Christmas Conundrums 2002

The questions and the answers, 2002

December 25

An anagram of the title of this album: 'Forbidden taxi rictus'. Great name for an album in its own right, actually. To solve anagrams, take the letters of the proposed phrase and re-arrange them to form a more familiar sequence: eg. 'English toolkit slogans' = 'Lost in the Looking-Glass'

Someone wrote to BtP asking for help solving anagrams, which explains the grey addenda. But all you need to notice with 'Forbidden Taxi Rictus' is the Exotic 'x'

Barrie Wilson shouts 'Rubbish' on this album: clue

At the end of the overdubbed Power Failure drum solo on Broken Barricades

Christianne Legrande is heard on this album ... ooh-la-la!

Only one French Chantoosie in the canon … on Grand Hotel, of course.

One track from this album was given a sexy, passionate re-interpretation on Lost in the Looking-Glass, the excellent studio-recorded 40-track homage to Procol from the Palers' Project, by British Jazz singer Fran Glendining: rummage about here for a clue

It's The Milk of Human Kindness from A Salty Dog … go and have a listen to what Fran does with it!

This album comes out on 3 March 2003 and you can pre-order it here

It's The Well's on Fire

This album contains the sung words, 'Guess you know it's true'. Clue: no point looking on the Keith Reid search engine.

If there's no point in looking on the KR engine, it's an album with non-KR words: Procol's Ninth (from Eight Days a Week)

This Procol album cover has a vague visual kinship with one element of Vivian Stanshall's album, Men Opening Umbrellas Ahead. You don't need a clue for this one ... just imagine it.

The Prodigal Stranger has an umbrella on the cover

This album starts as 'that familiar organ rolls/fades in and Keith/Gary starts by apologising' according to its liner-note ... the BtP search-engine might help here.

This is quoted from the liner-note to Shine on Brightly

You can hear Procol's former right-hand man, Kellogs, conspicuously on this album

He is credited with bosun's whistle on A Salty Dog

So the 'album of the day' is the nautical A Salty Dog

December 26

A pleasing anagram of the title of this album would be 'To Gay Lads'. To solve anagrams, take the letters of the proposed phrase and re-arrange them to form a more familiar sequence: eg. 'Linking toothless goals' = 'Lost in the Looking-Glass'

A Salty Dog

'An Indian Lady' makes an instrumental contribution to an orientally-oriented spoken track on this album

The spoken track … well The Worm and the Tree is not oriental, so it must be In Held 'Twas in I. There's nothing oriental-sounding on the Edmonton album … so it's Shine on Brightly

One track from this 1974 album was covered on Lost in the Looking-Glass, the excellent studio-recorded 40-track homage to Procol from the Palers' Project, by Dr Hip and The Replacements

There's only one 1974 album … Exotic Birds and Fruit

This album contains a brilliant hitherto-unrecorded song from earlier in the band's career, a song particularly championed by Chris Copping, who recorded it in Australia in 2000 with Gary Brooker ... This recording was played at the first Palers' Convention, in Guildford, and it probably influenced the song's subsequent inclusion on an official album

This is So Far Behind, from The Well's on Fire

This album contains the sung words, 'ten feet tall'

From Playmate of the Mouth … a neglected master-lyric from Broken Barricades

This album features two tracks entirely composed by people who have never been members of Procol Harum: clue

Procol's Ninth … the culprits being Leiber / Stoller and … er … 'McCartney / Lennon'

This is the earliest Procol album whose opening sounds come from solo piano ... no clue here, just an excuse to listen to them all ...

It's Grand Hotel … and not the only track on that record to start with solo piano, either!

This album-cover (one of three by the same artist) features a group member – who had not played on any previous Procol album – with no trousers on, and another member of the band in his arms.

It's Home … the artist is Dickinson, and the trouserless figure is Professor Copping.

This album resisted re-release for about thirty years, then came out twice in quick succession, very differently packaged

Broken Barricades. It was not absolutely un-re-released, of course: hence 'resisted'.

