Longer Is Better: Prog Rock, Jams, and Rock Concertos
Posted on December 9, 2025
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This is Harley Lond’s curated guide to long-form musical performances (excluding classical and jazz) released over a span of some 75 years. This list is coordinated to an Amazon Playlist, which can be found here. Included are some 72 songs offering 12 hours of listening enjoyment … to blow your mind.
1952
- Duke Ellington – Take the ‘A’ Train – (Ellington Uptown, 1952; release March 1953)
1962
- Dick Dale and the Deltones – Miserlou Twist (Surfers’ Choice, 1962)
1965
- Bob Dylan – Just Like Tom Thumb’s Blues (Highway 61 Revisited, August 30, 1965)
- Bob Dylan – Desolation Row (Highway 61 Revisited, August 30, 1965)
1966
- The Rolling Stones – Goin’ Home (Aftermath, April 15, 1966 – UK)
- Bob Dylan – Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands (Blonde on Blonde, June 20, 1966)
- Paul Butterfield Blues Band – East-West (East-West, August 1, 1966)
- Love – Revelation (Da Capo, November 1966)
1967
- The Doors – Light My Fire (The Doors, January 4, 1967)
- The Doors – The End (The Doors, January 4, 1967)
- The Velvet Underground – Heroin (The Velvet Underground and Nico, March 12, 1967)
- Grateful Dead – Viola Lee Blues (The Grateful Dead, March 17, 1967)
- Country Joe and the Fish – Section 43 (Electric Music for the Mind and Body, May 11, 1967)
- Beatles – A Day in the Life (Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, May 26, 1967)
- Vanilla Fudge – You Keep Me Hangin’ On (Extended Hollywood Mix) – (Vanilla Fudge June 2, 1967)
- Pink Floyd – Interstellar Overdrive (The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, August 4, 1967)
- Pink Floyd – Astronmy Domine (The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, August 4, 1967) (Ummagumma live version, November 7, 1969)
- Love – You Set the Scene (Forever Changes, November 1, 1967)
- Jefferson Airplane – Spare Chaynge (After Bathing at Baxters, November 27, 1967)
- The Chambers Brothers – Time Has Come Today (The Time Has Come, extended version, November 1967)
- Rolling Stones – 2000 Light Years from Home (Their Satanic Majesties Request, December 8, 1967)
1968
- Blue Cheer – Doctor Please (Vincebus Eruptum, January 16, 1968)
- Spirit – Mechanical World (Spirit, January 22, 1968)
- Spirit – Elijah (Spirit, January 22, 1968)
- The Velvet Underground – Sister Ray (White Light/White Heat, January 30, 1968)
- Quicksilver Messenger Service – Gold and Silver (Quicksilver Messenger Service, May 1968)
- Quicksilver Messenger Service – The Fool (Quicksilver Messenger Service, May 1968)
- Iron Butterfly – In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida (In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida, June 14, 1968)
- Cream – Spoonful (Wheels of Fire, June 14, 1968)
- Pink Floyd – Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun (A Saucerful of Secrets, June 29, 1968, UK)
- Pink Floyd – A Saucerful of Secrets (A Saucerful of Secrets, June 29, 1968, UK)
- Grateful Dead – That’s It for the Other One (Anthem of the Sun, July 18, 1968)
- Super Session – His Holy Modal Majesty (Super Session, July 22, 1968)(Al Kooper, Mike Bloomfield)
- Jimi Hendrix – Voodoo Chile (Electic Lady Land, October 16, 1968)
- Jimi Hendrix – Voodoo Child (Slight Return) (Electic Lady Land, October 16, 1968)
1969
- Led Zeppelin – Dazed and Confused (Led Zeppelin, January 13, 1969)
- Led Zeppelin – How Many More Times (Led Zeppelin, January 13, 1969)
- Quicksilver Messenger Service – Who Do You Love Suite (Happy Trails, March 17, 1969; recorded at the Fillmore East and Fillmore West, November 1968)
- Neil Young – Cowgirl in the Sand (Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, May 14, 1969)
- Blind Faith – Do What You Like (Blind Faith, August 9, 1969)
- Santana – Soul Sacrifice (Live at the Woodstock Music & Art Fair, August 16, 1969)
- Frank Zappa – Willie the Pimp (Hot Rats, October 10, 1969)
- Pink Floyd – Careful with That Axe, Eugene (December 6, 1968) (Ummagumma live version, November 7, 1969)
- Grateful Dead – Dark Star (Live/Dead, Recorded February 27, 1969, at Fillmore West, released November 10, 1969)
1970
- Colosseum – The Grass Is Greener, (The Grass is Greener, January 1970, US only)
- Black Sabbath – Warning (Black Sabbath, February 13, 1970)
- Jimi Hendrix – Machine Gun (Band of Gypsys, 1970, recorded January 1, 1970, Fillmore East; released March 25, 1970)
- Soft Machine – Facelift (Third, June 6, 1970)
- Traffic – Glad (John Barleycorn Must Die, July 1, 1970)
- Spooky Tooth – I am the Walrus (The Last Puff – July 3, 1970)
- Creedence Clearwater Revival – I Heard It Through the Grapvine (Cosmo’s Factory, July 16, 1970)
1971
- The Doors – L.A. Woman (L.A. Woman, April 19, 1971)
- The Allman Brothers Band – Whipping Post (The Allman Brothers Band, November 4, 1969; live version on At Fillmore East, July 6, 1971)
- The Who – Baba O’Riley (Who’s Next, August 2, 1971)
- Hawkwind – Master of the Universe (In Search of Space, October 8, 1971)
- Pink Floyd – Echos (Meddle, November 5, 1971)
- Traffic – The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys (The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys, Traffic November 26, 1971)
1972
- Deep Purple – Highway Star (Machine Head, March 25, 1972)
- Khan – Space Shanty (June 2, 1972)
- Can – Pinch – Ege Bamyasi (November 29, 1972)
1973
- Blue Oyster Cult – Screaming Diz-Busters (Tyranny and Mutation, February 11, 1973)
- Gong – Flying Teapot (Flying Teapot, May 25, 1973)
- Golden Earring – Radar Love (Moontan, October 26, 1973)
- Emerson, Lake & Palmer – Karn Evil 9 (Brain Salad Surgery, November 19, 1973)
1974
- King Crimson – Starless (Red, October 6, 1974)
- Kraftwerk – Autobahn (Autobahn, November, 1974)
1976
- Lynyrd Skynyrd – Sweet Home Alabama (Second Helping, June 24, 1974) (live version, recorded at Atlanta’s Fox Theater and included on the album One More From The Road, late 1976)
- Lynyrd Skynyrd – Free Bird (Pronounced ‘Leh-‘nerd ‘Skin-‘nerd, August 13, 1973)(live version, recorded at Atlanta’s Fox Theater and included on the album One More From The Road, late 1976)
- Gong – Chandra (Shamal, February 13, 1976)
1986
- Sonic Youth – Madonna, Sean, and Me (EVOL, May 1986)
2002
- New Order – Elegia (Retro box set, 2002; this 17.30 extended version was originally edited down to fit on the band’s 1985 album Low-Life)
2004
- Wilco – Spiders (Kidsmoke)(A Ghost is Born, June 22, 2004)