepticism with art school consciousness, [[Dadaist]] experimentalism, and atmospheric, ambient soundscapes. [[World music]], especially African and Asian traditions, was also a major influence.{{sfn|Rojek|2011|p=28}}

Progressive rock's impact was felt in the work of some post-punk artists, although they tended not to emulate classical rock or Canterbury groups but rather [[Roxy Music]], King Crimson, and [[krautrock]] bands, particularly Can.<ref name="ClassicRock">{{cite journal|title=Did Punk kill prog?|author=Tommy Udo|date=September 2006|journal=[[Classic Rock (magazine)|Classic Rock]]|volume=97}}</ref>{{verify source|date=August 2016}}{{refn|group=nb|[[Julian Cope]] of [[the Teardrop Explodes]] wrote a history of the krautrock genre, ''[[Krautrocksampler]]''.<ref>{{cite news |last=Morgan |first=Frances |title=The power of pop |work=New Statesman |date=6 September 2007 |url=https://www.newstatesman.com/books/2007/09/cope-japrocksampler-japanese |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090917185926/https://www.newstatesman.com/books/2007/09/cope-japrocksampler-japanese |archive-date=17 September 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref>{{importance example|date=August 2023}}}} [[Punishment of Luxury]]'s music borrowed from both progressive and punk rock,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/punishment-of-luxury-mn0000370447 |title=Punishment of Luxury |author=<!--Not stated--> |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=20 November 2020 |archive-date=23 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151023090848/http://www.allmusic.com/artist/punishment-of-luxury-mn0000370447 |url-status=live }}</ref> whilst [[Alternative TV]], who were fronted by the founder of the influential punk fanzine ''[[Sniffin' Glue]]'' [[Mark Perry (musician)|Mark Perry]], toured and released a split live album with [[Gong (band)|Gong]] offshoot [[Here & Now (band)|Here & Now]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Alternative TV |website=[[Trouser Press]] |url=https://trouserpress.com/reviews/alternative-tv/ |access-date=20 November 2020 |archive-date=28 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201028023826/https://trouserpress.com/reviews/alternative-tv/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

The term "[[post-progressive]]" identifies progressive rock that returns to its original principles while dissociating from 1970s progressive rock styles,{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=225}} and may be located after 1978.{{sfn|Martin|1998|p=20}} Martin credits [[Roxy Music]]'s [[Brian Eno]] as the sub-genre's most important catalyst, explaining that his 1973–77 output merged aspects of progressive rock with a prescient notion of new wave and punk.{{sfn|Martin|1998|p=251}} New wave, which surfaced around 1978–79 with some of the same attitudes and aesthetic as punk, was characterised by Martin as "progressive" multiplied by "punk".{{sfn|Martin|2002|p=99}} Bands in the genre tended to be less hostile towards progressive rock than the punks, and there were crossovers, such as Fripp and Eno's involvement with [[Talking Heads]], and Yes' replacement of Rick Wakeman and Jon Anderson with the pop duo [[the Buggles]].{{sfn|Martin|2002|p=99}}

When King Crimson reformed in 1981, they released an album, ''[[Discipline (King Crimson album)|Discipline]]'', which Macan says "inaugurated" the new post-progressive style.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=205}} The new King Crimson line-up featured guitarist and vocalist [[Adrian Belew]], who also collaborated with Talking Heads, playing live with the band and featuring on their 1980 album ''[[Remain in Light]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://ultimateclassicrock.com/king-crimson-discipline-album/ |title=How King Crimson Were Reborn on New Wave-Influenced "Discipline" |author=<!--Not stated--> |date=22 September 2016 |website=[[Ultimate Classic Rock]] |access-date=20 November 2020 |archive-date=8 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201108093217/https://ultimateclassicrock.com/king-crimson-discipline-album/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.pdxmonthly.com/arts-and-culture/2014/11/adrian-belew-november-2014 |title=What Do David Bowie, Frank Zappa, and the Talking Heads Have in Common? This Man. |last=Schonfeld |first=Matthew |date=4 November 2014 |website=[[Portland Monthly]] |access-date=20 November 2020 |archive-date=28 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201128160222/https://www.pdxmonthly.com/arts-and-culture/2014/11/adrian-belew-november-2014 |url-status=live }}</ref> According to Martin, Talking Heads also created "a kind of new-wave music that was the perfect synthesis of punk urgency and attitude and progressive-rock sophistication and creativity. A good deal of the more interesting rock since that time is clearly 'post-Talking Heads' music, but this means that it is post-progressive rock as well."{{sfn|Martin|1998|p=251}}

