| Act One | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1970 | |||
| Recorded | De Lane Lea Studios, Holborn, London | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock | |||
| Length | 41:57 | |||
| Label | Vertigo | |||
| Producer | Bill Martin, Phil Coulter | |||
| Beggars Opera chronology | ||||
| ||||
Act One is the debut album of the Scottish progressive band Beggars Opera.
Variously classified as symphonic rock, progressive rock or proto-progressive rock, Beggars Opera's debut album has been compared to (and sometimes described as "derivative of") works by The Nice and Deep Purple MK I. [1] [2] It was published by Vertigo (which had at the time introduced its legendary "swirl" label) in 1970 and features cover art by the renowned surrealist photographer and artist Marcus Keef (the same that created the covers for Black Sabbath's first three albums). [2] In the same year the band also released a somewhat successful single, "Sarabande", which was not included in the album in its original LP edition, but appears in the CD reissue.
The album includes many elements of symphonic progressive rock, including a number of references to classical music (e.g.,Poet and Peasant and Light Cavalry by Franz von Suppé and Grieg's Peer Gynt ), an Emerson-esque keyboard section featuring organ and Hammond, complex arrangements, and long suites (most notably "Raymond's Road"). [1] [2]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Poet and Peasant" | Franz von Suppé; arranged by Beggars Opera | 7:10 |
| 2. | "Passacaglia" | George Frideric Handel (passacaglia-Suite in g-minor,HWV432), Marshall Erskine, Virginia Scott; arranged by Alan Park | 7:04 |
| 3. | "Memory" | Marshall Erskine, Virginia Scott; arranged by Alan Park | 3:57 |
| 4. | "Raymond's Road" | Alan Park, Ricky Gardiner, Marshall Erskine, Martin Griffiths, Raymond Wilson; arranged by Alan Park | 11:49 |
| 5. | "Light Cavalry" | Franz von Suppé; arranged by Beggars Opera | 11:57 |
| 6. | "Sarabande" (from single 71') | Alan Park, Ricky Gardiner, Marshall Erskine, Martin Griffiths, Raymond Wilson, Virginia Scott | 3:32 |
| 7. | "Think" (from single 71') | Alan Park, Martin Griffiths | 4:25 |
Therion is a Swedish symphonic metal band founded by Christofer Johnsson in 1987. Its name was inspired by the Celtic Frost album To Mega Therion. "To Mega Therion" is Greek for "The Great Beast" and was a title used by occultist Aleister Crowley. Originally a death metal band, Therion adjusted its musical style by adding orchestral elements, including choirs, classical musicians, and even a full orchestra at their concert performances. As a result, they are considered pioneers of the symphonic metal genre.
Hope is the second album by the Canadian rock band Klaatu and their first concept album. Released in September 1977, it won a Juno Award for "Best Engineered Album" and a Canadian Music Critics award for "Best Album" that same year.
Beggars Banquet is the 10th studio album by English rock band the Rolling Stones. Released in December 1968 by Decca Records in the United Kingdom and London Records in the United States, it is the band's seventh British and ninth American studio album. It was the first Rolling Stones album produced by Jimmy Miller, whose production work formed a key aspect of the group's sound throughout the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Symphonic metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that combines the heavy drums and guitars of metal with different elements of orchestral classical music, such as symphonic instruments, choirs and sometimes a full orchestra, or just keyboard orchestration.
Kansas is the debut studio album by American progressive rock band Kansas, released in 1974 by Kirshner in the United States and Epic Records in other countries.
"Breathe" is a song by progressive rock band Pink Floyd on their 1973 album The Dark Side of the Moon.
Cybotron were an Australian electronic, experimental music band formed in 1975 by Steve Maxwell Von Braund on synthesiser, electronic percussion, and alto saxophone; and Geoff Green on keyboard, organ, and synthesiser. The group issued three studio albums, Cybotron (1976), Colossus (1978) and Implosion (1980) and disbanded by 1981. Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, noted that they were "a bona fide experimental outfit, and the band's eponymous debut album featured a mix of heavy synthesiser kinetics, organ drones and pulsating electronic beats".
"Heart of the Sunrise" is a progressive rock song by British band Yes. It is the closing track on their fourth album, 1971's Fragile. The compositional credits go to Jon Anderson, Bill Bruford, and Chris Squire, though keyboardist Rick Wakeman contributed some uncredited sections.
Trúbrot were an Icelandic psychedelic/progressive rock band active in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Storia di un minuto is the first album of the Italian progressive rock band Premiata Forneria Marconi. It was recorded in Milan and released by the Numero Uno division of RCA Records in Italy. The album topped the Italian album charts after one week from the release – the first time occurrence in the Italian charts up until then.
