Official Neal Morse Appreciation Thread

[darkshade]

Considering the length of the two new epics, and I'm not sure how long Neal's sets usually are, but I imagine there's only going to be room for one or two more epics in the Danger set for non-Morsefest shows. I wonder if they'll mix it up and play different non-I&D epics each night.

He's talking about the rest of the tour, not Morsefest. Mike said they're also doing the I&D concept for sets 1 and 2 on the rest of the tour.

Ahhh, gotcha. I misread that, my bad. I hadn't seen Mike say that about the tour, but it makes sense.

Even if the tour's shows are pushing 3 hours, leaves maybe, at most, 90-120 minutes for the epics, or only 3-4 songs, two of which will be the new ones. If I had to guess, they'd probably rotate one epic between shows, and keep as much of the Morsefest material in rotation for both sets of the normal tour. I mean they're going through the trouble of learning 4-5 hours of material new and old, and to whittle that down to a 2.5-3 hour concert cuts out a LOT of songs, and I doubt they would want to play those songs just once (for Morsefest) and be done with them.

-Marc.

MP talks about the plans for the upcoming NMB tour in this video that was posted this week.

Mike Portnoy, and The Prog Report, discuss Neal, the upcoming NMB album, and create an 'ultimate' Neal Morse album.
https://youtu.be/ivk-Mk6KGSc

[KevShmev]

People can rank their favorites however they want of course, but to me it is cheating to use anything other than the officially released album version.  When I rank an album, I rank the album as it is, not how it could have been, meaning the original running order (see: a rough draft) is not something I consider, and bonus tracks are not part of the equation.  Using One as an example, the eight songs on the official release of One are THE album.  Ranking the album using any other method, again, is cheating.

Not saying I disagree with this, but IIRC, the issue with these One extra songs was that they were all meant to be in the album but they couldn't fit them because of the limitations of a CD (80 mins). I'd say the one with extra tracks is THE album vs the abridged version we got on the official release

I get that, but things happen how they happen. We could point to a zillion albums that pre-dated CD and say, "Add this song or that song to that album," from the same sessions that was later added as a bonus track to the CD release.  Like I said, people can do their rankings however they want of course, but just saying, I stick to what the artist released on the proper album.

Another example: my own personal running order of Spock's Brief Nocturnes... could arguably be my favorite by the band (it omits Afterthoughts, subs out the original Somewhere Very Strange for the shorter version, and includes the rest of the bonus songs), but that is not the actual album, so I never rank it that way.

[HOF]

Now for something new, Neal Morse's debut solo album.

11. It's Alright- I kind of feel let down with this as the ending. It's not bad, but it's not what it could be.

So I just got a copy of this today. Really enjoyed my first listen. Definitely sounds like SB era Neal only without the other players (except Nick, but he's more restrained than in SB). But what jumped out to me about It's Alright is the ending is almost the exact same chords/melody as Cakewalk on Easy Street only slowed down a bit.

I looove this album. It's everything I miss about Neal's songwriting. Poppy, singer-songwriter stuff, with jazzy and modern rock elements. It's not far off from Spock's Beard, it's just not progged up so much. One of the things that irks me when people write off Neal/Spock's as just regurgitating 70s prog is they are ignoring the more light-hearted, power pop sensibilities of a lot of Neal's stuff. Genesis and Yes and ELP and King Crimson didn't really have that kind of an angle (maybe Gentle Giant to an extent I guess), and certainly there are also elements of more modern rock that differentiate it from 70s prog (or 80s prog for that matter). 

[KevShmev]

I looove this album. It's everything I miss about Neal's songwriting. Poppy, singer-songwriter stuff, with jazzy and modern rock elements. It's not far off from Spock's Beard, it's just not progged up so much. One of the things that irks me when people write off Neal/Spock's as just regurgitating 70s prog is they are ignoring the more light-hearted, power pop sensibilities of a lot of Neal's stuff. Genesis and Yes and ELP and King Crimson didn't really have that kind of an angle (maybe Gentle Giant to an extent I guess), and certainly there are also elements of more modern rock that differentiate it from 70s prog (or 80s prog for that matter).

