Did the Beatles really Invent Prog? Or not?

Can ANYBODY tell me what's Prog about I Wanna Hold Your Hand or Can't Buy Me Love ?? I pains me to find any complexity or barrier-breaking ideas in these songs (amongst the bulk of their catalogue).
And, in all respect, damned those Stones that Roll - Satanic Majesties 'out-Progs' anything the Drab Four acheived.
Don't roll me through the quagmire, I do adore Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's and Magical Mystery Tour (couldn't imagine my life without them) but...........

Yeap.. Gentle Giant are extremely under-appreciated , especially by today's audience.. I mean how is it possible that Rush fill-up entire stadiums and GG have disappeared? Of course I love Rush (especially the early stuff) but i'd say that it's their ''mainstream'' approach to prog that still keeps them alive... On the other hand GG were too unique to survive... But the weird thing is that artists like Gong still exist.. i mean they didnt conform at all and their music was as original as GG's and are still going on.. What happened to Gentle Giant? I think that they had much more to give to the world of prog (yes, i believe that 10 albums were not enough :P) And the thing is that they have completely dissapeared individually as artists.. too bad. :(

Tom Ozric wrote: Can ANYBODY tell me what's Prog about I Wanna Hold Your Hand or Can't Buy Me Love ??

As opposed to what Robert Fripp was playing in 1963? Oh, that's right, he hadn't formed a band yet, he was still listening to The Beatles in his mum's parlor.  And he was listening to The Beatles back then.

Tom Ozric wrote: Can ANYBODY tell me what's Prog about I Wanna Hold Your Hand or Can't Buy Me Love ?? I pains me to find any complexity or barrier-breaking ideas in these songs (amongst the bulk of their catalogue). And, in all respect, damned those Stones that Roll - Satanic Majesties 'out-Progs' anything the Drab Four acheived. Don't roll me through the quagmire, I do adore Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's and Magical Mystery Tour (couldn't imagine my life without them) but...........

Don't mean to gang up on you Tom, but the transformation of the Beatles musically from 1962 through to 1969 is part of their greatness. As they changed, they also changed the face of rock music in their era.

The Dark Elf wrote: Tom Ozric wrote: Can ANYBODY tell me what's Prog about I Wanna Hold Your Hand or Can't Buy Me Love ?? As opposed to what Robert Fripp was playing in 1963? Oh, that's right, he hadn't formed a band yet, he was still listening to The Beatles in his mum's parlor.  And he was listening to The Beatles back then.   Sometimes I have to laugh at how blithely benighted comments can be. Seriously, have you even listened to what rock music was like in 1963-64? There was no prog, or psych for that matter - hell, Bob Dylan wouldn't even strap on an electric guitar for a couple of years. But the importance of "I Want to Hold Your Hand" and "Can't Buy Me Love" is not their progginess (which is silly to even state), it is that the Beatles had started to write their own songs and not play covers (the same route The Stones took starting off). This was to bear fruit as the band matured.

PrognosticMind wrote: Pastmaster wrote: Gentle Yes wrote:   I think there is no doubt that psychedelic rock was the predecessor of progressive rock, i mean you can clearly hear some progressive elements in mid 60's bands... Now I think that saying that SFF was the first prog song (or album) is farfetched. The Beatles were a classic psychedelic-pop band, maybe too classic.. don't get me wrong, i like the Beatles, who doesn't? but i couldn't say that they have anything to do with prog.. SFF is maybe a little bit different from ohter Beatles songs as they wrote it in the psychedelic-colours-drugs etcetera era. Nevertheless it's just another Beatles song.    It's too difficult to say with precision who wrote the first prog song or album.. most say it was Zappas Freak out! but Strawberry Alarm Clock who formed in 1966 (same year as Freak out!) have a lot more prog elements (for me). The same goes for The 13th floor elevators who existed before Freak Out!   Anyway.. i think most of you would agree that finding the actual prog birth is almost impossible... The only thing i can say for sure is GENTLE GIANT RULE.  Completely agree  And yes, Gentle Giant does rule, they deserve more appreciation.   This!  Also, your avatar is awesome, Pastmaster!

So, there you have it, the Mothers are part of the Canterbury Scene.

If I can chip in my 2 cents...I think the Beatles are proto-prog, but, due to their massive influence, inspired a lot of the bands that would go on to do full-blown prog.  There would be no ITCOTCK without Sgt Pepper's, for instance.  I think all these bands---Zappa, Love, early free-form Dead, The Nice, The Moodies, Procol Harem, Pink Floyd, early Deep Purple, King Crimson, etc. were responding to the zeitgeist of the times (that 60's revolutionary "we're gonna change the world and music too!  There are no boundaries!" spirit) and some caught the "prog bug" at around the same time...

No.

Now, Svetonio, I'm intrigued by your characterisation of "Strawberry Fields" as the first symph track. Certainly there's a pastoral sound to it that points the way towards much British symph, but everything else about it just points towards it being a unique and experimental piece of British psych, including the track's use of 'tron. You'll have to explain further.