| "A Whiter Shade of Pale" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single byProcol Harum | ||||
| B-side | "Lime Street Blues" | |||
| Released | 12 May 1967 (1967-05-12) | |||
| Recorded | April 1967 | |||
| Studio | Olympic, London, UK | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length |
| |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriters | ||||
| Producer | Denny Cordell | |||
| Procol Harum singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"A Whiter Shade of Pale" is a song by the English rock bandProcol Harum that was issued as their debut single on 12 May 1967. The single reached number 1 in theUK Singles Chart on 8 June and stayed there for six weeks.[10] Without much promotion, it reached number 5 on the USBillboard Hot 100.[11] One of the anthems of the 1967Summer of Love, it is one of the most commercially successful singles in history, havingsold more than 10 million copies worldwide.[12] In the years since, "A Whiter Shade of Pale" has become an enduring classic, with more than 1,000 known cover versions by other artists.[13][14]
With itsBach-derived instrumental melody, soulful vocals, melancholic tone, and unusual lyrics, the music of "A Whiter Shade of Pale" was composed byGary Brooker andMatthew Fisher, while the lyrics were written byKeith Reid.[15] Originally, the writing credits only listed Brooker and Reid. In 2009, Fisher won his battle to be recognised as co-writer of the music in a unanimous ruling from theLaw Lords.
In 1977, the song was named joint winner (along withQueen's "Bohemian Rhapsody") of "The Best British Pop Single 1952–1977" at theBrit Awards.[16] In 1998, the song was inducted into theGrammy Hall of Fame.[17] In 2004, the performing rights groupPhonographic Performance Limited recognised it as the most-played record by British broadcasting of the past 70 years[18] andRolling Stone placed it 57th on its list of"The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". In 2009, it was reported as the most played song in the last 75 years in public places in the UK.[19]
The song has been included in many music compilations over the decades and has also been used in the soundtracks of numerous films and television shows, includingThe Big Chill,Purple Haze,Breaking the Waves,The Boat That Rocked,Tour of Duty,House M.D.,Memory,Martin Scorsese's segment ofNew York Stories,Stonewall,Oblivion,Ken Burns andLynn Novick's documentary seriesThe Vietnam War, and the limited seriesThe Offer andBillions. Cover versions of the song have also been featured in many films, for example, byKing Curtis inWithnail and I and byAnnie Lennox inThe Net.
Keith Reid got the title and starting point for the song at a party.[20] He overheard someone at the party saying to a woman, "You've turned a whiter shade of pale", and the phrase stuck in his mind.[21] The original lyrics had four verses, of which only two are heard on the original recording. The third verse has been heard in live performances by Procol Harum, and more seldom the fourth.[22] Claes Johansen, in his bookProcol Harum: Beyond the Pale, suggests that the song "deals in metaphorical form with a male/female relationship which after some negotiation ends in a sexual act".[23] This is supported inLives of the Great Songs byTim de Lisle, who remarks that the lyrics concern a drunken seduction, which is described through references to sex as a form of travel, usually nautical, using mythical and literary journeys.[24] Other observers have also commented that the lyrics concern a sexual relationship.[21]
Contrary to the above interpretations, Reid was quoted in the February 2008 issue ofUncut magazine as saying:
I was trying to conjure a mood as much as tell a straightforward, girl-leaves-boy story. With the ceiling flying away and room humming harder, I wanted to paint an image of a scene. I wasn't trying to be mysterious with those images, I was trying to be evocative. I suppose it seems like a decadent scene I'm describing. But I was too young to have experienced any decadence, then. I might have been smoking when I conceived it, but not when I wrote. It was influenced by books, not drugs.
Structurally and thematically, the song is unusual. While the recorded Procol Harum version is 4:03 long, it is composed of only two verses, each with chorus. The piece is also more instrument-driven than most songs of the period, and with a much looserrhyme scheme. Its unusually allusive and referential lyrics are much more complex than most lyrics of the time (for example, the chorus alludes toGeoffrey Chaucer's "The Miller's Tale"). The lyricist, Keith Reid, said: "I'd never readThe Miller's Tale in my life. Maybe that's something that I knew subconsciously, but it certainly wasn't a conscious idea for me to quote from Chaucer, no way."[25]
The phrasea whiter shade of pale has since gained widespread use in the English language, as noted by several dictionaries.[26][27][28] As such, the phrase is today often used in contexts independent of any consideration of the song.[29] It has also been heavily paraphrased, in forms like "an Xer shade of Y", to the extent that it has been recognised as asnowclone[30][31] – a type ofcliché andphrasal template.