====Neo-prog====
{{main|Neo-prog}}

A second wave{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=199}} of progressive rock bands appeared in the early 1980s and have since been categorised as a separate "[[neo-prog]]" subgenre.<ref name="ewing">Ewing, Jerry. "Pathways." Classic Rock Presents Prog. 17 March 2010. p.61</ref> These largely keyboard-based bands played extended compositions with complex musical and lyrical structures.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|pp=183–186}} Several of these bands were signed by major record labels, including [[Marillion]], [[IQ (band)|IQ]], [[Pendragon (band)|Pendragon]], [[Pallas (band)|Pallas]] and [[Twelfth Night (band)|Twelfth Night]].<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/jul/22/prog-rock-genesis-rush-mostly-autumn | title=Go back to go forward: the resurgence of prog rock | work=The Guardian | location=London | first=Alexis | last=Petridis | date=22 July 2010 | access-date=9 November 2016 | archive-date=9 November 2016 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161109091427/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/jul/22/prog-rock-genesis-rush-mostly-autumn | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Sharp |first=Johnny |date=10 May 2025 |title=“Dismissed as bland, complacent and of the establishment, it was now outsider music. If you wanted to be a true rebel, you came out as a prog fan”: Five essential neo-prog albums of the 80s |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/neo-prog-best-albums-1980s |website=[[loudersound.com]] |access-date=15 June 2025}}</ref> Most of the genre's major acts released debut albums between 1983 and 1985 and shared the same manager, Keith Goodwin, a publicist who had been instrumental in promoting progressive rock during the 1970s.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=198}} The previous decade's bands had the advantage of appearing during a prominent [[Counterculture|countercultural]] movement that provided them with a large potential audience, but the neo-prog bands were limited to a relatively niche demographic and found it difficult to attract a following. Only Marillion{{sfn|Macan|1997|pp=200–01}} and [[Saga (band)|Saga]]{{sfn|Clark|2012|}} experienced international success.

Neo-prog bands tended to use [[Peter Gabriel]]-era [[Genesis (band)|Genesis]] as their "principal model".<ref>{{cite book |editor1=John Covach |editor2=Graeme M. Boone |title=Understanding Rock: Essays in Musical Analysis |url=https://archive.org/details/understandingroc00cova |url-access=limited |year=1997|page=[https://archive.org/details/understandingroc00cova/page/n24 6]|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0195100051}}</ref> They were also influenced by [[funk]], [[hard rock]] and [[punk rock]].{{sfn|Romano|2010|loc=[https://books.google.com/books?id=2lVMAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT390 "Marillion"]}} The genre's most successful band, Marillion, suffered particularly from accusations of similarity to Genesis, although they used a different vocal style, incorporated more hard rock elements,{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|pp=187–188}} and were very influenced by bands including [[Camel (band)|Camel]] and Pink Floyd.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/steve-rothery-people-still-think-marillion-are-a-scottish-heavy-metal-band | title=Steve Rothery: "People still think Marillion are a Scottish heavy metal band" | work=Louder | first=Mark | last=Blake | date=22 March 2017 | access-date=23 August 2019 | archive-date=6 December 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201206110719/https://www.loudersound.com/features/steve-rothery-people-still-think-marillion-are-a-scottish-heavy-metal-band | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.express.co.uk/entertainment/music/661086/Marillion-singer-Fish-favourite-music-albums | title=Former Marillion singer Fish: My six best albums | work=express.co.uk | first=Caroline | last=Rees | date=15 April 2016 | access-date=23 August 2019 | archive-date=23 August 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190823171249/https://www.express.co.uk/entertainment/music/661086/Marillion-singer-Fish-favourite-music-albums | url-status=live }}</ref> Authors [[Paul Hegarty (musician)|Paul Hegarty]] and Martin Halliwell have pointed out that the neo-prog bands were not so much plagiarising progressive rock as they were creating a new style from progressive rock elements, just as the bands of a decade before had created a new style from jazz and classical elements.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=184}} Author Edward Macan counters by pointing out that these bands were at least partially motivated by a nostalgic desire to preserve a past style rather than a drive to innovate.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=197}}

