A Whiter Shade of Pale
Encyclopedia
"A Whiter Shade of Pale" is the debut song by the British
band Procol Harum
, released 12 May 1967. The single reached number one in the UK Singles Chart
on 8 June 1967
, and stayed there for six weeks. Without much promotion, it reached #5 on the US charts, as well. It is one of the fewer than 30 all-time singles to have sold 10 million (or more) copies worldwide.
With its haunting Bach
-flavoured instrumental melody, soulful vocals, and unusual lyrics—by the song's co-authors Gary Brooker
, Keith Reid
, and Matthew Fisher
-- "A Whiter Shade of Pale" reached #1 in several countries when released in 1967. In the years since, it has become an enduring classic. It was the most played song in the last 75 years in public places in the UK (as of 2009), and the United Kingdom performing rights group Phonographic Performance Limited
in 2004 recognised it as the most-played record by British broadcasting of the past 70 years. Also in 2004, Rolling Stone
placed "A Whiter Shade of Pale" #57 on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
More than 1000 recorded cover versions by other artists are known. The song has been included in many music compilations over the decades and has also been used in the soundtracks of numerous films, including The Big Chill
, Purple Haze
, Breaking the Waves
, The Boat That Rocked
and notably in Martin Scorsese
's segment of New York Stories
. Cover versions of the song have also been featured in many films, for example by King Curtis
in Withnail and I
and by Annie Lennox
in The Net.
The original writing credits were for Brooker and Reid only. On 30 July 2009, Matthew Fisher won co-writing credit for the music in a unanimous ruling from the Law Lords.
in London
, England
with Gary Brooker
providing the vocals and piano, Matthew Fisher
on a Hammond M-102 organ, David Knights
on bass and Ray Royer on guitar. Drums were by session drummer Bill Eyden
. A few days later, the song was re-recorded with the band's then newly-recruited drummer Bobby Harrison
. That version, though, was considered inferior and one of the original mono recordings was chosen for release.
Producer for the record was Denny Cordell
and Keith Grant was the sound engineer.
The song was included on the original U.S. release of the Procol Harum
album, but not on the UK version.
in Lives of the Great Songs, 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. Other observers have also commented that the lyrics concern a sexual relationship.
The phrase a whiter shade of pale has since gained widespread use in the English language, noticed by several dictionaries. As such, the phrase is today often used in contexts independent of any consideration of the song. (See for many annotated examples complete with links to original sources.) It has also been heavily paraphrased, in forms like an Xer shade of Y--this to the extent that it has been recognised as a snowclone
– a type of cliché
and phrasal template
.
line of "A Whiter Shade of Pale" was inspired by Johann Sebastian Bach
's "Sleepers, Wake!" and "Air on the G String
" but contrary to popular belief, the song is not a direct copy or paraphrase of any music by Bach, although it makes clear references to both pieces. This similarity is referred to in the 1982 play The Real Thing
by Tom Stoppard
and the 1991 film The Commitments
. A yet closer melodic influence that is seldom cited can arguably be found in the organ choral prelude "O Mensch bewein dein' Sünde groß" (O Man, Lament Your Sin So Great), BWV
622, from Bach's Orgelbüchlein
(Little Organ Book). The music also borrows ideas from "When a Man Loves a Woman
" by Percy Sledge
.
stayed in the UK charts for a total of 12 weeks, and reached number 13 as highest. In the US, it reached #5 and sold over one million copies. In the Netherlands it entered the chart at number one in June 1967 and again reached number one in July 1972.
Chart positions: # 1 (UK), # 1 (the Netherlands) , # 1 (Germany) , # 1 (Ireland), # 1 (Australia), # 1 (World), # 3 (Norway VG-lista
), # 5 (USA Hot 100
). "A Whiter Shade of Pale" also managed to peak at number twenty-two on the soul charts in the U.S.
Over time, "A Whiter Shade of Pale" has earned extensive critical acclaim:
filed suit in the High Court
against Gary Brooker and his publisher, claiming that he co-wrote the music for the song.
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 prior to 2005.
Gary 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, by Lord Justice Mummery, in the Court of Appeal
upheld Fisher's co-authorship 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.
On 5 November 2008, Matthew Fisher was granted permission to appeal this decision to the House of Lords
. Lawyers say it is the first time the Law Lords have been asked to rule on a copyright dispute involving a song. The appeal was heard in the House of Lords on 22–23 April 2009.