The song is in moderate time inC major[32] and is characterised by thebassline moving stepwise downwards in a repeated pattern throughout. In classical music this is known as aground bass. The harmonic structure is identical for the organ melody, the verse and the chorus, except that the chorus finishes with acadence. The main organ melody appears at the beginning and after each verse/chorus. But it is also heard throughout, playing variations of its theme andcounterpointing the vocal line. As the chorus commences "And so it was, that later ...", the vocal and organ accompaniment begin a shortcrescendo, with the organist running his finger rapidly down and up the entire keyboard. The final instrumental fades out to silence — a common device in pop music of the time.
Similarity has been noted between the Hammond Organ line of "A Whiter Shade of Pale" andJ. S. Bach's Air from hisOrchestral Suite No. 3 2. Air,BWV 1068, (the "Air on the G string"), where the sustained opening note of the main melodic line flowers into a free-flowing melody against a descending bass line.
Gary Brooker said of his composition in his interview withUncut magazine:
If you trace the chordal element, it does a bar or two of Bach's 'Air on a G String' before it veers off. That spark was all it took. I wasn't consciously combining rock with classical, it's just that Bach's music was in me.[33]
Allan Moore notes in the 2018 BBC radio series "Soul Music" that the resemblance "creates the sense of [Bach’s] music without actually quoting it".[34] The similarity is also referred to humorously in the 1982 playThe Real Thing byTom Stoppard[35] and in the 1991 filmThe Commitments.[36] The music also borrows ideas from "When a Man Loves a Woman" byPercy Sledge.[37]
Procol Harum recorded "A Whiter Shade of Pale" atOlympic Sound Studios inLondon, England. The recording was produced byDenny Cordell. Because they did not have a regular drummer, the drums were played byBill Eyden, a session musician. The track was completed in two takes, with no subsequentoverdubbing.[38]
A few days after the session, the band re-recorded the song with their newly recruited drummer,Bobby Harrison, atAdvision Studios. This version was discarded, and one of the original mono recordings was chosen for release as the band's debut single. The B-side was "Lime Street Blues", another Brooker–Reid song, which the band recorded at Advision.[39]
Cordell was concerned that the sound of "A Whiter Shade of Pale" might prove problematic on the radio, due to the prominence of the drummer's cymbals. He therefore sent an acetate copy toRadio London, and his worries were assuaged when the disc jockey played the disc on-air and announced: "That sounds like a massive hit."[40]
The single was released on 12 May 1967 in the United Kingdom byDeram Records and enteredRecord Retailer's chart (later theUK Singles Chart) on 25 May. In two weeks it reached number 1, where it stayed for six weeks. Writing in 2005, Jim Irvin ofMojo said that its arrival at number 1 on 8 June 1967, on the same day thatthe Beatles'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band topped the national albums chart, marked the start of theSummer of Love in Britain.[41] In December 1967,New Musical Express readers voted the song "Best British Disc This Year", ahead of "All You Need Is Love" and "Massachusetts".[42]
According to music historianHarvey Kubernik, in the context of the Summer of Love, "A Whiter Shade of Pale" was the "one song [that] stood above all others, its Everest-like status conferred by no less thanJohn Lennon andPaul McCartney, who were enthralled by the Chaucerian wordplay and heavenly Baroque accompaniment".[43] Kubernik also writes that, amid the search for higher consciousness during theflower power era, the song "galvanised a congregation of disaffected youth dismissive of traditional religion but anxious to achieve spiritual salvation".[44]
In a 1981 article on the musical and societal developments of 1967, forThe History of Rock,sociomusicologistSimon Frith described "A Whiter Shade of Pale" as the year's "most distinctive single", through its combination of "white soul vocal and a Bach organ exercise" and enigmatic lyrics that "hinted at a vital secret open only to people in the right, drug-determined, state of mind".[45]Beach Boys leaderBrian Wilson had a profound reaction to hearing the song and momentarily believed that it was hisfuneral march; in a 2004 interview, he said, "When I hear it now, I [still] imagine myself at my own funeral."[46]
In the United States, the single reached number 5 on theBillboard Hot 100 and sold over 1 million copies. It stayed at its peak position for two weeks beginning the week of 29 July 1967. It also peaked at number 22 on the soul charts there.[47]Cash Box called it "a haunting, imaginative ballad [that] has a winning sound".[48]Record World said it is distinguished by "a very eerie melody and lyrics that seem to make sense and then don't."[49] The song was included on the US release of theProcol Harum album, in September 1967, but not on the subsequent UK version.[43] In the Netherlands, the single entered the chart at number 1 in June 1967 and reached number 1 again in July 1972. A May 1972 re-release onFly Records peaked at number 13 in the UK. Due to concerns about overexposure, the song was removed from the band's repertoire in 1969 for a number of years.[citation needed]
