Procol Harum
A&M Classics Vol. 17 (A&M 2515)
& Greatest Hits (A&M 540523)

One of the oldest surviving CDs in my collection, Procol Harum's Classics Vol. 17 was surrendered to the used CD shop upon the release of Greatest Hits, which features the exact track listing and supposed sonic remastering.

Yet another casualty of my merciless need to upgrade when newer editions come out. Just as one day I will have to sell back my Beatles CDs, which have been with me since my first CD player (ah, first love), to accommodate newer remasters (whenever that happens), the time ultimately came for me to part with a beloved edition … Volume 17 in the still-confusing A&M Records 25th Anniversary Classics series.

I think there were at least 30 of these, each spotlighting a notable artist from A&M's varied history – Procol Harum, Chuck Mangione, The Carpenters, Herb Alpert, Gino Vanelli – actually, that's a pretty dodgy label project now that I think about it.

I'm pretty sure they didn't have one for The Police, who certainly must have been one of their best-selling artists.

At any rate, Procol's Classics was the only purchase I ever made at a record store I only visited the one time – knowing nothing about Procol Harum, I nonetheless felt this disc calling my name. Kismet. Something inside me that day said "It's got to be Procol Harum, boy," and 15 or so years later it has proven to be one of the best purchases I've ever made … certainly long after my Doobie Brothers CDs werepurged, this one remained.

12 tracks spanning 1968 to 1972, at which point I believe the band went to Chrysalis Records. Most of their albums are now available in remastered form with bonus tracks, but back in the day, this was the best you could do for Procol Harum. And you could do worse. It's a great set.

Every track is good and most are damn good. You'll know the big hits ("A Whiter Shade of Pale," "Conquistador," and perhaps "Homburg") but some lesser-known sides are even better ("A Salty Dog" is a blinkin' masterpiece, and "In the Wee Small Hours of Sixpence" is a quirky little gem). Guitars, organs, poetic lyrics … lots of elements that sunk proggier bands, but Procol seemed to be more consistent. Definitely so as represented on this collection.

You don't get later stuff like "Grand Hotel," but this is an ideal introduction to a still-underrated band who is well worth the effort of discovery.

Greatest Hits doesn't necessarily leap out as sounding all that much better, but it feels fresher, so it makes a nice replacement for Classics (for freaks like myself who can't stand to have an obsolete edition in their collection, no matter how beloved).

I'm getting a bit wistful because so few CDs that I bought in 1987 have stayed in my collection … probably a good statement about my evolving and shifting musical tastes, but it does make "breaking up" with CDs all the more difficult. Goodbye, Classics Vol. 17, old friend, I'll miss you. Sorry to be such a cliché and go for the younger and prettier model as soon as I could.

Loud Bassoon rating scale

Review by Tom Dog