British Proto-Prog

 I'm not going to get drawn into another endless, fruitless and pointless debate on The Beach Boys. They were an influential band that is not to be denied and the (staged) rivalry between Wilson and The Beatles cannot be ignored. But I cannot regard them as being specifically influential on the formation of Progressive Rock as a genre. Also, as you have since spotted, by being American they are not subject to this particular poll.

If you cannot see why some bands are called Proto on the PA and others are not then stop worrying about it. Rejoice in the ones we have listed and listen to their music for what it is - great music - if we went by a purely musicological (Record Fair) definition many of those bands wouldn't be on the site at all.

btw: I am not going to ask you to play "favourites" - there are two distinct definitions for two distinctly different purposes  - both are valid but only one applies here.

Another band that is of interest is Hapshash & The Coloured Coat, though their music is perhaps a lot less well known than their art, which was far more influential and popular. Few people have probably ever heard their music but we can all recognise the posters and album covers they created for other people:

So, to their Proto-Prog music:

They are weird.

Personally I love Art Nouveau so their psychedelic re-imagining of the Beardsley, Mucha and Klimt (and even Rackham) is always going to appeal to me. As artists they were hugely influential in 1960s London and on the Psychedelic scene, inspiring the psychedelic imagery & fashion of The Beatles, The Stones and Hendrix and many more besides.

I'm not surprised you didn't care for the music since you've not given any indication that you like avant prog or Krautrock music in general.

Prog is a very broad church and so by that any notion of proto- is going to be even broader. Few people like every aspect of Progressive Rock so it is to be expected that not everyone will like what influenced the formation of Progressive Rock. Every facet of what we think of as Progressive Rock draws its influence from somewhere and so restricting the idea of Proto-Prog to one identifying sound or style of music simply doesn't make archaeological sense, even if a nice tidy definition makes sense to people who sell and collect used vinyl.

Hapshash's 1967 debut album was called "Hapshash and the Coloured Coat Featuring The Human Host And The Heavy Metal Kids"

 

It's not a perception, but a calculated reassessment on what bands actually helped in the formation of prog rock (hence the term proto-prog, "proto" meaning "first" and "common ancestor"). "Greasy" Hammond-playing "heavy rock" did not in any way lead to progressive rock movement as we consider it (usually beginning with In the Court of the Crimson King as a specific demarcation point); therefore, bands like The Moody Blues, Procol Harum, The Nice, Giles, Giles & Fripp, and even The Beatles can be considered progenitors of prog -- BECAUSE THEY STARTED BEFORE THE ACTUAL PROG MOVEMENT WAS RECOGNIZED (that whole "proto" thing), and not like the 70s bands we formally recognize as prog like King Crimson, Yes, Genesis, Jethro Tull (post-Mick Abraham blues), ELP, Floyd (after their psychedelic excursions), etc.

 

So, one can't be "proto-prog" after "prog" came into existence, no matter what Svetty says.

 

Deep Purple can also be considered proto-prog, but not for the "greasy Hammond" sound Svetty is so enamored with. Rather, the baroque compositions, long instrumental passages and excerpts from classical composers (such as on The Book Of Taliesyn album) are what make Deep Purple "proto-prog" (not to mention Jon Lord's Concerto for Group and Orchestra recorded September 24, 1969). By the 70s Deep Purple retained some progginess but had pretty much slipped off into hard rock, particularly by the Machine Head album.

 

Svetty's definition is flawed because it does not take into account the music and the bands that actually led up to Prog. The earth is not flat, scientists have long ago reassessed the curvature of the earth and changed the science books to reflect that reassessment. The earth is still flat in Svetty's world.