Procol Harum singer Gary Brooker has died at the age of 76.
The Whiter Shade Of Pale singer had recently been undergoing treatment for cancer and died peacefully at home at the weekend.
Brooker’s death was confirmed via a statement on the official Procol Harum website, which also paid tribute to the artist.
“With the deepest regret we must announce the death on 19 February 2022 of Gary Brooker MBE, singer, pianist and composer of Procol Harum, and a brightly-shining, irreplaceable light in the music industry,” it read. “Aged 76, he had been receiving treatment for cancer, but died peacefully at home.
“From his earliest onstage duets with his musician father, through his youthful recording career with Southend’s The Paramounts, Gary exhibited and developed a highly-individual talent. His first single with Procol Harum, 1967’s A Whiter Shade of Pale, is widely regarded as defining ‘The Summer of Love’, yet it could scarcely have been more different from the characteristic records of that era.
“Nor was it characteristic of his own writing. Over 13 albums Procol Harum never sought to replicate it, preferring to forge a restlessly progressive path, committed to looking forward, and making each record a ‘unique entertainment’. Gary’s voice and piano were the single defining constant of Procol’s 50-year international concert career. Without any stage antics or other gimmicks he was invariably the most watchable musician in the show (he played several other instruments in the studio).”
In addition to his work with Procol Harum, Brooker was a widely sought-after musical collaborator for some of the biggest names in music. Among those he worked with include Paul McCartney, Bill Wyman, George Harrison, Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr and many others.
With Whiter Shade Of Pale, Brooker and Procol Harum would make history, with the song selling over 10 million copies worldwide and sharing the honour of Best British Pop Single 1952-1977 at the first ever BRIT Awards in 1977 with Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody. And in 2009, UK radio stations crowned it the played song of the past 75 years.
The band would go to create a varied body of work that would prove especially popular in the prog rock scene, with many hailing their 1969 album A Salty Dog as their masterpiece. After splitting in 1977 following numerous personnel changes, Procol Harum would reform in 1991 to release an album of new material in the form of The Prodigal Stranger.
The group still wrote and performed live together, with their last performance with Brooker taking place in Switzerland in 2019. Their last release, a three track EP named Missing Persons (Alive Forever), was released in May 2021.