walking upstream…
Procol Harum
sourcesProcolHarum.com · Wikipedia2
Formed in 1967 out of the ashes of R&B covers outfit the Paramounts, Procol Harum fused Gary Brooker's gospel-and-blues piano with organist Matthew Fisher's classically trained Hammond runs into a moody, baroque strain of British rock. Their debut single "A Whiter Shade of Pale" — its chord progression openly indebted to Bach — became one of the best-selling singles in UK chart history and set a template for the classically minded, keyboard-heavy prog and art-rock that followed.
the sound in question
1967
A Whiter Shade of PaleProcol Harum
walk the tributaries ↓
Johann Sebastian Bach1720s · Baroque / Classical
Both principal writers named Bach directly as the spark for the band's signature song. Gary Brooker explained, "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." Organist Matthew Fisher said separately that he had "always been passionately fond of Bach's music" and was consciously "trying to combine Bach organ lines with my other idols like Booker T and Jimmy Smith."
listen: upstream & here
1731
Air on the G String (Orchestral Suite No. 3, BWV 1068)Johann Sebastian Bach
1967
A Whiter Shade of PaleProcol Harum
listen forThe stately, descending bassline of Bach's "Air on the G String" is the acknowledged source of the famous organ figure that opens Procol Harum's "A Whiter Shade of Pale" — a rare case where the band has spelled out exactly which classical piece it was quoting.
Booker T & the M.G.'s1960s · Rhythm and blues / Soul / Funk / Instrumental rock / Soul jazz
Organist Matthew Fisher has said he was consciously "trying to combine Bach organ lines with my other idols like Booker T and Jimmy Smith," naming Booker T. Jones directly as one of the Hammond players who shaped his playing on Procol Harum's early records.
listen: upstream & here
1962
Green OnionsBooker T & the M.G.'s
1967
Repent WalpurgisProcol Harum
listen forThe terse, vamping Hammond instrumental of Booker T & the M.G.'s "Green Onions" shows the groove-first side of Fisher's organ influences; Procol Harum's own instrumental showcase "Repent Walpurgis" channels that same riff-driven organ writing into a heavier, more dramatic register.
Ray Charles1950s–60s · R&B / Soul / Jazz
Before Procol Harum, Gary Brooker and Robin Trower played in the R&B covers band the Paramounts, whose repertoire leaned heavily on American R&B and soul artists including Ray Charles and Fats Domino — Rolling Stone once called them "the best R&B group in England," and a 2005 Paramounts reunion show still featured Charles's "What'd I Say."
listen: upstream & heresource: Wikipedia ↗
1954
I Got a WomanRay Charles
1967
HomburgProcol Harum
listen forCharles's rolling, call-and-response piano groove on "I Got a Woman" is close kin to the bluesy, organ-driven strut of Procol Harum's own "Homburg," the band's moody follow-up single to "A Whiter Shade of Pale."