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    ‘Jeffersons’ Star Sherman Hemsley Was A Huge Prog Rock Fan

    tha As it turns out, ‘Jeffersons‘ star Sherman Hemsley was one of my clients while I was working at Aron’s Records off and on during the 1990s.  He was an absolute gentleman who always had a kind word, and he thoroughly impressed me with his progressive rock knowledge and the special orders he would give me to hunt down.  My fellow buyers and floor staff told me that he was instrumental in bringing a lot of prog to Los Angeles (especially the legendary band Gong).  This article I’m sharing came as a surprise that he and Yes singer Jon Anderson…

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    Gunesh – Гунеш

    Gunesh were from Turkmenistan and had one of the greatest drummers and percussionists to ever beat the skins in Rishad Shafi, who passed on a few years ago.  This holds itself admirably compared to western fusion bands.  Worth your time!

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    Thierry Zaboitzeff – Le Passage

    Thierry Zaboitzeff was for many years a member of the seminal avant-progressive/RIO group Art Zoyd, and since 1997, he has been involved in numerous solo projects and collaborations.  This is one of the bleakest records I’ve heard in recent memory, and the liner notes on the Bandcamp site sum up the mood perfectly: “Our world is in the midst of turmoil. Human madness forces Earth to defend itself with violent aftershocks, like so many distress signals. Will wisdom finally become the watchword of the times to come, clearing the path to a possible future? This is the undoubtful aim of…

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    Audion 60

    The legendary Audion Magazine has a new (well, new to Bandcamp) edition out, and included with it is about 1 1/2 gigabytes of tracks from albums reviewed within.  They were my first doorway to progressive rock, and I am forever indebted to them.

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    Jazz Q – Živí se Diví: Live in Bratislava 1975

    A new label out of Poland called GAD Records has been documenting seminal jazz and jazz-rock albums out of Poland, but now they’re venturing into the former Czechoslovakia with this release.  Jazz Q were a progressive rock band who managed to incorporate blues rock and even a bit of free jazz into their oeuvre.  This album documents them at their peak of their live powers in a 1975 concert held in Bratislavia, now Slovakia’s capital.