Prog to Krautrock to Power Pop

Ever since I saw Jack Black write it on the chalkboard in School of Rock (2003), I've been familiar with the musical term "progressive rock." I inferred that it was from the '70s and harder than The Carpenters but different from heavy metal. Then last month I read about a series of collaborations between Matthew Sweet and Bangles singer Susanna Hoffs called Under the Covers, with versions of their favorite songs from the '70s. The reviews for that exposed me to the term "power pop," which I had heard before to describe Weezer, but this time I learned that it was also a reaction against "prog rock" - still just as hard but much shorter and more melodic. (Think Cheap Trick, which I recently got back into, but by way of The Beach Boys, The Byrds and The Who.) Next I looked up the proper definition of "prog" and it turned out to be a natural progression from the psychadelic rock I got into last year. It was inevitable that a 17min. song like "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida," complete with an organ solo that resembles "God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman" and tribal drums would be followed up by longer rock songs, more virtuoso solos and exotic influences. Seeing as how I don't especially like the organ and I can't stand opera rock, it should come as no surprise that I was never destined to be a fan of prog. I'm just glad to finally have a name to apply to artists I've always despised (Pink Floyd, Rush and Styx) and my research hasn't been a complete waste (hence the 18 songs listed below, which fit nicely on an 80min. CD).

My Picks for Prog (epic rock leaning toward classical, electronic and/or world music)
1. "Tuesday Afternoon" (1967) - The Moody Blues; strings and a flute solo
2. "Hocus Pocus" (1971) - Focus; yodeling and a whistling solo
3. "Carry On Wayward Son" (1976) - Kansas; crazy organ
4. "Los Endos" (1976) - Genesis; instrumental track
5. "Time Again" (1982) - Asia; lead singer from King Crimson, drummer from Emerson, Lake & Palmer, guitarist from Yes and keyboardist from The Buggles ("Video Killed the Radio Star")

6. "Top of the World" (1988) - Jon Anderson; falsetto vocals from the lead singer of Yes; check these lyrics for a taste of some serious prog:

"Watching like a tiger
Mystic like a unicorn
Water, see the great whale
Skyward, are you listening?
Do shine, it's a gift you're reaching
Day to day, you touch me
Like a vision, we fly to the sky
For the very first time"

7. "Virus" (1997) - Brand X; jazz fusion "jam" band that eventually replaced ex-Genesis drummer Phil Collins with ex-Gong drummer Pierre Moerlen

My Picks for Krautrock (basically ambient, noise and post-rock from before those terms were coined)
8. "Ultima Thule" (1971) - Tangerine Dream; Krautrock meets "sympho-rock" (the original name for prog) then later leads to synth pop
9. "I'm So Green" (1972) - Can; like "It's Your Thing" covered by Beck; other tracks from the same album have covered by Sonic Youth, sampled by Kanye West and generally touted by Pavement
10. "Giggy Smile" (1974) - Faust; blues with a bit of a surf sound and a saxophone solo

My Picks for Power Pop (otherwise known as that stuff they play in movies)
11. "Go All the Way" (1972) - Rasberries; initially banned in the U.K. for its suggestive lyrics; used in the movie, Almost Famous
12. "My Sharona" (1979) - The Knack; from the Reality Bites soundtrack
13. "I've Done Everything for You" (1981) - Rick Springfield; featuring Van Halen singer, Sammy Hagar
14. "A Million Miles Away" (1983) - The Plimsouls; from the Valley Girl movie soundtrack
15. "There She Goes" (1990) - The La's; from the So I Married an Axe Murderer soundtrack
16. "Waiting for Somebody" (1992) - Paul Westerberg; lead singer of The Replacements; composed and performed the score for the movie, Singles
17. "Til I Hear It from You" (1995) - Gin Blossoms; from the Empire Records soundtrack
18. "Not Where It's At" (1997) - Del Amitri; standing in for The Lemonheads, R.E.M. and all the other '90s power pop bands that aren't included here (though they're probably more similar in sound to Toad the Wet Sprocket or The Wallflowers)