Exotic Birds and Fruit
The eighth reissue
reviewed
online by Blogcritics.org
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Feedback. Distorted guitar. Guitarist Mick Grabham asking
producer Chris Thomas, “Is it on, Tommy?” A calm before the
first track, Nothing but the Truth, comes crashing in.
The organ and guitars drive hard under Keith Reid’s lyrics of
betrayal and despair, while the piano brightly counters some of
the “never-ending gloom.” A perfect beginning to draw you in to
Exotic Birds & Fruit.
Released
in 1974, Exotic Birds & Fruit was Procol Harum’s
seventh studio album. After a successful live album (Live in
Concert with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra) and the very
successful and highly regarded Grand Hotel, Exotic
Birds & Fruit had a lot to live up to. The band stripped
down to the basics, forging songs they could reproduce on stage
without need of a backing orchestra. Making good use of their
24-track, they managed to create a full and sweeping sound.
The original side ‘a’ delivers four of the best songs of the
album, if not some of the best of the band’s entire catalogue.
The second track, Beyond the Pale, is a bounding song of
fruitless searching pushed forward by Alan Cartwright’s trudging
bass line. As Strong as Samson and The Idol round
out the side as the two longest and sonically full tracks.
Samson rallies for the “weakest man be strong as Samson,
when you’re being held to ransom” while The Idol tells of
the inaction of “just another idol turned to clay.” Both are
intricately layered with beautiful instrumentation and vocals to
accompany Reid’s lyrics.
The second half of the album has a different flow. Beginning
with the creeping Thin Edge of the Wedge, and moving into
a late-night encounter with Monsieur R. Monde, the album
takes a strange turn into Reid’s praise of Fresh Fruit.
Butterfly Boys is a rocking song that takes a shot at the
execs of their label, Chrysalis Records. Grabham gets a chance
to really shine in this track with some great fills and an
excellent solo. New Lamps for Old beautifully brings the
original album to a close, reminiscent of their biggest hit A
Whiter Shade of Pale.
While the overall sound is definitely Procol Harum, you can hear the
influences of the likes of the Beatles, Pink Floyd, and Phil Spector
among others. Producer Chris Thomas sat in on sessions for the Beatles’
white album and mixed Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon while
producing Grand Hotel, both experiences undoubtedly colouring
Thomas’ producing of this album. The Idol in particular could
easily be mistaken for an outtake from Dark Side of the Moon.
This was the fifth and last Procol Harum album produced by Thomas, whose
credits would later include Badfinger’s Wish You Were Here, The
Sex Pistols’ Never Mind the Bollocks, U2’s How to Dismantle
an Atomic Bomb as well as albums for the Pretenders, INXS, Elton
John and Paul McCartney.
Also included in this edition is Drunk Again, the original
b-side of Nothing but the Truth, and an alternate mix of As
Strong as Sampson [sic] in D-flat. Drunk Again is another
great rock gem along the lines of Butterfly Boys. Everyone gets
to cut loose on this track it is a welcome addition to the album. The
alternate cut of As Strong as Sampson [sic] is interesting, but
the original is better. Absent is the band’s take on Strauss’s Blue
Danube that was included in the 2004 reissue of the album.
An overall strong album from the band, and well worth it for the
first four tracks alone (particularly Beyond the Pale).
Exotic Birds & Fruit is now available for download from iTunes,
Amazon, and UnionSquareMusic.co.uk, and the band is playing a handful of
shows in November in support. Full show listings available
at ProcolHarum.com.