Protopunk is a term used retrospectively to describe a number of music artists who were important precursors of the
punk rock movement of the mid-1970s and later, or who have been cited by early punk musicians as influential.
Typically, protopunk bands were not considered punk themselves; the typification is, furthermore, not widely regarded to have been the result of a distinct musical genre as the precursors of punk rock came from a wide array of backgrounds, styles, and influences.
American acts like The Velvet Underground, MC5, The Stooges, The Sonics, New York Dolls, Lou Reed, Patti Smith, Richard Hell, Tom Verlaine and from Britain David Bowie, The Who, Roxy Music, and Hawkwind[1] are commonly cited as the most noteworthy protopunk artists that would ultimately influence punk musicians.[2][3][4]
The invention of the term "punk rock" is generally credited to critic Dave Marsh who used it in 1970 to describe the group Question Mark & the Mysterians, who scored a major hit with their song "96 Tears."[5] Over the next few years, the term was used occasionally to describe a number of American bands, mostly active in the mid-to-late '60s, playing music that today would be classified as garage rock a ragged, highly energetic and often amateurish form of rock and roll.