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. The musicological basis of the judgment, and its effect on the rights of musicians who contribute composition to future works, have drawn some attention in the music world.
in Worcestershire, England.
The Witley Court
video 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 isn't on the record: early band member Bobby Harrison
is seen miming to session man Bill Eyden
's drumming. According to Shindig! Magazine's Procol Harum cover story by Alan Robinson (November–December 2009 issue – page 55), the video was directed by Peter Clifton
whose insertion of Vietnam War
newsreel footage caused it to be banned from airplay on the "Top of the Pops" TV show. The band subsequently made another video using "Scopitone
" technology, but by this time, Robin Trower
and B.J. Wilson
had replaced Royer and Harrison in the band, so only three of the five musicians on the recording are represented, and no performance footage included – only the five musicians cavorting around London, running across fields, etc. This lineup, with Fisher in a monk's cowl, also mimed to the song on Top of the Pops
, and black and white footage of this performance has been shown online, perhaps constituting the third video of the song from 1967.
There was also a video shot as part of Joel Gallen
's Deja-View music video series. Originally airing on various networks in late 1985 through 1986, this video starred Harry Dean Stanton
and Bernie Taupin
, but featured no member of the band. It has also aired on VH1 Classic
, and has recently surfaced online.
British people
The British are citizens of the United Kingdom, of the Isle of Man, any of the Channel Islands, or of any of the British overseas territories, and their descendants...
band Procol Harum
Procol Harum
Procol Harum are a British rock band, formed in 1967, which contributed to the development of progressive rock, and by extension, symphonic rock. Their best-known recording is their 1967 single "A Whiter Shade of Pale"...
, released 12 May 1967. The single reached number one in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
on 8 June 1967
1967 in music
The summer of 1967 is "The Summer of Love" in San Francisco. It also became an important year for psychedelic rock, with releases from The Beatles The summer of 1967 is "The Summer of Love" in San Francisco. It also became an important year for psychedelic rock, with releases from The Beatles The...
, and stayed there for six weeks. Without much promotion, it reached #5 on the US charts, as well. It is one of the fewer than 30 all-time singles to have sold 10 million (or more) copies worldwide.
With its haunting Bach
Bạch
Bạch is a Vietnamese surname. The name is transliterated as Bai in Chinese and Baek, in Korean.Bach is the anglicized variation of the surname Bạch.-Notable people with the surname Bạch:* Bạch Liêu...
-flavoured instrumental melody, soulful vocals, and unusual lyrics—by the song's co-authors Gary Brooker
Gary Brooker
Gary Brooker, MBE, is an English singer, songwriter, pianist and founder of the rock band Procol Harum. Brooker was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's Birthday Honours on 14 June 2003, in recognition of his charitable services.-Early life:Brooker was born in...
, Keith Reid
Keith Reid
Keith Reid is a songwriter who wrote the lyrics of every Procol Harum song that is not a cover...
, and Matthew Fisher
Matthew Fisher
Matthew Fisher is an English organist and singer-songwriter, and was responsible for the organ sound on the 1967 single, "A Whiter Shade of Pale" by Procol Harum.-Biography:...
-- "A Whiter Shade of Pale" reached #1 in several countries when released in 1967. In the years since, it has become an enduring classic. It was the most played song in the last 75 years in public places in the UK (as of 2009), and the United Kingdom performing rights group Phonographic Performance Limited
Phonographic Performance Limited
PPL is the London-based United Kingdom music licensing company which undertakes collective rights management of recorded music and music videos for public performance, broadcast and new media use...
in 2004 recognised it as the most-played record by British broadcasting of the past 70 years. Also in 2004, Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
placed "A Whiter Shade of Pale" #57 on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
More than 1000 recorded cover versions by other artists are known. The song has been included in many music compilations over the decades and has also been used in the soundtracks of numerous films, including The Big Chill
The Big Chill (film)
The Big Chill is a 1983 American comedy-drama film directed by Lawrence Kasdan, starring Tom Berenger, Glenn Close, Jeff Goldblum, William Hurt, Kevin Kline, Mary Kay Place, Meg Tilly, and JoBeth Williams. It is about a group of baby boomer college friends who reunite briefly after 15 years due to...
, Purple Haze
Purple Haze (film)
Purple Haze is a 1982 dramedy about Matt Caulfield, a college student who is expelled for smoking cannabis, and subsequently drafted to Vietnam in the summer of 1968.- Plot summary :...
