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• Artist: Procol Harum
• Rating:
• Release Date: June 08, 1999
• Genre: Rock

Review

The group's hardest-rocking classic album is, beyond some superb vocalizing by Gary Brooker, principally a showcase for Robin Trower's high-powered guitar and a rock-hard rhythm section, with B.J. Wilson only a little less animated than Ginger Baker on some of the music. Procol Harum had a split personality by this time, the band juxtaposing straight-ahead rock & roll numbers like "Still There'll Be More" and the Elvis Presley-influenced "Whisky Train" with darker, more dramatic pieces like "Nothing That I Didn't Know" and "Barnyard Story." Chris Copping doubles on organ, replacing Matthew Fisher, but the overall sound is that of a leaner Procol Harum, all except for the ambitious "Whaling Stories" -- even it was a compromise that nearly worked, showcasing Trower's larger-than-life guitar sound (coming off here like King Crimson's Robert Fripp in one of his heavier moments) within a somewhat pretentious art rock concept. It shows the strains within their lineup that the producers chose the lighter, more obviously accessible "Your Own Choice" -- on which Gary Brooker's piano is the lead instrument -- to end the album after "Whaling Stories"' pyrotechnic finish. [Home has appeared several times on CD, in a poor-sounding edition from A&M ages ago, on a rather better-sounding Mobile Fidelity edition in the late '80s, and at the opening of the new century in a remastered edition from Europe's Westside label that not only features significantly increased clarity on all of the instruments, but also detailed annotation and the presence of nine bonus tracks from the same sessions, mostly rock & roll warm-ups and early takes of the finished material. Those cuts reveal interesting sides to the group's own internal dynamics and the way that they saw their sound, and one can add another star to the rating for the Westside version.] ~ Bruce Eder, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Whisky Train	Robin Trower, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(4:31)
The Dead Man's Dream	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(4:46)
Still There'll Be More	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(4:53)
Nothing That I Didn't Know	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(3:36)
About to Die	Robin Trower, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(3:36)
Barnyard Story	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(2:46)
Piggy Pig Pig	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(4:48)
Whaling Stories	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(7:06)
Your Own Choice	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(3:14)
Rockin' Warm-Up/Go Go Go (Move on Down the Line) [*]	Roy Orbison, Procol Harum	Procol Harum	(4:46)
The Dead Man's Dream [Take 7][*]	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(3:55)
Procol Have a Laugh... [*]	Harold Arlen, Gary Brooker, E.Y. "Yip" Harburg, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(:47)
Still There'll Be More [Instrumental Take 3][*]	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(4:57)
About to Die [Take One, Breakdown][*][Instrumental]	Robin Trower, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(4:38)
Barnyard Story [Take 4 Remix][*]	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(2:49)
Piggy Pig Pig [Take 2 Remix][*]	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(5:43)
Your Own Choice [Take 14 Remix][*]	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(3:15)
Whaling Stories [Take 2][*][Take]	Gary Brooker, Keith Reid	Procol Harum	(7:20)

Credits

Procol Harum (Main Performer), Robin Trower (Guitar), Gary Brooker (Piano), Gary Brooker (Vocals), David P. Bailey (Photography), Chris Copping (Organ), Chris Copping (Guitar (Bass)), Chris Copping (Organ (Hammond)), Jeff Jarratt (Engineer), B.J. Wilson (Drums), Chris Thomas (Producer), Henry Scott-Irvine (Artwork), Henry Scott-Irvine (Compilation), Henry Scott-Irvine (Annotation), Jon Storey (Remixing), Nick Watson (Mixing), Nick Watson (Remastering), Nick Watson (Digital Remastering), Dickinson (Design), Dickinson (Cover Design)