On This Date, June 24th, in 1967: Procol Harum’s “A Whiter Shade of Pale” entered the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart where it would later peak at Number 5 (In the UK it hit #1 on June 8th). Lyrically inspired a party the band members attended where everyone was tripping on LSD (I’m pretty sure The Beatles were at that party) the song was written by the band around a melody composed by the group’s organist, Matthew Fisher, who was inspired by the chord progression of Johann Sebastian Bach’s “Orchestral Suite in D,” composed between 1725 and 1739. As of 2009, “A Whiter Shade Of Pale” is the most played song in the last 75 years in public places in the UK. What a great song.
