=-> Quoting George Erdner to Martin Ridgley, re: "Best" Albums....
 GE> While the chord structures and time signatures are standard, I find
 GE> the slection of instruments very experimental, particular the use of
 GE> accordions. And the lyrical content of some tracks is quite
 GE> adventurous.
   Yup, I can see your point.  But unique instrumentation and lyrics
 alone don't usually determine whether an artist is considered to be
 `progressive'.  The music is the first consideration.
 GE> ...that comes back to my first premise that no matter what a song
 GE> sounds like, if it is commercially popular, then the self-annointed
 GE> arbiters of progressiveness will usually automatically reject it.
   No, that's rubbish, George.  You're twisting the facts to suit your
 own theory.
   Progressive music simply doesn't appeal to the broad masses.  It
 doesn't get as much radio air-play and does not sell as well as less
 adventurous, generic music will.  When a `progressive' artist has a
 hit, it is almost always with one of their *least* musically adventurous
 songs.  If they become a big commercial success, they've usually had to
 compromise the experimental side of their music in order to do it.
 That's not necessarily a bad thing - it's just a fact.
 GE> I find that too many fans of "progressive" rock seem to go out of
 GE> their way to find obscure recordings that no one else has ever heard
 GE> of to discuss.
   With all due respect, that's B.S., George.  (See above comments.)
 Recordings of progressive music *are* obscure.  Most fans don't want to
 have to go out of their way to find them - they go out of their way
 because they have NO CHOICE.  It's a pain in the *ss, George - not some
 badge of honour that says, `Hey, I found something that *you've* never
 heard of!'.  I really wish that I could walk into any music store and
 pick up albums by Gong, or Hatfield & the North, or Allan Holdsworth, or
 Brand X, but I usually have to do some real digging to find them.
   The reason is this: Because the music is adventurous and different,
 it is unlikely to be as commercially successful as mainstream music.
 It comes down to basic human nature.  First, most people like to stick
 with what's familiar to them.  We generally accept change slowly and
 reluctantly.  Second, music is entertainment and most people don't want
 to have to think too much about their entertainment.  They want to bathe
 in the soothing comfort of familiar sounds.
   Since music is a business, the record companies, radio stations, and
 marketing people naturally target the largest market segments.
 Unfortunately, it's a relatively small segment that enjoys progressive
 music.  Therefore, it's not widely distributed, which in turn means that
 fans of the genre have no choice but to go out of their way in search of
 it.  Do you see what I'm saying?
    Cheers,
            Martin
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