I agree, but it seems commonplace now for even Neal fans to put his albums in their own categories instead of considering them all his solo albums under the same banner.  Heck, look at that recent link with the Prog Report, where the people there even conveniently ignored some of Neal's officially released solo albums (Songs from November, Life + Times) when doing the doing the make the ultimate solo Neal album game, so it is no surprise that many overlook his songs that are more simple and poppy when fans of his and major prog sites ignore albums dedicated solely to songs like that altogether.

[MinistroRaven]

Lifeline documentary for IC subscribers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuTQ-A1ykTw

[HOF]

So this week I picked up It's Not Too Late. Another really fun album. A bit closer to modern Neal in sound and style than the self-titled solo album, which sounded more like Spock's Beard. Although there are a couple songs where he's flying very close chord structure wise to Spock's Beard songs on this one too (You can pretty much sing Can't Get it Wrong over The Angels Will Remember). The whole thing has a very warm sound, and the drums and bass both sound really rich.

But what I really love about this one is some of the interactions between Neal and Nick, especially on the outro of the title track. Apparently they recorded the drums and pianos in the same room to get that feel, and it turned out really wonderfully. If there's one thing I might want to see as much as a Neal with Spock's reunion, it's Neal and Nick doing an album together just the two of them. They always made such a strong pair both musically and vocally.

Also, I love how this album has a song callled “Leah” and one called “I Am Your Father.”

[KevShmev]

I don't see any reason why anyone should ever sing Can't Get It Wrong again.

Puns aside, I like the It's Not Too Late record, but most of the songs are ones I would call pretty good/solid.  The lone exception, for me, is The Wind + the Rain, which is absolutely fantastic.  The outro with the piano is so damn good.

[HOF]

I don't see any reason why anyone should ever sing Can't Get It Wrong again.

Puns aside, I like the It's Not Too Late record, but most of the songs are ones I would call pretty good/solid.  The lone exception, for me, is The Wind + the Rain, which is absolutely fantastic.  The outro with the piano is so damn good.

The Wind + The Rain is excellent. But I also really like Can’t Get it Wrong!

[Mladen]

I'm not too crazy about It's not too late, but if I had to pick a track that stands out, it's probably The Eyes of the world. That one is dedicated to George Harriron, right?

[gzarruk]

I checked his self-titled and It's Not Too Late for the first time a few weeks ago and... I was surprised at how little they grabbed me. I knew befoehand these were not prog albums, so I wasn't expecting that at all, but they still didn't do much for me, with a few exceptions.

[HOF]

I checked his self-titled and It's Not Too Late for the first time a few weeks ago and... I was surprised at how little they grabbed me. I knew befoehand these were not prog albums, so I wasn't expecting that at all, but they still didn't do much for me, with a few exceptions.

They’re excellent pop albums (with some prog on the first one), but there’s a lot of really great playing on them as well. Neal’s solo prog albums have always left me cold, but these hit the spot for me.

[The Letter M]

I'm not too crazy about It's not too late, but if I had to pick a track that stands out, it's probably The Eyes of the world. That one is dedicated to George Harriron, right?

Not sure who George Harriron is, but "The Eyes Of The World (George's Song)" is dedicated to Neal's friend George Pappanostas, who died in February of 2001, according to the liner notes (as I just grabbed the CD from my media tower).

Interestingly, all the songs were written over the course of the prior two decades before the album's release.
It's Not Too Late - 2000
All The Young Girls Cry - 2000
Leah - 1985
The Angels Will Remembers - 1999
So Long Goodbye Blues - 1983
The Change - 1998
Broken Homes - 1994
Oh Angie - 1996
The Eyes Of The World (George's Song) - 2001
Ain't Seen Nothin' Like Me - 1996
I Am Your Father - 1982
Something Blue - 2000
The Wind And The Rain - 1984

Nick D'Virgilio features on all but three songs: "Broken Homes" (which is just Neal on guitar and vocals, "George's Song" (which is Neal on everything), and "I Am Your Father" (featuring Neal's old band from the 80's, including Greg Westall on electric guitar, Brad Wetmore on bass, and Jordan Zimmerman on drums).

-Marc.

[HOF]

I really like The Change. Even if/because it sounds like a adult-oriented pop song circa 1998.

[The Letter M]

I really like The Change. Even if/because it sounds like a adult-oriented pop song circa 1998.

