Keith Reid, the first lyricist for Procol Harum, together with 1967’s “A Whiter Shade Of Pale,” has died. Reid handed on March 23, and Procol Harum confirmed the information by way of Facebook with a tribute. “We are sad to hear of the death of Keith Reid,” they wrote. “An unparalleled lyricist Keith wrote the words to virtually all Procol Harum songs, as well as co-writing the John Farnham hit ‘You’re The Voice.’ His lyrics were one of a kind and helped to shape the music created by the band. His imaginative, surreal and multi-layered words were a joy to Procol fans and their complexity by design was a powerful addition the Procol Harum catalogue. Our thoughts go out to his family and friends.” Reid was 76.
Born in 1946 in Hertfordshire, Reid was the son of a Holocaust survivor. As a budding songwriter within the ’60s, Reid met Procol Harum lead singer Gary Brooker, with whom he co-wrote a lot of the band’s songs. “A Whiter Shade Of Pale” was the band’s first single, and it topped the UK charts, offered six million copies globally, and have become a defining anthem of the Summer Of Love. Though Reid didn’t have a efficiency function within the band, he was current for all of their recording classes and most of their dwell reveals. He was additionally thought of an official member of the band.
Reid would write lyrics for Procol Harum by way of 1977, when the band disbanded. Other artists he wrote for embody French singer Michel Polnareff (1966’s “You’ll Be On My Mind” and “Time Will Tell”) and John Farnham, co-writing “You’re The Voice” in 1986.
In the ’80s, Reid based a administration firm in New York. He later reunited with Brooker and Procol Harum for the albums The Prodigal Stranger (1991) and The Well’s On Fire (2003). In 2008, an album known as The Common Thread was launched underneath the Keith Reid Project; Reid wrote and co-produced, and the songs had been carried out by artists comparable to Southside Johnny, Chris Thompson, John Waite, and Michael Saxell. Finally, in 2018, the Keith Reid Project launched an album titled In My Head.
Reid’s dying comes somewhat multiple yr after the passing of Procol Harum’s lead singer Gary Brooker, who died in February 2022 at 76.