Procol Harlum

Procol's Ninth is the eighth studio album (ninth including Live) by Procol Harum, and was released in August 1975. Produced by songwriters Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, Procol's Ninth featured a slightly different direction from the previous album, with a much starker sound than Chris Thomas's more elaborate productions. According to an interview with guitarist Mick Grabham, conducted by Roland Clare for the 2009 reissue, Leiber and Stoller focused less on the production sound and more on "the structure of the songs". The band appeared on the cover of the album in a straightforward unassuming photograph, mirroring the sound of the album itself. The cover featured simulations of each band member's signature.

The fourth album by Procol Harum was released as the band was in the midst of a significant shift. With the departure of organist Matthew Fisher, guitarist Robin Trower stepped more to the fore. The two-keyboard approach was still being utilized, with singer Gary Brooker's piano being joined on some selections by the organ playing of multi-instrumentalist Chris Copping. However, the stately grandeur that had been previously applied with grace and subtlety gave way to a band that rocked much harder…

The ornate trappings of an old cathedral make the perfect backdrop for a band whose gothic feel was a large part of its initial success. Procol Harum was in fine form for this show recorded for the cameras on the venerable British outfit's final date of its extensive 2003 world tour. This isn't entirely the greatest-hits summary that some might have wanted…

Procol Harum's first album for Chrysalis, Grand Hotel, found the band returning to the grandeur of earlier works such as Shine on Brightly and Salty Dog. Robin Trower's replacement Mick Grabham is capable, even powerful, but not nearly as distinctive as his predecessor; consequently, the material tends to rely more on ornate arrangements than guitar riffs, making this somewhat more dignified than either of their previous studio albums, Home and Broken Barricades…

Procol Harum's seventh studio album, Exotic Birds and Fruit, was released in April 1974. In its original LP incarnation, four songs made up side one – "Nothing But the Truth," "Beyond the Pale," "As Strong as Samson," and "The Idol" – all of which featured some of the band's best later work. They had retreated somewhat from the orchestral hybrid of their previous album, Grand Hotel, although "Nothing But the Truth" still boasted a string arrangement…

It makes no bones about it in the packaging so it would be churlish to get upset, but this collection of first album-era stereo mixes and alternate versions is strictly for Procol Harum collectors only. The ten-track CD has previously unissued stereo mixes of five songs from the Procol Harum album; an instrumental version of "Pandora's Box," date of original recording not given (good distorted guitar and organ dueling, though); "previously unissued alternate stereo mixes" of "Wish Me Well," a song from the Shine on Brightly album, and the single "In the Wee Small Hours of Sixpence"; a long version of "Repent Walpurgis," another song that appeared on Procol Harum; and the alternate stereo version of "A Whiter Shade of Pale."

With its pop adaptations of Bach and its album with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, Procol Harum was an early advocate of a marriage between rock and classical music. So, this album of Procol Harum music recorded by the London Symphony Orchestra, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and (on the title track) the Sinfonia of London, with former Procol Harum vocalist/pianist Gary Brooker singing on seven of the 12 tracks and producing, and with former Procol Harum guitarist Robin Trower and organist Matthew Fisher appearing on a version of "Repent Walpurgis," would seem like a more comfortable combination than similar recent collections devoted to the Rolling Stones and Yes…

Of the legendary bands Great Britain birthed during the 1960s, none sound remotely like Procol Harum. From their emergence with the single version of "A Whiter Shade of Pale" months before the world heard the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, they were prog before prog, psychedelic before the world knew what it was, and a rocking R&B outfit…

Esoteric Recordings are proud to announce the release of a newly re-mastered and expanded edition of the classic 1968 self-titled debut album by Procol Harum. Released in January 1968, the record followed on from the huge international success of the band's debut single A Whiter Shade of Pale and the follow up single Homburg. One of the finest releases of the era Procol Harum captured the exquisite song writing of Gary Brooker and Keith Reid and the excellence of the musicians in the group, namely Gary Brooker (voice, piano), Robin Trower (lead guitar), David Knights (bass guitar), B.J. Wilson (drums) and Matthew Fisher (Hammond organ). The overall result was a collection of songs that would prove to be truly ground breaking, despite only having being released in Mono at the insistence of producer Denny Cordell…

Procol's Ninth is the eighth studio album (ninth including Live) by Procol Harum, and was released in September 1975. Produced by songwriters Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, Procol's Ninth featured a slightly different direction from the previous album, with a much more stark sound than Chris Thomas's more elaborate productions. According to an interview with guitarist Mick Grabham, conducted by Roland Clare for the 2009 reissue, Leiber and Stoller focused less on the production sound and more on "the structure of the songs". The band appeared on the cover of the album in a straightforward unassuming photograph, mirroring the sound of the album itself. The cover featured simulations of each band member's signature.