40 year heroes

“It was 40 years ago today”:

June 8^th 1967. The Summer of Love has just begun. I am 5 years old, and listening to the radio - Alan Freeman’s ‘Pick Of The Pops’ rundown of the UK Top 20 singles. For the past 3 weeks, I had been a VERY annoying brat. More so than usual, I hasten to add. The reason? Since it’s release on the 12^th June that year, I had become gradually more infatuated by a certain song, a song which later became synonymous with ’Flower-power’ ’Psychedelia’ and mysticism far more than anything previously written. A song that out-sold everything in that glorious Summer of child-like optimism, ‘dropping out’ and ‘All You Need Is Love‘. A song that caused countless artists to change their musical direction forever, spawning my musical first-love, Progressive Rock.

“Will you stop whistling, for goodness’sake?” “PLEASE, PLEASE sing something different!” and “How on earth does he know the words to that?” were frequently said by my parents, as they neared the end of their tether. Their misery was compounded when in the August of that year, we drove the then 6-hour (*) journey in Dad’s old Singer Gazelle, to North Wales for our holiday, with me still singing the chorus, and whistling the instrumental bits incessantly in the back seat. If it wasn’t for suitcases, I’d have been in the boot!

As ‘Fluff’ Freeman counted down the Top Ten, I started smiling. It had got there. Number 1 at last, in the days when it actually was an achievement to be Number 1!

“A WHITER SHADE OF PALE” - Procol Harum’s (with a little help from J.S.Bach) masterpiece, had stunned the world with it’s flowing, organ-based sound, and it’s tantalisingly meaningless lyrics to such an extent that no single could compete with it for the six weeks that it held the top spot for. It remained in the charts for a further five months after that, and is regarded by many as the first ‘Classic’ pop song ever since.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NaxtMqKuTAk

Procol Harum were the first band that I idolised. While most of my peers were boogying to Glam-rock in the 1970s, I was building up a collection of Procol Harum Albums. Strangely, I didn’t buy one until 1975’s release ‘Procol’s Ninth’, but the earlier ones followed soon after. Some diligently saved pocket money was responsible for this. I was also collecting King Crimson, Gentle Giant and Caravan - bands that, to me, came about as a direct result of Procol's shift in musical composition.

The Punk explosion of 1977 unfortunately saw Procol Harum and many other Progressive rock bands ‘killed off’ and branded as obsolete by the music press. They retained this state of hiatus until 1991, when they re-formed, partly from popular demand, and partly in tribute to drummer Barrie (B.J.) Wilson, who died that year, having spent 3 years in a coma following an horrendous car crash. The Album was dedicated to his memory.

Years of touring followed, and eventually, in 2003, their most recent Album was released.

I have previously blogged about the two-year legal battle over royalties for “A Whiter Shade Of Pale”, and the unfortunate acrimonious parting of the ways between Gary Brooker and Matthew Fisher, after a lifelong friendship. Procol Harum are still about. They are in the middle of a 40^th Anniversary tour, with a new line-up.

It is a source of deep regret for me that I have never seen them perform live. I actually had a ticket for their gig in Cardiff Student’s Union in 1977, but to my disappointment, I missed it through illness. One day……..one day……..

Discography (Albums);

1.Procol Harum (re-named ‘A Whiter Shade Of Pale’) 1967

2.Shine On Brightly 1968 (my personal favourite)

3.A Salty Dog 1969

4.Home 1970

5.Broken Barricades 1971

6.Live 1972

7.Grand Hotel 1973

8.Exotic Birds And Fruit 1974

9.Procol’s Ninth 1975

10.Something Magic 1977

11.The Prodigal Stranger 1991

12.The Well’s On Fire 2003

Line-ups;

Gary Brooker (piano, vocals)- 1 - 12

Robin Trower (guitars, vocals)- 1 - 5, 11

Matthew Fisher (Hammond organ, vocals)- 1 - 3, 11, 12

B.J.Wilson (drums)- 1 - 10

David Knights (bass)- 1 - 3

Chris Copping (bass, Hammond organ)- 4 - 10

Alan Cartwright (bass)- 6 - 9

Dave Ball (guitar)- 6

Mick Grabham (guitar)- 7 - 10

Pete Solley (keyboards)- 10

Dave Bronze (bass)- 11

Mark Brzeicki (drums)- 11, 12

Matt Pegg (bass)- 12

Geoff Whitehorn (guitar)- 12

Keith Reid (lyricist)- 1-12

Procol Harum's career is well documented, so all I have done is write my personal perspective on my first heroes. Thank you Gary Brooker, Keith Reid, Matthew Fisher & co. (not forgetting J.S.Bach!) for 40 years of great music and memories.

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(*) It is now a mere 4 hour journey, thanks to the A470 trunk road, which starts at Cardiff Bay, and ends at The Great Orme, Llandudno (or is it the other way around?). How I miss those winding roads, through market towns and countryside, up steep mountains, and down even steeper valleys, where you got a glimpse of REALLY WILD Wales.