The Prog Collectors group on Facebook was created for folks to display what they’ve procured related to the genre of progressive rock, be it in various audio formats as well as related collectibles including books, posters, and memorabilia.
However, since I joined the group a few months ago the main focus appears to be the main passion that drives all of that: the music itself. That is usually displayed in its vinyl incarnation, regardless of whether it was purchased many decades ago or as a new release. Not a day goes by where someone doesn’t post one or more albums they’re listening to, from famous artists including Yes, Emerson Lake and Palmer, and Genesis to many more lesser-known releases that demonstrate the pervasiveness of this genre.
The group has its share of influential contributors, including Mark A. Jacobsen (my characterization, not Mark’s). At the end of the 2021, Mark posted his top prog albums of the year, in descending order, being careful to state that his list is subjective, not “objective rankings.” One would not expect the latter from someone who loves a certain kind of music and is strictly speaking for himself, and like it or not even professional reviewers have to be somewhat subjective. Music is something that is personal and speaks to different people in various ways.
Mark’s stated his No. 1 album, Laura Meade’s The Most Dangerous Woman in America, was the exception: “I think that is an absolute masterpiece regardless of my personal enjoyment of it.” But even with that comment, I didn’t expect that not only would my album Creétisvan be his on his top selections but that he ranked it at No. 2.
I was honored that Mark found much to enjoy on my “audiobiography,” and he mentioned that shortly before compiling the list he “actually realized this week that this one is personally higher for me than my now No. 3,” Crash of the Crown from Styx.
While I am honored to have received that ranking, I have a reason to mention it beyond my gratitude. I self-released the album in 2021, because I didn’t have a big label or money machine behind it, so I don’t expect Creétisvan to land on any best of 2021 music lists, progressive or otherwise. With the avalanche of releases from big corporations and independent artists alike, I’m sure certain reviewers didn’t take the time to listen to it — if they even knew of its existence at all.
Yes, I hired a PR firm who distributed copies of the album to multiple sources, both digital and on CD. The news release touted the background of the songs’ manifestation over my adult life; how the cartoons on the inside cover fit into the overall story; and the major talents who contributed to the album (including veteran recording engineer Steve Smith, providing two degrees of separation between me and the Beatles).
I garnered many great reviews from independent prog sources and from consumers on my two Amazon pages (why there are two was due to a snafu with my distributor that couldn’t be resolved). But it’s Mark Jacobsen’s journey which is why I depict Creétisvan as maybe the best prog album of 2021 that you’re not hearing.
Mark, like many Yes fans, knew my name from editing the Yes fan journal Notes From the Edge, where I posted numerous Yes interviews with members and alumnus, as well as working for Yes themselves. The latter stint included launching their first official web site YesWorld, and writing liner notes for some of their Rhino remasters, including Close to the Edge and Tales From Topographic Oceans.
Before my album’s release, I had given a preview to my Facebook friends with the tune “(Because) You Win.” I chose this track because while it’s relatively short (just under 3 minutes) it’s also action packed, and proof that a song doesn’t need to be exorbitantly long to be progressive. Mark was one of those Facebook friends who took interest in Creétisvan based on that one song. He would later divulge that he bought the album because he wanted to hear that song again, as well as supporting me for all the work I’d done with Notes From the Edge and launching YesWorld back in the day.
But that song aside, it seems he didn’t expect much. In his posting in the Pure Prog! group on March 25, 2021, Mark’s comments included, “This is much better than I expected, to be honest. Very well-crafted songs, and the album even features David Sancious, Randy George and Billy Sherwood on some tracks. … The Yes influence is obvious here, but I also hear a lot of similarities to early Genesis, as well as the Beatles. Overall, a fine offering.”
Those were his initial reactions. I had asked my followers to submit reviews at Amazon, and Mark was the first to submit his. I was both stunned and gratified that he gave a blow-by-blow rating to each one of the songs.
There were a couple that he rated lower than I would have liked but that was his personal opinion, which I greatly respect. One of those was his apparent bewilderment at “Constant Companion,” a short chant that led to a snippet of “(Because) You Win.” It was a nod to something similar to what Jimi Hendrix had done on Electric Ladyland. (You can hear the entire story in the Yesshift podcast, where I was interviewed by the father/son team of Dan and Steven Shinder.)
Mark’s comments indicated that he rated it as a standalone track, which makes sense. But one goal I had with the album was to emulate the experience many like myself had back in the day where we would listen to the album start to finish, be it one vinyl side or both: “Constant Companion” shares a musical passage with “(B)YW” and set up the listener to hear the entire song later on the album.