, Breaking the Waves
Breaking the Waves
Breaking the Waves is a 1996 film directed by Lars von Trier and starring Emily Watson. Set in the Scottish Highlands in the early 1970s, it tells the story of an unusual young woman, Bess McNeill, and of the love she has for Jan, her husband. The film is an international co-production led by Lars...
, The Boat That Rocked
The Boat That Rocked
The Boat That Rocked is a 2009 British comedy film written and directed by Richard Curtis, with pirate radio in the United Kingdom during the 1960s as its setting. The film has an ensemble cast featuring Philip Seymour Hoffman, Bill Nighy, Rhys Ifans, Nick Frost, and Kenneth Branagh...
and notably in Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
's segment of New York Stories
New York Stories
New York Stories is a 1989 anthology film; it consists of three shorts with the central theme being New York City.The first is Life Lessons, directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Richard Price and starring Nick Nolte. The second is Life Without Zoë, directed by Francis Ford Coppola and written by...
. Cover versions of the song have also been featured in many films, for example by King Curtis
King Curtis
Curtis Ousley , who performed under the stage name King Curtis, was an American saxophone virtuoso known for rhythm and blues, rock and roll, soul, funk and soul jazz. Variously a bandleader, band member, and session musician, he was also a musical director and record producer...
in Withnail and I
Withnail and I
Withnail and I is a British black comedy made in 1986 by HandMade Films. It was written and directed by Bruce Robinson and is based on his life in London in the late 1960s. The main plot follows two unemployed young actors, Withnail and “I” who live in a squalid flat in Camden in 1969 while...
and by Annie Lennox
Annie Lennox
Annie Lennox, OBE , born Ann Lennox, is a Scottish singer-songwriter, political activist and philanthropist. After achieving minor success in the late 1970s with The Tourists, with fellow musician David A...
in The Net.
The original writing credits were for Brooker and Reid only. On 30 July 2009, Matthew Fisher won co-writing credit for the music in a unanimous ruling from the Law Lords.
Recording and personnel
The song was performed and recorded at Olympic StudiosOlympic Studios
Olympic Studios was a renowned independent commercial recording studio located at 117 Church Road, Barnes, South West London, England. The studio is best known for the huge number of famous rock and pop recordings made there from the late 1960s onward....
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
with Gary Brooker
Gary Brooker
Gary Brooker, MBE, is an English singer, songwriter, pianist and founder of the rock band Procol Harum. Brooker was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's Birthday Honours on 14 June 2003, in recognition of his charitable services.-Early life:Brooker was born in...
providing the vocals and piano, Matthew Fisher
Matthew Fisher
Matthew Fisher is an English organist and singer-songwriter, and was responsible for the organ sound on the 1967 single, "A Whiter Shade of Pale" by Procol Harum.-Biography:...
on a Hammond M-102 organ, David Knights
David Knights
David Knights was the original bass guitarist in Procol Harum. He played bass on the hit single "A Whiter Shade of Pale". He was in the band long enough to play on their first three albums...
on bass and Ray Royer on guitar. Drums were by session drummer Bill Eyden
Bill Eyden
Bill Eyden was a renowned English jazz drummer....
. A few days later, the song was re-recorded with the band's then newly-recruited drummer Bobby Harrison
Bobby Harrison
Bobby Harrison is a drummer. He was an early member of Procol Harum, but shortly after their 1967 hit single "A Whiter Shade of Pale" was released, he and guitarist Ray Royer left the group to form the band Freedom...
. That version, though, was considered inferior and one of the original mono recordings was chosen for release.
Producer for the record was Denny Cordell
Denny Cordell
Denny Cordell was an English record producer. He is notable for his late 1960s and early 1970s productions of hit singles for The Moody Blues, The Move, Procol Harum and Joe Cocker.-Career:...
and Keith Grant was the sound engineer.
The song was included on the original U.S. release of the Procol Harum
Procol Harum (album)
Procol Harum is the self-titled first album by British rock band Procol Harum, released in September 1967. The original Deram release of the LP included a large poster of the album cover artwork by Dickinson....
album, but not on the UK version.
