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A
few years ago, when the value of a moderately collectable 1960’s
record would typically be £5
~ £15, one would not usually be too discerning on the condition, as
long as the disc played satisfactorily. Today, with many of the more
desirable records now priced in excess of £50, the purist can be
somewhat discriminative, and 'quite rightly so' . As a guide,
singles that charted, particularly attaining the ‘top 10’, are
generally worth around £4 ~ £6 in best condition, with the
“used” variety normally not being required by the collector, but
handy for juke boxes at £1 a throw.
Procol
Harum’s “A Whiter Shade Of Pale” is a prime example. An
excellent condition example of this classic but over-played (radio
broadcast wise) single should not prove too elusive?
On catalogue for a considerable period, original 1960’s
pressings have the matrix number on the label upside down. This
criterion sits above the disc’s catalogue number DM 126.
The ultimate pressing to own would be the 'Demonstration' label
printing.
Gary
Brooker, the vocalist and co-writer of this classic, had previously
been a member of The Paramounts. This pop group released six singles
during ‘63 ~ ’64 on the Parlophone label, with all but their
first release, “Poison Ivy”, not attaining the top 50 chart!
Near mint examples of all their singles are now changing hands for
around £15 ~ £25 apiece. No Paramounts album was put together, but
a now highly sought after EP, issued in May 1964, is currently
valued at £200+.
In principle, the four recordings that make up this expensive
Extended Play do not warrant the exorbitant price tag. Being covers
of rock n’ roll and r&b numbers with added ‘pop beat’,
they are actually the ’a’ and ‘b’ sides of their first two
singles. However, as approximately 100 units only of this EP sold at
the time, it is now highly collectible for its scarcity and the
historical rock-file value, and also for having an attractive
photographic sleeve, with Gary Brooker pictured on the far left, and
the only UK disc depicting the band (no LP at the time was issued). Two
of the other three Paramounts members depicted on the front cover
were to later (mid ’67) rejoin with Gary in the first of Procol
Harum’s reformations.
An interesting fact for residents of Devon
is that the final live on-stage appearance of the first Procol
Harum line-up was at Torquay on June 18th 1967, just two
days after their other Devon appearance at the Tavistock Town Hall. |
