Official Neal Morse Appreciation Thread

[Mladen]

I'm always looking forward to new music by Neal. 

[Fritzinger]

Mike Portnoy on Facebook:

Well...(weather permitting), I'm flying to Nashville tonight to begin work on a new album with these guys...
Our last creation was one of my personal favs of all time...can't wait to see what we can cook up next! #NealMorseBand

"Sons Of Apollo will be my main focus in 2018"

[ProfessorPeart]

Mike Portnoy on Facebook:

Well...(weather permitting), I'm flying to Nashville tonight to begin work on a new album with these guys...
Our last creation was one of my personal favs of all time...can't wait to see what we can cook up next! #NealMorseBand

"Sons Of Apollo will be my main focus in 2018"

https://twitter.com/MikePortnoy/status/949083400912228352

Simmer down Leah...haven't you learned by now I can juggle em all!! 😎 Starting a NMB album now to set up my next cycle when the SOA cycle is done...I also have a MA gig in a few weeks and a new MA album coming out too...relax, I GOT THIS! It's how I roll...

[kaos2900]

Great news. No such thing as too much Neal Morse.

[utopiarun]

There goes my hopes (however slim) that Neal would break out of the box he's in and work with another producer/band. I don't mean his singer-songwriter phase. Although his prog albums are very good, I would like to see something more adventurous.

[bosk1]

There goes my hopes (however slim) that Neal would break out of the box he's in and work with another producer/band. I don't mean his singer-songwriter phase. Although his prog albums are very good, I would like to see something more adventurous.

Honestly, I'm not sure how music could be more "adventurous" than what he does.    I think it's more a problem of your familiarity with his music than a problem with his music.

[Mebert78]

I hope Portnoy is getting enough down time to recharge his batteries!  Sometimes I feel like he's going to overdo it and hit a wall.  That said, I'm pumped for some new NMB! 

[bosk1]

I did not intentionally discovery Neal Morse. 

I think it was 2005 or 2006.  My DT fandom was in full bloom at that point, but I hadn't really branched out and looked into many of the various side projects all of the members had been involved in.  I think probably all I had at that point was LTE2.  Around that time, I was at a branch of a Bay Area chain music store that carries a LOT of more obscure stuff, imports, used disks, etc.  I had some extra cash and some extra time, so I thought I would just browse through the bins and see if I could find anything from all these side projects or other bands that fellow forum members were into.  Neal had released Testimony, One, and ? at that point.  They had Testimony, so I picked it up.  2 disk set?  That's a great way to get an intro into this Neal Morse guy I had been hearing about.  But I wasn't ready.  The music was good.  But there was just SO much to digest.  And the story just seemed to go on and on and on.  I can't say that it grabbed me immediately.  But I revisited it from time to time over the next couple of years, and it slowly began to take hold and become one of my favorite albums.  I think it was actually a trip to Tahoe where I really had time to listen to it a few times in the car, and it really started to sink in and click.  And as part of that, I began to understand why it was so long, and why it NEEDED to be so long.  But, man, what an album this was.

I also began to slowly build my Neal discography.  I didn't get everything.  I still don't have everything.  But I picked up One and loved it.  I picked up Transatlantic, Live In Europe and loved it.  Found the Testimony live DVD used (what a find!) and loved it.  From there, I also picked up the first two TA studio albums.  I think Sola Scriptura was next, as I picked that up right when it was released, and by now my Neal fandom was set in stone.

Since then, I think it's safe to say that he has become one of my favorite musicians, if not my absolute favorite.  I can't say I love everything he has done.  But I find almost universally that if he was involved, there is a very high likelihood that I will really enjoy it. 

My favorite works of his are (in no order):  Testimony, One, Sola Scriptura, The Whirlwind, and The Similitude of a Dream. 

This new song, He Died At Home, is fantastic.  I need to get whatever album that is going to be on.  Anyhow, just some random NM thoughts for this morning.  Just wanted to share.

[Stadler]

Other than the list of favorites, that is kind of me and how I dove into the Neal Morse universe.   I have to say, I went and saw the TSOAD show (front row) and haven't been as mesmerized by a performer in a LONG time.   Real good stuff.   I'd like to try to catch the "singer/songwriter" show, but I don't know if it's going to happen.

