I should note that I’m not looking for prog rock exclusively, though it’s obviously a good place to start. Rush sounds like it could be interesting.
palindromemordilap: My last foray into Gabriel sound-alikes wasn’t prog either, but that doesn’t bother me. Matt Pond PA is on my list.
lissener and Equipoise: Thanks for the links; I’ll give Kate a listen.
Shoeless: I will check them out!
I stand corrected…been too long since I listened to that one.
The thing to remember about King Crimson is that the band DRAMATICALLY changed it’s sound several times (there have been many arguements about how many times, I say 6).
As far as Rush IN MY OPINION (I had to put that in to keep the Fanboy’s at bay) they put out about 5 excellent records and fell off the face of the Earth, the first 5 or 6 records were (are) fantastic and the rest of the albums never happened.
Here is what I did, I would hear something that I liked and would check where the Musicians came from, where they went and who else they worked with.
Unclviny
What about this? (I don’t know much about this band, but that sounds a lot like Peter Gabriel to me.)
promo for new CD by Agents Of Mercy
There are several Genesis tribute albums. You may find something you like on one of them.
I’ll add these to your growing list of bands to check out (not necessarily Genesis - like):
The Flower Kings
Transatlantic
The Tangent
Magic Pie
Enchant
Gordian Knot
There’s a lot of progressive music out there, it just doesn’t get much attention. If you like (or dislike) any of the bands in this thread, come back and let us know. I think we can find something to make you smile.
I like Italian progressive rock from the 70’s, as well as (old) Genesis so perhaps you might like the Italians too. PFM or Premiata Forneria Marconi is pretty much the best…their first 2 albums especially. Banco del Mutuo Soccorso is also very great. Also La Locanda delle Fate. You don’t have to understand Italian to rock out to this great prog.
Their album Chocolate Kings would also be of interest, as it introduced a new singer, Bernardo Lanzetti, who sounded like a cross between Peter Gabriel and Family’s Roger Chapman. For that matter, Family might be another recommendation, starting with their excellent Fearless. (Roger Chapman himself sounds like a cross between Peter Gabriel and a goat. 
)
What, no one likes my Ange suggestion?
If you like the Peter Gabriel era Genesis, I think the King Crimson album you’d be most likely to enjoy would be one that many Crimson fans aren’t all that keen on: Islands, the 1971 album with Boz Burrell on vocals.
Kate Bush, definitely. Run, don’t walk, and grab some of her stuff right now.
Genesis are fairly unique, even in prog circles. King Crimson, Gentle Giant and Spock’s Beard are all good suggestions, however.
Have you heard Exposure by Robert Fripp or Sacred Songs by Daryl Hall? These were recorded alongside Gabriel’s second solo album and they all sound very similar, especially Hall’s album, believe it or not. All three were produced by Fripp.
Another left-field suggestion: Alice Cooper’s Welcome to My Nightmare seems to exist in some grey area between Gabriel’s first solo album and Pink Floyd’s The Wall, with an extra dose of vaudeville camp. Producer Bob Ezrin is the common thread here.
Next suggestion: My Life in the Bush of Ghosts by Brian Eno and David Byrne. Closer to Talking Heads circa Remain in Light, but still reminiscent of Gabriel’s more experimental soundtrack work.
Midnight Oil’s 10-1 is pretty much a direct descendant of Gabriel’s third solo album and so has that “In the Air Tonight”/“Mama” atmosphere pervading it.
Stewart Copeland’s solo output, such as The Rhythmatist, is also highly recommended. He’s the drummer from The Police, and he’s worked with Gabriel on occasion. Think worldbeat. And if you’re choosy, Sting can be excellent, too.
Finally, it may be worth looking into Steven Wilson. It’s not exactly Gabriel or Genesis, but he is heavily influenced by Pink Floyd, King Crimson, Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush, among others.
Have you heard Exposure by Robert Fripp or Sacred Songs by Daryl Hall? These were recorded alongside Gabriel’s second solo album and they all sound very similar, especially Hall’s album, believe it or not. All three were produced by Fripp.
There were 3 albums done as a “trilogy” (I think it was a benefit for WOMAD)
Exposure
Sacred Songs
Peter Gabriel “scratch” (I’m pretty sure it was Scratch, anyway).
and all 3 artists worked on all 3 records.
Next suggestion: My Life in the Bush of Ghosts by Brian Eno and David Byrne. Closer to Talking Heads circa Remain in Light, but still reminiscent of Gabriel’s more experimental soundtrack work.
My Life in the Bush of Ghosts is one of my favorite records ever. My copy is autographed, Byrne showed up at a radio station I used to work at.
Unclviny
All three worked on Exposure, as well as Phil Collins, Brian Eno, etc. The three albums form Fripp’s MOR trilogy, though Fripp and Hall got screwed over by industry politics: most of Hall’s vocals had to be removed from Exposure and Sacred Songs was delayed by three years. The deluxe edition of Exposure is revelatory, restoring Hall’s vocals.
It’s a treat hearing Hall singing a Fripp/Gabriel composition (“Exposure”), even if it is just one word repeated. IIRC, Blondie was also on the album originally, but that track is still MIA.
This all pre-dated WOMAD by several years, FWIW.
Van Der Graaf Generator got namechecked with Killer a few posts ago; maybe not the track I would have suggested, but the right sort of period.
Their singer, Peter Hammill sounds a bit like Gabriel at times (they started off on the same label and their bands toured with each other) and he also sang on a couple of tracks on Exposure, so maybe that’s a good place to start…
He’s still going today, and VDGG have been revived, but if you do fancy hearing more, I’d check out his earlier band stuff first, then his early solo releases…
His site
Genesis is one of my top three favorite rock groups of all time. I haven’t found anyone who really recreates their sound (and wouldn’t especially want to), but one other group you might want to check out is Stackridge.
