Uri Breitman - Manifesto

Progressive Rock, book by Uri Breitman

Progressive Rock

From the 60's to the Present

a book by Uri Breitman
Hebrew, Tel Aviv, Israel 2005 (133 pages, paperback)
Published by Mapa Books. List Price: $14 (64 Shekels)
ISBN: 965-521-006-5

The first Hebrew book on prog-rock. The musical genre was born in late-60's England, and soon expanded to other parts of Western Europe, America and even the Middle East. The book documents the rise and fall of the progressive genre, and attempts to pinoint the actual reasons for the downfall, using political, social and economical factors.


Later chapters in the book describe the Neo-Progressive movement in the 1980's, followed by the re-birth of the progressive genre by the force of the Internet in the 1990's. One chapter is devoted to the local progressive rock scene in Israel. The last chapter defines the un-written musicological rules and formulas of the "prog" genre, as percepted by musicians, listeneres and scholars; The definition also differentiates the progressive rock style with clashing genres, such as jazz-fusion, jazz-rock and heavy metal.


The book claims that progressive rock is a hybrid of Afro-American blues-rock and European classical music. The author shows, using verified facts and numeric data, that progressive rock has suffered a blow in the late 70's because of the global financial crisis which hit both the US & UK. This economical recession hurt the record companies, which untill then enjoyed huge profits. This recession has led to social un-rest, which started the punk revolution, killed the counter-culture forces, and finalized in the musical stagnation of the 80's.


The fall of the Soviet Union, coupled with the globalization process and advent of the World Wide Web, reshaped the global music scene - causing a mini-renaissance of prog-rock. Today, progressive rock fans around the world do not feel isolated and ashamed anymore. The prog-heads gather in online communities, share the music they have always loved, and delve into the huge catalog of prog-rock music. This book was written by (and for) the Israeli progressive rock community.




Uri Breitman
Uri Breitman

About the Author

Uri Breitman worked as an entertainment & arts editor for the IDF radio. In the summer of 2000 he launched Mitkadem.co.il, the Hebrew guide for progressive rock.

The Mitkadem database of articles, reviews and news serves about 1,000 daily visitors, 95% of them located in Israel. This Hebrew online guide is the original knowledge base of the final paper product: the published book. Using numerous books, magazines and special interviews made for this book, the Mitkadem has won awards and praises from the Israeli press. Uri lives in Tel Aviv and plays keyboards, occasional drums and bass guitar.


The book (titled "Rock Mitkadem" in Hebrew) was first published by Mapa on January 2005.


Book Reviews - a selection:

"A great achievement...fascinating writing...a great pleasure"
Yoav Kutner, Globes

"Breitman's book about progressive rock is everything me and my generation didn't have"
Guy Benyovitch, Ynet

"Recommended reading...the first Hebrew book on progressive rock"
Sagi Elbaz, Haaretz Book Supplement

"Interesting and comprehensive...an Israeli first"
Yehuda Shochat, Zman Tel Aviv, Maariv

"Short and exhaustive...highly recommended for all of progressive rock's admirers"
Ariel Karas, TimeOut Tel Aviv

"Very nice project. The chapters on progressive rock in the 90's & the Internet are illuminating"
Prof. Motti Regev (Tel Aviv University)




The book has been added to the comprehensive Prog Bibliography global project.

Progressive Rock, book by Uri Breitman
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Page last updated: March 2007

Mail the author directly: uribreitman@gmail.com




Mitkadem.co.il - Hebrew guide to Progressive Rock

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