'Twas ever thus ... see here
The haunting organ theme has been a favourite on pub jukeboxes for more than four decades and was the subject of a bitter court case last year, Now A Whiter Shade of Pale has been confirmed at the most-played song in British public places in the past 75 years ...
... Gary Brooker, the lead singer of Procol Harum, said yesterday that the news that it had topped the PPL chart was a 'great and unsought honour'.
"It isn't something I could have remotely imagined when I wrote the
song and then made that legendary recording with Procol Harum all those
years ago," he said.
"Every musician and singer hopes to reach out and communicate to the
audience, so it means a great deal that the record has such an
indefinable popularity and lasting appeal."
Brooker won his battle to reclaim full royalty rights to the hit at the Court of Appeal after Matthew Fisher, who played the distinctive organ solo, claimed a share of the money
Read the full text
online here and note the extraordinary public comments, including
the frankly delusional 'Jerry' from Seattle in America who alleges 'Kenny
Williams from Manchester actually sat in on drums for the recording
of Pale. The regular drummer could not keep the unusual [sic]
beat. Kenny played with the Legends and died in Germany unrecognized.'
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