Defend The Indefensible: Rick Wakeman

er, lol?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IHVdG3rKqE

http://home.maine.rr.com/abajoran/img/rw11.jpg

Reminds me of somebody but I can't put my finger on it.

Rick Wakeman, per chance?

Or Gandalf the Grey with a reddish Rick Wakeman mane photoshopped unto 'im?

('m making them silly jokeses just to alleviate the strain of awaitin' my cd copy of six wiveses, which i orderered on teh cheap, to arrive...)

there some super funky shit on journey to the centre of the earth and no earthly connection.

one of my first threads *tear*
Taking Sides! Rick Wakemen vs. Keith Emerson!

All I'll say is he plays an INSANE keyboard. In fact two at the same time. I'm just echoing the sentiments of various youtube viewers but Rick can play, he's adventurous musically but I feel that you really shouldn't ignore the fact that he destroyed Yes because he did it so spectacularly.

(pace the thread header, i WOULD kinda want to hear mr. wakeman's take on dizzee rascal).

http://home.maine.rr.com/abajoran/img/rw11.jpg

Beck?

Rick creates a riotous pastiche of his extraordinary life and escapades

Eh?

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/0/05/Thecaddy.jpg/200px-Thecaddy.jpg

What Yes albums does he play on? When were they destroyed?

there some super funky shit on journey to the centre of the earth and no earthly connection.

totally insane that the brilliant No Earthly Connection is STILL unavailable on cd. that needs fucking sorting out.

but I feel that you really shouldn't ignore the fact that he destroyed Yes because he did it so spectacularly.

Yes, we should. Nonsensical claim. Wakeman's part & parcel with the crew of over-the-top keyboard players working in Britain at the time: Keith Emerson -- ELP sold even more than Yes, Wakeman, and Vincent Crane, who never enjoyed much commercial success.

As for the classic Yes albums with Wakeman on them -- Fragile, Close to the Edge, Yessongs are great. Tales not so much although it's not his fault. Yes with Tony Kaye -- the first two can be passed on although the cover of "Every Little Thing" starts getting into the territory of righteous. The tunes arrive for Yes Album but not because of the keyboard player.

Going for the One's awesome too. Wakeman was back in the fold for that one after taking the (incredible) Relayer off. Whoever says he destroyed Yes has no idea what he's talking about.

Rick Wakeman is a genius and the main reason why Yes were so great in the 70s.

Solo Wakeman is largely indefensible though.

"White Rock" though?

IT'S ABOUT SKIING BEFORE ANYONE STARTS!!!

(it's great)...

"Rick Wakeman is a genius and the main reason why Yes were so great in the 70s."

Wont argue whether he's a genius or not, but the second part of this sentence is wrong.

I don't have the patience to read this whole thread, but I'm sure hoping someone here already pointed out that he is quite classic on Sabbath Bloody Sabbath

rick wakeman does a section of presets on my GForce minimoog vst, and they fuckin rock - they're the first presets i try on pretty much *any* song i make involving synths these days - ironically pretty much every last one of them sounds perfect for todays TranceCrunk(tm) production aesthetic...

Six Wives - live !

no chance of me going along, but this is just going to be insanely over the top isn't it ..

I've been on a big prog rock trek for a couple of months, probably started by watching that BBC Prog Rock Brittania on You Tube a couple of times.

Haven't ventured past it yet, but I liked The Six Wives of Henry VIII more than I would have thought and it is one weird ass album to have somehow sold like 15 million copies. People had some patience back in those days, I just don't see any of this kind of weird music being THAT popular.

I liked it enough that I probably am going to try out another Wakeman record.

The Sex Pistols was the reason Rick left A&M, not the other way round...

No it has to be the other way around if it's true at all. I'm sceptical that he would have had that much sway at the label, since sales were waning (though his late 70s stuff is good - often preferable to the earlier, better known albums). Wakeman's final album for A&M came out in 1979, two years after the fact. I know that Wakeman showed up in a documentary talking about this and said it was essentially a bullshit story.

xpost to earlnash - try Criminal Record, which is a digestible and enjoyably brief album from '77. It has a fair chunk of solo Rick mixed with Alan White, Chris Squire and Wakeman doing some fairly disciplined and enjoyable proggy bits.

Basically, McLaren had said that the Sex Pistols' signing had upset some of the proggers on the label (He'd read, upside down, a memo on the A&M-A&R's desk to the extent of "hey, do we all have to wear safety pins through our noses now?" and said more or less in passing that it was him wot got them sacked.