[Mladen]

Interestingly enough, I became a fan of Spock's Beard and Dream Theater around the same time, which was late 2007/early 2008. Can you imagine how thrilled I was when I found out that the mastermind of Spock's Beard has a side project with the drummer of Dream Theater? I liked Translatlantic from the start, but only later got into Neal's remarkably consistent solo career.

[The Letter M]

Well, since we're all sharing, I guess I'll share too.

It was around 2004 when I started getting into Prog Rock properly, with Rush being my major foray into it. From there, it branched into more 70's prog, but I was also recommended a band called Dream Theater (because someone compared WDADU to Rush a bit, so I was intrigued - the rest is history). After a year or so of Dream Theater and Rush, among many others, I discovered Transatlantic (after falling in love with Mike Portnoy's drumming, as a drummer myself, so I sought out his other bands), and from there my undying love for Neal Morse's prog rock was born.

Transatlantic is a Top 5 band for me, and no doubt because of Neal's writing. In mid-2005, I bought nearly all of Spock's Beard's albums up to that point (Octane had just been released and I bought the 2CD set at my local FYE), and had also gotten Testimony and One, both of which I was completely enamored with. Hearing news that Neal was working on another album had me REALLY excited, and so his first new album after I became a lifelong fan was ?, and BOY what a new album that was for me! I ordered that sucker a week before release on Amazon and when it came in, I spun that album for weeks and weeks, picking out all the themes and motifs, enjoying the drumming and that entrancing guitar solo by Steve Hackett.

From then on, I've tried pre-ordering every single Neal Morse solo/band prog album he releases, studio and live, and I have been a part of the Inner Circle Fan Club since November 2011 (to get his Proggy Christmas album, before the official final release). As a single musicians/song-writer/singer, Neal easily ranks in my top 5, and his music always touches me in ways that few musicians have, regardless of his subject matter. His melodies and soulful voice always know how to move me, and despite his music often recycling itself or sounding same-y at some times, it doesn't detract from my enjoyment. Rather, because it is similar, it just means I am as likely to fall in love with it as always, but when he ventures into new or different territories (as he has with the Neal Morse Band), it gets me more excited because it means, after nearly 25 years of writing, he is still willing to try new things and make them sound amazing!

-Marc.

[DT2003]

I did not intentionally discovery Neal Morse. 

I think it was 2005 or 2006.  My DT fandom was in full bloom at that point, but I hadn't really branched out and looked into many of the various side projects all of the members had been involved in.  I think probably all I had at that point was LTE2.  Around that time, I was at a branch of a Bay Area chain music store that carries a LOT of more obscure stuff, imports, used disks, etc.  I had some extra cash and some extra time, so I thought I would just browse through the bins and see if I could find anything from all these side projects or other bands that fellow forum members were into.  Neal had released Testimony, One, and ? at that point.  They had Testimony, so I picked it up.  2 disk set?  That's a great way to get an intro into this Neal Morse guy I had been hearing about.  But I wasn't ready.  The music was good.  But there was just SO much to digest.  And the story just seemed to go on and on and on.  I can't say that it grabbed me immediately.  But I revisited it from time to time over the next couple of years, and it slowly began to take hold and become one of my favorite albums.  I think it was actually a trip to Tahoe where I really had time to listen to it a few times in the car, and it really started to sink in and click.  And as part of that, I began to understand why it was so long, and why it NEEDED to be so long.  But, man, what an album this was.

I also began to slowly build my Neal discography.  I didn't get everything.  I still don't have everything.  But I picked up One and loved it.  I picked up Transatlantic, Live In Europe and loved it.  Found the Testimony live DVD used (what a find!) and loved it.  From there, I also picked up the first two TA studio albums.  I think Sola Scriptura was next, as I picked that up right when it was released, and by now my Neal fandom was set in stone.

Since then, I think it's safe to say that he has become one of my favorite musicians, if not my absolute favorite.  I can't say I love everything he has done.  But I find almost universally that if he was involved, there is a very high likelihood that I will really enjoy it. 

My favorite works of his are (in no order):  Testimony, One, Sola Scriptura, The Whirlwind, and The Similitude of a Dream. 

This new song, He Died At Home, is fantastic.  I need to get whatever album that is going to be on.  Anyhow, just some random NM thoughts for this morning.  Just wanted to share.

