The story so far

Here's a quick overview of the best new-to-me music I've heard during my continuing re-investigation of progressive-rock/Strange Music over the last six months. Unfortunately, there isn't much of it. And you don't want to see the list of the worst stuff....
* Argent -- Dance in the Smoke, from their first album (1970). Excellent mantra-like piece, builds in intensity as it goes. Their later "Lothlorien" is also good -- nice light touch on these tracks. Guess they got heavier and more obvious later....
* Camel -- Go West, DUST AND DREAMS (1991). The album is a gorgeous soundtrack to Steinbeck's GRAPES OF WRATH. "Go West" is beautiful, moving, great guitar -- maybe better than "Mother Road," the next track on the disc and the only thing off this that I'd heard previously.
* Be-Bop Deluxe -- Adventures in a Yorkshire Landscape, from LIVE! IN THE AIR AGE (1977). To be honest, the lyrics go right past me, but Bill Nelson's guitar solo and Andy Clark's keyboards light this song up. Very nice stuff.
* Starcastle -- Shine on Brightly, from CITADEL (1977). Not too Yes-ish. Nice and sparkly.
* Gordon Giltrap -- VISIONARY, PERILOUS JOURNEY. Excellent instrumental progressive-guitar-and-group work, supported by the duo Edwards-Hand. Nice mood music. (Edwards-Hand weren't worth hearing on their own....)
* John Martyn -- May You Never, Solid Air. Smokey British electric-folk from Nick Drake's friend and neighbor.
* Renaissance -- Island, from their first album (1969). Gorgeous vocals from Jane Relf, an edited version could have been a hit. The rest of the album, eh.
* Osibisa -- first album (1970). Nice tribal drumming and upbeat happy tunes, they sounded like no one else.
* Byrds -- The World Turns All Around Her, from TURN! TURN! TURN! (1965). Another overlooked great from Gene Clark ("I'll Feel a Whole Lot Better").
* Linda and Richard Thompson -- The Great Valerio (live), from Linda's best-of DREAMS FLY AWAY (1996). Stark, dramatic live solo-vocal-and-guitar piece, even MORE intense than the studio version on R&L's I WANT TO SEE THE BRIGHT LIGHTS TONIGHT (1974).
* Stackridge -- No One's More Important Than the Earthworm, from EXTRAVAGANZA (1975). Silly lyrics get a big Pink-Floyd-style treatment. Impressive. Written by former King Crimson singer Gordon Haskell.
* Jade Warrior -- WAVES (1975). Very ... uh ... discreet ambient instrumentals, sort of an Environments mood-music album. Still not sure about the fake-whale-songs at the end of Side 2. So quiet and pleasant it almost fades into the background.... Betcha Brian Eno heard this at some point.
* Jethro Tull -- Slow Marching Band, from THE BROADSWORD AND THE BEAST (1982). Excellent miniature, builds nicely, ends at just the right spot, doesn't overstay its welcome.
* Stomu Yamashta, Steve Winwood, Michael Shreve -- GO (1976), Side One. As spacey as WAVES, only more upbeat, with Winwood adding occasional funky vocals and keybs. Good synth work. A nice surprise. Need to get back to Side 2 someday....
* Synergy -- CORDS (1978), Side 1. Distant, icy, spacey, ominous synth work. Quite a contrast to Larry Fast's earlier, warmer albums SEQUENCER and ELECTRONIC REALIZATIONS FOR ROCK ORCHESTRA.
* Van der Graaf Generator -- REFLECTIONS early-best-of. Haven't gotten all the way through this. Knew VdGG was different and intense from hearing all of PAWN HEARTS (1971), which is a spooky record. This is also spooky, dark, gothic, grim, intense. Well worth hearing, but you probably won't be singing along with it....
* Gentle Giant -- I'm Turning Around, from THE MISSING PIECE (1977). Nice gentle love song, sort of a follow-up to their excellent "On Reflection" (on FREE HAND, 1975).

Planned for Sunday morning: Complete listening and off-the-top-of-my-head reviews of Genesis's SELLING ENGLAND BY THE POUND (1973) and the Turtles' BATTLE OF THE BANDS (1968). Bonus tracks may follow, time permitting....
Also planned for the future:
* ALL ALAN PARSONS! Got half a dozen albums piled up to listen to and review previously-unheard parts of....
* STILL MORE REALLY BAD PROG! I promise. The things I go through for you people....
* ALL KEYBOARDS! Ghod knows how I'm gonna describe this....
* ALL RICK WAKEMAN! Ditto....
* ALL JAZZ-ROCK!
* ALL MOODIES' SOLO ALBUMS!
* ALL INCREDIBLE STRING BAND!
* ALL ELO!
* ALL GENESIS!
...and Ghod Knows what else....