===1990s–2000s===

====Third wave====
[[File:Porcupine Tree @ Poznan, Poland 2007 04.jpg|thumb|right|[[Porcupine Tree]] performing in 2007]]

A third wave of progressive rock bands, who can also be described as a second generation of neo-prog bands,{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=199}} emerged in the 1990s. The use of the term "progressive" to describe groups that follow in the style of bands from ten to twenty years earlier is somewhat controversial, as it has been seen as a contradiction of the spirit of experimentation and progress.{{sfn|Gill|1995|}}{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=19}} These new bands were aided in part by the availability of personal computer-based [[Digital audio workstation|recording studios]], which reduced album production expenses, and the [[Internet]], which made it easier for bands outside of the mainstream to reach widespread audiences.{{sfn|Karnick|2003|}} Record stores specialising in progressive rock appeared in large cities.{{sfn|Gill|1995|}}

The [[Shred guitar|shred]] music of the 1980s was a major influence on the progressive rock groups of the 1990s.{{sfn|Gill|1995|}} Some of the newer bands, such as [[the Flower Kings]], [[Spock's Beard]] and [[Glass Hammer]], played a 1970s-style symphonic prog, but with an updated sound.{{sfn|Lucky|2000|p=47,127}} A number of them began to explore the limits of the CD in the way that earlier groups had stretched the limits of the vinyl LP.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=200}}

====Progressive metal====
{{main|Progressive metal}}

{{Listen
| filename    = Dream Theater - A Change of Seasons (excerpt).ogg
| title       = "A Change of Seasons" by Dream Theater
| description = A multipart suite by Dream Theater that combines elements of progressive rock and heavy metal
| pos         = right
}}
Progressive rock and [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]] have similar timelines. Both emerged from late-1960s psychedelia to achieve great early-1970s success despite a lack of radio airplay and support from critics, then faded in the mid-to-late 1970s and experienced revivals in the early 1980s. Each genre experienced a fragmentation of styles at this time, and many metal bands from the [[new wave of British heavy metal]] – most notably [[Iron Maiden]] – onwards displayed progressive rock influences.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|pp=259–260}} [[Progressive metal]] reached a point of maturity with [[Queensrÿche]]'s 1988 concept album ''[[Operation: Mindcrime]],'' [[Voivod (band)|Voivod]]'s 1989 ''[[Nothingface (Voivod album)|Nothingface]]'', which featured abstract lyrics and a King Crimson-like texture, and [[Dream Theater]]'s 1992 ''[[Images and Words]]''.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|pp=260–262}}

Progressive rock elements appear in other metal subgenres. [[Black metal]] is conceptual by definition, due to its prominent theme of questioning the values of Christianity.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=264}} Its [[Death growl|guttural]] vocals are sometimes used by bands who can be classified as progressive, such as [[Mastodon (band)|Mastodon]], [[Mudvayne]] and [[Opeth]].{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|pp=264, 266}} [[Symphonic metal]] is an extension of the tendency towards orchestral passages in early progressive rock.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|pp=266–267}} Progressive rock has also served as a key inspiration for genres such as [[post-rock]],<ref name="allen">{{cite web |last=Allen |first=Jim |title=From Tull To Tortoise: Post-Rock's Proggy Past |work=CMJ New Music |url=http://www.e-prog.net/genre/cmj_essay.htm |access-date=20 June 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130203052506/http://www.e-prog.net/genre/cmj_essay.htm |archive-date=3 February 2013}}</ref> [[post-metal]] and [[avant-garde metal]],<ref name="caramanica">{{cite news|last=Caramanica|first=Jon |title=The alchemy of art-world heavy metal|newspaper=International Herald Tribune|date=20 September 2005}}</ref> [[math rock]],<ref name="tudor">{{cite news |last=Tudor |first=Colin |title=CULTURE: Between rock and a harder place; The hardcore stops and starts of the Dillinger Escape Plan prove that rock is still evolving |newspaper=The Birmingham Post |place=England |date=9 December 2003}}</ref> [[power metal]] and [[neo-classical metal]].<ref name="miers">{{cite news |last=Miers |first=Jeff |title=Dance of Death" (Review) |newspaper=The Buffalo News |date=3 October 2003}}</ref>