Very cool to read this as I had a similar experience of not getting into Neal right away. I remember reading about Testimony when Mike first announced he was going to be part of it. I was not familiar with Neal at the time, but I was intrigued by his story as I have similar beliefs as him and for the fact that Mike was playing on the album I figured it was definitely worth checking out so I preordered it. When it came out I listened once and liked it, but I felt like you that it was too much to digest so I put it aside.

Fast forward several years to 2009 and songs from this album kept popping up on my iPod when I had it on shuffle and every time one of these songs played I really enjoyed it. So I figured it was time to give the album another shot. This time it instantly hit me and I became obsessed with this album and Neal as well. I went back and bought all of Neal’s solo albums that had been released after Testimony up to that point (which was everything up to Lifeline) and I loved all of it. I then got into Transatlantic and am a big fan of Flying Colors as well. I have a few Spock’s Beard albums which I enjoy as well, but haven’t gone back to get the rest although at some point I will.

Basically Neal has become my favorite musician and there is not an album he could release these days that isn’t an instant purchase for me. He is also a great live performer. He is incredibly animated and emotional on stage and you can really see how much this music means to him. I’m so glad Testimony finally sunk in for me as I can’t imagine not knowing all of this incredible music.

[KevShmev]

I can't say any band with only four studio albums is in my all-time top 5, but Transatlantic would certainly be the highest rated band for me of bands with 4 or less studio albums.  I have my doubts as to whether or not we ever get a 5th from them now.

And yeah, while Neal's prog work can be a bit samey, the style he writes is, by nature, very adventurous.

[ytserush]

I'd have to thank the original president of the Dream Theater International Fan Club for getting me into Neal when he sent me a cassette of The Light which I then needed to buy on CD (no barcode) from the Syn-Phonic record label.

Coming up on 25 years I think.  Crazy when you stop and think about it.

[ErHaO]

I have liked Neal Morse music (including Transatlantic, Flying Colors etc.) for quite a while now, but to me the latest two albums, by The Neal Morse Band, are his best. I absolutely love The Grand Experiment and The Similitude of a Dream. Good to hear Mike is back on board for at least the studio album.

[Mladen]

There's something I've been wondering over the years.

I'd imagine most of the Dream Theater fans dicovered Neal Morse because of his collaborations with Mike Portnoy in Transatlantic, and then subsequently moved onto Neal's solo career and maybe Flying Colors. However, my question is this: is it possible that some of those people never took a look at what happened before Translatlantic and therefore missed out on Spock's Beard?

I sometimes get the feeling that there are more people nowadays who celebrate Neal's solo career and Transatlantic, but that the Spock's Beard fans are a smaller group. That seems to be the case with this forum at least, although I know several people like that in my private life.

[KevShmev]

After hearing SMPTe, I got into Neal's music by getting the first five Spock's albums over the course of the next year (this was in 2000-2001).  That said, as much as I love Spock's, I don't listen to them nearly as much as I do Neal's solo stuff, and it has been that way for a long time.  Maybe it's because I tend to gravitate towards listening to newer stuff by favorite artists when they release a new album, and there hasn't been a new Spock's album with Neal since 2002.  Or maybe I just simply like Neal's post-Spock's stuff collectively more than what he did with Spock's. 

[Ninjabait]

Honestly, I got into Neal Morse's solo stuff first. I don't remember the exact details of how I discovered it (I think I was looking for any prog bands/artists with a Christian bent because the closest thing I had at the time was Theocracy), but I remember hearing Testimony a couple of years ago and pretty much went to buy it immediately. Up to that point, I had heard approximately 0 Spock's Beard albums, and I had heard The Whirlwind only once. I explored his other solo albums (mainly Sola Scriptura, Testimony 2, and Momentum) and from there branched into Spock's Beard (starting with Snow, naturally) and Flying Colors. I still haven't listened to Transatlantic again.

And, since I haven't posted my thoughts on the new single (a bit late to the party, I know): I like it. Honestly, it's a subject that needs more attention and it's good that he wrote a song about it. The arrangement is good, and is simple enough to not detract from the lyrics while remaining somewhat interesting. There are some clunky phrasing issues in the lyrics and vocal melodies, but it's a good song overall and is hopefully indicative of the quality of the rest of the album.

