The original lyrics had four verses, of which only two are heard on the original recording. He overheard someone at the party saying to a woman, 'You've turned a whiter shade of pale', and the phrase stuck in his mind. Keith Reid got the title and starting point for the song at a party. Cover versions of the song have also been featured in many films, for example, by King Curtis in Withnail and I and by Annie Lennox in The Net. The song has been included in many music compilations over the decades and has also been used in the soundtracks of numerous films and television shows, including The Big Chill, Purple Haze, Breaking the Waves, The Boat That Rocked, Tour of Duty, House M.D., Martin Scorsese's segment of New York Stories, Stonewall, Oblivion and Ken Burns and Lynn Novick's documentary series The Vietnam War. In 2009, it was reported as the most played song in the last 75 years in public places in the UK. In 2004, the performing rights group Phonographic Performance Limited recognised it as the most-played record by British broadcasting of the past 70 years and Rolling Stone placed it 57th on its list of 'The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time'. In 1998, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. In 1977, the song was named joint winner (along with Queen's ' Bohemian Rhapsody') of 'The Best British Pop Single 1952–1977' at the Brit Awards. In 2009, Fisher won co-writing credit for the music in a unanimous ruling from the Law Lords. Originally, the writing credits only listed Brooker and Reid. With its Bach-derived instrumental melody, soulful vocals, and unusual lyrics, the music of 'A Whiter Shade of Pale' was composed by Gary Brooker and Matthew Fisher, while the lyrics were written by Keith Reid. In the years since, 'A Whiter Shade of Pale' has become an enduring classic, with more than 1000 known cover versions by other artists. One of the anthems of the 1967 Summer of Love, it is one of the most commercially successful singles in history, having sold more than 10 million copies worldwide. Without much promotion, it reached number 5 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The single reached number 1 in the UK Singles Chart on 8 June and stayed there for six weeks. ' A Whiter Shade of Pale' is a song by the English rock band Procol Harum that was issued as their debut record on. 1967 single by Procol Harum 'A Whiter Shade of Pale'

Whiter shade of pale lyrics explained