Exotic Birds And Fruit [Original recording remastered]

Note: This review is for the Friday Music remaster. For some reason, amazon puts this review in with the Salvo remaster as well. Comments on that follow as two reviews on essentially the same recording are not permitted.

Exotic Birds and Fruit was originally issued at a time when disco fever was beginning to sweep the AM radio charts and at a time when imaginative music got increasingly less airplay on FM as radio business consolidations standardized playlists across the country.
I remember buying it the day it arrived in the record store and rushing home to put it on. Immediately, I recognized the songs on side 1 of the album as being as good as anything the boys had issued to this point. Side 2 of the album was played less as I felt at the time the songs were somewhat weaker.
With CDs, listening to a recording is a whole new experience. Sure, you can skip songs you don't like and easily replay those you do without the hassle of getting up to move the needle. But I tend to listen to the recording in its entirety which often gets me to hear a song I once did not care for with new ears. Such has been the case with the Friday Music reissue of Exotic Birds and Fruit.
First of all, the sound is of excellent quality. Secondly, Friday Music tempts the Procol Harum fan with a couple of bonus tracks. Nothing But The Truth, Beyond The Pale, and Strong as Sampson still rate among the band's best songs but after hearing this well-made remaster, I have a new appreciation for The Idol, Fresh Fruit, Monsieur R Monde, and Butterfly Boys. I still don't much care for The Thin End of The Wedge but that is no demerit for this. Of the two bonus cuts, the band's magnificent rendition of Strauss' Blue Danube waltz stands tall, particularly during keyboard solos.
Whether you are an old-time Procol Harum fan or a Procol-curious newcomer, you can't go wrong adding this overlooked classic to your CD collection.

June 20, 2010:
Well, its clear that amazon has screwed up again in not fixing the product information despite appeals by disgruntled buyers to do so. The Salvo Records reissue being sold does not include a version of Blue Danube. Instead, you are provided with an alternate mix of As Strong As Samson. BFD!, I'd rather have Blue Danube. But even if you already own the Friday Music remaster, I say go for the Salvo as well. Why? For the six-panel digipak packaging and the booklet which is chock full of pictures and info about the band at this period in its career. The Salvo booklets are classic and not to be missed!

Procol Harum's 1974 release, "Exotic Birds And Fruit," is one of the group's finest albums. It may not boast any "hits," but diehard Harum fans know classic Harum songs when they hear them, and "Exotic Birds" contains many of them, such as the thumping "Nothing But The Truth," the drinking-song pastiche "Beyond The Pale," the fine melodies of "As Strong As Samson" (with one of Keith Reid's very best lyrics: "Ain't no use in preacher's preaching/When they don't know what they're teaching"), the spooky "The Thin Edge Of The Wedge," the playful "Fresh Fruit," and the rockin' "Butterfly Boys." The band, led by singer/pianist extraordinaire Gary Brooker, sound superb on this one. Thumbs up all the way on Procol Harum's "Exotic Birds And Fruit."

My grandmother's house was made of books. Mine is made of records and compact discs. When I die I'll move into the "cloud"--maybe. The copy of Exotic Birds and Fruit we have is the FridayMusic version. It has the Blue Danube bonus track. Superb. Nice touch. So here it is. 1974. In with the pounding Nothing But the Truth. Ah, just like my old Procol Harum. All songs here are Brooker-Reid. Well, except the Johann Strauss 2 piece. As Strong as Samson is a tuneful anthem--lyrics pretty current reading. The Idol is pure Procol. One of my favorite tracks is The Thin Edge of the Wedge. Great riff. Great sound. Perhaps the most unusual cut on the album, but I like it when artists with the instrumental and vocal chops step up the game by going somewhere different. Monsieur R. Monde is a crunchy rocker, Fresh Fruit--well, we all know by now, eh? Butterfly Boys is another good one and the lead guitar takes off a bit. New Lamps For Old harkens back to early phases/poses and is another perfect Brooker vehicle. Drunk Again is the B side of Nothing But the Truth and kind of a fun romp. Really well done set of songs and they certainly picked up the pace. The opening cut could be covered today with positive result. The Blue Danube is the real reason to have this version. Sensitive reading--tinkling and all. The current price, however, is beyond ridiculous. Especially for a digital object.

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