====New prog====
{{Distinguish|Neo-prog}}

'''New prog''' describes the wave of progressive rock bands in the 2000s who revived the genre. According to ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''{{'}}s Evan Serpick, "success stories like [[System of a Down]] and up-and-comers like the [[Dillinger Escape Plan]], [[Lightning Bolt (band)|Lightning Bolt]], [[Coheed and Cambria]], and [[the Mars Volta]] create incredibly complex and inventive music that sounds like a heavier, more aggressive version of '70s behemoths such as Led Zeppelin and King Crimson."<ref>{{Citation|last=Serpick|first=Evan|date=9 May 2005|title=Prog Rocks Again|publisher=Entertainment Weekly|url=https://ew.com/article/2005/05/09/prog-rock-makes-huge-comeback/|access-date=25 May 2012|archive-date=14 January 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120114232406/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1058164,00.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

====Wider influence====
The turn of the millennium also saw the rise of a number of bands to mainstream success who, whilst not explicitly identifying as progressive rock, have incorporated influences from it and embraced an experimentalism and complexity in their music which has been regarded as being in keeping with the genre's traditions. [[Radiohead]] have been embraced by some progressive rock fans and musicians, with Rush's [[Geddy Lee]] declaring ''[[OK Computer]]'' as one of his favourite albums and arguing that they carried on the torch from bands like Yes and Genesis. Radiohead's drummer [[Philip Selway]] has cited King Crimson and Pink Floyd as influences, and the band's eclectic and experimental style has drawn on a range of sources, including jazz, electronic music, art rock, krautrock, post-rock and the work of [[Captain Beefheart]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Weller |first=Paul |date=20 May 2022 |title=“They are always adventurous and challenging. And like Yes and Genesis, they still have great songs at the heart of it.” It's Radiohead's proggiest moments |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/radioheads-proggiest-moments |website=[[loudersound.com]]|access-date=15 June 2025}}</ref>

[[Tool (band)|Tool]] and King Crimson have acknowledged each other as influences and toured together.<ref>{{cite web |last=Ewing |first=Jerry |date=11 October 2023 |title=“Imploring humans to explore a deeper understanding of everything”: Tool’s proggiest moments |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/tool-most-prog-songs |website=[[loudersound.com]]|access-date=15 June 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Starkey |first=Arun |date=22 September 2023 |title=Robert Fripp explains how Tool “influenced” King Crimson |url=https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/robert-fripp-tool-influence-king-crimson/ |website=[[Far Out (website)]]|access-date=15 June 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Reed |first=Ryan |date=25 April 2020 |title=Tony Levin Still Hopes King Crimson Will Tour With Tool |url=https://ultimateclassicrock.com/king-crimson-tool-tour/ |website=[[Ultimate Classic Rock]]|access-date=15 June 2025}}</ref> Other bands embracing progressive influences include [[Muse (band)|Muse]]<ref>{{cite web |last=Weller |first=Paul |date=5 June 2025 |title=“They’ve always ignored the rule book in favour of new, often over-the-top ideas”: These are Muse’s proggiest moments |url=https://www.loudersound.com/bands-artists/muse-proggiest-moments |website=[[loudersound.com]]|access-date=15 June 2025}}</ref> and [[Mansun]], whose second album ''[[Six (Mansun album)|Six]]'' has been listed as a favourite British rock album of Porcupine Tree's [[Steven Wilson]], who has collaborated and toured with former Mansun frontman [[Paul Draper (musician)|Paul Draper]].<ref>{{cite web |author=<!-- not stated --> |date=18 March 2019 |title=Mansun |url=https://recordcollectormag.com/articles/mansun |website=[[Record Collector]] |access-date=15 June 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Wilson |first1=Steven |author-link1=Steven Wilson|date=6 August 2024 |title="The Red Hot Chili Peppers might have based their entire career on it": Steven Wilson's 20 favourite British rock albums |url=https://www.loudersound.com/features/steven-wilson-best-british-albums |website=[[loudersound.com]]|access-date=15 June 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Munro |first=Scott |date=29 November 2017 |title=Paul Draper to support Steven Wilson in the US |url=https://www.loudersound.com/news/paul-draper-to-support-steven-wilson-in-the-us |website=[[loudersound.com]]|access-date=15 June 2025}}</ref> Ween's 1997 album ''[[The Mollusk]]'' has also been noted for its progressive rock influences, complete with [[Storm Thorgerson]]-designed cover art.<ref>{{cite web |author=<!-- not stated --> |date=2 June 2025 |title=“Knowingly progressive and endearingly archetypal in a way that only two young pop historians could fathom”: If you thought Ween were taking the piss with The Mollusk, you were wrong |url=https://www.loudersound.com/music/albums/ween-the-mollusk |website=[[loudersound.com]]|access-date=15 June 2025}}</ref>

=== 2010s–2020s ===
The Progressive Music Awards were launched in 2012 by the British magazine ''[[Prog (magazine)|Prog]]'' to honour the genre's established acts and to promote its newer bands. 

