Most influential Prog Bands

Every time I read the title of this thread, I read "Most incestual Prog Bands".

StyLaZyn wrote: Rush was the ultimate influence. Before was was around, the idea of Rush was subconsciously implanted into the Beatles, then the Moody Blues, and Crimson. Once Rush came out, all current Prog bands were influenced by them. All future Prog will be influenced by Rush.

colorofmoney91 wrote: Every time I read the title of this thread, I read "Most incestual Prog Bands".

VibrationBaby:

trackstoni:

I definitely agree with Rush being highly influential on a variety of metal bands throughout the following decades.  Though it's hard to say with plenty of other quality heavy prog like Nektar existing before them.
The Moody Blues' Days of Future Past and the work of the Beatles has clearly influenced popular music throughout every decade. 
Other then that, it's difficult to come up with many prog bands who influenced popular music, since prog music usually elevates itself above pop music.  I'm sure plenty of prog influenced other prog bands though. 
The aforementioned Nektar sounds a great deal like Rush even though they came earlier, which leads me to believe they influenced the latter.  I don't have any actual evidence However

DiamondDog wrote: Most influential? Is it coincidence that we end up talking about commercially successful bands rather than pioneers? 1-2-3 is probably the most influential band in pre-prog. Once Prog becomes commercially viable, King Crimson sets the stage for all that follows, but being influential does not always mean fame and fortune, quite often, the reverse.

I think that if 1-2-3 really were as influential as a few people are attempting to show then they would not have been "forgotten" for as long as they were. Most influential bands have a mystique and cult-hood about them that appears very soon after they disappear from the scene, not one that only appears some 30-40 years later based on wholly anecdotal and uncorroborated evidence - if they were influential (and according to some accounts practically plagiarised by those people they were influential on) then there would be contemporary accounts, (ie from back then, not "contemporary" as in "now"), not just by other musicians and music journalists, (even in the underground press there is nothing about them), but by the fans who saw them perform their "residency" at the Marquee (ie back then, not now) - surely those fans would not have remained silent while Emerson stole their thunder, or Yes completely stole their arrangement of America.

I disagree that the evidence is “wholly anecdotal and uncorroborated”. There are plenty of threads of evidence about the kind of music played by 1-2-3 at that time, and the effect this music had. The Marquee was the focus of this impact, though unfortunately, you’re right about the band not having a cult-hood or impact on the public, most fans (and even journalists) were unmoved, as Bowie’s letter to the press (in 1967!) makes clear. The people affected were in the main musicians themselves, not the public, and this was compounded by the band’s lost time at Nems, particularly in not recording till 1969. I also wouldn’t say that Yes “stole” the arrangement of “America”, I personally love the Yes version too, but the concept of such an arrangement definitely came from the much earlier 1-2-3 rearrangement. I also love The Nice and ELP, but there’s no doubt that Ritchie was the first to take a leading keyboard role. Yes, I agree that most of this has emerged in the past twenty years, rather than at the time,  but though it’s taken till now, due to bad luck, lack of recording and real press coverage at that time, most serious critics now accept the band’s influence, and yes, it is astounding.

Replace above list on 2000's by Porcupine Tree and my list is ready.

Sorry guys, rookie here. First replay above was to gerdtheater, 2nd one to DiamondDog.