Procol Harum

Beyond
the Pale

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Resolved by a ruling of thumb ...

A PH fans' Top Thirty


On 8 July 1998 Ian Chippett sent this message to the Procol Harum mail-list:

  • How about doing a Top Ten of Procol songs? Everyone would be invited to submit a list in order of preference of his or her Top Ten of PH songs (nothing from solo albums) which would be compiled into a definitive Top Ten.
  • This generated a gratifying amount of interest, and brought a good few lurkers out of the woodwork! Over the next two weeks the message list received responses from contributors all across the world [recorded by Ian as ALEX, Jacksbj, WRES, Larry Eskridge, Mirek, Scatter, Mcdermott, Terry, Procolhrum, Robert Moselle, Jl Austin, Greg Smith, Hydroelectrica, Mikael Werkelin, Sam, Pj Hayes, Jorge, M Chassman, Pat Larson, John Grayson, J Earle Weave, Jens, Jon Tso, Alan Semok, T Bren, Eric Van, ISO, Greg Panfile, Hydro 2, Cerdes, Wilfrid, J Sander, Kristina, Roland, Ian, Chris, Dennis, Frank Matheus, Lobo Brooks, Normand Despins, Linda Clare, Saltyscott and John O] in addition to the occasional closely-reasoned denial of the worth of the whole enterprise! Some people voted for more than ten tracks, some sent in amended estimations, and nobody said that they had found choosing easy (mail archive here).

    However, on 21 July the jury retired and, once Ian had struggled with his midnight sums, he sent the following message from his Paris headquarters:

  • 43 voters voting for 77 different songs from A Salty Dog (183 votes) to TV Caesar (1 vote) can't be wrong but I probably can, so don't take my figures as Gospel Truth. Assuming first place to equal 10 points, second to equal 9 etc, that's how I arrived at the score. I got 47% at O Level Maths at the third attempt and Grade 8 in Statistics so keep a mine of salt handy!
  •  

    Fans' Top Thirty Procol Harum Tracks, July 1998

    1

    A Salty Dog 

    2

    A Whiter Shade of Pale

    3

    In Held 'Twas in I

    4

    Homburg

    5

    Shine on Brightly

    6

    Repent Walpurgis

    7

    Whaling Stories

    8=

    Grand Hotel

    8=

    Pilgrims Progress 

    10

    Fires (Which Burnt Brightly)

    11

    Rambling On

    12

    Broken Barricades

    13

    Piggy Pig Pig

    14

    A Rum Tale

    15

    Cerdes (Outside the Gates of)

    16=

    A Strong as Samson 

    16=

    A Christmas Camel 

    18

    Salad Days (Are Here Again) 

    19

    Quite Rightly So

    20

    Nothing But the Truth 

    21

    Wreck of the Hesperus

    22

    The Devil Came from Kansas

    23

    Conquistador

    24

    The Dead Man's Dream

    25

    Pandora's Box

    26=

    Still There'll be More

    26=

    Fools Gold

    28=

    Nothing That I Didn't Know

    28=

    Magdalene (My Regal Zonophone)

    29

    In The Wee Small Hours Of Sixpence

    30

    Something Magic  

     It might be illuminating, perhaps, to follow up Linda's interest in the overlap between the songs highly-rated in this fans' poll and the band's own selection for the Redhill party.

    For those who relish detail, the number of points received for each song in the Harum canon is tabulated below, with the number of people voting for each song in parenthesis. Top thirty in red.

    Certain songs seem to have fared bewilderingly badly, those written by guitarists in particular: organists less so! There's a heavy bias towards the material on the early albums (perhaps we've had longer to make up our minds?) with only six songs un-voted for from the first five albums (half of those being Robin Trower numbers) whereas, later on, six tracks from one single album (Ninth) get no endorsement whatever.

