What was new at 'Beyond the Pale'

December 31: New Year's Eve

Have a crack at our seventh contingent of wondrous prize puzzles ... and if fewer than seven answers are right in the end, those who did answer correctly will get more than their fair share of prizes!

This is the last instalment for 1998. During this year BtP has been updated with new material every day. We wish to thank all of you who contributed to the cause. And to all the Palers who visited the website: thanks for keeping the flames in your heart burning brightly. Jens and Roland

December 30:

The Mammoth Task: Procol Harum news in its chart context, kindly extracted for BtP from the New Musical Express of 31 years ago today by Yan Friis: Procol Harum offer a gnomic outlook for 1968, and evidently feel the pressure of their still-strong reputation.

Please sample our sixth parcel of prize puzzles ... not too late to start if you didn't log in over Christmas: just go back to page one and work forward.

Slightly adapted the wording of puzzle-questions 12 and 33 following helpful submissions from sundry Palers (thanks, Bert and Richard)

And many happy returns to FS !

December 29:

Prove your Procol knowledge with our fifth episode of prize puzzles ... remind yourself of the fabbo prizes!

December 28:

Show your Haroid skill with our fourth collection of prize puzzles ...

December 27:

Came out with our third dollop of prize puzzles ... not too late to start if you didn't log in over Christmas: just go back to page one and work forward.

And have a look at the BtP guestbook: the Commander himself has been online again. Thanks Gary, we really appreciate it.

December 26:

Adduced our second helping of prize puzzles ... so if you reckon you know the Procol repertoire, you could be well on the way to winning some Harum goodies.

December 25: Happy Christmas and a Cool Yule to all Palers!

Please read (and sing!) Gary Brooker's greeting to the BtP team and all Palers who visit our website (thanks, Gary!)

Added the first of our twelve Christmas puzzles ... the prizes are listed here, and the details of what to do are here

December 24: Christmas Eve: BtP wishes a Merry Christmas to all Palers !

Added a page (with seasonal background!) all about our new Christmas prize puzzles ... a true Scandinavian tradition, reflecting the fact that the BtP server is in Sweden, and one of its proprietors is in Norway!

Revamped our main Guildford page to include the flyer that advertised the concert.

December 23:

The Mammoth Task: Procol Harum news in its chart context, kindly extracted for BtP from the New Musical Express of 31 years ago today by Yan Friis: a lean week in terms of Procol press, but the name keeps popping up in odd snippets.

We are delighted to announce that there will again be a season of Procol Harum puzzles at 'Beyond the Pale', starting on Christmas Day and running for twelve days, as last year, when there was a nail-biting photo-finish in the scramble for prizes!

See here for a list of this year's handsome prizes! More details of the puzzles tomorrow.

December 22:

Added a telephonic Gary Brooker interview, stylishly written by a lynch-pin of The Homburg Society (thanks, Tito)

Please ask your local radio-station to play the Dewar / Fisher track Hosanna from the Stumbledown Romancer CD. Judith Fisher (Matthew's sister) wrote to BtP as follows: 'Towards Christmas, perhaps people would like to send in radio requests for the track called Hosanna, because this was intended to be the 'Christmas single', and it could become a popular and seasonal anthem if enough people hear it!'

December 21:

Added a quickly-contrived page (slow-loading, I fear) in order to share images of Gary's Guildford concert as soon as possible: this is strictly temporary, and a proper report will follow, of course

Added a snippet about the unusual song-writing credit for Liquorice John's Shopping for Clothes (thanks, John Kahila)

December 20:

'Brooker’s tunes are facile ... I disliked every member of the group in concert except the fluid and inventive drummer ...'

Added a very dismissive review of Procol Harum on a wonderful bill including King Crimson, Alan Stivell and Genesis (thanks, Kerry)

Tonight: Gary Brooker and No Stiletto Shoes onstage at Southend ... and BtP is still being steered under remote control (thanks, Torjus, one more time!)

December 19:

'I guess I was born at the right time ...'

A lucky fan gives a forthright assessment of five Procol Harum guitarists (thanks, Bert Saraco)

Tonight: Gary Brooker and No Stiletto Shoes onstage at Southend ... and BtP is sailing under remote control (thanks, Torjus)

December 18:

'Brooker nearly gave up a career in music ... to join IBM as a computer operator'

Added the Mercury PolyGram press-release for Gary Brooker's third solo LP Echoes In The Night (thanks, Ian Hockley)

Tonight: Gary Brooker and Friends onstage at Guildford ... and BtP is functioning by remote control (thanks, Torjus)

In about seven hours' time we shall print off all the messages that fans have left at BtP wishing for more Procol activity (recordings, tours and so forth): these will be presented to Gary Brooker this evening at Guildford. Please contribute your own message by clicking here – it might have some effect ... and nothing's better left unsaid. Thanks to everyone who has written in during the last couple of days.

Jens and Roland look forward to meeting Palers, Whalers and other salty sailors at Guildford, and hearing GB sing a hitherto-unknown Procol Harum song!

December 17:

Added a page about Gary's schoolfriend, Dave Mundy, commemorated on Grand Hotel and in Ain't Nothing To Get Excited About, the new CD from Gary Brooker's own label.

December 16:

Completely overhauled our page on Ain't Nothing To Get Excited About, the new CD from Gary Brooker's own label

The Mammoth Task: Procol Harum news in its chart context, kindly extracted for BtP from the New Musical Express of 31 years ago today by Yan Friis: a superb review of the Procol Harum album, Procol for Italy ... and they evidently have at least 25 compositions ...

Guildford: if you still haven't got hotel room, BtP has been informed that Quinns Hotel has room available for around 40 pounds single.

And Diane Rolph informs us that John Grayson (Shine On) and Kenny White will sell Procol Harum souvenirs at the concert hall. So do bring money!