In 2019, the Prog Report named [[Mike Portnoy]] and [[Neal Morse]] artists of the decade for 2010–2019. During this time, Portnoy released 40 albums, 24 of them with Morse, while Morse released an additional 5 albums of his own.<ref>{{cite web |title=Artists of the Decade 2010-2019: Mike Portnoy and Neal Morse |url=https://progreport.com/artists-of-the-decade-2010-2019-mike-portnoy-and-neal-morse/ |website=The Prog Report |date=31 December 2019 |access-date=30 July 2024}}</ref>

During the [[COVID-19 pandemic]] in 2020, the Prog Report launched a virtual concert, ''Prog From Home'', bringing together many of the biggest artists active in the genre.<ref>{{cite web |title=Watch 'Prog From Home' all-star virtual concert! |url=https://progreport.com/watch-prog-from-home-all-star-virtual-concert/ |website=The Prog Report |date=9 May 2020 |access-date=30 July 2024}}</ref>

On April 3, 2022, "The Alien" won a [[Grammy Awards|Grammy Award]] for [[Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance|Best Metal Performance]], giving [[Dream Theater]] their first Grammy.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.grammy.com/news/2022-grammys-complete-winners-nominees-nominations-list|title=2022 GRAMMYs Awards Show: Complete Winners & Nominations List|website=Grammy.com}}</ref>

==Festivals==
Many prominent progressive rock bands got their initial exposure at large [[rock festival]]s that were held in Britain during the late 1960s and early 1970s. King Crimson made their first major appearance at the [[Stones in the Park|1969 Hyde Park free concert]], before a crowd estimated to be as large as 650,000, in support of [[the Rolling Stones]].{{sfn|Fripp|1975|}} Emerson, Lake & Palmer debuted at the [[Isle of Wight Festival 1970|1970 Isle of Wight Festival]], at which Supertramp, [[Family (band)|Family]] and Jethro Tull also appeared.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|pp=50–51}} Jethro Tull were also present at the 1969 [[Newport Jazz Festival]], the first year in which that festival invited rock bands to perform. [[Hawkwind]] appeared at many British festivals throughout the 1970s, although they sometimes showed up uninvited, set up a stage on the periphery of the event, and played for free.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=50}}
[[file:Supertramp0062.jpg|thumb|Supertramp performing in 1979]]

[[file:King Crimson - Dour Festival 2003 (01).jpg|thumb|right|[[King Crimson]] performing at the Dour Festival, 2003]]
Renewed interest in the genre in the 1990s led to the development of progressive rock festivals.{{sfn|Gill|1995|}} ProgFest, organised by Greg Walker and David Overstreet in 1993, was first held in [[UCLA]]'s Royce Hall,{{sfn|Covach|2000|}} and featured Sweden's Änglagård, the UK's IQ, Quill and Citadel. CalProg was held annually in Whittier, California during the early 2000s.<ref>{{cite web |title=CalProg ~ Festivals |publisher=Calprog.com |url=http://www.calprog.com/ |access-date=2 November 2021 |archive-date=5 December 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111205100755/http://www.calprog.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The North East Art Rock Festival, or [[NEARfest]],{{sfn|Karnick|2003|}} held its first event in 1999 in [[Bethlehem, Pennsylvania]] and held annual sold-out concerts until 2012's NEARfest Apocalypse, which featured headliners [[U.K. (band)|U.K.]] and Renaissance.{{sfn|Weigel|2012e|}}