But that song aside, Mark found lots to enjoy about Creétisvan, and was forthright in his comments. When I first read what he had submitted, I wasn’t prepared for something he said in his summary.
“In closing, I’ll just say this: I may not be as prolific in new music acquisition as other prog and rock fans, but I have purchased most of the latest releases from the Flower Kings, Neal Morse, Transatlantic and Glass Hammer. Of all those, though, they were put on the shelf after one or two listens. Great albums? Sure. But Mike Tiano’s ‘Creetisvan’ has already matched the number of listens of all those albums combined, and I don’t plan to shelve it any time soon. I am not suggesting he is better than those guys, at all. I am just saying that this is a unique release with a lot more to offer than one might think for a guy who is (basically) new to recording and releasing his music to the world. And this listener is sure glad he did. 4.2 out of 5 stars.”
To be clear, one reason I’m singling Mark out is because his experience points to how I was confident that for those who miss the more accessible “pop” aspect of progressive rock – along with melodic content, catchy hooks, plenty of reiteration of themes (or in musical terms, recapitulation, which I have written about earlier for Something Else!), dynamic content, expert instrumentation—would find much to enjoy in my own music.
In his Amazon review, Bill Martin (who wrote the excellent book Music of Yes: Structure and Vision in Progressive Rock) pointed to another of my key inspirations: “[Mike’s] influence goes back to where it all started, with the later Beatles. This, to me, is one of the most important things to continue to bring forward into the present period, when creativity and excellent musicianship in rock is up against ‘musical product’ that is purely a producer’s creation.”
I found that when folks actually listened to Creétisvan, they recognized what Bill alluded to, and to Mark’s reaction that he originally didn’t really expect much. After all, no one really knows me as a musician, and I know of Facebook friends who didn’t even give it a chance. It’s as if they thought, “How cute, Mike recorded an album,” thereby dismissing it without even hearing a note.
That last item is something another friend Edgar Bullington had brought up in his own Amazon review. Beyond being someone I’ve known for a long time (he played a big role in my first Something Else! article about the unlikely pairing of the Firesign Theatre and the Mitchell Brothers), Edgar is someone I would characterize as a musicologist: He has vast knowledge and collection of music spanning multiple decades and styles.
His own take on it was that this was new “concert rock”: “It’s all there, too, the hooks, the big sound, the angst, the quest, the solos, the anthems. The tunes are sweeping, the lyrics heartfelt, all flavored by Mike’s love for and influence by concert rock. … If you miss concert rock, or need some new material in your concert rock rotation, you might give this one a try.”
What Mark, Bill, and Edgar have all indicated is what other reviewers on Amazon and individual online publications have mentioned: Rather than call out other, comparable comments you can read them for yourself. And make no mistake, I respect these folks well enough to where they wouldn’t have rated Creétisvan as highly as they did because they wanted to be nice, or didn’t believe what they wrote. I may have solicited some of those Amazon reviews, but I wanted folks to be honest, and let the chips fall where they may. (For what it’s worth, there were some minor criticisms, which I accept.) For those reasons, I don’t take their comments for granted — not in the least.
Later in the year, Mark indicated that he was still listening to the album. On August 21, 2021, he posted the following on the Prog Collectors group: “Not album of the year, but certainly surprise album of the year.… I find the whole thing very good. ‘On Hold’ and ‘Automaton’ are two of the best songs I have ever heard.” It’s the goal of an artist/songwriter to create music that touches folks, and Mark’s comments about those two tracks being among the best he’s “ever” heard is gratifying, and humbling.
I expect there are those who won’t see the forest for the trees, that in this case it comes down to me to promote my album: When I posted about its quality in a Tweet, one person sarcastically called me out on my “modesty”. I’m not going to apologize for leading folks to what I have to offer, because until if and when I have a support mechanism behind me it’s up to me alone to convince folks to, as Edgar said,“give it a try.”
I have videos in the works that hopefully will help spread the word and bring interest to my album. I’m exploring options of performing my music live, but not as a guy with a guitar and a mic, but with a band bringing the full force of my music to life with hopefully a production that will evoke the excitement of what I have provided.
I mentioned an August post where Mark Jacobsen said he didn’t consider Creétisvan the best album of the year. But based on his year-end list of his best prog albums, it came pretty damn close. This is why I characterize my album as possibly the best prog album of 2021 that you’re not hearing.
Give it a try. You might find you agree.
Links to purchase the album along with Facebook and Twitter links, the news release, and “What the heck is Creétisvan?” can be found at http://miketiano.com. Special thanks to Mark Jacobsen, who approved usage of his comments.
© 2022 Mike Tiano. All Rights Reserved.
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