Din Within is an American Neo-progressive rock project which was formed in late 2004 by Mark Gollihur and Josh Sager. The duo remain the only core members of the "band," but they enlisted the help of guest musicians in the production of their critically acclaimed debut album, Awaken the Man, which was released by Zenwater Music/Digital Din on November 13, 2007. The album was written over a course of several years by Gollihur and Sager, which, as they state on their website, was a time of "great personal struggle and growth." Indeed, most of the lyrical concepts on their debut release seem to deal with personal issues of self-discovery and redemption.
Sebastian Hardie were Australia's first symphonic rock band. They formed in Sydney in 1967 as Sebastian Hardie Blues Band but dropped the 'Blues Band' reference when they became pop-oriented. By 1973 they developed a more progressive rock style, and later performed as Windchase, but disbanded in 1977. An early member of Sebastian Hardie was Jon English, who starred as Judas Iscariot in the Australian version of the stage musical Jesus Christ Superstar in 1972, he subsequently had a solo career as a singer, actor and playwright. A later member, Mario Millo became a multi-award winner for his television and movie music.
Beggars Opera was a Scottish progressive rock band from Glasgow, Scotland, formed in 1969 by guitarist Ricky Gardiner, vocalist Martin Griffiths, and bassist Marshall Erskine. The line-up consisted of Ricky Gardiner (guitar/vocals), Alan Park (keyboards), Martin Griffiths (vocals) Marshall Erskine (bass/flute) and Raymond Wilson (drums). After working together building parts of the M40 Motorway near Beaconsfield, the lads moved back to Glasgow to look for an organist and drummer and found Alan Park and Ray Wilson. After an intensive time in rehearsal they took up residency at Burns Howff club/pub in West Regent Street in the center of Glasgow. Tours of Europe followed and the band found success in Germany, appearing on German TV's legendary Beat-Club, then at the First British Rock Meeting in Speyer in September 1971.
Sky Architect is a progressive rock band based in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Their debut album, Excavations of the Mind, was released in 2010 from ProgRock Records. The drummer and backing vocalist, Christiaan Bruin, is also known for his solo project "Chris". They are currently signed to FREIA Music.
Survival is a Dutch Progressive / Symphonic rock band/project, initiated in 1981 by keyboard player & composer Jack Langevelt. Inspired by classic bands like Trace, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Ekseption, The Nice, Camel, Procol Harum and Deep Purple. The sound of Survival is characterized by strong dynamic melodies with odd time signatures and epic themes. Survival existed as a band between 1981 and 1997, although Jack continued making music under the name Survival.
Mario Daniel Millo is an Australian musician and composer from Sydney, he was a member of symphonic rock group Sebastian Hardie from 1973 to their disbandment in 1977. Their debut album, Four Moments (1975) peaked at No. 13 on the Australian Kent Music Report Albums Chart. He has had a solo career and composed film and television soundtracks and scores. In 1978, he worked with Jon English on the soundtrack for the television series, Against the Wind and its related single, "Six Ribbons". Both album and single peaked in the Top 10 on the relevant Kent Music Report charts. The series had international release, known as Mot alla vindar/Mot alle vindar/Mod vinden (1980) in Scandinavian countries where the album and single reached No. 1 in Norway and No. 4 in Sweden. Millo's compositions have won Australian film industry awards for, The Lighthorsemen (1987) and television awards for, Brides of Christ (1991) and Changi (2001). Brides of Christ won an Australian Record Industry Association (ARIA) Music Award in 1992 for 'Best Original Soundtrack Album' - Millo was nominated for the same award in 1997 for G.P. and in 2002 for Changi.
Epignosis is a progressive rock band made up of multi-instrumentalist Robert Brown and vocalist Tasha Brown. The band's first studio album, Still the Waters, was released January 10, 2009. Two years later, the band released their second studio album, Refulgence, on June 17, 2011. The band name is of Greek origin, combining the preface "epi-," meaning toward, and "gnosis," meaning knowledge.
Waters of Change is the second album by the Scottish progressive band Beggars Opera, published in 1971.
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Beloved Antichrist is the sixteenth full-length album by Swedish symphonic metal band Therion. It is a triple album and was released on 9 February 2018 by Nuclear Blast Records. The album has been described as a rock opera by the band, who are accompanied by a large orchestra and choir. The album cover was created by Thomas Ewerhart. It is the band's first collection of new material since Sitra Ahra in 2010, while group founder Christofer Johnsson had toyed with the idea of a rock opera for 15 years.