Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube
    Nostalgia Central
    • Home
    • Blog
      • Lists
    • Television
      • TV by Decade
        • TV – 1950s
        • TV – 1960s
        • TV – 1970s
        • TV – 1980s
        • TV – 1990s
      • Comedy
      • Drama
      • Kids TV
      • Variety
      • News & Sport
      • Advertisements
    • Music
      • Music by Decade
        • Music – 1950s
        • Music – 1960s
        • Music – 1970s
        • Music – 1980s
        • Music – 1990s
      • Artists – A to K
        • Artists – A
        • Artists – B
        • Artists – C
        • Artists – D
        • Artists – E
        • Artists – F
        • Artists – G
        • Artists – H
        • Artists – I
        • Artists – J
        • Artists – K
      • Artists – L to Z
        • Artists – L
        • Artists – M
        • Artists – N
        • Artists – O
        • Artists – P
        • Artists – Q
        • Artists – R
        • Artists – S
        • Artists – T
        • Artists – U
        • Artists – V
        • Artists – W
        • Artists – X
        • Artists – Y
        • Artists – Z
      • Artists – 0 to 9
      • Genres
      • Music on Film & TV
      • One-Hit Wonders
      • Playlists
      • Online Radio
    • Movies
      • Movies by Decade
        • Movies – 1950s
        • Movies – 1960s
        • Movies – 1970s
        • Movies – 1980s
        • Movies – 1990s
      • Movies – 0 to 9
      • Movies – A to K
        • Movies – A
        • Movies – B
        • Movies – C
        • Movies – D
        • Movies – E
        • Movies – F
        • Movies – G
        • Movies – H
        • Movies – I
        • Movies – J
        • Movies – K
      • Movies – L to Z
        • Movies – L
        • Movies – M
        • Movies – N
        • Movies – O
        • Movies – P
        • Movies – Q
        • Movies – R
        • Movies – S
        • Movies – T
        • Movies – U
        • Movies – V
        • Movies – W
        • Movies – X
        • Movies – Y
        • Movies – Z
    • Pop Culture
      • Fads
      • Toys & Games
      • Fashion
      • Decor
      • Food & Drink
      • People
      • Technology
      • Transport
    • Social History
      • 1950s Year by Year
      • 1960s Year by Year
      • 1970s Year by Year
      • 1980s Year by Year
      • 1990s Year by Year
      • Events
    Nostalgia Central
    Home»Music»Artists - L to Z»Artists - P
    Artists - P Music - 1960s 2 Mins Read

    Procol Harum

    Share
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email

    Procol Harum started off as a session group to record the Gary Brooker (ex-The Paramounts) and Keith Reid (an ex-legal clerk) composed song A Whiter Shade Of Pale.

    Inspired by Bach’s Suite No. 3 in D major, the song was instantly acclaimed upon its Radio London airing and topped the UK chart – with a little help from Bach – and became one of the songs of the psychedelic summer of 1967.

    Such was the success of Whiter Shade that permanent musicians were recruited through newspaper advertisements and the band was named Procol Harum, after a Burmese cat owned by a friend of Reid’s.

    “The actual name of the group was Procul Harun, but it was all done over the telephone and got misspelt” Brooker explained.

    procolharum_2

    Matthew Fisher and David Knights (on organ and bass respectively) became integral members.

    Other original members Ray Royer and Bobby Harrison left before the completion of the first album and were replaced by guitarist Robin Trower and drummer BJ Wilson.

    Over the next two years, the group released three excellent albums – Procol Harum (1967), Shine On Brightly (1968) and A Salty Dog (1969) – which showed a surprisingly tough sound, despite the fact that the band were irredeemably tagged as flower power prog-rockers.

    Early in 1970, both Fisher and Knights left the group to be replaced by Chris Copping and BJ Wilson.

    Despite never actually playing in the band, lyricist Keith Reid remained part of the creative fulcrum of the band. The band quickly built up a reputation in the US and gradually accumulated a following in the UK.

