Record Reviews

PROCOL HARUM ~ A SALTY DOG (DELUXE EXPANDED EDITION) ESOTERIC 2503 (Barcode: 5013929460348) ~ UK ~ Classic Rock Recorded: 1969 Released: 2015 This is a reissue of the third studio album by the seminal British Classic Rock group Procol HarumFind albums by this artist, one of the last active representatives of the great music wave that started over five decades ago. This album´s lineup includes, for the last time, all five founding members: vocalist / pianist Gary BrookerFind albums by this artist, Hammond organist Matthew FisherFind albums by this artist (who also produced the album), guitarist Robin TrowerFind albums by this artist, bassist David KnightsFind albums by this artist and drummer B. J. WilsonFind albums by this artist. The album presents ten songs, six composed by Brooker or co-composed by him with others, and two each composed by Fisher or Trower, all with lyrics by poet Keith ReidFind albums by this artist. For the first time three of the songs feature orchestral arrangements. This remastered and expanded edition adds a CD with twelve bonus tracks; A & B sides of a single, a studio outtake, live tracks recorded in the US and five tracks from BBC sessions, those being the only five tracks that are previously unreleased. The musical direction of this album is slightly more diverse than the two previous albums, adding some Pop / Rock oriented material, although the double keyboards dominating sound is still in place and the bombastic Blues based, Gothic and Psychedelic soundscapes are present again, making it clear that this is Procol Harum at its best. In retrospect this album shows that the group was in a constant state of searching, as all great Artists are. This album was to be the last of the trilogy of the epic first three albums by the group recorded in the 1960s which started with the formative "A Whiter Shade Of Pale". The album still sounds great after all those years, and is a refreshing experience for people who have not listened to it for a while. It seems that most of Rock had to say was more or less already articulated by the end of the 1960s. To the many fans of the group this is of course a must have item in their collections. An evergreen by all means and en essential Classic Rock / early Prog milestone!

Updated: 09/04/2022Posted: 31/01/2019

CD 2 Digipak Oversampling Remastered Bonus Tracks Essential Recommend To A Friend

PROCOL HARUM ~ PROCOL HARUM (DELUXE EXPANDED EDITION) ESOTERIC 2497 (Barcode: 5013929459748) ~ UK ~ Classic Rock Recorded: 1967 Released: 2015 This is a reissue of the first studio album by the seminal British Classic Rock group Procol HarumFind albums by this artist, one of the last active representatives of the great music wave that started over five decades ago. This album´s lineup includes the five founding members: vocalist / pianist Gary BrookerFind albums by this artist, Hammond organist Matthew FisherFind albums by this artist, guitarist Robin TrowerFind albums by this artist, bassist David KnightsFind albums by this artist and drummer B. J. WilsonFind albums by this artist. The album presents tens songs, nine composed by Brooker and one composed by Fisher, all with lyrics by poet Keith ReidFind albums by this artist. The UK version of the album did not include the celebrated single "The Whiter Shade Of Pale" (co-composed by Brooker and Fisher), which was recorded earlier with a different bassist and drummer, and which is included here in three different versions amongst the bonus tracks. This remastered and expanded edition adds ten bonus tracks (A & B sides of two singles and six outtakes and alternate mixes), one previously unreleased, and a bonus CD with seventeen bonus tracks, ten further alternate versions and mixes and seven live BBC recordings, with the seven BBC tracks being previously unreleased. The musical direction of this album introduces the double keyboards dominating sound and the bombastic Blues based, Gothic and Psychedelic soundscapes, which characterize the first three epic albums by the group recorded in the 1960s, which started with the formative "A Whiter Shade Of Pale". This innovative sound and the typical British aesthetic approach, which was open already at these pioneering days to venture into early cross-genre explorations was what made this music so striking and irresistible. If Procol Harum had only created "The Whiter Shade Of Pale" and then disappeared from the face of the earth, they would have earned fame and glory for posterity, as this is undoubtedly the greatest Rock song of all time. No other song written since managed to come even close to the majestic punch between the ears this song delivered to the human race. The fact that the group managed to follow their debut single with a long and exquisite string of albums and a career that lasts for over five decades is one of the most wondrous stories in Rock history. It is important to understand that this album is a milestone in music history, breaking the accepted prevailing sentiment about (not-serious) popular music. It proves that popular music is capable of being as sophisticated, innovative and groundbreaking as Classical Music, which was considered up to that point as the only "serious" and artistically / aesthetically valid form of music. The album still sounds great after all those years, and is a refreshing experience for people who have not listened to it for a while. It seems that most of what Rock had to say was more or less already articulated by the end of the 1960s. To the many fans of the group this is of course a must have item in their collections. An evergreen by all means and en essential Classic Rock / early Prog milestone!

Updated: 09/04/2022Posted: 01/02/2019

CD 2 Digipak Oversampling Remastered Bonus Tracks Essential Recommend To A Friend

PROCOL HARUM ~ SHINE ON BRIGHTLY (DELUXE EXPANDED EDITION) ESOTERIC 2500 (Barcode: 5013929460041) ~ UK ~ Classic Rock Recorded: 1967 - 1968 Released: 2015 This is a reissue of the second studio album by the seminal British Classic Rock group Procol HarumFind albums by this artist, one of the last active representatives of the great music wave that started over five decades ago. This album´s lineup includes the five founding members: vocalist / pianist Gary BrookerFind albums by this artist, Hammond organist Matthew FisherFind albums by this artist, guitarist Robin TrowerFind albums by this artist, bassist David KnightsFind albums by this artist and drummer B. J. WilsonFind albums by this artist. The album presents seven songs, one of which is a five-part suite, five composed by Brooker and two co-composed by him and Fisher (including the suite), all with lyrics by poet Keith ReidFind albums by this artist. This remastered and expanded edition adds three bonus tracks (Italian version of the title tracks and A & B sides of a single), a bonus CD with mono mix of the album, which was previously unreleased on CD, and a second bonus CD with seventeen tracks, nine of which ale alternate versions and outtakes and eight are BBC recordings, those last eight being the only previously unreleased tracks. The musical direction of this album solidifies and perfects the innovative and brilliant achievement of the debut album with the double keyboards dominating sound and the bombastic Blues based, Gothic and Psychedelic soundscapes present again, now brought to an epic climax, illuminating Procol Harum at their absolute best. The suite was one of the first attempts to present such complex and eloquent musical piece within the Rock idiom. In retrospect this album shows that the group was in a constant state of development, as all great Artists are. This album was also to be the most impressive of the trilogy consisting of the first three epic albums by the group recorded in the 1960s, which started with the formative "A Whiter Shade Of Pale". It is important to understand that this album is a milestone in music history, breaking the accepted prevailing sentiment about (not-serious) popular music. It proves that popular music is capable of being as sophisticated, innovative and groundbreaking as Classical Music, which was considered up to that point as the only "serious" and artistically / aesthetically valid form of music. The album still sounds great after all those years, and is a refreshing experience for people who have not listened to it for a while. It seems that most of what Rock had to say was more or less already articulated by the end of the 1960s. To the many fans of the group this is of course a must have item in their collections. An evergreen by all means and en essential Classic Rock / early Prog milestone!

Updated: 09/04/2022Posted: 01/02/2019

CD 3 Mini-Sleeve Box Set Oversampling Remastered Bonus Tracks Essential Recommend To A Friend