Procol Harum at The London Palladium

38 rehearsal pictures from 9 October 2018 by Linda Clare

The London Palladium is the best-known theatre in Britain.
Here we're looking straight into the stage-right 'boxes'
where the rich patrons rattle their jewellery

Two merchandise persons – frustrated by the tardy transit of tee-shirts across the
capital – while away the wait by listening to their favourite music

View over the shoulder of the excellent Bunny Warren, who's mixing
all the FOH sound from myriad microphones. The Palladium sound
was notably better than that at the Royal Festival Hall

Geoff Whitehorn, conductor David Firman, Geoff Dunn, Matt Pegg

Julia Brown's impressive artwork hovers bigly over the stage

Matt, Geoff and Josh ... and the souped-up Hammond, whose upper manual
now has the keyclick and sonorous warmth to rival a B3 of yore

The tour logo shines more brightly

Listening to the conductor (John Magner, far left)

Conference in the stage-left wings, at the monitor mixer

The impeccable Thomas 'Wylie' Wyler, Procol's monitor engineer of choice (rear view)

Conductor, brass, marimba

Shalimar!

Josh's Leslie 145, both rotors well-miked

Leader of the Senbla Orchestra, and Josh's Hammond

Wylie in the wings, conversing with Bunny at the back

It could be argued that the obsessive focus ...

... of this sequence of photos betrays the fact ...

... that the photographer is a former orchestral percussionist herself

The basses ... heroes and heroines of All This and More in particular

Palladium luminaire

La Grande Caisse in close-up

GB's Whaling Stories score includes a part for anvil (pictured)

View from a lower box, stage left, maybe even from the one that
HM Queen Elizabeth II frequents from time to time

Fancy banisters, shambling provincial

The Palladium is all a bit Grand Hotel. Perhaps that's why Procol
omitted that song, to forestall accusations of tautology

Production Office: Roland from BtP, Mathew from National Merchandise (contracted by the Palladium
to sell our tee-shirts and numerous CDs) and Chris Cooke. Given the venue's high commissions and
the band's slender margins, Chris simply could not afford to sell CDs; but the two new designs of tee-shirt sold well
 

Our great friend One-Eye would have enjoyed such a view of his 99th Procol concert

From a lower box, stage right

GB with aides-memoir for Look to Your Soul and Conquistador

'Geoff Dunn ... the only one' as GB namechecked him later in the evening

John Magner always in vigilant attendance

Eyes on conductor (Geoff Dunn has a TV monitor to his right,
whereas BJ used truck wing-mirrors)

Five pensive Procols, and a clear view of the Perspex baffle
that prevents cross-contamination of sound

This is the opposite of what a full house looks like

Ditto, shewing lighting desk and sound desk behind

The English Chamber Choir, behind the violins,
and with the harp as their neighbour

Palladium luminaire II

Backstage, Roland le Français et Roland le Britannique, aka
Roland le promoteur Parisien et Roland l'écrivain de liner-notes

Procol dates in 2018 | Booking