    Five year’s later, the magic of Whiter Shade Of Pale had not dissipated and the single was re-issued – and charted all over again (this time reaching the UK Top 20).

    Drummer Barrie Wilson died in October 1990 in a car accident.

    In 1991, Gary Brooker decided to re-form the band, having in the interim become a champion fly-fisher and enjoyed some success in America with Prodigal Stranger, featuring once again both Matthew Fisher and Robin Trower.

    Brooker passed away on 19 February 2022.

    Gary Brooker
    Piano, vocals
    Robin Trower
    Guitar
    Chris Copping
    Bass, organ
    Matthew Fisher
    Organ
    Dave Knights
    Bass
    Barrie “BJ” Wilson
    Drums
    Pete Solley
    Organ
    Mick Grabham
    Guitar
    Alan Cartwright
    Bass
    David Ball
    Guitar

    Video

    Related Posts

    • Gary Lewis & The Playboys
      Gary Lewis & The Playboys
      Gary Lewis had a great background for a showbiz career: He was the son of noted comedian and actor Jerry…
    • Tea & Symphony
      Tea & Symphony
      Tea & Symphony formed in Birmingham (UK) in 1968 and were originally heavily influenced by folk music, their repertoire consisting…
    • Fleetwoods, The
      Fleetwoods, The
      When childhood friends Barbara Ellis and Gretchen Christopher joined forces with Gary Troxel in Washington, the group Two Girls and…
    • Katch 22
      Katch 22
      Formed in 1964 and hailing from Hackbridge, a suburb in the London Borough of Sutton, this four-piece played the 100…
    • United States of America, The
      United States of America, The
      A registered Communist starts a band called The United States of America and lands a major label record deal before…
    • PP Arnold
      PP Arnold
      PP Arnold was born Patricia Ann Cole on 3 October 1946 in the South Central area of Los Angeles (then…
    • Smoke, The
      Smoke, The
      If ever there was a psychedelic one-hit wonder, it was The Smoke. Not that My Friend Jack was much of a hit…
    • Grass Roots, The
      Grass Roots, The
      The Grass Roots began as a studio-only project by Los Angeles songwriter PF Sloan and producer Steve Barri who had…

    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest WhatsApp Reddit Email
    Previous ArticleProclaimers, The
    Next Article Prodigal Sons

    Comments are closed.

    Follow us
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    • Instagram
    You May Also Like
    • Vengeance of Fu Manchu, The (1967)
      Fu Manchu (Christopher Lee) and his daughter Lin Tang (Tsai […]
    • Dial RIX
      1 9 6 2 – 1 9 6 3 (UK) 8 x 50 minute episodes This series […]
    • Odetta
      Odetta Holmes was born in Birmingham, Alabama (USA) in 1930 and […]
    • Scruples
      1 9 8 0 (USA) 3 x 120 minute episodes Based on the best-selling […]
    • Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, The (1974)
      The bittersweet story of a Jewish boy from Montreal struggling […]
    • Harvey Korman Show, The
      1 9 7 7 – 1 9 7 8 (USA) 6 x 30 minute episodes The pilot […]
    Twitter Feed
    Please note


    Nostalgia Central covers the period 1950 to 1999 and contains some words and references which reflect the attitudes of those times and which may be considered culturally sensitive, offensive or inappropriate today.
    Popular Tags
    1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1975 1976 Action Figures Amicus Arcade games Australia Beach movies Beatles Blaxploitation Board games Britpop Canada Crime Disco Disney Doo-Wop Elvis Presley Girl groups Glam Goth Hammer Heavy Metal Irwin Allen Labels Merseybeat Mod revival Motown New Romantic New Wave NWOBHM Oi! One-hit wonders Power Pop Pub rock Punk Radio Scotland Ska Soul music Surf music
    Search Nostalgia Central
    Copyright © 1998, 2022 Nostalgia Central
    • About
    • Contact
    • FAQ

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.