PROCOL'S NINTH

With this album , I close my series of reviews of the historical albums of Procol. This is a typical release of the second era of P H (post Robin Trower ) and it is just as pompous as the rest of their albums of that era ( although this is their ninth album , the reference is to Ludwig 's ninth). In general , I don't really appreciate pomposity , as it often leads to arrogance , but in the case of Brooker , this is not so: the man is really a master at what he does and it does not come down to the ego such as other pompous masters as Emerson or Wakeman (and to a lesser extent Lord of D P ) . You can see that when the orchestras come in the Harum music , this is very different than in the other groups - it is used as a complete instrument.

On with the music of this one . The best known track of this album is Pandora's Box and along with Fool's Gold (rare flute appearance) they are the highlight. I was expecting to find another flute in Piper's Tune but alas...... Also contains an amusing but pointless version of Beatles Eight Days A Week. as with the other album , I will give it 3.5 stars.