"A Whiter Shade of Pale" has continued to receive critical acclaim. Along withQueen's "Bohemian Rhapsody", "A Whiter Shade of Pale" was jointly recognised as "The Best British Pop Single 1952–1977" at theBRIT Awards, part ofElizabeth II'sSilver Jubilee. In 1998 the song was inducted into theGrammy Hall of Fame. In 2004, it appeared at number 57 onRolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time". British TV stationChannel 4 placed the song at number 19 in its chart of "The 100 Greatest No. 1 Singles".[50] In 2018, the song was inducted into theRock and Roll Hall of Fame in a new category for singles.[51]
After Brooker's death, the song gained download sales and then entered the UK Official Singles Sales Chart at number 38 on 25 February 2022.[52] In The Netherlands the song also regained popularity after the 2021 murder of crime reporterPeter R. de Vries, who considered it his favorite song.[53]
The first promotional clip for "A Whiter Shade of Pale" was shot in the ruins ofWitley Court in Worcestershire, England.[54] It features four of the five musicians who played on the hit single: Gary Brooker, Matthew Fisher, David Knights and Ray Royer, in performance and walking through the ruins. Only the drummer in the video is not on the record: early band member Bobby Harrison is seen miming to session man Bill Eyden's drumming. The film was directed byPeter Clifton, whose insertion ofVietnam War newsreel footage caused it to be banned from airplay on theBBC'sTop of the Pops TV show.[55]
Procol Harum subsequently made a second promotional clip, using "Scopitone" technology. By this time,Robin Trower andB.J. Wilson had replaced Royer and Harrison in the band, so only three of the five musicians on the recording are represented. No performance footage appears in this film – only scenes of the five musicians cavorting around London and running across fields.
The same lineup, with Fisher wearing a monk'scowl, mimed to the song onTop of the Pops, although Brooker sang live. Black-and-white footage of the performance has been shown online. The song represents 1967 on the 2004 DVD releaseTop of the Pops 40th Anniversary 1964–2004.
There was also a film shot as part ofJoel Gallen's Deja-View music video series.[56] Originally airing on various networks from late 1985 into 1986, this video starredHarry Dean Stanton andBernie Taupin, but featured no member of the band. It has also aired onVH1 Classic, and has recently surfaced online.[57][58]
In 2005, former Procol Harum organistMatthew Fisher filed suit in theHigh Court against Gary Brooker and his publisher, claiming that he co-wrote the music for the song.[59] Fisher won the case on 20 December 2006 but was awarded 40% of the composers' share of the music copyright, rather than the 50% he was seeking and was not granted royalties for the period before 2005.[60]
Brooker and publisher Onward Music were granted leave to appeal, and a hearing on the matter was held before a panel of three judges during the week of 1 October 2007. The decision, on 4 April 2008, byLord Justice Mummery, in theCourt of Appeal upheld Fisher's co-authorship[61] but ruled that he should receive no royalties as he had taken too long (38 years) to bring his claim to litigation. Full royalty rights were returned to Brooker.[62]
On 5 November 2008, Fisher was granted permission to appeal this decision to theHouse of Lords.[63] Lawyers said at the time that it was the first time that the Law Lords were asked to rule on a copyright dispute involving a song.[64] The appeal was heard in the House of Lords on 22–23 April 2009.[65]
On 30 July 2009 the Law Lords unanimously ruled in Fisher's favour. They noted that the delay in bringing the case had not caused any harm to the other party; on the contrary they had benefited financially from it. They also pointed out that there were no time limits to copyright claims under English law. The right to future royalties was therefore returned to Fisher.[66][67] Brooker claimed that the case had cost him £1 million in legal fees.[68]
Weekly charts[edit]
| Year-end charts[edit]
|
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Belgium | — | 25,000[117] |
| France | — | 700,000[118] |
| Italy | — | 300,000[119] |
| Netherlands | — | 100,000[120] |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[121] | Platinum | 30,000‡ |
| Spain | — | 30,000[122] |
| United Kingdom Original release | — | 600,000[123][124] |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[125] 2005 release | Silver | 200,000‡ |
| United States | — | 1,000,000[124] |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
"A Whiter Shade of Pale" was covered by American rock supergroupHagar Schon Aaronson Shrieve for their 1984 albumThrough the Fire. It was released as the album's only single and reached No. 94 on theBillboard Hot 100 chart.[126]
| "A Whiter Shade of Pale" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single byAnnie Lennox | ||||
| from the albumMedusa | ||||
| B-side |
| |||
| Released | 29 May 1995 (1995-05-29) | |||
| Studio | The Aquarium (London)[127] | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length |
| |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriters | ||||
| Producer | Stephen Lipson | |||
| Annie Lennox singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "A White Shade of Pale" onYouTube | ||||
"A Whiter Shade of Pale" was covered by Scottish singer-songwriterAnnie Lennox for her second solo album,Medusa (1995). The song was produced byStephen Lipson and released as the album's second single in May 1995, becoming a top-40 hit in Europe and Canada. It was also used in Irwin Winkler's filmThe Net, appearing in closing credits. The accompanying music video was directed by Joe Dyer,[128] who had previously co-directed the video for "No More I Love You's" with Lennox.