[Kwyjibo]

I became a fan of Spock''s Beard when they opened for DT on the scenes tour. I followed Neal when he left SB because of that and not necessarily because of Portnoy's involvement.

I listened to Testimony when it came out but didn't really get into it. I still think it's one of Neal's weaker ones. My favorites are One, ? and Similitude Of A Dream. But I still like Spock's Beard more than Neal solo and not only the Neal stuff, X and Brief Nocturnes are among the best, imo.

And while Neal has a lot going on in his music I wouldn't really call it adventurous.

[gmillerdrake]

I'd imagine most of the Dream Theater fans dicovered Neal Morse because of his collaborations with Mike Portnoy in Transatlantic, and then subsequently moved onto Neal's solo career and maybe Flying Colors. However, my question is this: is it possible that some of those people never took a look at what happened before Translatlantic and therefore missed out on Spock's Beard?

This is how I discovered Neal Morse. Because of the Mike collaboration. Which led me to Transatlantic, then Flying Colors. I've never listened to any of Spocks Beard.

[RoeDent]

I was first made aware of Spock's Beard by Octavarium: "...here I come to save the Day for Nightmare Cinema Show..."

Not long after that though I discovered Transatlantic, and the train just rolled from there.

Also, I'm kind of disappointed they're going down the NMB route yet again rather than going for Flying Colors. Spread out your good projects evenly, dammit!

Also also, gmillerdrake, you are missing out BIG TIME! Spock's are one of the greatest modern prog bands of all time! And not just the Neal Morse era. They have continued to make incredible music for over 20 years now.

[gzarruk]

I think FC started working on album #3 last year and they’re supposed to record it this year, so It’s coming.

[KevShmev]

Also also, gmillerdrake, you are missing out BIG TIME! Spock's are one of the greatest modern prog bands of all time! And not just the Neal Morse era. They have continued to make incredible music for over 20 years now.

This! 

Even though I don't listen to Spock's nearly as much as I used to, I still love their music.  Some of Neal's best songs ever are from his Spock's days - The Light, The Doorway, Harm's Way, Flow, Wind at My Back, At the End of the Day, etc.

[The Letter M]

I can't say any band with only four studio albums is in my all-time top 5, but Transatlantic would certainly be the highest rated band for me of bands with 4 or less studio albums.  I have my doubts as to whether or not we ever get a 5th from them now.

And yeah, while Neal's prog work can be a bit samey, the style he writes is, by nature, very adventurous.

Normally, I would agree, but given the level musicianship within Transatlantic, their level of playing and writing, the fact that they all sing/do vocal harmonies, and how absolutely breathtaking their live albums are (well, except the quirky first one), they blow away all expectations for me. Even if they don't ever make a fifth album, the four that we got are good enough for them to cement their place in my personal top 5 bands of all time. Their music just speaks to me, and as a big fan of all the members involved, their music together outshines most of the music they each do individually with their own bands/projects (yes, even better than some solo Neal Morse or Dream Theater).

It's interesting how many here followed Neal from Transatlantic to Flying Colors and his solo stuff, but not backwards to Spock's  Beard. After I discovered Transatlantic, Spock's Beard was next before his solo stuff. I discovered Snow and V around the same time as SMPT:e and Bridge Across Forever, and I fell in love. It wasn't until I ran out of SB and TA albums that I began to fully enjoy Neal's solo work. Then again, I became a fan between One and ?, so there wasn't a lot of solo Neal stuff to gorge myself on at the time, so early SB filled that void for me. Beware Of Darkness became an instant favorite, and the others grew on me over time, though Snow was love-at-first-sight, being the concept album junkie I was at the time, and still kind of am. I think that's why it took me awhile to REALLY enjoy Testimony because Snow seemed so much better to me, that Testimony felt too derivative considering it was Neal's first album after Snow.

I think FC started working on album #3 last year and they’re supposed to record it this year, so It’s coming.

This is correct - I believe the band wrote some stuff together over Skype earlier last year, then got up together to do a bit more in person, so it's being worked on over the internet at the moment. They will probably record the final stuff this year and release it early 2019. I wouldn't hold my breath for a 2018 release, but if it happens it'll be late 2018. Neal seems dead-set on getting NMB3 out this year and touring on it. I wouldn't be surprised if it came out late Summer, then they opened the tour with Morsefest in the fall, then did some fall/winter touring, depending on Mike's schedule. Then FC3 will come out and after Mike tours with another band (maybe TWD?), FC will probably tour Spring or Summer of 2019 for the new album.