So the 'album of the day' was the sexually-explicit Broken Barricades

December 27

A track from this album was given a bluesy reworking (featuring Robert Johnson!) on Lost in the Looking-Glass, the excellent studio-recorded 40-track homage to Procol from the Palers' Project, by Dr Sam Cameron

It was A Souvenir of London, from Grand Hotel

An anagram of the title of this album would be 'Born in High Style' To solve anagrams, take the letters of the proposed phrase and re-arrange them to form a more familiar sequence: eg. 'Theologists sink gallon'.= 'Lost in the Looking-Glass'

Shine on Brightly

Jerry Stevenson is credited with playing some mandolin on this Procol album

The Prodigal Stranger

One re-issue of this album contained the Brooker / Reid rarity, McGreggor, subsequently covered by The Paler's Project

This excellent little song was among the trawlings on A Salty Dog … plus!

The excellent BJ Cole performs on this album

He plays on As Strong as Samson, an Exotic Birds track

This album contains a formerly-abandoned Procol song, revamped with a new title that looks different, but sounds the same, as its previous name.

Monsieur Armand, abandoned in 1967, became Monsieur R Monde, from Exotic Birds and Fruit

This album contains a Matthew Fisher instrumental entitled 'Weisselklenzenacht (The Signature)' and recorded in 2002

The Well's on Fire

This album contains a song with the word 'song' in its title

It's Song for a Dreamer from Broken Barricades

This album cover is the work of the artist Bruce Meek: BtP search engine might help

Either Something Magic or the Edmonton record.

So the 'album of the day' was the echoey Exotic Birds and Fruit

December 28

An anagram of the title of this album would be 'Erstwhile Felon' To solve anagrams, take the letters of the proposed phrase and re-arrange them to form a more familiar sequence: eg. 'Theologists sink gallon'.= 'Lost in the Looking-Glass'

The Well's on Fire

A track from this 1975 album was covered on Lost in the Looking-Glass, the excellent studio-recorded 40-track homage to Procol from the Palers' Project, by Dr Hip and The Replacements

There's only one 1975 album … Procol's Ninth

This album's opening track uses orchestration, but it starts with vigorous solo lead guitar

This must be Simple Sister, from Broken Barricades

This album opens with atmospheric location sound, and Gary Brooker seeming to say, among other things, 'It's a Hoffnung' ... at which the audience titters

This is what we hear at the start of the Edmonton album

This album contains the sung words, 'all my sick is in my stomach'

Crucifiction Lane, from A Salty Dog. A great set of words, surely.

This album contains several tracks collaboratively written by members of Procol Harum with non-members (Keith Reid, of course, is a member)

These are the tracks co-credited to Matt Noble and Chris Thompson … on The Prodigal Stranger

'Moon Dent' is an anagram of the place where this album was recorded

Edmonton

On this album 'Denny Cordell shouts out the names "Royer" and "Harrison" (2 ex-members of Procol), probably in the hope that some hippy freak would read some amazing meaning into it.' Clue: BtP search-engine

Matthew Fisher said this about the long suite on side two of Shine on Brightly

On this album BJ Wilson allegedly plays 22 mandolins ...

The sleeve of Grand Hotel makes this claim

So the 'album of the day' was the sumptuous Live at Edmonton

December 29

An inapposite anagram of the title of this album would be 'Long Hatred' To solve anagrams, take the letters of the proposed phrase and re-arrange them to form a more familiar sequence: eg. 'Skin-tight solo galleons'.= 'Lost in the Looking-Glass'.

Grand Hotel

Everyone who owns this album – and the number of owners exceeds zero – has a signed copy :-) 

This is Procol's Ninth … only this week BtP had another enquiry about the 'rare, signed' copy of the album that had turned up. Of course everyone who owns The Well's on Fire has a signed copy too … but that number doesn't exceed zero at the time of writing

The first vocal sound on this album comes from Mick Grabham, asking a question of the producer ...

Exotic Birds starts off with 'Is it on, Tommy?'

This album was re-issued as REP 4666-WY

This was Procol Harum (the Black album)

This album sleeve owes its graphic design to a tobacco advertisement. Here's a clue that could be very misleading unless you read the whole article.

