Ticket 2 Ride

Gary Brooker passed away in 2022 from cancer. A founding member of the rock group, Procol Harum, Brooker was a mainstay in that band for 50 years. He will forever be associated with the band’s seminal hit, “A Whiter Shade of Pale,” which he co-wrote and sang lead on.

I had first wanted to write something about Brooker a couple of years ago, but other projects kept adding to my list. Sadly, he’s gone now and all I can do is to look back on his career and life.

In recent years, the Procol Harum discography has been remastered and individual albums have been rereleased with additional tracks. The band may finally get the recognition they deserve. Procol Harum was one of the first bands to use their albums, not as concepts, rather as expansive paintings, and not just collections of songs. They were not a “singles” band, although they did chart some songs beyond “A Whiter Shade of Pale.”

I never knew quite how to categorize this band, understanding they blended various genres of music, which was quite true of the era. Prog, jazz, blues, English music hall, gospel, psychedelic pop, a bit of everything. I think of the Kinks when I recall late 1960s Procol Harum. Theatrical, storytelling, days of old. Gary Brooker/Keith Reid and Ray Davies had a lot in common. It’s interesting how English rockers reached back to their past to incorporate good times from post-War into the swinging 60s sound. From what I know, life post-War was challenging for the average family, but there was comfort in family, music and weekend dancing.

Procol Harum went through different lineups along the way, including guitarist Robin Trower leaving for a solo career, but rejoining occasionally. Trower, known for his Jimi Hendrix-flavored “Bridge of Sighs”, veered towards heavy, British blues-rock, a much grittier direction from Procol Harum.

Aside from PH, Brooker was a frequent session sidemanand in-demand pianist who played with included: George Harrison, the Hollies, Ringo Starr, Alan Parsons Project, Kate Bush, Phil Collins, Bill Wyman, Stephen Bishop and Paul McCartney & Wings.

Primarily writing for PH, his songs were covered by such notables as: the Hollies, Joe Cocker, Santana, the Box Tops, the Everly Brothers, Bonnie Tyler, Phil Collins, Georgie Fame, Dave Edmunds, Cat Stevens, Harry Nilsson, Michael Bolton, Willie Nelson, Annie Lennox, Percy Sledge, Sarah Brightman, George Winston, Aretha Franklin, Styx, Big Head Todd & the Monsters, Gerry & the Pacemakers, Johnny Rivers, Marc Almond, Justin Hayward, Leo Kottke, Eric Clapton, Herb Alpert and many others.

Mostly, Brooker was keeper of the Procol Harum legacy. There was no band without him. He looked after the website, reissues and took the band on the road. Listening to his voice on those records now, it’s interesting to me how much Brooker sounds like Steve Winwood, or vice versa. I guess I never noticed that. The music of Procol Harum would need a separate blog to do the band justice, so instead the focus is just on the life of Brooker.

Brooker played on his friends’ albums and played their concerts. He was a member of Ringo’s All-Starr Band for several tours. He performed at the Concert for George, celebrating the life and music of George Harrison.

Occasionally, Brooker released solo studio albums, well-received by critics and his core audience, but not big sellers. Only three albums of solo material; not very prolific.

My thoughts on his solo albums:

No More Fear of Flying (1979) was more of an effort to contemporary. Brooker teamed with mostly Pete Sinfield (King Crimson, ELP) as his lyricist, and covered a few other songs, like “Switchboard Susan,” in an effort to record edgier songs. This is an interesting assortment of songs, and was produced by Sir George Martin. The album certainly sounds slick and well-recorded.

Lead Me to the Water (1982) did not venture very far away from the PH sound. It was soulful, thoughtful and not in a hurry; hardly aimed at the Hot 100 Singles Chart. George Harrison, Eric Clapton and Phil Collins were onboard as Brooker’s wingmen. The songs are are a little overproduced, having some of those annoying 1980s production tricks. The production was handled by Brooker himself.

In 1985, Brooker released Echoes in the Night, an effort to recapture the PH sound, and he did so by inviting his former bandmates to perform on this album. It’s difficult to enjoy the album since it suffers from the cold, industrial 1980s sound. Listening to it now is almost painful. The beauty of the songs are sadly lost in the muck.

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A person’s life is difficult to sum-up in a few paragraphs. In Gary Brooker’s case, his body of music reveal a lot about the man. Whenever there is a movie or TV show about the late 1960s, you can be sure that “A Whiter Shade of Pale” will be heard. Few singers are so identified with a point in time. While that is awesome, it tends to narrow and reduce everything else a person accomplishes and represents in their life.

Gary Brooker was part of a wave of English singer-songwriters who were able to translate the experiences and observations of their post-War generation into a musical tapestry. The songs of Brooker and lyricist Keith Reid have much to say and have left an indelible mark on the music of their generation.