Exotic Birds & Fruit [Import, Original recording remastered]

Procol Harum | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 22, 2001)
• Original Release Date: 1974
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import, Original recording remastered
• Label: Repertoire
• ASIN: B000058B2W
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #434,154 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Nothing But the Truth

2. Beyond the Pale

3. As Strong as Samson

4. The Idol

5. The Thin End of the Wedge

6. Monsieur R. Monde

7. Fresh Fruit

8. Butterfly Boys

9. New Lamps for Old

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars There Is Music after Robin Trower!, February 20, 2003

By 

John "Johnnycat" (USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Exotic Birds & Fruit (Audio CD)

While Procol Harum's first four albums featuring Robin Trower get all the acclaim, I don't feel they really peaked until their 1973 album 'The Grand Hotel'. Their 1974 album, 'Exotic Birds & Fruit', vividly displays this maturity. Gary Brooker's vocals and the organ really soar in "As Strong as Sampson". This is not a one hit record though. It's full of a variety of great 'Procol' style music: "Nothing but the Truth" and "Beyond the Pale" are particularly good. Even though "The Idol" is repetitive I've grown to really like it. The remastering job is outstanding. The organ and vocals sound gorgeous. This is a fantastic album.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Always quit while your ahead, March 18, 2001

By 

David Kinney (San Francisco, Ca. United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Exotic Birds & Fruit (Audio CD)

This album was a return to form for the Procol gang after the previous year's so-so 'Grand Hotel'. While that album was a sort of shakedown cruise for the recent line-up change of the band, this release found the hard touring band focused and ready to rock. Yeah, they could rock! Despite their reputation as a 'progressive rock' group they were never more than a few steps removed from the RnB combo they started out as. Gary Brooker and Keith Ried came up with a great bunch of songs here. "Nothing But The Truth", "As Strong As Samson", and "Butterfly Boys" are among the finest tunes in the group's long history. The bad news; they shoulda quit right after this release cuz it was a slow decline from here on out. So treasure this one, and if you like it as much as I do you'll want their 'Live BBC' cd too, because it was recorded during this era. It's great to see so many Procol Harum albums being released on CD these days, so to whom it may concern; howza 'bout puttin' out 'Broken Barricades'?

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Last Hurrah, Elegant and Haunting, July 31, 2003

By 

Roy Patterson (Hartford, CT USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Exotic Birds & Fruit (Audio CD)

Procol Harum carved a unique niche in the Rock Pantheon, and with "Exotic Birds & Fruit" sealed-up their place and walked away,...mid-album. My vinyl side A hisses and pops from decades of passionate attention, side B is almost a stranger.
"Nothing but the Truth" is self-assured and powerful, the music driving the words back to the Procol Harum of the Whiter Shade, the white in the black, light in the darkness, truth in the (then, not today, of course) non-truths, the sloppy pervasive irresponsibilty of trendy lyrics.
"Strong as Samson" majestic, soaring, seering and haunting,like Whiter Shade,Homburg and Wee Small Hours, at the very heart and soul of why Brooker and Reid et al sat down to write a song.
As the side finishes, and Just Another Idol fades away, musical bliss has set in, and who needs to turn over the record?...of course, if it's a CD, well, enjoy it all, the world of Exotic Birds and Fruits, incredible keyboards, slick guitar, tight rhythm work, and lyrics to long linger over.