A Salty Dog … based on the Players' tobacco adverts

This album uses dubbed-on audience applause, mid-track: clue here

Once again we're in Power Failure from Broken Barricades

This album was issued in the UK with a double fold-out insert portrait of Procol Harum by David Bailey. Gary Brooker claims not to have got one

Home .. nice portrait

The photo shoot for this album produced some interesting out-takes including one of Alan Cartwright with a banana on his shoulder

Grand Hotel, as the topper will affirm

This is an album containing the sung words, 'make love to the wall'

This provocative implication comes from Skip Softly on Shine on Brightly

So the 'album of the day' was the magniloquent Grand Hotel

December 30

This album contains the sung words, 'A never ending bitter gloom'

This cheerful proclamation comes from the opening track of Exotic Birds and Fruit

Fans are looking forward to this album to hear the whole versions of songs from which we can so far hear only excerpts, and that only by subscribing to, and awaiting the latest mailing from, Fresh Fruit

The Well's on Fire

This album contains one track, by Brooker / Fisher / Reid, that had originally appeared on a Gary Brooker solo album

This is The Long Goodbye, on the Symphonic collection

A track from this album was covered in delicate fashion on Lost in the Looking-Glass, the excellent studio-recorded 40-track homage to Procol from the Palers' Project, by a West Country singer/guitarist accompanied by female voice, 'cello and violin

Colin Sillence plays The Pursuit of Happiness, from The Prodigal Stranger … listen to it!

This album cover features a trick of photo-montage ... one musician's head has got the wrong body, and vice versa: clue

Mick Grabham's head appears on Dave Ball's body on the cover of Grand Hotel

This album features extensive sounds – from Southenders – apparently of a party in progress on one track: for a clue, read this interview

This is the background sound in Mabel, from the Procol Harum album

The album in question contains an instrumental track that was also recorded with words on another Procol album. There should be a clue here or here but lamentably there isn't ...

Why isn't The Long Goodbye album listen on the discography of James Galway, who plays the flute on the instrumental Pandora's Box?

This album starts with a belting track – masses of guitar and cowbell – that was recorded live to two-track stereo ... and there is a film of Procol Harum miming the said opener on a snowy railway station

Whisky Train, the opening track from Home.

This album starts with ornithological cries, though when the band played it live they reportedly sometimes used whale-song. Clue ... it also has something deriving from the sound of a Swiss train on it.

We al tune in with a few tweet-tweets … A Salty Dog

So the 'album of the day' was the infrequently-listened-to The Long Goodbye

December 31

This album contains a short song that was also featured as a single B-side; one version had a gong beat on it that was missing from the other. (Clue here ... well, not so much a clue as an outright answer)

This is Good Captain Clack. The album version always sounded incomplete, when one was accustomed to the gong-beating B-side

This album had die-cut holes in its original cover, a gambit successfully recreated for a recent CD re-release

Broken Barricades. The Repertoire CD makes a lovely job of copying the original presentation

A track from this 60s album was covered on Lost in the Looking-Glass, the excellent studio-recorded 40-track homage to Procol from the Palers' Project, by the Croydon-born 'scariest man in Britain'

TV's Derren Brown, the mind-reader, recorded Glimpses of Nirvana. This is on two albums, of course: hence '60s' in the question. It's Shine on Brightly

The famous Larry Adler allegedly makes an instrumental contribution to this album: clue

Adler is said to be the harmonica-player on the last track of Home

This album contains the sung words, 'Live only on rum'

This is A Rum Tale, from Grand Hotel

This album cover was painted before 1724

1724 is the year that Bogdani died … he who painted the picture used for Exotic Birds and Fruit

This album was produced by Rafe McKenna: the search engine should help

The Well's on Fire

An anagram of the title of this album would be 'Croon Plinths'. To solve anagrams, take the letters of the proposed phrase and re-arrange them to form a more familiar sequence: eg. ' Hong Kong still isolates' = 'Lost in the Looking-Glass'.

This is Procol's Ninth

This album opens with the sound of a mallet-struck instrument – not standard in rock bands – of the family also heard on Boredom and on Fresh Fruit

Pandora's Box opens with the marimba … so Procol's Ninth is the album

So the 'album of the day' was the punchy Procol's Ninth

January 1

At the height of British Psychedelia, amid the multicoloured excesses of Sgt Pepper and Disraeli Gears, this Procol album comes out in sombre black and white

Procol Harum … didn't J Tull have a monochrome one at the same era, the upstarts?

News that this album was on its way was broken to the Procol online community on the fifth birthday of 'Beyond the Pale' ... and the website started in October 1997. No rocket science required, therefore.