Lyrics
Reid got the title and the starting point for the song at a party. 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. 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 also the fourth. The author of Procol Harum: beyond the pale, Claes Johansen, suggests that the song "deals in metaphorical form with a male/female relationship which after some negotiation ends in a sexual act." This is supported by Tim de LisleTim de Lisle
Timothy John March Phillipps de Lisle is a British writer and editor who is a feature writer for The Guardian, focusing on cricket and rock music. He is the editor of the magazine Intelligent Life, is the rock critic at The Mail on Sunday and also edited the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack in...
in Lives of the Great Songs, 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. Other observers have also commented that the lyrics concern a sexual relationship.
The phrase a whiter shade of pale has since gained widespread use in the English language, noticed by several dictionaries. As such, the phrase is today often used in contexts independent of any consideration of the song. (See for many annotated examples complete with links to original sources.) It has also been heavily paraphrased, in forms like an Xer shade of Y--this to the extent that it has been recognised as a snowclone
Snowclone
A snowclone is a type of cliché and phrasal template originally defined as "a multi-use, customizable, instantly recognizable, time-worn, quoted or misquoted phrase or sentence that can be used in an entirely open array of different variants"....
– a type of cliché
Cliché
A cliché or cliche is an expression, idea, or element of an artistic work which has been overused to the point of losing its original meaning or effect, especially when at some earlier time it was considered meaningful or novel. In phraseology, the term has taken on a more technical meaning,...
and phrasal template
Phrasal template
A phrasal template is a phrase-long collocation that contains one or several empty slots which may be filled by words to produce individual phrases. Often there are some restrictions on the grammatic category of the words allowed to fill particular slots...
.
Composition
The Hammond organHammond organ
The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond in 1934 and manufactured by the Hammond Organ Company. While the Hammond organ was originally sold to churches as a lower-cost alternative to the wind-driven pipe organ, in the 1960s and 1970s it became a standard keyboard...
line of "A Whiter Shade of Pale" was inspired by Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach
Johann Sebastian Bach was a German composer, organist, harpsichordist, violist, and violinist whose sacred and secular works for choir, orchestra, and solo instruments drew together the strands of the Baroque period and brought it to its ultimate maturity...
's "Sleepers, Wake!" and "Air on the G String
Air on the G String
The "Air on the G String" is an adaptation by August Wilhelmj of the Air, the second movement from Johann Sebastian Bach's Orchestral Suite No...
" but contrary to popular belief, the song is not a direct copy or paraphrase of any music by Bach, although it makes clear references to both pieces. This similarity is referred to in the 1982 play The Real Thing
The Real Thing (play)
The Real Thing is a play by Tom Stoppard, first performed in 1982. It examines the nature of honesty, and its use of a play within a play is one of many levels on which the author teases the audience with the difference between semblance and reality....
by Tom Stoppard
Tom Stoppard
Sir Tom Stoppard OM, CBE, FRSL is a British playwright, knighted in 1997. He has written prolifically for TV, radio, film and stage, finding prominence with plays such as Arcadia, The Coast of Utopia, Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, Professional Foul, The Real Thing, and Rosencrantz and...
and the 1991 film The Commitments
The Commitments (film)
The Commitments , the soundtrack for the film, was released on 13 Aug 1991. "Mustang Sally" was released as a single. Most of the songs on the album are performed by the cast band, but two are by Irish singer Niamh Kavanagh.-Track listing:-Chart positions:-The Commitments, Vol...
. A yet closer melodic influence that is seldom cited can arguably be found in the organ choral prelude "O Mensch bewein dein' Sünde groß" (O Man, Lament Your Sin So Great), BWV
BWV
The Bach-Werke-Verzeichnis is the numbering system identifying compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach. The prefix BWV, followed by the work's number, is the shorthand identification for Bach's compositions...
622, from Bach's Orgelbüchlein
Orgelbüchlein
The Orgelbüchlein was written by Johann Sebastian Bach during the period of 1708–1714, while he was court organist at the ducal court in Weimar...
(Little Organ Book). The music also borrows ideas from "When a Man Loves a Woman
When a Man Loves a Woman (song)
"When a Man Loves a Woman" is a song recorded by Percy Sledge in 1966 at Norala Sound Studio in Sheffield, Alabama. It made number one on both the Billboard Hot 100 and R&B singles charts. It was listed 54th in the List of Rolling Stone magazine's 500 greatest songs of all time...
" by Percy Sledge
Percy Sledge
Percy Sledge is an American R&B and soul performer who recorded the hit "When a Man Loves a Woman" in 1966.-Early career:...