    44

    A Christmas Camel (9)

    7

    A Dream In Every Home (1)

    0

    A la Carte

    0

    A Robe of Silk

    49

    A Rum Tale (8)

    183

    A Salty Dog (27)

    164

    A Whiter Shade Of Pale (21)

    0

    About To Die

    0

    Albinoni's Adagio

    3

    All Our Dreams Are Sold (2)

    22

    All This And More (6)

    9

    Alpha (1)

    44

    As Strong As Samson (9)

    0

    Backgammon

    20

    Barnyard Story (4)

    19

    Beyond The Pale (4)

    0

    Blue Danube

    0

    Boredom

    16

    Bringing Home The Bacon (2)

    51

    Broken Barricades (7)

    9

    Butterfly Boys (1)

    47

    Cerdes (Outside The Gates Of) (8)

    33

    Conquistador (6)

    0

    Count Your Blessings

    7

    Crucifiction Lane (1)

    34

    Dead Man's Dream (5)

    9

    Drunk Again (2)

    0

    Eight Days a Week

    59

    Fires (Which Burnt Brightly) (11)

    27

    Fools Gold (5)

    14

    For Liquorice John (2)

    0

    Fresh Fruit

    3

    Good Captain Clack (2)

    71

    Grand Hotel (13)

    22

    Holding On (6)

    125

    Homburg (20)

    0

    I Keep Forgetting

    0

    I'm a Reader not a Fighter

    141

    In Held 'Twas in I (25)

    23

    In The Wee Small Hours Of Sixpence (3)

    0

    Into the Flood

    0

    Juicy John Pink

    18

    Kaleidoscope (4)

    4

    Last Train to Niagara (1)

    0

    Learn To Fly

    0

    Lime Street Blues

    6

    Long Gone Geek (2)

    5

    Luskus Delph (2)

    0

    M Armand / Monsieur R Monde

    0

    Mabel

    0

    MacGregor

    25

    Magdalene (My Regal Zonophone) (4)

    0

    Man With A Mission

    2

    Memorial Drive (1)

    0

    Musical Fish

    22

    New Lamps For Old (7)

    38

    Nothing But The Truth (9)

    25

    Nothing That I Didn't Know (4)

    0

    One Eye on the Future

    0

    One More Time

    32

    Pandora's Box (6)

    11

    Perpetual Motion (2)

    50

    Piggy Pig Pig (9)

    71

    Pilgrim's Progress (11)

    3

    Playmate Of The Mouth (1)

    4

    Poor Mohammed (1)

    6

    Power Failure (2)

    40

    Quite Rightly So (6)

    52

    Rambling On (11)

    94

    Repent Walpurgis (15)

    12

    Robert's Box (2)

    41

    Salad Days (Are Here Again) (6)

    0

    Sayonara

    0

    Seem To Have The Blues Most All The Time

    16

    She Wandered Through The Garden Fence (4)

    98

    Shine On Brightly (17)

    20

    Simple Sister (3)

    2

    Skating On Thin Ice (1)

    8

    Skip Softly (My Moonbeams) (2)

    0

    So Far Behind

    18

    Something Following Me (15)

    23

    Something Magic (4)

    0

    Song for a Dreamer

    0

    Souvenir Of London

    27

    Still There'll Be More (5)

    3

    Stoke Poges (1, for 'Chelsea's Tune')

    7

    Strangers In Space (3)

    0

    Taking The Time

    35

    The Devil Came From Kansas (7)

    0

    The Final Thrust

    10

    The Hand That Rocks The Cradle (1)

    10

    The Idol (3)

    8

    The King Of Hearts (1)

    22

    The Long Goodbye (4)

    0

    The Mark Of The Claw

    11

    The Milk Of Human Kindness (20

    3

    The Piper's Tune (1)

    5

    The Pursuit Of Happiness (1)

    11

    The Thin End Of The Wedge (3)

    8

    The Truth Won't Fade Away (30

    5

    The Unquiet Zone (1)

    17

    The Worm And The Tree (3)

    0

    This Old Dog

    20

    Too Much Between Us (4)

    6

    Toujours l'Amour (4)

    1

    TV Ceasar (1)

    0

    Typewriter Torment

    87

    Whaling Stories (13)

    7

    Whisky Train (1)

    0

    Wish Me Well

    0

    Without A Doubt

    0

    Wizard Man

    36

    Wreck Of The Hesperus (7)

    0

    You Can't Turn Back The Page

    21

    Your Own Choice (4)  

    No surprise to find that nobody voted for some of the titles which, as far as we know, no fan has ever heard!