Well it was written in 1998, so maybe that explains it! 

-Marc.

[HOF]

I really like The Change. Even if/because it sounds like a adult-oriented pop song circa 1998.

Well it was written in 1998, so maybe that explains it! 

-Marc.

Precisely! 

[Mladen]

I'm not too crazy about It's not too late, but if I had to pick a track that stands out, it's probably The Eyes of the world. That one is dedicated to George Harriron, right?

Not sure who George Harriron is, but "The Eyes Of The World (George's Song)" is dedicated to Neal's friend George Pappanostas, who died in February of 2001, according to the liner notes (as I just grabbed the CD from my media tower).

In my defence, I was typing with one hand.  It was my assuption that it was a tribute to George Harrison, given that he passed away the year before, and I've always got a strong Beatles vibe from that track.

[kirksnosehair]

I checked his self-titled and It's Not Too Late for the first time a few weeks ago and... I was surprised at how little they grabbed me. I knew befoehand these were not prog albums, so I wasn't expecting that at all, but they still didn't do much for me, with a few exceptions.

I bought those both back when they were released and I don't think I ever listened to either disc more than once or twice.  Of course, I bought them expecting to hear something similar to Spock's Beard. 

[425]

I agree, but it seems commonplace now for even Neal fans to put his albums in their own categories instead of considering them all his solo albums under the same banner.  Heck, look at that recent link with the Prog Report, where the people there even conveniently ignored some of Neal's officially released solo albums (Songs from November, Life + Times) when doing the doing the make the ultimate solo Neal album game, so it is no surprise that many overlook his songs that are more simple and poppy when fans of his and major prog sites ignore albums dedicated solely to songs like that altogether.

I sort of think Neal has made and encouraged those categorizations himself, though, hasn't he? Perhaps most notably on the last tour, when the encore was a medley featuring one piece from each album from the "prog" category (plus each NMB album) and nothing from any of his other solo work. So while I get what you mean when you say that they are really all equally solo Neal albums, I think there's clearly a division into different kinds of solo album that Neal has in his own mind when making and performing his music.

[gzarruk]

I checked his self-titled and It's Not Too Late for the first time a few weeks ago and... I was surprised at how little they grabbed me. I knew befoehand these were not prog albums, so I wasn't expecting that at all, but they still didn't do much for me, with a few exceptions.

I bought those both back when they were released and I don't think I ever listened to either disc more than once or twice.  Of course, I bought them expecting to hear something similar to Spock's Beard.

Yeah, to me they just sound like extra songs Neal had written over the years and decided to release them because why not. I still enjoy some of them, but most I just don't care about.

[KevShmev]

I agree, but it seems commonplace now for even Neal fans to put his albums in their own categories instead of considering them all his solo albums under the same banner.  Heck, look at that recent link with the Prog Report, where the people there even conveniently ignored some of Neal's officially released solo albums (Songs from November, Life + Times) when doing the doing the make the ultimate solo Neal album game, so it is no surprise that many overlook his songs that are more simple and poppy when fans of his and major prog sites ignore albums dedicated solely to songs like that altogether.

I sort of think Neal has made and encouraged those categorizations himself, though, hasn't he? Perhaps most notably on the last tour, when the encore was a medley featuring one piece from each album from the "prog" category (plus each NMB album) and nothing from any of his other solo work. So while I get what you mean when you say that they are really all equally solo Neal albums, I think there's clearly a division into different kinds of solo album that Neal has in his own mind when making and performing his music.

IIRC, Neal almost never writes the set lists.  I think he trusts Portnoy write them, with input from others, and I thought I recall Bill Hubauer having a huge hand in designing the flow of that medley (someone correct me if I am misremembering), so it would not surprise me that Neal didn't push back at all when the others designed it while picking only from the full-on prog albums.

Not a big deal in the grand scheme, it's just weird as I cannot think of any other artist whose fans routinely group their albums into categories based on genre. 

[The Letter M]

I'm not too crazy about It's not too late, but if I had to pick a track that stands out, it's probably The Eyes of the world. That one is dedicated to George Harriron, right?

