Watch the book ...

A full-length Procol Harum biography at last!

February 2000

Full despatch details from the publishers here, and a sneak preview of some pictures here

January 2000

You can now order Procol Harum : Beyond the Pale from Amazon USA and from Amazon UK

July 1999
Claes informs us that his book (particulars below) is scheduled for publication in the UK in October 1999, probable price 12 pounds 99. Publication in the USA will follow, probably in January. His publishers were 'over the moon' about the manuscript. No other details as yet ... except that the book has been given the best possible ... indeed the only possible ... title: Procol Harum: Beyond the Pale ! Rest assured that BtP will review it the moment it becomes available ... Roland read the typescript in the Spring ... and was enthralled.

January 1999
Claes contacted 'Beyond the Pale' again to report that the book is two-thirds done in first draft: he's got as far as A Salty Dog, having begun with the birth of Gary Brooker. Two early chapters deal with The Paramounts, and he is pleased to have discovered Procol Harum's pre-Royer / Harrison line-up, which has hitherto been shrouded in mystery. He also reports that he has 'the key to Keith Reid's early lyrics' – no small claim, that! – so let's hope that his researches continue without obstruction, and that we can read this promising publication as soon as possible.

Autumn 1998
Claes Johansen contacted 'Beyond the Pale' with the news that he's writing a book about Procol Harum, and has a lot of publisher interest. The text will be finished during the Spring – there's a pictures-wanted paragraph below – and publication is expected in the Autumn of 1999.

Claes's name is familiar to fans of Route 66, and he is of course the author of numerous sleeve-notes in the Angel Air series of Procol-related CD re-releases, and of the extensive biographical liner notes to the Matthew Fisher / Strange Days CD. As well as being a musician he is an established novelist in his native Denmark, with seven published novels to his name. He started working as a rock journalist in 1982: in particular, his Danish Radio interviews with the mod revival / R&B groups of that era took him straight into Essex / Paramounts territory.

This will be his fourteenth published book, but research on it started back in the 1980s: it will draw on interviews with practically everyone who's ever played with, or written for the band. It starts from the birth of Gary Brooker, takes us through the history of The Paramounts, and examines band-members' latter-day solo projects: Claes is aiming to condense his material to 175 – 225 paperback pages, of A5 size or so: a good length of a rock book, in other words.

• Claes would like to hear from someone who conducted interviews for him with Dave Ball and Chris Copping in Australia in 1983. He has lost contact with this person, known to him only as 'Bob', and would like him to come forward ... otherwise he can't be properly credited in the book.
  Beyond the Plea: July 1999: thanks to Robert Lloyd for coming forward in answer to this plea.
• If any fan reading this has any Procol Harum photographs suitable for inclusion in such a book, would they like to contact Claes, via BtP? He's not online, which is why BtP is his Poste Restante. These must be photos of which you yourself own the copyright, (ie photos taken by yourself, and not published anywhere else). This is a good chance to contribute unique material to what promises to be a unique book.
  Several fans contributed material to Claes's book ... no more needed now, thanks!