Procol Harum

Ask most people about Procol Harum and they will talk about ‘Whiter Shade of Pale’, some might remember ‘Homburg’ and even fewer will include ‘Conquistador’ but they were a massively successful and ground breaking band and over these four albums there are gems aplenty and music that was original and could only have been made by Procol Harum.

Procol Harum were led by Gary Brooker’s vocals and piano but Matthew Fisher’s Hammond was an essential part of their sound (except for ‘Home’ where the organ parts were played by new bassist Chris Copping) while Robin Trower grew in importance to the band (he wasn’t in the band when ‘Whiter Shade … was recorded). Keith Reid was the non-playing wordsmith for the band and the songs were developed around his lyrics. The back line for the band was David Knight on bass (except for the ‘Home’ album) and B.J. Wilson on drums and percussion.

The first album sounds a little undeveloped, as though the band were finding their true sound and voice but there are tracks that really do hit the mark. ‘A Christmas Carol’ sees the band firing on all cylinders with piano and Hammond taking the lead before a lovely solo from Trower. ‘Conquistador’ has a poppy air to it although there is still excellent playing all round and ‘She Wandered Through The Garden Fence’ moves from a happy little ditty into something darker and more strident. ‘Cerdes (Outside The Gates Of)’ is a strong Blues but the trippy lyrics and imagery in the song show the direction that Reid was moving in. ‘Repent Walpurgis’ is a moody and dark instrumental and one of their most influential numbers. There are few long numbers here – nothing over 5 minutes but they manage to get their ideas across perfectly well and Trower is definitely making his presence felt with some stirring solos.

‘Shine On Brightly’ is more confident and stronger generally than the first album but losing none of the sense of a band finding out about each other. They were an established headlining band by this time and that sense of being leaders seems to come through the album. Denny Cordell is still listed as producer but Tony Visconti had a hand and his touch seems to come through strongly. There are a number of standout tracks including ‘Skip Softly (My Moonbeam) with its slightly off kilter time signature and ‘Magdalena (My Regal Zonophone) which drips with emotion under a bizarre snare drum and horn backing. ‘In Held ‘Twas I : Glimpses of Nirvana’ definitely signals a more theatrical and acid tinged direction (I wonder how much of an influence was this on Genesis) but wondrous nonetheless as it moves through several different sections.

For the seminal ‘A Salty Dog’ there was a much greater spread of effects and a wider range of instruments played – Garry Brooker has added celeste, three string guitar, bells, harmonica and recorder while Robin Trower plays Sleigh tambourine (!) and Matthew Fisher adds marimba, acoustic guitar and recorder – this is definitely a band whose talents and reach have come together. The strings on the title track add sumptuous texture but in a meaningful way to give depth to a desperately sad and emotive song. ‘The Milk of Human Kindness’ sees Robin Trower actually playing lead guitar and carrying the song rather than giving control to Brooker’s piano. It is an album of textures and variety with less of the traditional PH sound although there is no shortage of the music that made Procol Harum famous. There are few individual standout tracks on this one, it is more of a whole but ‘Wreck Of The Hesperus’ is a symphony in 4 minutes while ‘Crucifixion Lane’ features vocal by Robin Trower along with some fine guitar and closer ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’ take them closer to the sound of WSOP than they had for a long time.

‘Home’ has a significant change in personnel as Matthew Fisher left and his organ was played by new bassist Chris Copping. Robin Trower stepped up as far more of a lead guitarist than on the first three albums, especially on opener ‘Whisky Train’. The overall tone of the album is dark, even doom laden, with ‘The Dead Man’s Dream’ being sung from the point of view of the recently deceased but the darkness is offset by some definitely rock and roll numbers. The band experimented with different ways of playing because while Copping could play bass or organ he couldn’t do both together and if he was playing organ then Trower would play bass and if all five instruments were required then Copping would play the bass lines on his organ a la Ray Manzarek. Copping definitely has a very different sound to Fisher. It is actually a really satisfying album with a freshness and bounce that really catches the ear. Even in the darkest moments – ‘…Dream’ or ‘Nothing I Didn’t Know’ about a deceased lover) it all still sounds like a band making music for the love of it. The Floyd-esque ‘Piggy Pig Pig’ is stunning while ‘Whaling Stories’ has a stirring feel with massive power in the playing all through the song.

As usual with Esoteric releases there are copious bonus tracks, including a fair number played for the BBC, and the remastering is superb. Procol Harum were an important band and deserve the best work on their albums and they get it here.