Not sure who George Harriron is, but "The Eyes Of The World (George's Song)" is dedicated to Neal's friend George Pappanostas, who died in February of 2001, according to the liner notes (as I just grabbed the CD from my media tower).

In my defence, I was typing with one hand.  It was my assuption that it was a tribute to George Harrison, given that he passed away the year before, and I've always got a strong Beatles vibe from that track.

Sounds like you need to work on that particular skill of yours. 

I'll admit that at one time I did think this as well, but I recall reading otherwise in the liner notes not long after I bought the album many years ago, and even if I couldn't remember exactl which George it was, I knew it wasn't Harrison.

I agree, but it seems commonplace now for even Neal fans to put his albums in their own categories instead of considering them all his solo albums under the same banner.  Heck, look at that recent link with the Prog Report, where the people there even conveniently ignored some of Neal's officially released solo albums (Songs from November, Life + Times) when doing the doing the make the ultimate solo Neal album game, so it is no surprise that many overlook his songs that are more simple and poppy when fans of his and major prog sites ignore albums dedicated solely to songs like that altogether.

I sort of think Neal has made and encouraged those categorizations himself, though, hasn't he? Perhaps most notably on the last tour, when the encore was a medley featuring one piece from each album from the "prog" category (plus each NMB album) and nothing from any of his other solo work. So while I get what you mean when you say that they are really all equally solo Neal albums, I think there's clearly a division into different kinds of solo album that Neal has in his own mind when making and performing his music.

IIRC, Neal almost never writes the set lists.  I think he trusts Portnoy write them, with input from others, and I thought I recall Bill Hubauer having a huge hand in designing the flow of that medley (someone correct me if I am misremembering), so it would not surprise me that Neal didn't push back at all when the others designed it while picking only from the full-on prog albums.

Not a big deal in the grand scheme, it's just weird as I cannot think of any other artist whose fans routinely group their albums into categories based on genre. 

I am willing to bet that Mike definitely had a hand in crafting the encore medley, as it seems to be something he'd be into, especially being the setlist master that he is.

Also, I don't think Neal is entirely against playing his singer-songwriter pieces during his usual prog rock album tours, I think he just knows what the prog fans want. He did a whole Life & Times tour just for those kinds of songs, so I think if he wanted to play them, he'd go on the road solo again to do that, or get a smaller band to play those kinds of songs. I'm sure he is aware that his amount of fame is mostly based on the fact that he is well known in the prog community, so he hasn't really tried to branch out and become a bigger star in the singer-songwriter genre. I think the most he's gotten into that was probably with Flying Colors, but that was mostly bolstered by being in a band with other fairly famous musicians, and then they lost an outside producer and became proggy anyway, soooooo... 

It's also interesting that he's never played any of his non-prog albums in full at any Morsefest, but I believe he's played some of those songs during Inner Circle Member concerts, so they have a home somewhere. It would be interesting to see what a tour of just his non-prog stuff would look like, who he would get to play with him, and if the shows would sell. I'm sure Neal likes it all, and I believe he's done Church Tours before playing his worhsip music as well, so it's not like other facets of his music gather cobwebs just because the prog fans aren't into it. He finds an audience for his work, it's just that his proggy stuff is the biggest audience.

-Marc.

[Peter Mc]

I checked his self-titled and It's Not Too Late for the first time a few weeks ago and... I was surprised at how little they grabbed me. I knew befoehand these were not prog albums, so I wasn't expecting that at all, but they still didn't do much for me, with a few exceptions.

I bought those both back when they were released and I don't think I ever listened to either disc more than once or twice.  Of course, I bought them expecting to hear something similar to Spock's Beard.

I’m similar.  I wasn’t expecting an album like Spock’s Beard but I always thought there were great pop moments within SB songs.  I just thought he’d be great at writing a pop album with really melodic shorter songs.  Both just bored me to tears unfortunately.

[darkshade]

Neal is a great musician, and a prolific composer, but he's also a keen businessman. He knows his bread and butter is making symphonic prog rock, particularly with Portnoy on drums. I'd argue that getting MP to play on his solo albums after he left Spock's, has helped his bottom line over the last 20 years, due to MP's popularity from being in Dream Theater.