This is The Well's on Fire

This album features a rocking track on side one whose band playout features musical gaps in which numerous macabre sound effects ... scream, slamming doors, etc ... may be heard

This is The Mark of the Claw … so the album is Something Magic

This album was much-vaunted as a return to basics after its lavishly-produced and orchestrated predecessor, yet it too had strings, though not prominently featured, on its rocking opener.

Exotic Birds and Fruit

This album was once scheduled to contain a poem, spoken by Keith Reid, that has since been performed in public at two Palers' Band gigs: clue here that might need some thought

Mr Krupp was the poem (twice performed by the Palers' Band featuring Dr Cameron) that didn't make it on to Grand Hotel

This album was published in the UK and in the USA with two entirely different covers, though both feature strangely-mutated pianos. One was by George Underwood, if you feel like searching.

Shine on Brightly

This Procol album has two (2) tracks on it credited to Trower / Reid

Whisky Train, About to Die … so it's Home. Or Juicy John Pink, Crucifiction Lane … so it's A Salty Dog. The ambiguity is deliberate, and irrelevant

This superb album was re-released with a highly-desirable live bonus track

The bonus is Luskus Delph, and the album is Live at Edmonton

This album contains the sung words, 'in my wife there's a knife'

This is from Mabel … and thus from Procol Harum (The Black Album)

So the 'album of the day' was the fantastic Procol Harum (The Black Album)

January 2

On this album Gary plays a Moog synthesiser, though this ain't mentioned on the cover ... in 1971 we all thought it was a flute, didn't we?

In 1971 … so it must be Broken Barricades. The track in question is Luskus Delph

A great lyric from this album went 'under the carpet' according to Keith Reid, though it 'was a picture of me and how I was feeling at that time'. The song was recreated with 'very tasty soloing' by the Palers' Band in Manchester, 2001

Crucifiction Lane from A Salty Dog

This album is sometimes offered for sake under the title, 'Whoosh' ... have a look at your copy of Cube 853002.

Home

In its original UK-release running-order, this 60s album starts with a four-note rising instrumental phrase very reminiscent of the start of the Paramounts' Poison Ivy : clue

The track is Conquistador, and the word '60s' tells you that it's Procol Harum, not the Edmonton album, in question here.

This album opens with some drumming by a musician making his sole credited contribution to any official Procol Harum recorded track.

Henry Spinetti opens The Prodigal Stranger

This album contains a track, at the end of one vinyl side, that fades out, then fades in again ... though the same track, on a single, behaves differently

It's Rambling On, from Shine on Brightly

At one stage Procol Harum were planning to use the voice of James Mason on this album

Something Magic … he might have been the narrator of The Worm and the Tree

This album, which contains no orchestra, contains the sung words, 'I wandered through my playing-cards', and it has never been issued in a form lacking those words ... so you might want to think about that for a second or two.

The words come from A Whiter Shade of Pale or from The King of Hearts. It can't be The Black Album, as that one has come out without AWSoP; it can't be Symphonic, since that has an orchestra: so the answer is The Prodigal Stranger

This album cover has an enigmatic, swirling, reddish cover ... the central image is ambiguous but it certainly shows an elbow ...

The Symphonic Music of Procol Harum, The Long Goodbye

So the 'album of the day' was the resurrectional The Prodigal Stranger

January 3

Arguably the inside photo on this album's gatefold sleeve shows Keith Reid acting out a line from verse one of his most famous lyric of all

On Grand Hotel Keith Reid 'brings a tray'

There's a song on this album whose title is just one letter different from the title given to the scantily-attired lady most featured in each issue of a well-known 'glamour' magazine. Clue, as if you needed one, here

Playmate of the Mouth … from Broken Barricades

On this album there is some Choral Shouting (rather like that brilliant moment in Walton's Belshazzar's Feast where the chorus shouts 'Slain!') that apparently caused some unwanted merriment at the recording in 1971

This is Whaling Stories, from the Edmonton collection. 1971 was the give-away

On this album you can hear a Sleigh Tambourine played by a member of the band

Robin Trower, on A Salty Dog

The cover of this album takes its inspiration, or lack thereof, from a board-game

Home

Three of the musicians whose shoes are pictured here by Linda Clare play together on The Prodigal Stranger, but that's not the album we're looking for. The answer to this question will be another album from the list above where three of the musicians whose shoes are pictured here play together.

