Every New Zealand #1 single…
10
A Whiter Shade of Pale by Procol Harum
Topped the NZ chart: for 1 week from 11 August 1967.
Gary Brooker sang with The Paramounts, who enjoyed the UK top 40 hit ‘Poison Ivy’ in 1966.
Brooker left The Paramounts and formed a songwriting partnership with Keith Reid. Unable to convince others to perform their songs, they formed a band. They linked up with organist Matthew Fisher, who previously played with Screaming Lord Sutch. They named their new band after a friend’s Burmese cat. They misspelled the name – it should have been Procul Harun.
The band formed in April 1967 and recorded ‘Whiter Shade of Pale’ the same month. They recorded the song in two takes, with no overdubs. They used session drummer Bill Eyden, as they didn’t yet have their own drummer. It was rush-released as a single after an enthusiastic response from listeners of the pirate radio station Radio London.
In the Summer of Love, “A Whiter Shade of Pale” was the “one song [that] stood above all others, its Everest-like status conferred by no less than John Lennon and Paul McCartney, who were enthralled by the Chaucerian wordplay and heavenly Baroque accompaniment”.
Music historian Harvey Kubernik
I’m with Lennon and McCartney – ‘Whiter Shade of Pale’ is one of the best songs of the 1960s. It alchemises disparate worlds – the Bach-inspired Hammond organ from Fisher, Brooker’s soulful vocal, and Keith Reid’s impressionistic lyrics form a unique blend.
The band didn’t immediately capitalise on the success of ‘A Whiter Shade of Pale’. It took six months for the accompanying album to arrive. They released respectable albums like 1969’s A Salty Dog and 1973’s Grand Hotel.
Procol Harum’s initial tenure lasted until 1977, but the band’s lineup constantly shifted. The Brooker/Reid songwriting partnership was the only constant. Some terrific musicians passed through the band like guitarist Robin Trower and bassist Dee Murray.
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As you alluded to, John Lennon thought this was the greatest song of all time.
Looks like you’re right. It is a bit Lennon like, even if Lennon couldn’t quite sound so romantic.
In his book Lennon: The Definitive Biography, Ray Coleman talks about an episode at a party at Brian Epstein’s house, just before the release of the Beatles’ album Sgt. Pepper Coleman describes how: “We spoke a little about the state of the music scene, and he (Lennon) said there was one ‘dope’ record which he couldn’t get off his mind. He couldn’t remember the title. All other pop music of that period was ‘crap’, one of his favourite words at that time.”
An all time classic.
Absolutely.
I agree…it is one of the best singles of the sixties. 1967 was a great year for that. It’s a song that never gets old to me…I have to listen to it everytime it’s played.
I came out today to post and took a break from my break.
It’s partly that organ tone, it’s so rich and overpowering.
Check out H.S.A.S version of this songs. Sammy Hagar and Neil Schon covered it under that moniker back in ’84.
That was pretty good, Hagar’s voice is surprisingly similar.
And the ‘joke’ with the album was that it didn’t even include the hit single!
Such a good song.
That’s a good point, leaving hit songs off albums was an English thing to do. I remember George Martin saying they didn’t want to make consumers buy the same song twice.
Hands-down one of the best late ’60s songs I can think of. The Hammond organ sound is sheer magic, and Gary Brooker’s vocals are incredibly powerful.
“One of sixteen vessel virgins/Who were leaving for the coast” – I have no idea what the heck these words mean, but similar to your typical Steely Dan song, who cares, when the music is so good! 🙂
I assume your autocorrect changed Vestal to vessel – not that that makes any more sense….
Oops, I guess so. You’re right, it should be vestal virgins.
Though like appears to be the case on your end, I still don’t know what these lyrics mean. But when the music is as magnificent, frankly, I don’t really care that much!😀
One of my favorite songs of the 60s as well.
Im sure someone thinks it’s a pretentious load of garbage. But certainly a minority.
Yes, a long-time friend of mine told me she’s never liked the song.