Procol Harum lyricist Keith Reid died on March 28th, 2023 at the age of 76, with no cause of death announced. Reid will forever be best remembered for writing the words to the band's classic tunes “A Whiter Shade Of Pale,” “A Salty Dog,” and “Conquistador,” among many others.
The late, great Gary Brooker, who co-wrote “A Whiter Shade Of Pale” with Reid and bandmate Matthew Fisher, recalled walking into a clothes boutique in Britain in the '60s and seeing John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr singing “A Whiter Shade Of Pale” while they shopped: “I remember when that came out. About the second week it was out, it was Number One. And we had to go and buy some clothes — we didn't have any. And we went into a King's Row boutique, we had to ring the bell (to get in), it was that exclusive. And when we went in, all the Beatles were in there, round the harmonium, singing 'Whiter Shade Of Pale,' and I realized they must like it.”
