Yet the "one fact" everyone remembers about A Whiter Shade of Pale is that it was the first "marriage" between classical music and progressive rock. Like Elton John and Bernie Taupin several years later, Brooker and Reid got into the habit of the lyricist supplying the words first. It's no secret that Alisoun chose the non-believer as her lover (itself revolutionary in the 14th century). One is their lodger, Nicholas, the other Absolon, a trainee priest. Reid has repeatedly explained he'd never read The Canterbury Tales (the 14th century classic by Chaucer, "the father of the English language") when he wrote A Whiter Shade of Pale.Ĭhaucer's Miller's Tale – told by the uncouth and drunk miller, Robin – is about a cuckolded carpenter, John, whose much-younger wife, Alisoun, is courted by two students her own age. Yet the most obvious literary clue – "as the miller told his tale" – is definitely NOT a reference to Geoffrey Chaucer's Miller's Tale. Procol Harum, photographed here in December 1967, made the most of their fame from A Whiter Shade - though the band never again hit the same heights. Again, literary types have pointed out the similarity between Reid's "light fandango" and the phrase John Milton coined in 1632 - "the light fantastick" (sic) – to describe 17th century dancing styles. The "fandango" is an 18th Century Spanish/Portuguese courtship dance (a forerunner of the bolero). If Reid knew this, he's never acknowledged it. Some academics have explained that mysterious sea voyages had been used as a literary metaphor for sexual "conquest" since at least the 18th century's Age of Exploration. (At 10 minutes long, it would never have been played on radio.) It's about a drunken seduction ("turning cartwheels cross the floor", "feeling kind of seasick", "the room was humming harder", "the ceiling flew away"), re-cast as a nautical voyage to a coast unknown.
WHITER SHADE OF PALE MUSIC FULL
The song is actually far more understandable when you hear it in full – complete with its two missing verses which were jettisoned before the single was released. Reid took his poetry seriously and packed his lyric with literary references. "And so it was, that later/as the miller told his tale,/that her face at first just ghostly/turned a whiter shade of pale."Īnnie Lennox is one of many who has covered the song, making it the most covered rock song of all time. "The room was humming harder/and the ceiling flew away./When we called out for another drink/the waiter brought a tray. It also reached No.1 in Australia, eventually becoming one of the 30 best-selling singles of all time with sales of over 10 million. Released in the United Kingdom on May 12 that year, it reached No.1 in the British charts on June 8 – and stayed there for six weeks. So put these seven words – Procol Harum A Whiter Shade of Pale – into your search engine, stand back and admire.īrooker co-wrote (and sang) A Whiter Shade of Pale in 1967. Or know why the band he co-founded half a century ago could play the Royal Albert Hall at the start of their 50th anniversary tour.Įverybody wants the Procol – Procol Harum from left to right: Dave Knights, Barrie James, Mathew Celestial-Smith, Robin Trower, Gary Brooker. You've probably never heard of Gary Brooker. He reappeared for the second half, to rapturous applause, with his head swathed in bandages beneath a beret, a less than fetching nose plaster (and an even less fetching shirt).īut let's be honest. It was the second time Brooker had fallen off the stage in recent years, so the medics made sure he was fit enough to fulfil his obligations. In the gloom after the lights faded, Brooker, 71, tripped down the stairs on the way to his dressing room. as well been closed.On March 4 this year, Gary Brooker (singer/pianist/songwriter) was given a standing ovation by a capacity crowd when he returned to the stage of London's legendary Royal Albert Hall after an extended interval. The room was hum - ming hardthe mer Say -ing, "You must be one of six - teen ves - tal vir -Īs the i e i l - ing who took Nep - tune who were leav - ingĮr brought a tray. and Canada International Copyright Secured All Rights Resewed Including Public Performance For Profit Used by Permission
O Copyright 1967 Westminster Music Ltd., London, England Essex Music, Inc., New York, controls all publication rights for the U.S.A. Turned cart - wheels 'cross the though in truth w e were at and the truth i s plain toīy the look- ing glass through my play - ing cards We skipped the She said, "I'm She said,"There
A WHITER SHADE OF PALE Words and Music by KEITH REID and GARY BROOKER
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