It was 44 years ago that...

-Hendrix Are You Experienced = Global change in electric guitar playing, (not just in rock).
-1st Velvet Underground laid down a foundation that hundreds built on, (Bowie, Roxy Music, Sonic Youth...).
-1st Black Sabbath, grudgingly must admit had a big hand in establishing metal.
-1st Van Halen, busted open another smaller door.
-Captain Beefheart, Trout Mask Replica, helped shape a wide range of punkers, outside rockers and jazzers who were looking to push the edge.
-Sex Pistols Nevermind the Bollocks, 1st Cars and Nirvana Nevermind showed that there was still some flavor left in what appeared to be stale chewing gum.

"Parlaphone released the Beatles 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'"

A day that shall live in Infamy!

How about In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida by the Iron Butterfly?
With the long 17 + Min jam. Sorta changed the 2-3 minute standard at at he time.

"How about In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida by the Iron Butterfly"

Yeah, I was a fan at the time, what was I thinking, I wasn't, it was that plodding, pulsating beat. Listening now the 17 minute repetiveness is a simple reminder of how often mediocrity rises above true creativity. Wonder what some of the pre-eminent drummers of that era thought about the long version? Catchy but hardly altering or influential except to the teen boys that bought it at the time, I have since changed my mind?:)

Ozzy--My memory is fading, but I think the record that started the longer versions of songs was probably Bob Dylan's "Like a Rolling Stone". When it first was played on AM radio they only would play the first two verses (fitting barely into the usual 3 minute maximum), even though the single went for the full four verses/6 minutes. I remember one Saturday afternoon listening to Dan Ingram on WABC in NY (who was also an FM jock, with a jazz show), and in the last hour he was on he played the entire record. Shortly after that I started to hear the whole record played, though I think it may have been because about then I started listening to FM.

There were other long songs around that era--Cream's "Toad", the Doors' "Light My Fire" (FM version), "The End", "Soft Parade", etc., Serpent Power's "Endless Tunnel" (any of you actually remember that one?), and a lot more--as well as Iron Butterfly, so I guess I don't really think of them as starting the genre.