In 2018 Prog presented the 50 greatest keyboardists in the genre’s history, planting Jon Lord at No. 10. Admitting he was “perhaps the odd man out” since “Deep Purple were unequivocally heavy rock,” we argued: “Lord’s early solo albums like Gemini Suite and Sarabande showed progressive inclinations. Equally he was the man behind Concerto For Group And Orchestra, which is pretty darn prog too.”
We placed Rick Wakeman at No. 2 – just behind Keith Emerson – saying: “The capes, the ambitious live shows on ice at remarkable settings like Hampton Court… doesn’t do proper justice to a man who was never afraid of taking huge risks,” and adding: “Wakeman’s time with Yes helped define prog as we know it.”
