[.ca] Shine on Brightly

Though nothing shows, someone knows...:
Late in high school (around 1986 or so), I discovered progressive rock; one of the LPs I bought was "Shine On Brightly," the original A & M release without the bonus tracks. I thought it was quite amazing, most especially "In Held Twas In I." My recommendation for a piece of music is whether it makes you think, and this piece did. I would buy that album again if A & M would reissue it on CD, sans bonus tracks. A prog-rock essential.

Stretching Out:
Echoing a reviewer below, I too was lured by the cover photography of this album (apparently the British release had a different cover, the one found on this CD release). However, I found the music to be of a "searching" quality. But that I mean Keith Reid's lyrics evoke the thoughts of a young man not sure of his place in the world. The music takes a path beyond the realm of pop music (what I guess they call "Prog Rock", as much as I hate that categorization). "Quite Rightly So" is a song I like to sing in the shower--tuneful and lyrically expressive. The title track is another tuneful song from the point-of-view of a madman. "In Held Twas In I" was a bit much to swallow on first listen. Yes, I thought it was the height of pretension. Then I heard it performed on the live album "In Concert with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra" and thought "Wow!" This is an album made by young musical artists who are breaking out of their shells. Approach it as such and it will yield much listening pleasure and insights into the future direction of the group.

Procol has shined more brightly than they did here:
The early Procol Harum combined a bluesy approach, touches of what later developed into progressive rock (they had a big influence on Genesis), and Dylanesque semi-nonsensical lyrics. This album doesn't have the consistent songwriting of the previous "A Whiter Shade of Pale" or the crisp production of its follow-up "A Salty Dog". The two best songs (by FAR) come right at the start, with "Quite Rightly So" and "Shine On Brightly". These are followed by some so-so blues-rockers, and the 17-minute "In Held 'Twas In I". Of the dozens of prog-rock epics I've heard in my time, this is about the worst. Perhaps because this one came first, and there wasn't anyone else to show them how to do it right. Though it includes a couple of catchy short sections, "In the Autumn of My Madness" and "Look to Your Soul", nothing happens for the first five minutes (except some lousy Zen-lite poetry even the Moody Blues would have left on the cutting room floor) and there's not even a minimal attempt to connect the pieces together into any kind of coherent whole -- some segments are just linked by white noise. The liner notes say that Pete Townshend called "In Held 'Twas In I" one of the inspirations for "Tommy"; it's a scary thought. The "Plus" version of the album includes catchy B-side "In the Wee Small Hours of Sixpence", and a few outtakes and alternate versions (including the first Brooker-Reid song ever, "Alpha", about an unhappy cyclops). If you've been dying to hear an Italian version of "Shine On Brightly", you're in luck. ...

Dimmed with time:
Procol Harum's second album doesn't have quite the power of their debut and is a tad less consistent. The album has a number of great tracks but the pretentious "suite" at the end of the CD consumes a full 14 plus minutes and goes nowhere. Shine On Brightly isn't hideous; it's just a little worse for the wear given the band's debut (and contemporary releases by other bands). Still, Gary Brooker's soulful voice is a joy even on the weakest tracks. Robin Trower manages to cram in a number of tasteful guitar solos admit Brooker's growling vocal and Matthew Fisher's omnipresent organ. I'd recommend BGO's remastered edition of this album (which is coupled with the debut plus 3 bonus tracks).

"Shine on Brightly" Indeed!:
What the Rolling Stones and Traffic did for "black" music, Procol Harum did for classical European music. They represent the very best of early progressive rock, and "Shine on Brightly" is one of their strongest recordings. The finale of the "In Held Twas I" suite, in particular, is especially moving. A gem!

• Quite Rightly So
• Shine on Brightly
• Skip Softly (My Moonbeams)
• Wish Me Well
• Rambling On
• Magdalene (My Regal Zonophone)
• In Held 'Twas in I: Glimpses of Nirvana...
• Seem to Have the Blues (Mostly All the...)
• Monsieur Armand
• Alpha
• In the Wee Small Hours of Sixpence
• In the Wee Small Hours of Sixpence
• Quite Rightly So
• Quite Rightly So
• Il Tuo Diamante