I can't think of a band that suffered more from the 60's British practice of not including hit singles on UK album releases than Procol Harum's self titled debut album. Devoid of the mega hit "A Whiter Shade Of Pale" and the European hit "Homburg", Procol Harum stalled on the album charts in both America and the UK when released in 1968. The album also featured "Conquistador" as the side one lead off track, and remarkably, it was not issued as a single after strongly being considered. (The song would resurface as successful live single in the early seventies.) Esoteric/Cherry Red Records has done yeoman duty righting this wrong with all of the above noted songs included on their 2012 CD reissue, and now have gone one better with a double disc collection that demonstrates "Whiter Shade" being rerecorded without the studio drummer that gave the original single release such drama and power. Esoteric contends that "Whiter Shade " would never have charted without the studio drummer and I agree. An extended 6+ minute version of "Whiter Shade" is also featured along with the entire original mono album remixed and mastered in true stereo!
Esoteric has convinced me that this album should have been a proto prog classic to rival "Days Of Future Passed", "Ogden's Nut Gone Flake", PF's "Piper At The Gates.." and every psychedelic song ever released by the Fab Four.
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