.
Reception
The single was released on 12 May 1967 (UK, Deram Records). It entered the UK charts on 25 May 1967. In two weeks, it had reached number one, where it stayed for six weeks. All in all, it stayed 15 weeks on the UK chart. A May 1972 re-release on Fly RecordsFly Records
Fly Records is a British independent record label, established in 1970 by the independent music publisher David Platz, and initially managed by Malcolm Jones from the offices of Essex Music in London.-History:...
stayed in the UK charts for a total of 12 weeks, and reached number 13 as highest. In the US, it reached #5 and sold over one million copies. In the Netherlands it entered the chart at number one in June 1967 and again reached number one in July 1972.
Chart positions: # 1 (UK), # 1 (the Netherlands) , # 1 (Germany) , # 1 (Ireland), # 1 (Australia), # 1 (World), # 3 (Norway VG-lista
VG-lista
VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by...
), # 5 (USA Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
). "A Whiter Shade of Pale" also managed to peak at number twenty-two on the soul charts in the U.S.
Over time, "A Whiter Shade of Pale" has earned extensive critical acclaim:
- John Lennon was a great fan of the song and was known to have played it repeatedly in his Rolls Royce. When it was released in England, Lennon (and friends in his circle) reportedly confused Brooker's soulful vocals with Steve Winwood, who had popularity at the time with The Spencer Davis Group.
- It was named joint winner (along with QueenQueen (band)Queen are a British rock band formed in London in 1971, originally consisting of Freddie Mercury , Brian May , John Deacon , and Roger Taylor...
's "Bohemian RhapsodyBohemian Rhapsody"Bohemian Rhapsody" is a song by the British rock band Queen. It was written by Freddie Mercury for the band's 1975 album A Night at the Opera...
", which also uses the word 'fandango') of the Best British Pop Single 1952–1977 at the BRIT AwardsBrit AwardsThe Brit Awards are the British Phonographic Industry's annual pop music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain" or "Britannia", but subsequently became a backronym for British Record Industry Trust...
, part of Elizabeth II's Silver JubileeSilver JubileeA Silver Jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 25th anniversary. The anniversary celebrations can be of a wedding anniversary, ruling anniversary or anything that has completed a 25 year mark...
. - #57 on Rolling StoneRolling StoneRolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time in 2004. - British TVTelevisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
station Channel 4Channel 4Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
placed the song at #19 in its chart of the 100 greatest number one singles.
Authorship lawsuit
In 2005, former Procol Harum organist Matthew FisherMatthew Fisher
Matthew Fisher is an English organist and singer-songwriter, and was responsible for the organ sound on the 1967 single, "A Whiter Shade of Pale" by Procol Harum.-Biography:...
filed suit in the High Court
High Court of Justice
The High Court of Justice is, together with the Court of Appeal and the Crown Court, one of the Senior Courts of England and Wales...
against Gary Brooker and his publisher, claiming that he co-wrote the music for the song.
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 prior to 2005.
Gary 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, by Lord Justice Mummery, in the Court of Appeal
Court of Appeal of England and Wales
The Court of Appeal of England and Wales is the second most senior court in the English legal system, with only the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom above it...
upheld Fisher's co-authorship 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.
On 5 November 2008, Matthew Fisher was granted permission to appeal this decision to the House of Lords
Judicial functions of the House of Lords
The House of Lords, in addition to having a legislative function, historically also had a judicial function. It functioned as a court of first instance for the trials of peers, for impeachment cases, and as a court of last resort within the United Kingdom. In the latter case the House's...
. Lawyers say it is the first time the Law Lords have been asked to rule on a copyright dispute involving a song. The appeal was heard in the House of Lords on 22–23 April 2009.
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. The musicological basis of the judgment, and its effect on the rights of musicians who contribute composition to future works, have drawn some attention in the music world.
Video
The first video for the song was shot in the ruins of Witley CourtWitley Court
Witley Court in Worcestershire, England is a Grade 1 listed building and was once one of the great houses of the Midlands, but today it is a spectacular ruin after being devastated by fire in 1937. It was built by Thomas Foley in 1655 on the site of a former manor house near Great Witley...
in Worcestershire, England.
