Prog-Watch 845
I’m doing another of my band family tree explorations on Prog-Watch this week and my subject is the classic US band Spock’s Beard! We’ll hear from the band proper, and many of the major members, past and present! Join me to hear all the great stuff that I shake out of the Spock’s Beard Family Tree!
Spock’s Beard is an American progressive rock band formed in Los Angeles.
The band was formed in 1992 by brothers Neal (lead vocals, keyboards) and Alan Morse (vocals, guitars), John Ballard (bass) and Nick D’Virgilio (drums). Ballard was replaced by Dave Meros before the release of their debut album, The Light (1995), and Ryo Okumoto (keyboards) joined soon after. Neal Morse left the band following the release of their sixth album, Snow (2002), and D’Virgilio took over as the band’s frontman. In 2011, D’Virgilio also left and was replaced by Jimmy Keegan (drums) and Ted Leonard (lead vocals) from Brief Nocturnes and Dreamless Sleep (2013) onwards. To date, the band have released thirteen studio albums, and numerous live releases.
The band, particularly the Neal Morse line-up (pictured above), are considered to be at the forefront of modern progressive rock music. Four of their first six albums featured in the Prog Report’s “Top 50 Prog Albums 1990–2015”, with The Light and Snow featuring in the top ten.
- https://www.spocksbeard.com/
- https://www.ryookumoto.com/
- https://www.nickdvirgilio.com/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ted_Leonard
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Morse
- https://www.psanimals1.com/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enchant_(band)
Music with some meat to it!
Prog-Watch is a weekly podcast and internet radio program dedicated to bringing the listener contemporary Progressive Rock music from around the world. Your big, hairy host, the “Prog-Squatch” wanders the woods of the world, beats the bushes, and digs in the dirt to bring the best Prog back for YOU! Sometimes solo and sometimes with a guest host, the Prog-Squatch will bring you new and interesting artists in each episode, and give you some background info and a taste of their music.
Want More Squatch? Check him out howling into the wild with his own Progressive Rock Band, Novus. Jam some Squatch in those ears! http://novus3.bandcamp.com/releases