Steve Baltin fromCash Box named the song Pick of the Week, writing, "For the second single from herMedusa album, which is all covers, Lennox takes on one of rock's true classics. Sans the psychedelic feel thatProcol Harum had on the original version the song metamorphisizes in Lennox’s distinctly elegant hands. Starting with a simple, yet lovely, keyboard sound the song takes on the cool detached feel of Lennox that one of music's most accomplished singers has become famous for. To say a Lennox song, any Lennox track, is classy is almost redundant, but that is exactly the word to sum up her version of the song. Look for this to successfully hit, especially 'No More 'I Love You's' with ample amounts of radio support fromAdult Contemporary andCHR."[129] Chuck Campbell fromKnoxville News Sentinel complimented the song as a "stately remake".[130]
Pan-European magazineMusic & Media wrote, "One of those classics that nobody but "Madam Medusa" dares to touch."[131] Steve Sutherland fromNME felt the album "is worth investigation if only for Ms. Lennox's interpretation of [...] 'A Whiter Shade of Pale'. The original is such flimsy pseudo-classical tripe that even its author has admitted he hasn't got the faintest idea what it's about but, miraculously, Ms Lennox renders it even more absurd, her version resembling the house band at a particularly godforsaken holiday camp at the end of a very long, damp and underpopulated season."[132]Smash Hits predicted that Lennox' cover version would be a future hit, writing, "This second track from Annie's LP of cover versionsMedusa is certain to be a major hit. [...] Although unlikely to be a number one —Jacko will probably have that department all sewn up [with 'Scream'] — this will be a huge hit all the same. Corker!"[133]
| Chart (1995) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[134] | 56 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[135] | 48 |
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[136] | 16 |
| Canada Top Singles (RPM)[137] | 37 |
| Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[138] | 2 |
| Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[139] | 45 |
| France (SNEP)[140] | 17 |
| Germany (GfK)[141] | 77 |
| Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[142] | 12 |
| Ireland (IRMA)[143] | 25 |
| Netherlands (Single Top 100)[144] | 39 |
| New Zealand (Listener)[145] | 1 |
| Scotland (OCC)[146] | 11 |
| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[147] | 26 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[148] | 16 |
| USBubbling Under Hot 100 (Billboard)[149] | 1 |
| USDance Singles Sales (Billboard)[150] with "No More 'I Love You's" | 2 |
| USHot Singles Sales (Billboard)[151] | 66 |
| Chart (1995) | Position |
|---|---|
| Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[152] | 51 |
| Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[153] | 41 |
| France (SNEP)[154] | 66 |
| US Maxi-Singles Sales (Billboard)[155] | 35 |
| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | 29 May 1995 |
| [156] | |
| United Kingdom | [157] | |||
| Japan | 21 June 1995 | Mini-CD | [158] |
A cover byThe Hesitations reached number 100 on the Billboard charts in 1968,[159] and number 83 in Canada.[160]
Another version byR. B. Greaves reached number 82 in the Billboard charts in 1970,[161] and number 85 in Canada.[162]
The Box Tops recorded a cover of "Whiter Shade of Pale" that was included in their 1967 albumThe Letter/Neon Rainbow.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)There were huge sales in the U.S.A. In Britain the disc was No 1 for six weeks with 15 weeks in the bestsellers, selling 380,000 in 16 days and soon easily passing the half million. In France it was No 1 for 11 weeks and went on to sell over half a million - a rarity for that country. In the U.S.A. it got to No 3 with 12 weeks in their bestsellers. Global sales were reported at six million.
'A Whiter Shade of Pale' burned its way to the top of the British chart, in July 1967. It sold in excess of 600,000 copies and dominated the chart for staggering six weeks [...] It was also released in America, selling one million copies to peak at No. 6. At the end of its life, 'A Whiter Shade of Pale' had sold an incredible six million copies.
Procol Harum Beyond The Pale.