-Marc.

[KevShmev]

If the Neal Morse Band keeps cranking out albums similar in quality to their first two, I won't miss Transatlantic, to be honest.  Kaleidoscope was quite good, but it doesn't touch the first three TA albums or either album the NMB has done, IMO.  Plus, with NMB, we get three legit lead singers instead of just two with TA, and there seems to be a bit more variety in regards to the songwriting and little touches and whatnot.

[gzarruk]

Plus, with NMB, we get three legit lead singers instead of just two with TA

Don't know if I'm the only one who feels like this, but I cannot stand Bill's singing. To me, it sounds like he's always singing outside of his range (too high) and it sounds forced.

[The Letter M]

If the Neal Morse Band keeps cranking out albums similar in quality to their first two, I won't miss Transatlantic, to be honest.  Kaleidoscope was quite good, but it doesn't touch the first three TA albums or either album the NMB has done, IMO.  Plus, with NMB, we get three legit lead singers instead of just two with TA, and there seems to be a bit more variety in regards to the songwriting and little touches and whatnot.

Honestly, I kind of agree with that sentiment. As much as I'd hope for and love to see a fifth Transatlantic album, Neal has been giving some of that musical energy to the Neal Morse Band, and with four-part vocals between him, Mike, Bill, and Eric, that kind of music has a home in the NMB now, so I won't miss it in Transatlantic if there's an output for it. I remember hearing The Grand Experiment album and thinking that some of that material sounded like Transatlantic stuff, or stuff that could have been great TA material. Bill and Eric offer the kind of fresh and different sound to Neal that Roine and Pete had with TA, so if TA is done with, I'll be fine, as long as Neal keeps on working with them in that capacity, cranking out albums every 2-3 years.

Besides, I think Roine has been pretty busy with Jon Anderson (I think they're working on a second album), and now with his new supergroup The Sea Within, he'll be fairly busy for a couple more years. And Pete? Well Marillion always seems to take their time doing things, so I'm sure he's doing SOMETHING to occupy his time (it's certainly NOT another Kino album...  )

-Marc.

[KevShmev]

Don't know if I'm the only one who feels like this, but I cannot stand Bill's singing. To me, it sounds like he's always singing outside of his range (too high) and it sounds forced.

Honestly, I kind of agree with that sentiment. As much as I'd hope for and love to see a fifth Transatlantic album, Neal has been giving some of that musical energy to the Neal Morse Band, and with four-part vocals between him, Mike, Bill, and Eric, that kind of music has a home in the NMB now, so I won't miss it in Transatlantic if there's an output for it. I remember hearing The Grand Experiment album and thinking that some of that material sounded like Transatlantic stuff, or stuff that could have been great TA material. Bill and Eric offer the kind of fresh and different sound to Neal that Roine and Pete had with TA, so if TA is done with, I'll be fine, as long as Neal keeps on working with them in that capacity, cranking out albums every 2-3 years.

Besides, I think Roine has been pretty busy with Jon Anderson (I think they're working on a second album), and now with his new supergroup The Sea Within, he'll be fairly busy for a couple more years. And Pete? Well Marillion always seems to take their time doing things, so I'm sure he's doing SOMETHING to occupy his time (it's certainly NOT another Kino album...  )

Alive Again sounded more like a Transatlantic song than one that would have been on one of Neal's solo albums.

[gmillerdrake]

Also also, gmillerdrake, you are missing out BIG TIME! Spock's are one of the greatest modern prog bands of all time! And not just the Neal Morse era. They have continued to make incredible music for over 20 years now.

This! 

Even though I don't listen to Spock's nearly as much as I used to, I still love their music.  Some of Neal's best songs ever are from his Spock's days - The Light, The Doorway, Harm's Way, Flow, Wind at My Back, At the End of the Day, etc.

I figured and know I’m missing out. I need to delve into it.

[The Letter M]

Also also, gmillerdrake, you are missing out BIG TIME! Spock's are one of the greatest modern prog bands of all time! And not just the Neal Morse era. They have continued to make incredible music for over 20 years now.

This! 

