If The Beatles kept going..Prog?

I think the Beatles got the perfect combination of styles and song writing.I actually think if they were to become more progressive they would of had less of an impact I can only imagine them sounding more along the lines of the moody blues/early Floyd and replace screaming teenage girls with middle aged bearded men possibly screaming equally as loud.

 ^ well we know Lennon very much liked Band on the Run

Or, who knows, like Tears for Fears' Elemental

Leftoverture wrote: sorry if this has been done, but   we were discussing at work whether or not the Beatles would have started to make "prog" albums in the early 70's like many contemporaries did. I for one see it going either way. Let It Be was throwback, but the masterpieces like Sgt Peppers and MMT led the way for prog. The sum of what those for did on solo albums suggests that they wouldnt have, but with studio wizardry and the way those 4 made music, I think we missed out on maybe an even better prog masterpeice than DSOTM. I dunno, do you guys think they'd have gone there?

Well, they did start to make prog albums back in the late '60's.  Not a uniform point of agreement on PA .  I think Hendrix would have gone more in a jazz/rock-fusion direction. 

Slartibartfast wrote: Well, they did start to make prog albums back in the late '60's.  Not a uniform point of agreement on PA .  I think Hendrix would have gone more in a jazz/rock-fusion direction.

Mmmmm... Dubious. I think he would have tried a return to the blues, a bit of free-jazz, sometimes jazz-rock or even a fusion of hard-rock and funk.
He wouldn't have sticked to one genre.

CPicard wrote: Slartibartfast wrote: Well, they did start to make prog albums back in the late '60's.  Not a uniform point of agreement on PA .  I think Hendrix would have gone more in a jazz/rock-fusion direction.  Mmmmm... Dubious. I think he would have tried a return to the blues, a bit of free-jazz, sometimes jazz-rock or even a fusion of hard-rock and funk. He wouldn't have sticked to one genre.

Dubious? Dubious?   Yet, you're kind of agreeing with me.  I do think you're right that he probably would gone diverse.

J-Man wrote: If they went on for another 20 they might be making electronic for all we know!

OK that's a scary thought.


Edited by Slartibartfast - September 03 2009 at 18:21

I was discussing the same thing with some friends of mine who are big fans of the Beatles. One of them agreed and thought they had the potential. I believe they started to develop a "proggish" sound near the end of the 60s during the recording of Abbey Road and Let It Be. One can argue it started as early as the White album. I think it would have been very interesting had they continued on much longer. 

Anything that is pop that is rock related or experimental  with the Beatles migh have started and that includes crossover prog which about half of Abbey Road is. Now that should be put to a poll.

Well, in my opinion, they DID go Prog. Crossover Prog fits them perfectly, because there are plenty of Space-Rock, Symphonic Prog and RIO/Avant-Prog present in their later works to warrant that. However, there is still more Pop than Prog in their entire catalogue. So Crossover is where I consider them fitting.

It will never happen, though. Why? Because too many people here woul get their panties in a wad if their precious Prog genere were 'tainted' by the fab four. Unfortunate, because listening to tracks like A Day In the Life, Elanor Rigby, Revolution 9, Tomorrow Never Knows, Piggies, Goodnight, Come Together, etc. I can clearly hear the Prog Rock as plain as day.

I thought this was kind of a fun idea...

http://www.helium.com/items/1104862-speculating-what-songs-would-have-been-on-the-beatles-next-album

Obviously this can't be really accurate, but some of these songs from the Beatles' first or second solo records, I can see fitting onto what could have been the "next Beatles album"...

1. Instant Karma
2. Uncle Albert
3. All Things Must Pass
4. Imagine
5. Every Night
6. I'd Have You Anytime
7. Love
8. Junk
9. What Is Life

I dunno!