The Witley Court
Witley Court
Witley Court in Worcestershire, England is a Grade 1 listed building and was once one of the great houses of the Midlands, but today it is a spectacular ruin after being devastated by fire in 1937. It was built by Thomas Foley in 1655 on the site of a former manor house near Great Witley...
video features four of the five musicians who played on the hit single: Gary Brooker
Gary Brooker
Gary Brooker, MBE, is an English singer, songwriter, pianist and founder of the rock band Procol Harum. Brooker was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen's Birthday Honours on 14 June 2003, in recognition of his charitable services.-Early life:Brooker was born in...
, Matthew Fisher
Matthew Fisher
Matthew Fisher is an English organist and singer-songwriter, and was responsible for the organ sound on the 1967 single, "A Whiter Shade of Pale" by Procol Harum.-Biography:...
, David Knights
David Knights
David Knights was the original bass guitarist in Procol Harum. He played bass on the hit single "A Whiter Shade of Pale". He was in the band long enough to play on their first three albums...
and Ray Royer, in performance and walking through the ruins. Only the drummer in the video isn't on the record: early band member Bobby Harrison
Bobby Harrison
Bobby Harrison is a drummer. He was an early member of Procol Harum, but shortly after their 1967 hit single "A Whiter Shade of Pale" was released, he and guitarist Ray Royer left the group to form the band Freedom...
is seen miming to session man Bill Eyden
Bill Eyden
Bill Eyden was a renowned English jazz drummer....
's drumming. According to Shindig! Magazine's Procol Harum cover story by Alan Robinson (November–December 2009 issue – page 55), the video was directed by Peter Clifton
Peter Clifton
Peter Clifton is an Australian film director and producer, perhaps best known for directing the Led Zeppelin concert film The Song Remains the Same ....
whose insertion of Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
newsreel footage caused it to be banned from airplay on the "Top of the Pops" TV show. The band subsequently made another video using "Scopitone
Scopitone
Scopitone is a type of jukebox featuring a 16 mm film component. Scopitone films were a forerunner of music videos. The Italian Cinebox/Colorama and Color-Sonics were competing, lesser-known technologies of the time....
" technology, but by this time, Robin Trower
Robin Trower
Robin Leonard Trower , known professionally as Robin Trower, is an English rock guitarist who achieved success with Procol Harum during the 1960s, and then again as the bandleader of his own power trio.-Biography:...
and B.J. Wilson
B.J. Wilson
Barrie James "B.J." Wilson was an English rock drummer.-Career:Born in Edmonton, London, England, Wilson was the drummer for Procol Harum. He did not play on their first hit "A Whiter Shade of Pale" , but joined the group soon afterwards...
had replaced Royer and Harrison in the band, so only three of the five musicians on the recording are represented, and no performance footage included – only the five musicians cavorting around London, running across fields, etc. This lineup, with Fisher in a monk's cowl, also mimed to the song on Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops
Top of the Pops, also known as TOTP, is a British music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly from 1 January 1964 to 30 July 2006. After 25 December 2006 it became a radio program, now hosted by Tony Blackburn...
, and black and white footage of this performance has been shown online, perhaps constituting the third video of the song from 1967.
There was also a video shot as part of Joel Gallen
Joel Gallen
Joel Gallen is an American film director, producer, and screenwriter. He has produced the MTV Movie Awards between 1995 and 2006, as well as many of the Comedy Central Roasts. Gallen directed the film Not Another Teen Movie...
's Deja-View music video series. Originally airing on various networks in late 1985 through 1986, this video starred Harry Dean Stanton
Harry Dean Stanton
Harry Dean Stanton is an American actor, musician, and singer. Stanton's career has spanned over fifty years, which has seen him star in such films as Paris, Texas, Kelly's Heroes, Dillinger, Alien, Repo Man, The Last Temptation of Christ, Wild at Heart, The Green Mile and The Pledge...
and Bernie Taupin
Bernie Taupin
Bernard John "Bernie" Taupin is an English lyricist, poet, and singer, best known for his long-term collaboration with Elton John, writing the lyrics for the majority of the star's songs, making his lyrics some of the best known in pop-rock's history.In 1967, Taupin answered an advertisement in...
, but featured no member of the band. It has also aired on VH1 Classic
VH1 Classic
VH1 Classic is a television network, launched on May 8, 2000. It is operated as part of MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom and primarily features music videos and concert footage from the 1970s through the mid-1990s, though it formerly included a wider range of genres and time periods...
, and has recently surfaced online.