Even though I don't listen to Spock's nearly as much as I used to, I still love their music.  Some of Neal's best songs ever are from his Spock's days - The Light, The Doorway, Harm's Way, Flow, Wind at My Back, At the End of the Day, etc.

I figured and know I’m missing out. I need to delve into it.

I will echo Kev's sentiments again - those early SB epics are some of Neal's best pieces, and once you hear them, you'll get a feel for a lot of what fans called Neal's trademark sounds - Gentle-Giant-esque vocal parts and harmonies, the random Spanish-guitar-section, the epic reprisal of the opening themes - just things that you know and love from his albums Testimony-onward, but have their origins in the first six SB albums.

Alive Again sounded more like a Transatlantic song than one that would have been on one of Neal's solo albums.

Agreed - I also felt that way of "World Without End" to some extent, but that had some crazy moments that felt non-TA-ish to me. Both epics did, to me at least. I should really give TGE a good listen again sometime soon. Even "Agenda".

-Marc.

[KevShmev]

Agenda is a corny, silly song, but it has some lovely melodies and it sure does rock.  When you think of how "heavy" many of Neal's lyrics are, a fun song for the sake of fun was a welcome change.

Even though I don't listen to Spock's nearly as much as I used to, I still love their music.  Some of Neal's best songs ever are from his Spock's days - The Light, The Doorway, Harm's Way, Flow, Wind at My Back, At the End of the Day, etc.

I figured and know I’m missing out. I need to delve into it.

I am armed with recommendations and suggestions whenever you are ready.

[Fritzinger]

Alive Again is great, but it had that one very proggy upbeat section in its "overture" that never came back afterwards in the song. It may sound silly, but this grades down the whole song for me.

World Without End is great in my opinion. One of his best epics.

To throw in another one, So Many Roads sounded too constructed to me, not one big piece, but rather a handful of shorter songs squeezed into one track. He managed to do better before and after, for example with Seeds Of Gold, Stranger In Your Soul, The Great Nothing and even The Whirlwind, along with the mentioned ones.

[Mladen]

I appreciate the comments on Spock's Beard, that's something I've been curious about for a long time.

[bosk1]

There's something I've been wondering over the years.

I'd imagine most of the Dream Theater fans dicovered Neal Morse because of his collaborations with Mike Portnoy in Transatlantic, and then subsequently moved onto Neal's solo career and maybe Flying Colors. However, my question is this: is it possible that some of those people never took a look at what happened before Translatlantic and therefore missed out on Spock's Beard?

I sometimes get the feeling that there are more people nowadays who celebrate Neal's solo career and Transatlantic, but that the Spock's Beard fans are a smaller group. That seems to be the case with this forum at least, although I know several people like that in my private life.

This is definitely me.  I have gone back and listened to some Spocks.  But while I liked some songs, nothing I heard ever compelled me to get into them in a big way. 

If the Neal Morse Band keeps cranking out albums similar in quality to their first two, I won't miss Transatlantic, to be honest.  Kaleidoscope was quite good, but it doesn't touch the first three TA albums or either album the NMB has done, IMO.  Plus, with NMB, we get three legit lead singers instead of just two with TA, and there seems to be a bit more variety in regards to the songwriting and little touches and whatnot.

Yeah, I tend to agree.  Although, given the strength of the first three albums, it could also be that Kaleidoscope is just an outlier, and that a follow up would be on par with the first three and end up blowing me away. 

Agreed - I also felt that way of "World Without End" to some extent, but that had some crazy moments that felt non-TA-ish to me. Both epics did, to me at least. I should really give TGE a good listen again sometime soon. Even "Agenda".

Agenda is fantastic.

[OpenYourEyes311]

I think Kaleidoscope is just as good as anything else TA has ever done. The first four tracks are amazing, and only the title track drags a little bit, but it still has some great stuff. I'd say the last 3 TA albums are close to flawless as possible. But I'd still rather get a Neal Morse Band album over anything else.

My Neal ranking:

The Neal Morse Band
Transatlantic
Neal Morse (solo prog)
Flying Colors
Neal Morse (solo singer/songwriter)
Spock's Beard

That's not to say that I don't enjoy Spock's or anything above it. Neal is so prolific, literally everything he does is pretty much gold to me. I'm less familiar with Neal solo stuff and Spock's, but I still love what I've heard.