[Rick and Roll]

This week we have a busy show. The Spirit refers to our first and last artists. The Sunshine is artist 3, and artist 2 is the Soul.

Mike Visaggio - Starship Universe (2006) (55:05)

Mike contacted me via myspace. He's a 54-year old keyboard wizard living in Richmond, VA who has been in many bands, and is promoting his solo disc the best he can. I'll email Mike and hopefully he can add to this thread. His comments he mailed me about each song are very insightful - if there's a way to post those, Mike, it would be really cool.

The instrumentals are astounding. "Blues Variations" is the Emerson song, and "2001" is a great version of the Strauss classic. The title cut is a wonderful pipe organ song. Mike sings (very well), and does everything else except in three songs that have drumming. No bass or guitar.. I sense a lot of ELP and some Moody Blues, but the music draws from many influences.

In The Nazarene Church
Prelude No. 2 for Piano
My Elder's Son
Blues Variations
2001: Also Rocked Zarathustra
Starship Universe
The Synchronized Life
On The Ship of Emotion
Music's Coming To Us

Paul Weller - from As Is Now (2005) 16:29

I bought this in Heathrow Airport, trying to spend my money like they used to do on "Wheel of Fortune". I love his solo work, especially "Wildwool" and "Stanley Road". Not exactly prog, but a lot of soul. Four songs:

Blink And You'll Miss It
The Start of Forever
All On A Misty Morning
Roll Along Summer

Sunny Day Real Estate - from "The Rising Tide" (2000) (14:31)

Sent to me by Mossy, another non-prog entry but not really mainstream either. Regardless, I like it a lot and another fine call by Viva Las Mossy. A change of pace from the Weller. We'll do three songs:

Killed By An Angel
Tearing In My Heart
Snibe

Neal Morse - Testimony - Disc One (2003) 72:46

Neal Morse after Spock's Beard progressively left his pop behind, and this record started the process continued by the great discs "One" and "?". This disc is almost perfect, and Neal's musicianship is on stunning display. Anybody that has the DVD can testify haha that it's excellent.

The Land of the Beginning Again
Overture No. 1
California Nights
Colder In the Sun
Sleeping Jesus
Interlude
The Prince of the Power of the Air
The Promise
Wasted Life
Overture No. 2
Break of Day
Power In the Air
Somber Days
Long Story
It's All I Can Do

Neal Morse - Testimony - Disc Two (2003) 17:13

Transformation
Ready To Try
In The Middle
The Storm Before The Calm

We will finish off the show with four of the eleven cuts from Disc 2, for the following reasons:

1) There is no more room
2) You know how the story ends
3) These songs are quite proggy
4) the remaing songs are a bit heavy-handed.

These are excellent representations and cross-sections of Neal's incredible songwriting ability.

Enjoy the three S's!