Homburg (song)

"Homburg" was the rock band Procol Harum's follow-up single to their initial 1967 hit "A Whiter Shade of Pale". Written by pianist Gary Brooker and lyricist Keith Reid, "Homburg" reached number 5 in the UK charts, number 15 in Canada, and number 34 in the United States. It went to number one in several countries, including Australia, South Africa, and the Netherlands.

Reid's "Homburg" lyrics contains the same surreal, dream-like imagery and feelings of resignation and futility as in the debut single. The music also features Matthew Fisher's rich and deep Hammond organ, but the piano and guitar have bigger places in the overall sound. The theme is not as clearly Bach-like as in "A Whiter Shade of Pale"; nevertheless, the single was, on its release, criticised for being too similar to its predecessor.^[1]

The B side of the single is "Good Captain Clack" which was taken from the album Procol Harum.

Cover versions

• Italian beat band I Camaleonti released a cover version in December 1967, entitled "L'ora dell'amore" ("The hour of love").^[2]
• Serbian punk rock band Pekinška Patka recorded a cover version, released on their debut album Plitka poezija in 1980.

References