Even then, I don't think he's a very popular artist in the grand scheme of prog rock, let alone all of music. So many prog fans do NOT like Neal's brand of prog (or TFK, or many other 3rd wave prog acts) If he couldn't make it as a singer-songwriter in the 80s and early 90s, he sure ain't going to break out big as a 61 year old white Christian male musician living in Tennessee in 2021, what with how our media pushes negative views on older people, people who live in the south, and religious folk, particularly and mainly Christians; and what is considered 'mainstream' music these days, which sometimes sounds like anti-music (and not in a good way). You'll be lucky to find someone under 40 or 35 who's even heard of Jon Anderson, Robert Fripp, or Keith Emerson, let alone Neal Morse. You might get lucky with a Collins or Gabriel, if only because they had a few pretty big hits in the 80s that still get airplay to this day. Even then...

Neal plays a niche style of music to an even greater niche audience, and yet, he's one of, if not THE most popular prog musicians post-1970s, aside from all the Dream Theater members and ex-members. It's basically a sad state of affairs for the genre, to think, ELP were playing huge arenas in the 1970s...

[The Letter M]

Neal is a great musician, and a prolific composer, but he's also a keen businessman. He knows his bread and butter is making symphonic prog rock, particularly with Portnoy on drums. I'd argue that getting MP to play on his solo albums after he left Spock's, has helped his bottom line over the last 20 years, due to MP's popularity from being in Dream Theater.

Even then, I don't think he's a very popular artist in the grand scheme of prog rock, let alone all of music. So many prog fans do NOT like Neal's brand of prog (or TFK, or many other 3rd wave prog acts) If he couldn't make it as a singer-songwriter in the 80s and early 90s, he sure ain't going to break out big as a 61 year old white Christian male musician living in Tennessee in 2021, what with how our media pushes negative views on older people, people who live in the south, and religious folk, particularly and mainly Christians; and what is considered 'mainstream' music these days, which sometimes sounds like anti-music (and not in a good way). You'll be lucky to find someone under 40 or 35 who's even heard of Jon Anderson, Robert Fripp, or Keith Emerson, let alone Neal Morse. You might get lucky with a Collins or Gabriel, if only because they had a few pretty big hits in the 80s that still get airplay to this day. Even then...

Neal plays a niche style of music to an even greater niche audience, and yet, he's one of, if not THE most popular prog musicians post-1970s, aside from all the Dream Theater members and ex-members. It's basically a sad state of affairs for the genre, to think, ELP were playing huge arenas in the 1970s...

Sounds about right, and I think you're on the nose about how well-known (or not well-known) many of the 70s prog musicians are these days. I discovered them in my early-20s after falling in love with Rush (and Dream Theater), so everything kind of opened up to me at that point, but today, there is just no spotlight on that kind of rock music anymore, or rock music in general. So not only rock on its way out the door, progressive rock has had a foot out the door for many years now, but Neal is one of the more popular musicians, if only because of his prolific nature, number of bands he's been involved in (similarly to Portnoy), and his style of prog rock (which is very influenced by the popular prog bands of the 70s like ELP, Genesis, and Yes). He built a name for himself during that early 90s third wave and managed to carve out a name for himself even among other fairly prolific writers like Steven Wilson and Roine Stolt.

But now that he is in his 60s, I don't think he's in any shape to change up the formula now, and I kind of hope that he finds a time to call it quits before he begins to be too old to perform the music he wants to perform, unless he retires the prog hat and focuses mainly on the fairly easier singer-songwriter music he's good at. I think him holding auditions 8-9 years ago for what would become the Neal Morse Band was a sign of him trying to make touring easier on himself, dividing up the guitar, keyboard, and vocal duties among two or three other musicians so he could reasonably perform for 2-3 months in a row during tours. I think iby also welcoming new music from Bill and Eric has helped relieve him of having to churn out 50-80 minutes of his own music every couple of years for a new prog album. I'm not saying he is burned out, but a lot of his critics have seemed to feel that way over the years, but I do appreciate that having Eric and Bill is a sort of shot-in-the-arm for Neal's music in general, even if it isn't entirely Neal's writing.

