Procol Harum

Beyond
the Pale

Procol Harum Convention • "In Held 'Twas N.Y."

Westbury, New York • Saturday 12 July 2014 - SOLD OUT

'Beyond the Pale' and The Homburg Society of New York jointly present a fabulous Procol Harum Fans' Convention 'In Held 'Twas N.Y.' .

You'll find a link at the foot of the page by which to make your booking; but please read the rest of this first, and FAQ page.

The Convention, like BtP's other major parties – September 2000 (Guildford, UK); May 2001 (Kristiansand, Norway); June 2001 (Manchester, UK); July 2003 (Hollywood, USA); August 2006 (Lejre, Denmark); July 2007 (Smith Square, London); April 2013 (Wuppertal, Germany) – takes place because fans are naturally congregating to hear Procol Harum play, and the pleasure of that is enhanced by making/meeting friends beforehand, trading stories, showing memorabilia, eating and drinking together; and then more of the same afterwards! Many significant friendships have formed in such a way: you'll be meeting people who share your lifetime's love of some eternally great music.

In particular: the Convention venue is Mirelle's Continental Restaurant and Catering, which, at 170 Post Avenue Westbury, NY 11590, is a very short walk from Procol's gig at #250 on the same street. Mirelle's has ample car parking and is close to the Long Island Rail Road, Westbury Station.

Click to enlarge Bert Saraco's pictures of the area where you'll be taking the brief walks involved

The party will start at 2.30, and the ticket-price includes a sit-down fully-catered meal (with vegetarian option) at about 5 pm to set you up for the Procol show. There's a cash bar, and music will be provided for the first time by two bands: New York's own 'Broken Barricades', an expert and polished five-piece unit, and The Palers' Band, a multinational scratch ensemble who – very probably with special guests – and after brief rehearsal, will present their own exciting but possibly less-perfect versions of the Procol repertoire. The main attraction, as always, is the people, your fellow fans.

If you wanted to play in the Palers' Band, you needed to sign up here by May Day.

The Procol Harum gig – a brief walk away – follows, doors at 7 pm, band onstage at 8.

When Procol's set concludes, it's straight back to Mirelle's for the second phase of the party: more music, more fun, and of course Procol Harum themselves top the guest-list. The one ticket secures your admission to both parties. Post-gig, the cash bar will also offer bar food (not included in ticket price). The party goes on at Mirelle's until 2 am, then we return to Basecamp Hotel (about 12 minutes' walk, along pavements or sidewalks).

In a nutshell, then:

Saturday afternoon 12 July	2.30 onwards	Party at Mirelle's, with meal and music
Saturday evening	7pm for 8pm	Procol Harum in concert
Saturday night	About 10.15 onwards	Party at Mirelle's, with more music
Wee small hours of Sunday	Back to the hotel (see separate page)

The following day you have plenty of time to find your way to Westhampton – not a problematic journey by road – for the third of three consecutive Procol shows (assuming nobody's missed the Manhattan show on Friday 11 July).

Then, most of us will go back to the Westbury Basecamp hotel (saves the trouble of finding something you can afford at Westhampton)

You will find a very useful convention FAQ here

Entrance to the Convention is by ticket only (one ticket covers two parties): per person, 92 US dollars ... priced, as always, to cover costs and give everyone a splendid time.

Sorry the Convention is sold out

No physical ticket will be send to you; identify yourself on arrival and your name will be on the door list.

Grateful thanks: Tito Davila, Bert Saraco and Gary Celebre of The Homburg Society; Chris Cooke, Procol Harum management

Procol dates in 2014 | Gary Shepard's party pix