At which point lots of A&M staffers were all "yes, yes, that's exactly what happened", which got Rick extremely pissed off. Doubtless, that was not the only factor, but maybe one of them that made him see out his contract then goodnight vienna.

One further album, "Rhapsodies", then off. (his "Criminal Record" presumably well on the way by then..)

Thanks, that rings true. Wakeman was probably nearing the end at A&M anyway. "Criminal Record" did not sell too well I think - I recall stacks of copies marked down in Boots at the start of the 80s, which is where I got it from. Rhapsodies could be looked at as a stereotypical "last album for the label". It feels/sounds cut-price, has a terrible sleeve design (as did Criminal Record) and is all over the place, apparently hoping to appeal to the general public (there's everything from James Last-style orchestal disco to moogy riffs on famous classical/jazz tunes. This from a guy who has no business even considering what what "commercial" might sound like (listen to "Rock'n'Roll Prophet" to see how lamentable is his take on early-80s synthpop. Notwithstanding all that, to me there is some good stuff on these album due to his general creative quirkiness and blokey whimsicality.

People had some patience back in those days, I just don't see any of this kind of weird music being THAT popular.

hypothesis: prog rock fulfilled a cinematic purpose for fantasy/scifi/stoner nerds in the mid seventies, but that purpose was superseded by blockbuster sci-fi movies and the spread of D&D and then FPS videogames. Punk didn't kill prog rock, the triumph of nerdery in other pop culture areas did.

Not wanting to sound negative but no.

I'm totally digging Rock and Roll Prophet at the moment. It's like Wakeman meets the Buggles. And he sings weird duets!

http://open.spotify.com/album/1cOv3eKLgw8Tuas65QvaS6

totally insane that the brilliant No Earthly Connection is STILL unavailable on cd. that needs fucking sorting out.

i had no idea, but this was sorted out in 2012 with a US pressing, and the mastering is gorgeous, a lot richer than the cd editions of the other classics.

Cool. I need to catch up on Wakeman.

expanded remasters :

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Myths-Legends-Arthur-Knights-Round/dp/B00Q5V6QWO/ref=mb_oe_a

http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Six-Wives-Henry-VIII/dp/B00Q5V6RYG/ref=pd_bxgy_m_h__img_y

about time.

I wonder why Journey To Centre Of Earth got that reissue with new cover so recently when these were going to come out?

those were new recordings ..
not reissues of the originals.

Oh! Good thing I didn't buy it! I don't remember there being any note of that on the cover.

its not that obvious at all.
i too nearly got the new editions but a nerd wakeman fan warned me.
however, these are indeed legit reissues !

I had the Strawbs 'All That Crazy Gift Of Time' pop up on my walkman a couple of weeks back. Got knocked out by the keyboard solo which sounded nicely distorto and had me thinking this is probably the closest RW came to garage punk like The later Seeds or something. Hadn't remembered the Antiques & Curios lp really going there but good lp.
I need to listen to the lp through again. Just had that track come up at random.

Interview in Rolling Stone is pretty interesting.

That site is making it very difficult to read with all the adverts shifting the page. I cant even copy and paste the thing.

Is he really known more for comedy in the UK?

he was on TV a lot* in the 90s in programmes like "grumpy old men", which i imagine were watched by many ppl who weren't much fussed abt the strawbs, but it's hard to run the numbers (this period seemed like forever at the time but in hindsight wasn't that drawn-out really)

*a bit

Who cares about solo careers and who needs defense when you played the gorgeous mellotron in "And you and I", on a five-stars record, in one of the 5 best classic prog rock bands ever.

As well with Yes stuff, I love his first album and Lisztomania soundtrack. Got a bunch of his other solo albums waiting.

I wonder what upsetting thing it was that his son saw on tour.

Mark S - just a bit? Check out his "self" credits on imdb.

Wakeman said that Have I Got News For You, Countdown (he's been on 87 episodes) and Grumpy Old Men opened a ton of doors for him, asked to lots of events and things as essentially a tv personality. On imdb I see he hosted a comedy club series. Not listed is a semi-regular (?) slot he had on Watchdog.

lol i was too lazy to check so i walked back "a lot" to "a bit" but i was right the first time i guess

(i am staying away from my first instincts in this thread so as not to upset all his loving fans)

he always seemed like the funniest and most down to earth Yesman there was, I'd def have a pint with him

Also was on Banzai:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRRxgapzsU8

https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-conservative-party-conference-rick-wakeman-106703899.html

I did enjoy his sideman roles in the early 70s. Strawbs stuff is pretty great, especially the utterly repetitive bit on Where is the Dream Of Our Youth which reminded me of Terry riley or Darryl Hooper or something.

Not heard the solo lps.