Other festivals include the annual ProgDay (the longest-running and only outdoor progressive music festival) in [[Chapel Hill, North Carolina]], the annual Rites of Spring Festival (RoSfest) in [[Sarasota, Florida]], [[The Rogue Independent Music Festival]] in Atlanta, Georgia, [[Baja Prog]] in [[Mexicali|Mexicali, Mexico]], [[ProgPower USA]] in Atlanta, Georgia, [[ProgPower Europe]] in [[Baarlo]], Netherlands, and ProgStock in Rahway, NJ, which held its first event in 2017.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.progstock.com/ |title=ProgStock 2021 – The American Northeast's Only International Progressive Rock Festival, 1–3 October 2021 in Rahway, NJ<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=7 November 2021 |archive-date=28 January 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110128190106/http://progstock.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Reception==
The genre has received both critical acclaim and criticism throughout the years. Progressive rock has been described as parallel to the classical music of [[Igor Stravinsky]] and [[Béla Bartók]].{{sfn|Covach|2000|}} This desire to expand the boundaries of rock, combined with some musicians' dismissiveness toward mainstream rock and pop, dismayed critics and led to accusations of elitism. Its intellectual, fantastic and apolitical lyrics, and shunning of rock's blues roots, were abandonments of the very things that many critics valued in rock music.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=168-73}} Progressive rock also represented the maturation of rock as a genre, but there was an opinion among critics that rock was and should remain fundamentally tied to adolescence, so rock and maturity were mutually exclusive.{{sfn|Martin|2002|p=107}} Criticisms over the complexity of their music provoked some bands to create music that was even more complex.{{refn|group=nb|Yes' ''[[Tales from Topographic Oceans]]''{{sfn|Martin|1996|p=145}} and "[[The Gates of Delirium]]"{{sfn|Martin|1996|p=158}} were both responses to such criticisms. Jethro Tull's ''[[Thick As a Brick]]'', a self-satirising [[concept album]] that consisted of a single 45-minute track, arose from the band's disagreement with the labelling of their previous ''[[Aqualung (Jethro Tull album)|Aqualung]]'' as a concept album.{{sfn|Anderson|2008|}}}}

Most of the musicians involved were male, as was the case for most rock of the time,{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|p=204}} although [[Annie Haslam]] of [[Renaissance (band)|Renaissance]] was a notable exception. Female singers were better represented in [[progressive folk]] bands,{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=135}} who displayed a broader range of vocal styles than the progressive rock bands{{sfn|Sweers|2004|p=204}} with whom they frequently toured and shared band members.{{sfn|Sweers|2004|p=131}}

British and European audiences typically followed concert hall behaviour protocols associated with classical music performances and were more reserved in their behaviour than audiences for other forms of rock. This confused musicians during US tours, as they found American audiences less attentive and more prone to outbursts during quiet passages.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=263}}

These aspirations towards [[high culture]] reflect progressive rock's origins as a music created largely by [[Upper class|upper]]- and [[Middle class|middle]]-class, [[White-collar workers|white-collar]], college-educated males from [[Southern England]]. The music never reflected the concerns of or was embraced by working-class listeners,{{sfn|Macan|1997|pp=144–48}} except in the US, where listeners appreciated the musicians' virtuosity.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=156}} Progressive rock's exotic, literary topics were considered particularly irrelevant to British youth during the late 1970s, when the nation suffered from a poor economy and frequent strikes and shortages.{{sfn|Hegarty|Halliwell|2011|pp=163–164}} Even King Crimson leader Robert Fripp dismissed progressive rock lyrics as "the philosophical meanderings of some English half-wit who is circumnavigating some inessential point of experience in his life".{{sfn|Tamm|1990|}} Bands whose darker lyrics avoided utopianism, such as King Crimson, Pink Floyd and Van der Graaf Generator, experienced less critical disfavour.{{sfn|Macan|1997|p=78}}

In 2002, Pink Floyd guitarist [[David Gilmour]] said, "I wasn't a big fan of most of what you'd call progressive rock. I'm like [[Groucho Marx]]: I don't want to belong to any club that would have me for a member."<ref>{{cite magazine|title='Echoes' to be Floyd's final cut?|magazine=[[Classic Rock (magazine)|Classic Rock]]|issue=36|date=January 2002|page=15}}</ref> In 2014, [[Peter Gabriel]] remarked, "Despite prog probably being the most derided musical genre of all time there were—as today—a lot of extraordinary musicians trying to break down the barriers to reject the rules of music. It was genuinely pioneering at the time. We didn't always get it right, but when it did work we could move people and get some magic happening. I see it all as a very healthy part of growing up."<ref>{{cite web | url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-29159619 | title= Peter Gabriel honoured at Prog music awards | publisher=[[BBC News]] | first=Tim | last=Masters | date=12 September 2014 | access-date=15 April 2023}}</ref>