    Finally - if anyone has read thus far - here is the same material organised in numerical order of scores:

    1

    183

    A Salty Dog

    2

    164

    A Whiter Shade Of Pale

    3

    141

    In Held 'Twas in I

    4

    125

    Homburg

    5

    98

    Shine On Brightly

    6

    94

    Repent Walpurgis

    7

    87

    Whaling Stories

    8

    71

    Grand Hotel, Pilgrim's Progress

    10

    59

    Fires (Which Burnt Brightly)

    11

    52

    Rambling On

    12

    51

    Broken Barricades

    13

    50

    Piggy Pig Pig

    14

    49

    A Rum Tale

    15

    47

    Cerdes (Outside The Gates Of)

    16

    44

    A Christmas Camel , As Strong As Samson

    18

    41

    Salad Days (Are Here Again)

    19

    40

    Quite Rightly So

    20

    38

    Nothing But The Truth

    21

    36

    Wreck Of The Hesperus

    22

    35

    The Devil Came From Kansas

    23

    33

    Conquistador

    24

    34

    Dead Man's Dream

    25

    32

    Pandora's Box

    26

    27

    Fools Gold, Still There'll Be More

    28

    25

    Magdalene (My Regal Zonophone), Nothing That I Didn't Know

    30

    23

    In The Wee Small Hours Of Sixpence, Something Magic

    32

    22

    All This And More, Holding On, New Lamps For Old, The Long Goodbye

    36

    21

    Your Own Choice

    37

    20

    Barnyard Story, Simple Sister, Too Much Between Us

    40

    19

    Beyond The Pale

    41

    18

    Kaleidoscope, Something Following Me

    43

    17

    The Worm And The Tree

    44

    16

    Bringing Home The Bacon, She Wandered Through The Garden Fence

    46

    14

    For Liquorice John

    47

    12

    Robert's Box

    48

    11

    Perpetual Motion, The Milk Of Human Kindness, The Thin End Of The Wedge

    52

    10

    The Hand That Rocks The Cradle, The Idol

    53

    9

    Alpha, Butterfly Boys, Drunk Again

    56

    8

    Skip Softly (My Moonbeams), The King Of Hearts, The Truth Won't Fade Away

    59

    7

    A Dream In Every Home, Crucifiction Lane, Strangers In Space, Whisky Train

    63

    6

    Long Gone Geek, Power Failure, Toujours l'Amour

    66

    5

    Luskus Delph, The Pursuit Of Happiness, The Unquiet Zone

    69

    4

    Last Train to Niagara, Poor Mohammed

    71

    3

    All Our Dreams Are Sold, Good Captain Clack, Playmate Of The Mouth, Stoke Poges, The Piper's Tune

    76

    2

    Memorial Drive, Skating On Thin Ice

    78

    1

    TV Ceasar

    79

    0

    A la Carte, A Robe of Silk, About To Die, Albinoni's Adagio, Backgammon, Blue Danube, Boredom, Count Your Blessings, Eight Days a Week, Fresh Fruit, I Keep Forgetting, I'm a Reader not a Fighter, Into the Flood, Juicy John Pink, Learn To Fly, Lime Street Blues, M Armand / Monsieur R Monde, Mabel, MacGregor, Man With A Mission, Musical Fish, One Eye on the Future, One More Time, Sayonara, Seem To Have The Blues Most All The Time, So Far Behind, Song for a Dreamer, Souvenir Of London, Taking The Time, The Final Thrust, The Mark Of The Claw, This Old Dog, Typewriter Torment, Wish Me Well, Without A Doubt, Wizard Man, You Can't Turn Back The Page

    If you want to find out how close your taste was to the consensus, you might try finding the songs you voted for, and adding up their chart positions (first column, above). If your top ten was the same as Ian's final chart you'd score 55 or so; if you happened to vote for the ten least popular songs here you'd be way over 700: the lower the score, the more typical you were. (By this method Jens scored 192 and Roland 144; but doubtless statisticians can show the whole reckoning to be built on sand.)

    So, hearty thanks to Ian for providing this entertainment.

    And finally, High Fidelity by Nick Hornby (ISBN 0 575 40018-8) is a best-selling novel that makes unflinchingly hilarious fun of the male predilection for compiling rock & roll lists. Recommended!

    RC


    PH on stage | PH on record | PH in print | BtP features | What's new | Interact with BtP | For sale | Site search | Home