Bottom line, I just hope Neal doesn't end up like Yes, a shadow of their former selves playing at slower tempos and in lower keys, straining to hold things together. I do have a feeling that The Absolute Universe might be the last Transatlantic album because by the time they probably get around to making another one, he'll be at least 65 or 66, Pete will be pushing 67, and Roine will be close to 70. I can't imagine those guys in their late 60's trying to pump out and tour on the kind of big music they're used to writing together.

I also feel like Neal's tours have slowly gotten shorter in terms of length, and show times. He used to pump out 3 hour concerts, but now they seem to be 2-2.5 hours.

-Marc.

[King Postwhore]

Sometimes,  a guy makes music he loves and makes enough for a nice life.

And I'm grateful for that.

[darkshade]

Sometimes,  a guy makes music he loves and makes enough for a nice life.

And I'm grateful for that.

and I totally get that. Better to stay relatively unknown but make enough money to keep making the music you love, and then some, and it still be quality, than to be washed up like Yes, resting on your laurels like King Crimson is doing (even if they're a little being creative with it) and not putting out much new music, or disappearing from the public eye like Gabriel and Collins have been doing for a long time now.

[darkshade]

Neal is a great musician, and a prolific composer, but he's also a keen businessman. He knows his bread and butter is making symphonic prog rock, particularly with Portnoy on drums. I'd argue that getting MP to play on his solo albums after he left Spock's, has helped his bottom line over the last 20 years, due to MP's popularity from being in Dream Theater.

Even then, I don't think he's a very popular artist in the grand scheme of prog rock, let alone all of music. So many prog fans do NOT like Neal's brand of prog (or TFK, or many other 3rd wave prog acts) If he couldn't make it as a singer-songwriter in the 80s and early 90s, he sure ain't going to break out big as a 61 year old white Christian male musician living in Tennessee in 2021, what with how our media pushes negative views on older people, people who live in the south, and religious folk, particularly and mainly Christians; and what is considered 'mainstream' music these days, which sometimes sounds like anti-music (and not in a good way). You'll be lucky to find someone under 40 or 35 who's even heard of Jon Anderson, Robert Fripp, or Keith Emerson, let alone Neal Morse. You might get lucky with a Collins or Gabriel, if only because they had a few pretty big hits in the 80s that still get airplay to this day. Even then...

Neal plays a niche style of music to an even greater niche audience, and yet, he's one of, if not THE most popular prog musicians post-1970s, aside from all the Dream Theater members and ex-members. It's basically a sad state of affairs for the genre, to think, ELP were playing huge arenas in the 1970s...

Sounds about right, and I think you're on the nose about how well-known (or not well-known) many of the 70s prog musicians are these days. I discovered them in my early-20s after falling in love with Rush (and Dream Theater), so everything kind of opened up to me at that point, but today, there is just no spotlight on that kind of rock music anymore, or rock music in general. So not only rock on its way out the door, progressive rock has had a foot out the door for many years now, but Neal is one of the more popular musicians, if only because of his prolific nature, number of bands he's been involved in (similarly to Portnoy), and his style of prog rock (which is very influenced by the popular prog bands of the 70s like ELP, Genesis, and Yes). He built a name for himself during that early 90s third wave and managed to carve out a name for himself even among other fairly prolific writers like Steven Wilson and Roine Stolt.

But now that he is in his 60s, I don't think he's in any shape to change up the formula now, and I kind of hope that he finds a time to call it quits before he begins to be too old to perform the music he wants to perform, unless he retires the prog hat and focuses mainly on the fairly easier singer-songwriter music he's good at. I think him holding auditions 8-9 years ago for what would become the Neal Morse Band was a sign of him trying to make touring easier on himself, dividing up the guitar, keyboard, and vocal duties among two or three other musicians so he could reasonably perform for 2-3 months in a row during tours. I think iby also welcoming new music from Bill and Eric has helped relieve him of having to churn out 50-80 minutes of his own music every couple of years for a new prog album. I'm not saying he is burned out, but a lot of his critics have seemed to feel that way over the years, but I do appreciate that having Eric and Bill is a sort of shot-in-the-arm for Neal's music in general, even if it isn't entirely Neal's writing.