[[Ian Anderson]], the frontman of Jethro Tull, commented:

<blockquote>I still like the original term that comes from 1969: progressive rock – but that was with a small "p" and a small "r". Prog Rock, on the other hand, has different connotations – of grandeur and pomposity [...] I think looking back on it that most of it was a pretty good experience for musicians and listeners alike. Some of it was a little bit overblown, but in the case of much of the music, it was absolutely spot on.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ian Anderson Admits Prog Was 'A Little Bit Overblown' |url=http://ultimateclassicrock.com/ian-anderson-prog-overblown/ | work=Ultimate Classic Rock | first=Jeff | last=Giles |date=29 July 2014 | url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190427001121/https://ultimateclassicrock.com/ian-anderson-prog-overblown/ |archive-date=27 April 2019 |access-date=30 April 2018}}</ref></blockquote>

While music fans for years have declared progressive rock to be dead,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Weigel |first=David |date=18 July 2017 |title=Can't Prog Rock Get Any Respect Around Here? |url=https://www.npr.org/2017/07/18/534577902/can-t-prog-rock-get-any-respect-around-here |access-date=5 February 2023 |website=[[Morning Edition]] |department=NPR Music |publisher=[[NPR]]}}</ref> the scene is still active with many sub-genres.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Progressive rock music discography & reviews |url=https://www.progarchives.com/ |access-date=5 February 2023 |website=Progarchives.com |language=en}}</ref>

==List of progressive rock artists==
{{main|List of progressive rock artists}}

==See also==
{{wiktionary|progressive rock}}

{{Portal|1960s}}
* [[British folk rock]]
* [[Free jazz]]
* [[List of musical works in unusual time signatures]] 
* [[Minimal music]]
* [[Musique concrète]]
* [[Second Viennese School]]
* [[Serialism]]
* [[Third stream]]
* [[Timeline of progressive rock]]
* [[:Category:Progressive rock record labels]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|group=nb|30em}}

==References==
{{Reflist|20em}}

==Sources==
{{refbegin|30em}}
*{{Citation |last=Anderson |first=Ian |title=BBC Prog Rock Britannia: An Observation in Three Movements |year=2008 |type=Televised interview |publisher=BBC Four |author-link=Ian Anderson}}
* {{cite magazine |last=Blackett |first=Matt |title=Uli Jon Roth |magazine=Guitar Player |date=Apr 2001}}
* {{Citation |last=Clark |first=William |title=Ian Crichton Talks About Saga, Guitars, Throwing Shapes and 20/20 |date=25 August 2012 |work=Guitar International |url=http://guitarinternational.com/2012/08/25/ian-crichton-talks-about-saga-guitars-and-throwing-shapes/ |access-date=6 June 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130426180455/http://guitarinternational.com/2012/08/25/ian-crichton-talks-about-saga-guitars-and-throwing-shapes/ |archive-date=26 April 2013}}
* {{Citation |last=Cleveland |first=Barry |title=Prog Rock |date=March 2005 |work=Guitar Player}}
* {{Citation|last=Covach|first=John|year=2000|title=Echolyn and American progressive rock|journal=Contemporary Music Review|volume=18|issue=4|url=http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/970056913-2444550/content~db=all~content=a751220894|accessdate=28 May 2013}} at informaworld.com {{subscription required}}
* {{Citation |last=Fripp |first=Robert |title=The Young Person's Guide to King Crimson |year=1975 |type=LP liner notes |publisher=EG Records, Ltd |author-link=Robert Fripp}}
* {{Citation |last=Gill |first=Chris |title=Prog gnosis: a new generation exhumes the list wisdom of the '70s |date=April 1995 |work=Guitar Player}}
* {{cite book|last=Greene|first=Doyle|title=The Rock Cover Song: Culture, History, Politics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oJlDAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA173|year=2014|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-1-4766-1507-3}}
* {{cite magazine |last=Gress |first=Jesse |title=Van Halen lesson: how Eddie rewrote the rock guitar rule book |magazine=Guitar Player |date=May 1993}}
* {{cite magazine |last=Gress |first=Jesse |title=10 things you gotta do to play like Uli Jon Roth |magazine=Guitar Player |date=Jun 2007}}
* {{Citation |last=Hogg |first=Brian |title=1-2-3 and the Birth of Prog |date=November 1994 |work=[[Mojo (magazine)|Mojo]] |publisher=BBC/Guinness Publishing}}
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* {{Citation|last=Miles|first=Barry|year=1999|title=An Interview with Ed Sanders-1 October 1968|edition=Spring 1999|journal=The Review of Contemporary Fiction|volume=19|issue=1}}
* {{Citation |last=O'Brien |first=Lucy |title=Sounds of the Psychedelic Sixties |url=http://kids.britannica.com/psychedelic/textonly/psychedelic.html |year=1999 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140817101251/http://kids.britannica.com/psychedelic/textonly/psychedelic.html |publisher=Britannica.com |access-date=18 June 2013 |archive-date=17 August 2014 |url-status=dead}}
* {{Citation|last=Tamm|first=Eric|year=1990|title=Robert Fripp: From crimson king to crafty master|edition=Progressive Ears|chapter=Chapter Three: Fripp the Listener|publisher=Faber and Faber|isbn=0-571-16289-4|url=http://www.progressiveears.com/frippbook/ch03.htm|accessdate=5 June 2013}}
* {{Citation|last=Weigel|first=David|date=14 August 2012b|title=Prog Spring: Entry 2: The rise of prog, music never meant for "the average person"|publisher=Slate.com|url=http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/prog_spring/features/2012/prog_rock/the_rise_of_prog_king_crimson_keith_emerson_and_the_futurist_sounds_of_the_1970s_.html|accessdate=5 January 2014}}
* {{Citation|last=Weigel|first=David|date=17 August 2012|year=2012e|title=Prog Spring: Entry 5: Prog Lives!|publisher=Slate.com|url=http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/prog_spring/features/2012/prog_rock/prog_music_today_nearfest_kanye_west_and_the_fans|accessdate=22 June 2013}}
{{refend}}

