Queen’s Roger Taylor, Eric Clapton and Genesis’ Mike Rutherford are among a star-studded line-up to perform at a benefit concert in memory of the late Gary Brooker.
The Procol Harum frontman sadly lost his battle with cancer last February at the age of 76, and the special concert in his honor will take place on December 4 at G Live in Guildford, Surrey,
He has chosen The Royal Marsden Cancer Charity and Cure Parkinsons to benefit from the money raised.
Paul Carrack, John Illsley, Andy Fairweather Low and Mike Sanchez will perform alongside a house band of session musicians including drummer Geoff Dunn, guitarist Geoff Whitehorn and keyboarder Josh Phillips, all of whom have played with Procol Harum.
Andy Locke, venue director at G Live, said: “We are honored to host this very special tribute to Gary Brooker MBE at G Live. Through his charity work, Gary was such a respected member of the Guildford community and his invaluable contribution to the music industry is demonstrated by the caliber of artists who are joining us at G Live to celebrate his life”.
As well as his career with the ‘Whiter Shade of Pale’ rockers, Gary played, wrote and sang in Clapton’s band and also contributed to the solo projects of Beatles legends Sir Paul McCartney and the late George Harrison.
Procol Harum was originally active between 1967 and 1977.
Despite various lineup changes, they reunited in 1991 and released their most recent EP in 2019.
In a statement released following his death, the band – which currently consists of Geoff Whitehorn, Matt Pegg, Josh Phillips and Geoff Dunn – said Gary was the “defining constant” of their history.
The statement read: “Gary’s voice and piano have been the only defining constant of Procol’s 50-year international concert career.
“Without stage antics or other gimmicks, he was always the most watchable musician in the show. But above all, he was a devoted and loyal husband to Franky, whom he met in 1965 and married in 1968, despite all his other interests and skills – prize-winning angler, pub owner, lyricist, painter, inventor.”