Bottom line, I just hope Neal doesn't end up like Yes, a shadow of their former selves playing at slower tempos and in lower keys, straining to hold things together. I do have a feeling that The Absolute Universe might be the last Transatlantic album because by the time they probably get around to making another one, he'll be at least 65 or 66, Pete will be pushing 67, and Roine will be close to 70. I can't imagine those guys in their late 60's trying to pump out and tour on the kind of big music they're used to writing together.

I also feel like Neal's tours have slowly gotten shorter in terms of length, and show times. He used to pump out 3 hour concerts, but now they seem to be 2-2.5 hours.

-Marc.

You might be right about Transatlantic, but with MP being the drummer and the youngest in the band, he could keep the olds in the band on their toes as long as he's still got the energy. I don't think their music is TOO technically difficult for 60 and 70 year old men to recreate live. I think the hardest aspect of playing their music is just remembering what part comes next, and they've been playing a half step down for a while now anyway, at least since The Whirlwind tour. I think trying to play the music from YES' first 7 or 8 albums, written when they were in their 20s, is a lot harder for old dudes to recreate without slowing the tempos down a ton. Transatlantic's first album was written when Roine and Neal were both in their early 40s I believe, pretty old by rock n roll standards. Having a younger member in NMB (Eric) is also a way to keep the band and its members young.

[KevShmev]

I can't help but wonder if they are thinking long term with re-branding the Neal Morse Band as NMB, if there comes a scenario in a few years where Neal wants to step away (he will be 61 in a few weeks, after all) and Eric wants to take the reigns and lead the band going forward.  Would be easier to do with the NMB name instead of it being Neal Morse Band without Neal Morse.

[King Postwhore]

Sometimes,  a guy makes music he loves and makes enough for a nice life.

And I'm grateful for that.

and I totally get that. Better to stay relatively unknown but make enough money to keep making the music you love, and then some, and it still be quality, than to be washed up like Yes, resting on your laurels like King Crimson is doing (even if they're a little being creative with it) and not putting out much new music, or disappearing from the public eye like Gabriel and Collins have been doing for a long time now.

Can you imagine doing what you love and still haveca small cult? 

I'd be elated!

[425]

I can't help but wonder if they are thinking long term with re-branding the Neal Morse Band as NMB, if there comes a scenario in a few years where Neal wants to step away (he will be 61 in a few weeks, after all) and Eric wants to take the reigns and lead the band going forward.  Would be easier to do with the NMB name instead of it being Neal Morse Band without Neal Morse.

This is an interesting thought, but aren't the rest of the guys a lot closer to Neal's age than they are to Eric's? I got the sense that it was just that the initial branding was a marketing ploy that they sort of regret doing since it implies less equality than there really is, but don't regret enough to want to deal with the confusion of a full-on name change. Possibly spurred by the sort of tension suggested by the comments from Eric's wife on bosk's(?) review of one of their albums.

[Stadler]

I think they're trying to capitalize on drunk frat boys and 20-something granola chicks who confuse "DMB" with "NMB" and come to the show. 

[KevShmev]

I think they're trying to capitalize on drunk frat boys and 20-something granola chicks who confuse "DMB" with "NMB" and come to the show.

What Would Jesus Say??

[MinistroRaven]

I think they're trying to capitalize on drunk frat boys and 20-something granola chicks who confuse "DMB" with "NMB" and come to the show.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

[Cocopjojo]

I can't help but wonder if they are thinking long term with re-branding the Neal Morse Band as NMB, if there comes a scenario in a few years where Neal wants to step away (he will be 61 in a few weeks, after all) and Eric wants to take the reigns and lead the band going forward.  Would be easier to do with the NMB name instead of it being Neal Morse Band without Neal Morse.

That's an interesting theory. It's definitely being driven by something. But I can't imagine a world where Neal stops doing what he's doing until he literally drops dead. I think he loves it too much.

My suspicion is that it's because the entire band contributes to writing now, rather than just Neal. Personally, I think the rebranding is a bit silly, because who cares besides them? Plus they have to realize that no one - literally no one - is going to start referring to them as "In Em Bee".

[425]

My suspicion is that it's because the entire band contributes to writing now, rather than just Neal. Personally, I think the rebranding is a bit silly, because who cares besides them? Plus they have to realize that no one - literally no one - is going to start referring to them as "In Em Bee".

In all seriousness, I really do think the best candidate for "who cares" is "Eric's wife."