Andy, Gary and Bronzie play Butterfly Boys on The Long Goodbye

This album allegedly features some instrumental work 'from percussionist Rocky Didzornu, and Denny Laine's violin player'

This is Procol Harum, though the supposed facts are incompletely documented.

This album contains the spoken words, 'A new life will spread'

The heartening conclusion of The Worm and the Tree from Something Magic

This album contains a song written by Keith Reid and an onstage member of Procol Harum ... nothing unusual about that, perhaps, except that the particular combination of composers occurs on no other Procol song

Grabham / Reid … The Mark of the Claw on Something Magic

So the 'album of the day' was the oft-maligned Something Magic

January 4

An anagram of the original UK release title of this album would be 'Corporal Hum' To solve anagrams, take the letters of the proposed phrase and re-arrange them to form a more familiar sequence: eg. 'Long-lost saintlike hogs' = 'Lost in the Looking-Glass'.

Procol Harum

This album was re-issued as REP 4667-WY

This is Shine on Brightly

A track from this album was given a nice reworking on Lost in the Looking-Glass, the excellent studio-recorded 40-track homage to Procol from the Palers' Project, by The Doubtful Guests

The Doubtful Guests play About to Die and In The Wee Small Hours of Sixpence on 'Lost in the Looking-Glass' … only one of these is an album track, and it comes from Home

This album has a track co-written by Gary Brooker, Robin Trower and Keith Reid

Too Much Between Us, or All Our Dreams are Sold … so either A Salty Dog or The Prodigal Stranger

A track from this album was given an unexpected new angle by a duo calling themselves The Procolaimers, on Lost in the Looking-Glass, the excellent studio-recorded 40-track homage to Procol from the Palers' Project. Clue here

This is Song for a Dreamer, from Broken Barricades

This was the fifth album from the above list, chronologically speaking, to feature a track on which Matthew Fisher and Robin Trower both play.

Repent Walpurgis, from The Long Goodbye album.

This album contains a track that was originally named Gospel According to Matthew, it seems

The track was finally called Wish Me Well, and it's from Shine on Brightly, as any fule kno.

An anagram of the title of this album would be 'Hog casting mime' To solve anagrams, take the letters of the proposed phrase and re-arrange them to form a more familiar sequence: eg. 'Loathing Tolkien's gloss' = 'Lost in the Looking-Glass'.

Something Magic

Lawrence Leonard conducts on this album

Live at Edmonton … mind you, he's not credited on the album, is he?

So the 'album of the day' was the lovely Shine on Brightly

January 5

A track from this 60s album was covered on Lost in the Looking-Glass, the excellent studio-recorded 40-track homage to Procol from the Palers' Project, by bass-guitar virtuoso Jack Vees, who used that instrument – and nothing else – to recreate all sounds heard on the original

The wondrous track in question is Repent Walpurgis … and '60s' tells us that Procol Harum (The Black Album) is meant here.

This album contains the sung words, 'This world is rich, but it is not mine'. Clue ... the song hasn't yet been added to Peter Christian's excellent KR words database, which is complete up to The Prodigal Stranger

The Well's on Fire.

An anagram of the title of this album would be 'Darling grope-threats' To solve anagrams, take the letters of the proposed phrase and re-arrange them to form a more familiar sequence: eg. 'Hoisting long-lost lakes' = 'Lost in the Looking-Glass'.

The Prodigal Stranger

One reissue of this album contained an ignoble fragment entitled 'Procol Have a Laugh'

This was Home

Gary Brooker wrote the liner note to this album in a Holiday Inn

The Holiday Inn, Edmonton

This album contains a Trower / Reid song with no piano on it, a Brooker / Reid song with no organ on it, and a Brooker / Fisher / Reid song with no lead guitar on it

Juicy John Pink, A Salty Dog, Boredom … from the parent album, A Salty Dog

This album contains the sung words, 'You were only joking'

The Long Goodbye

A track from this album was majestically covered on Lost in the Looking-Glass, the excellent studio-recorded 40-track homage to Procol from the Palers' Project, by the US band, Northern Sky

This was a cracking version of Strangers in Space, from Something Magic

You can win a very rare reference promo copy of this album, with un-finalised running order, if you are lucky in the 'Beyond the Pale' Christmas competition.

The Well's on Fire

So the 'album of the day' was the eagerly-anticipated The Well's on Fire

Christmas Puzzles main page

Names of Triumphant Victors