Whiter Shade of Pale...what do the lyrics mean???

[Memnoch]

EVeryone's heard this song, right?

Chick here to listen to it. It was a song which came out in 1967 by Procol Harum. It's since been covered by Annie Lennox, Van Morrison, Moody Blues, Sarah Brightman and ATB. Lyrics are as follows:



A Whiter Shade of Pale
Procol Harum

(Keith Reid/Gary Brooker)

We skipped the light Fandango
Turned cartwheels 'cross the floor
I was feeling kind of seasick
But the crowd called out for more
The room was humming harder
As the ceiling flew away
When we called out for another drink
The waiter brought a tray

And so it was that later
As the Miller told his tale
That her face, at first just ghostly
Turned a whiter shade of pale

------ organ solo ------

She said there is no reason
And the truth is plain to see
But I wandered through my playing cards
And would not let her be
One of sixteen vestal virgins
Who were leaving for the coast
And although my eyes were open
They might just as well've been closed

And so it was that later
As the Miller told his tale
That her face, at first just ghostly
Turned a whiter shade of pale

And so it was....

(fade)


I've been listening to the Sarah Brightman vs ATB trance mix of this (which is AWESOME) and the lyrics are beginning to strike a chord with me, though at first reading they don't make ANY sense, eh.

What about you guys? What do you think they mean?

[ 08-13-2004, 07:46 AM: Message edited by: Memnoch ]

[Dirty Meg]

The bit about 'the miller told his tale' is a reference to Geoffrey Chaucer, if that's any use. Also, in case you don't know, the vestal virgins were a religious order of ancient Roman women who were sworn to chastity.

[Lady Sedai]

Here's a more complete song lyric from a 'rare song lyric' website:

We skipped the light fandango
turned cartwheels 'cross the floor
I was feeling kinda seasick
but the crowd called out for more
The room was humming harder
as the ceiling flew away
When we called out for another drink
the waiter brought a tray

And so it was that later
as the miller told his tale
that her face, at first just ghostly,
turned a whiter shade of pale

She said, 'There is no reason
and the truth is plain to see.'
But I wandered through my playing cards
and would not let her be
one of sixteen vestal virgins
who were leaving for the coast
and although my eyes were open
they might have just as well've been closed

She said, 'I'm home on shore leave,'
though in truth we were at sea
so I took her by the looking glass
and forced her to agree
saying, 'You must be the mermaid
who took Neptune for a ride.'
But she smiled at me so sadly
that my anger straightway died

If music be the food of love
then laughter is its queen
and likewise if behind is in front
then dirt in truth is clean
My mouth by then like cardboard
seemed to slip straight through my head
So we crash-dived straightway quickly
and attacked the ocean bed
-----------------
As to what it means, I found this tidbit...

http://www.procolharum.com/99/groom-unreality.htm

"He couldn't unfortunately shed any clues on the song's lyrics which have baffled pop pickers for over 30 years.

'I have no idea at all. It never bothered me what the lyrics meant. It's a great record but not a great song. By that I mean, it hasn't really been improved on by a big artist in the same way that Aretha Franklin took Otis Redding's Respect and did a better version."

and

"Fisher also laughed off any higher meaning behind the song's lyrics. 'There are a lot of things you can get from the song. You could look at the mood of the piece while some people try to make sense of the words. Others try to look on it at an emotional level while some people think they can dance to it.'"

So it appears there *is* no meaning to the words, LOL. [img]tongue.gif[/img] Darn those guys on mind altering drugs! [img]tongue.gif[/img]

[Lady Sedai]

And here is a fascinating piece on someone *trying* to find meaning in the words...

http://www.constitution.org/col/jrb/...jrb_fedsoc.htm

LOL

[Link]

Hey Bren, we're still waiting for pictures [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Attalus]

I have always thought that it meant that a guy is lamenting his estrangement from his girl because he had not been paying attention to her, probably because he was doing too many drugs. Great essay, though, Lady Sendai.

[/)eathKiller]

To quote the great Nabeshin in Puny Puny poemy and Excel Saga: "Narcotics explain everything!"

[Memnoch]

Yeah, I had a feeling that it was all about taking squares... [img]redface.gif[/img]

[Yorick]

Originally posted by Lady Sedai: So it appears there *is* no meaning to the words, LOL. [img]tongue.gif[/img] Darn those guys on mind altering drugs! [img]tongue.gif[/img]

Not the first time, won't be the last ime.