They semi-flourished in the early to mid-70*s, started having reunions in the late '90s and have appeared at concerts and turned out albums since then (one this past summer). They have been described as progressive rock with elements of pop, folk and jazz. From Wikipedia:
“The group has claimed a wide range of influences including The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Frank Zappa, Syd Barrett, Robin Williamson, The Marx Brothers, Flanders and Swann, Bing Crosby, Tom Lehrer, Gilbert & Sullivan, Frederick Delius, J.S. Bach and Igor Stravinsky.”
The vocal numbers are more Beatle-ish than Genesis-like, but you might like instrumentals such as Purple Spaceships Over Yatton, God Speed The Plough and Who’s That Up There With Bill Stokes?
*two band alums had greater success as The Korgis.
I’m going to go outside the progressive rock world and recommend Robbie Robertson’s self-titled album from 1987. It has the same producer as “So” (Daniel Lanois); Peter Gabriel helped produce it as well; and their influences are obvious.
As was mentioned, Genesis really is unique even within the genre, so I’m not sure how likely it is that you’ll find an equivalent.
Kate Bush, who I like very much, has been suggested a number of times but I think she has more in common with Peter Gabriel’s style as a solo artist (more static harmony, textural complexity, more song-like), then with his Genesis years (tonal chord progressions and melodies, changing meters, big synth sounds and complex synth solos, energy of rock). (Happy Rhoads too).
All the big prog names I would’ve suggested have already been mentioned. But to go a little outside that box I’d mention first some of the big fusion guys of the 70’s which always seemed to me to sorta be doing something similar to what the prog guys were doing but approaching it from a jazz instead of a rock tradition.
If it’s the PG voice, lyrics, and epic Genesis stories you’re interested in, this isn’t the best place to go (and maybe the worst since it’s instrumental). But if it’s the complex meters, synth sounds, general bigness of sound, awesome drumming, etc. check out Return to Forever. This is a link to the first track on the “Romantic Warrior” album, their album that most crosses over into prog territory. Also Chick Corea’s solo stuff from that period - El Bozo, Part 2 and 3.
Weather Report’s a little proggy but not as much as RTF.
The “Apocalypse Album” by Mahavishnu Orchestra (complete with actual London Symphony Orchestra, and produced by none other than George Martin) is also huge with lots of odd meters.
Back to the world of rock - The Dixie Dregs are very prog, and very good. Steve Morse is truly a wonderful guitar player and composer, but they often get overlooked for some reason.
I’ve never heard of IQ, but I am a fan of Genesis, and the posters above piqued my curiosity. I just listened to a few snippets of ‘The Seventh House’ and ‘Subterranea’ and it sounds as if they pirated a good deal of their sound from Genesis’ bag of tricks unaltered, from Gabriel era to their 80’s/90’s output.
Sounds like IQ’s worth checking out, but a little unsettling how much they sound like Genesis.
There’s a French artist named Eric Serra who is most famous for doing film soundtracks (Nikita, The Fifth Element), but he also did a rock album called RXRA that is, to my ears, very similar to Peter Gabriel stuff. Even right down to the vocals, which are eerily similar.
About time for me to check in again–I’ve been listening to as much as I can, though not as much as I’d like!
Camel’s Mirage and Spock’s Beard’s *Day for Night *were both pretty interesting, and I intend to listen to both bands more. They each had snippets of what I was looking for, which is more than I’ve been able to find elsewhere.
I must say that Camel sounded a LOT like what would have happened if Return to Forever were English, which leads me to Moe’s comment–I’ve listened to and enjoyed several fusion groups, and have some RTF and Weather Report albums. Excellent spotting there!
And Moe is dead right about how I feel about Kate Bush; she sounds incredibly like Peter Gabriel in the 80s. That’s an interesting twist on what I was looking for, so I will definitely have to listen to some more of her stuff. I confess that I might skip the music videos, though–holy catfish, those were weird. Ahhh, the 80s.
IQ is my next target, and born too late’s opinion is only piquing my curiousity.
Once again, I thank you all for your input–if I don’t post frequently from here on in, it’s because I’m trying to cram as much listening into my schedule as possible.
Maybe I’ll get blasted for this as a philistine but I’d suggest:
Electric Light Orchestra, especially the albums Face the Music, Eldorado, A New World Record and Out of the Blue.
The Alan Parsons Project, especially the albums Tales of Mystery and Imagination, I Robot, Eve and The Turn of a Friendly Card.
Not identical to Genesis or Gabriel, by any means, but… complimentary. If you like G&G, I’ll bet you’ll like these.
Of the six albums with Neal Morse, I’d rank Day For Night at #6. Not that I think it’s bad, it a great album; the other five are even better. 
I’d check out Beware of Darkness or The Kindness of Strangers next.
And speaking of Neal Morse, some of his solo stuff is worth checking out, but beware: he left Spock’s Beard because he became a born-again Christian and “God told him too.” Ever since, his lyrics have all been about what a great guy God is. If you can get past that, One is probably one (heh) of the best albums released this decade.
And then there’s Transatlantic’s Bridge Across Forever - I can’t believe I forgot that one. :smack: That album is the best album of the decade, IMO.
Well, since we’ve broached the topic of fusion in a Genesis thread I’m guessing I hardly need mention BrandX.
Oh BTW, the Bruford Levin Upper Extremities recordings (I know of the one studio recording and the 2CD live release) I really like.
And (perhaps even a bit further from what you were asking for in the OP) check out Trilok Gurtu, the best percussionist ever in the universe (IMHO) who brings his Indian background into the fusion fold. The drum solo at the end of the linked video (beginning at 6:50) is one of my favorite moments in percussion history.