December 15:

The new Liquorice John CD has arrived at BtP! Expect more details soon ...

Added an unusual photograph of the Salty Dog line-up with a sphinx: have a look and then enjoy the Salty Dog links from the same page (thanks, Antonio)

Added a page about Bud Scoppa, whose name often crops up in Procol Harum connections (thanks, Joan)

And to all Palers at Guildford: join us for a pre-concert party at the Jarvis Hotel. Palers will assemble in the pub from 4 o'clock.

While in Southend, the Tower Hotel pub will be our meeting point.

December 14:

' ... there were some great times. But there's a lot of crap you carry around with you, you know, when you've been with the same people for so long ...'

Added a great new BtP Grabham interview, in which Mick talks with Roland Clare at some length on various aspects of his time with Procol Harum (thanks, Mick)

December 13:

Added very welcome news of an upcoming full-length book about Procol Harum: this page includes a call for your Procol Harum photos, and a request to mysterious 'Bob' in Australia (thanks, Claes)

And Gary Brooker's Artist in Profile at the London Barbican Centre is postponed, because Gary will be starring with Ringo's Fifth All Starr Band (thanks, Marvin)

Pete Solley recently wrote BtP a very nice note mentioning, among other things, that we hadn't drawn attention in the 'What's New' feature to Gary Brooker's BtP Guestbook (10 November): we're happy to put that right now (thanks, Pete)

So: have a look at Gary's message which includes, "Commander speaking ... if you come to the concert, I promise to play a Procol song you have never heard before! See you at Guildford and hopefully Southend. Skip softly! GB".

Fans might wonder what this number will be ... if it's a new composition, can it be 'a Procol song' if Procol themselves are not there to play it? Is it going to be a half-familiar 'live' number that we can barely hear on some ancient audience tape ... or is it a hitherto-unsuspected out-take from a Procol studio session?

For tickets – proceeds to charity, of course – ring (01483) 444 555: in five days' time we'll find a way out of this mystery

December 12: (Another record breaking day at BtP yesterday: 208 visitors to the main page!)

'The new songs will either be for a solo album or another collaboration with Procol Harum.'

Added a pre-Guildford article including some new comments from Gary Brooker and a nice name-check for BtP (thanks, Matt)

December 11:

Matthew Fisher single released in Greece: will Matthew finally strike gold?

Added some news from Westside Records about sales of their recent Procol Harum reissues (thanks, Tony)

Are you coming to Guildford or Southend for Gary's Christmas gigs? Let us know if you wish to help others get in touch with you by listing your travelling information here.

It has been reported that the Carlton Hotel has only 70 pound rooms left. If this is too much for you, we recommend the Guildford hotel advisor. (We wish BtP had negotiated a reduction on these rooms - but maybe the management will  buy us a beer on the house?)

December 10:

Added two new entries to the page about chart positions of Procol Harum albums (thanks, Sam)

And here's a link to that Procol / Volvo review (thanks to a Volvo-driving Procoholic)

December 9:

The Mammoth Task: Procol Harum news in its chart context, kindly extracted for BtP from the New Musical Express of 31 years ago today by Yan Friis: poll-successes for A Whiter Shade of Pale, Procol Harum and Gary Brooker: but it was never to be the same again.

Added a fragment to the Record Collector snippet about Willie Nelson and AWSoP (thanks, Richard)

Added pictures to our pages about Procol producers Chris Thomas and Tony Visconti (thanks, davelee)

December 8:

'I don't have the vaguest idea what I'm singing about'

From Record Collector, November 1998 we bring you a snippet in which Willie Nelson tells about why he recorded AWSoP, and Bill Wyman talks about Gary Brooker

December 7:

Added November 1998's Shine Online, now that the paper copies have reached far-flung subscribers. But only the paper Shine On proper contains full pictorial detail ... and it's free to all Procol Harum fans ... so why not have a look at the subscription details here.

December 6:

Added an excellent and authoritative article about the sound at the 1973 Hollywood Bowl show, in which the sound man explains the reasons for the feedback that plagued the performance, but not the rehearsals (thanks, David Pelletier)

December 5:

Paramounts fans can stop wondering what happened to Diz Derrick ... thanks to his stepson (thanks, Jolyon)

Guildford news: BtP learns that some four Very Luminous Celebrities indeed have been invited to join Gary on stage, but we are sadly not empowered to divulge names, as there's no confirmation that they will appear. Suffice it to say that these are well-known musical bedfellows of Gary's who, if they were all billed as appearing, would certainly sell out the theatre instantaneously. If you haven't booked now, read our Guildford pages

Gary and Franky have now chosen a charity to support with the proceeds of the Guildford gig.

December 4:

'... I was almost in awe of Matthew's organ-playing / Mick Grabham ... was the perfect guitarist for Procol Harum / A Salty Dog was the musical equivalent of a Turner sea-painting / Keith ... came on ... so that I could be on bass and still have an organ ...

Added a brand new, warm and revealing interview with Chris Copping (thanks, Antonio Costa Barbé)

December 3:

Was Robin Trower the secret sponsor of latterday Syd Barrett sessions? Please write in to 'Beyond the Pale': our eyes reach out for facts! (thanks, Oleh)

December 2:

The Mammoth Task: Procol Harum news in its chart context, kindly extracted for BtP from the New Musical Express of 31 years ago today by Yan Friis: early promise of Poll success for PH, and BJ's very revealing report about the US tour: hippies, materialism and a disconsolate Fisher.

December 1:

Added the comprehensive Brooker interview that originally appeared in Shine On, August 1997: origins of A Whiter Shade of Pale, early personnel changes, contribution of BJ Wilson ...

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Read what was new at BtP in previous months