Procol Harum - 1973-09-21 - Hollywood Bowl, Hollywood, CA (w/Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra)

Procol Harum

1973-09-21
Hollywood Bowl, Hollywood, CA
with The Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra
Pre-FM soundboard recording, excellent quality
Available in both Lossless (FLAC) and Mp3 (320 kbps) versions

Here's more from Gary Brooker and Procol Harum! The combination of Procol Harum with a live Symphony Orchestra was an inspired move, and following the success of their live album, Procol Harum Live: In Concert with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (1972), which lead to the new Orchestral version of 'Conquistador' becoming one of their biggest hits, the band continued to do various concerts in conjunction with Symphony Orchestras, to great acclaim. The Orchestral arrangements was a perfect fit with Procol Harum, it emphasized their classical leanings, and brought a new vitality and power to many of their songs. Their next album, Grand Hotel (1973) continued with this classical rock theme and was another powerhouse album. They continued with additional strong albums, with Exotic Birds and Fruit (1974), Procol's Ninth (1975), and Something Magic (1977), but saw declining sales and public interest by the late '70's, and broke up in 1978. They then later reformed with Gary Brooker, Robin Trower, Matthew Fisher, and Keith Reid in 1991, and released The Prodigal Stranger (1991), as well as touring in the early'90's. Another version of the band emerged in the early 2000's, with Brooker, Fisher, Geoff Whitehorn (guitar), Matt Pegg (bass). and Mark Brzezicki (drums), which toured and also released a new album, The Wells's on Fire (2003). But Fisher left in 2005, leaving Brooker as the only remaining original member. Brooker and the band continued to perform occasionally throughout the coming years, and released their last album of original material, their 13th, Novum, in 2017. That same year, Brooker was seriously hurt falling from the stage at a concert. But Brooker and the band toured again in 2018 and 2019. Gary Brooker died on February 19, 2022 of cancer-related illness at the age of 76. 

I have here a show from back in 1973, with the Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra, on the heels of their breakthrough live album. This is an excellent Pre-FM recording, featuring the Orchestral arrangements and new songs from their recently released Grand Hotel album. A Great show.

     

Tracklist:

01) Broken Barricades (2:53)

02) A Christmas Camel (6:03)

03) Toujours l'Amour (3:42)

04) Grand Hotel (6:44)

05) Fires (Which Burnt Brightly) (6:19)

06) A Salty Dog (5:24)

07) Conquistador (4:13)

08) Grand Finale (part-five of In Held 'Twas in I) (3:46)

09) TV Ceasar > (5:13)

10) Rule Britannia (1:16)

Gary Brooker - Piano, vocal
Alan Cartwright - Bass
Chris Copping - Organ
Mick Grabham - Guitar
B.J. Wilson - Drums
with the Los Angeles Symphony Orchestra (Conductor: Isaiah Jackson)
and Roger Wagner Chorale (Director: Roger Wagner)

mp3 - Procol Harum_1973-09-21_Hollywood Bowl_mp3.rar

FLAC- Procol Harum_1973-09-21_Hollywood Bowl_FLAC.rar

Procol Harum - 1971-04-12 - A&R Studios, New York, NY (Gary Brooker - R.I.P.:1945-2022)

Procol Harum

April 12, 1971
A&R Studios, New York for WPLJ-FM (NYC) radio broadcast.
aka "The Elusive Procol Harum" and "Shine on Live"
Pre-FM Soundboard Recording, Very Good Quality
Available in both Lossless (FLAC) and Mp3 (320 kbps) versions

Well, here we are, another week, another legendary rock musician has passed away. A couple weeks ago it was British multi-instrumentalist (keyboards, sax, flute, clarinet, vibraphone, etc) and founding member of King Crimson and Foreigner, Ian MacDonald, who died of colon cancer (Feb.9, 2022) at the age of 75. And most recently, the sad news that legendary vocalist-pianist-composer Gary Brooker of Procol Harum has died of cancer at his home (Feb. 19, 2022) at the age of 76. Gary was one of the great rock vocalists, with his clear and powerful voice that came through on every song, and Procol Harum was one of the pioneers of progressive rock, combining classical influences with blues, rock, and powerful storytelling. Procol Harum was, of course, most famous for the classic 'A Whiter Shade of Pale', but the band produced many memorable songs and albums over the years, and Gary Brooker was the driving force, with his stirring lead vocals and piano, writing most of the songs, and Gary was the only constant member throughout the band's more than 50-year history. Gary formed his first band in the early '60's at age 17, with his guitarist friend Robin Trower, called The Paramounts. But by 1966, the band broke up, and Gary planned to concentrate on songwriting. Shortly thereafter, Gary met Keith Reid, a talented lyricist, and they began to write songs together. After completing numerous songs, they decided to form a band to play them, thus forming Procol Harum in 1967, with Brooker, Reid, organist Matthew Fisher, guitarist Ray Royer, and bassist David Knights. Their first single was 'A Whiter Shade of Pale', which went on to become one of the most legendary and iconic rock songs of all time, as well as a defining moment of 1967 and the 'Summer of Love'. And this before even making their first album. That first album, Procol Harum (1967) followed soon after, but featured some personnel changes, with former Paramounts players Robin Trower, and drummer BJ Wilson now joining the band. Their next two albums, Shine On Brightly (1968) and A Salty Dog (1969) featured the same lineup, and although did not match the commercial success of 'Whiter Shade', solidified their reputation, acclaim, and cult appeal as  progressive rockers. By their fourth album, Home (1970), Fisher had left and was replaced by former Paramounts organist CJ Copping, thus completing the full conversion of The Paramounts into Procol Harum. However, the clash in styles between guitarist Robin Trower and Brooker became too much, and Trower left after their next album, Broken Barricades (1971) to pursue his own solo career. Later that year, the band teamed up with a symphony orchestra for a concert that became Procol Harum Live: In Concert with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra (1972) released to much acclaim, and a big hit with the new orchestral version of 'Conquistador'.  More about the rest of the band's history in a subsequent post. Today I have a radio show from 1971, which was one of the last for the band with guitarist Robin Trower. It is a Pre-FM recording of a show recorded for broadcast on WPLJ-FM New York. It is of very high quality and features many of their earlier songs. However, it did not feature either 'A Whiter Shade of Pale' or 'Conquistador', so I have added a couple bonus tracks from a later 1972 show (audience recording).  A fine showing of early Procol Harum and Gary Brooker. 

   
Tracklist:
1. Memorial Drive
2. Still There'll be more
3. Nothing that I didn't know
4. Simple Sister
5. Luskus Delph
6. Shine On Brightly
7. Whaling Stories
8. Broken Barricades
9. Juicy John Pink
10. A Salty Dog
11. Whisky Train
12. Power Failure
Bonus Tracks (1972-04-20 - Chicago):
13. Conquistador
14. A Whiter Shade of Pale

Robin Trower: guitar, bass
Gary Brooker: vocals, piano
Chris Copping: Hammond organ, bass
BJ Wilson: drums    


 mp3 - Procol Harum_1971-04-12_New York_mp3.rar

FLAC - Procol Harum_1971-04-12_New York_FLAC.rar

 

 

“Gary’s voice and piano were the single defining constant of Procol’s fifty-year international concert career. Without any stage antics or other gimmicks he was invariably the most watchable musician in the show.” Part of a statement from Procol Harum band after death of Gary Brooker.