Blah Blah Cafe, the Jean-Michel Jarre forum

[jeanbatman]

Which Jarre album the most "prog" is, in your opinion ?
That would interest me.

[jeanbatman]

(...)
In my opinion, Jarre's most prog like moments are:

- Windswept canyon
- La Cage
- Oxygene I, II and V
- Equinoxe IV and VII
- Magnetic Fields I
- Night in Shanghai
- Fishing Junks at Sunset
- The whole Zoolook album
- Second Rendez-Vous
- Fifth Rendez-Vous
- Industrial Revolutions
- Tokyo Kid (probably Jarre's best moment after Zoolook)
- Chronologie I
- Digisequencer
- Oxygene 9
- The Aor-part of the Bourges album
- A couple of tracks som Session 2000

This list is highly subjective, and I'm sure prog purists (whatever that means) would object. Jarre is probably more prog in attitude, than in music.

I must agree with your views. Though I can't think of Oxy 1 as a prog-like. It has more to do with classical stuff IMHO. The pace of the whole thing is so slow it couldn't fit in a prog concert...

You missed Arpegiator from the CiC on purpose ? One of Jarre's greatest tracks...

[Analog-Umph]

I feel that JMJ is the most "prog" when he does things that are more serious than you would expect. I mean, when he's still creating great music, but not for it to become commercially successful. When he's doing things that are typically Jarre but still you were not expecting. On the other hand, some of these 'moments' are also quite avant-garde..

Think..
The whole CIC album
The whole Music for Supermarkets album
Diva
Rendez-Vous 1 and 5
Industrial Revolution Parts 1-3 (album version)
Tokyo Kid
Chronologie 1,3 and 5
Oxygene 11
Rendez-Vous a Paris

All those tracks have something to it that I would call "prog".

Btw, Waiting for Cousteau is the best "prog" track ever

[(Unknown)]

The Symphonic Jean Michel Jarre.

Quite frankly some of the tracks are better than the originals, Chronologie 3, MF 5 and the terrific Eldorado.

Others like Equinoxe 4, Souvenir De Chine and Rendezvous 2 & 4 are top notch re-interpretations.

[(Unknown)]

(...)
In my opinion, Jarre's most prog like moments are:

- Windswept canyon
- La Cage
- Oxygene I, II and V
- Equinoxe IV and VII
- Magnetic Fields I
- Night in Shanghai
- Fishing Junks at Sunset
- The whole Zoolook album
- Second Rendez-Vous
- Fifth Rendez-Vous
- Industrial Revolutions
- Tokyo Kid (probably Jarre's best moment after Zoolook)
- Chronologie I
- Digisequencer
- Oxygene 9
- The Aor-part of the Bourges album
- A couple of tracks som Session 2000

This list is highly subjective, and I'm sure prog purists (whatever that means) would object. Jarre is probably more prog in attitude, than in music.

I must agree with your views. Though I can't think of Oxy 1 as a prog-like. It has more to do with classical stuff IMHO. The pace of the whole thing is so slow it couldn't fit in a prog concert...

You missed Arpegiator from the CiC on purpose ? One of Jarre's greatest tracks...

Yeah Rendez-Vous 2 as well, that's more like an orchestral piece.
Oxygene 9 too, like Oxygene 1.

[GeeJee]

Oxygene 9 is really neat. It has something Oxygene 1 hasn't (and shouldn't for that matter), but it's a great track in it's own right.

[Kanta]

The Symphonic Jean Michel Jarre.

Quite frankly some of the tracks are better than the originals, Chronologie 3, MF 5 and the terrific Eldorado.

Yep, they come close but imho the orginals are the best!

[Analog-Umph]

Oxygene 9 is really neat. It has something Oxygene 1 hasn't (and shouldn't for that matter), but it's a great track in it's own right.

And that would be?

[(Unknown)]

The Symphonic Jean Michel Jarre.

Quite frankly some of the tracks are better than the originals, Chronologie 3, MF 5 and the terrific Eldorado.

Yep, they come close but imho the orginals are the best!

I like the fact that C3 is more emotional plus no guitar, MF5 more playful and Eldorado more epic.

I still enjoy the originals of course.

You get into them after a few listens and some time.
At first, I remember, most of it sounded daft to me.
I had the whole thing "but how could you match the great Jean Michel --- and with acoustic instruments no more" thing going on in my head.

[GeeJee]

Oxygene 9 is really neat. It has something Oxygene 1 hasn't (and shouldn't for that matter), but it's a great track in it's own right.

And that would be?

I personally prefer the build-up in Oxygene 9 from 2:00 min. onwards over the 'climax' (if there is one) in Oxygene 1. The part I mentioned in Oxy9, I really like that one.

[GeeJee]

There is no guitar in the original C3. Album. Version.

[Analog-Umph]

Oxygene 9 is really neat. It has something Oxygene 1 hasn't (and shouldn't for that matter), but it's a great track in it's own right.

And that would be?

I personally prefer the build-up in Oxygene 9 from 2:00 min. onwards over the 'climax' (if there is one) in Oxygene 1. The part I mentioned in Oxy9, I really like that one.

I guess the only thing I never liked about Oxygene 9 is that bass drone. It's too loud and irritating in its timbral character. I feel that Jarre went a little too far during that middle bit in trying to create some kind of apocalyptic atmosphere. It doesn't have the class that Oxygene 1 has.

I much prefer the uber cool bass drone from Oxygene 1, phased through the small stone, you get lovely growls and purrs in there as well as the ARP2600 doing the brass over the top.

Oxygene 9's bass drone is very similar to Oxygene 5's, just about 3 times louder.

What both tracks do share though is a kind of futuristic theme in their non-theremin parts, while the theremin parts are a contrast to that, almost retro-sci-fi.

[Analog-Umph]

There is no guitar in the original C3. Album. Version.

What's the solo instrument that starts at 2:30?

[(Unknown)]

Oxygene 1-6 "bass drones" = Analogs, Eminent or Moogs roight?
Oxygene 7-13 bass drones = Digital samples, Clavia and Korgs nots?

Oxy9 is indeed a very impressive composition, but the sound suffers from missing some extra waves, details, warm or rough characteristics of wich you can hear on Oxygene part 1-6.
The sound went more "dead" in the digital era when the uncontrollable magic was replaced by total "perfection".

I've got difficulties seeing the prog - Jarre connections, although maybe some at the very beginning of his career...before the 80's when 100% electronic noises weren't really accepted as ordinary music feels kinda "proggy" to me.

[GeeJee]

Oxygene 9 is really neat. It has something Oxygene 1 hasn't (and shouldn't for that matter), but it's a great track in it's own right.

And that would be?

I personally prefer the build-up in Oxygene 9 from 2:00 min. onwards over the 'climax' (if there is one) in Oxygene 1. The part I mentioned in Oxy9, I really like that one.

I guess the only thing I never liked about Oxygene 9 is that bass drone. It's too loud and irritating in its timbral character. I feel that Jarre went a little too far during that middle bit in trying to create some kind of apocalyptic atmosphere. It doesn't have the class that Oxygene 1 has.
.

That's exactly why I prefer Oxygene 9. The Oxygene 1 bass drones sound too flat in my opinion.. matter of taste