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{{refend}}

==Further reading==
{{Library resources box|by=no|onlinebooks=no|about=yes|wikititle=progressive rock}}
* Lucky, Jerry. ''The Progressive Rock Files''. Burlington, Ontario: [[Collector's Guide Publishing]], Inc (1998), 304 pages, {{ISBN|1-896522-10-6}} (paperback). Gives an overview of progressive rock's history as well as histories of the major and [[Underground music|underground bands]] in the genre.
* Lucky, Jerry. ''The Progressive Rock Handbook''. Burlington, Ontario: Collector's Guide Publishing, Inc. (2008), 352 pages, {{ISBN|978-1-894959-76-6}} (paperback). Reviews hundreds of progressive rock bands and lists their recordings. Also provides an updated overview, similar to The Progressive Rock Files.
* Snider, Charles. ''The Strawberry Bricks Guide to Progressive Rock, 3rd Edition''. Chicago, Ill.: Kindle Direct Publishing (2020) 572 pages, {{ISBN|978-0-578-48980-3}} (paperback). A veritable record guide to progressive rock, with band histories, musical synopses and critical commentary, all presented in the historical context of a timeline.
* Stump, Paul. ''The Music's All That Matters: A History of Progressive Rock''. London: Quartet Books Limited (1997), 384 pages, {{ISBN|0-7043-8036-6}} (paperback). Smart telling of the history of progressive rock focusing on English bands with some discussion of American and European groups. Takes you from the beginning to the early 1990s.
* Weingarten, Marc. ''Yes Is the Answer: (And Other Prog-Rock Tales)''. Barnacle Book/Rare Bird Books (2013), 280 pages, {{ISBN|978-0-9854902-0-1}}. Defense of the genre.
* Yfantis, Vasileios. ''Is Prog Rock Really Progressive?''. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (2020), 119 pages, {{ISBN|978-1548614416}}. Exploring the evolution and the future of the genre.

{{Rock}}
{{Progressive music}}
{{Jazz}}
{{Folk music}}
{{Classical music}}
{{Hippies}}
{{authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Progressive Rock}}
[[Category:Progressive rock| ]]
[[Category:Rock music genres]]
[[Category:American styles of music]]
[[Category:British styles of music]]
[[Category:Progressive music genres|Rock]]