A Whiter Shade of Pale — Harry Dean Stanton - Procol Harum

JUL 01 1986 · 12:00

A Whiter Shade of Pale — Harry Dean Stanton - Procol Harum (1986) Director: David Hogan Era: MTV Era / Classic Rock Revisionism (1985–1986) - A mid-decade retrospective video produced for Joel Gallen's Deja-View series, recontextualizing a canonical 1967 Summer of Love anthem through a cinematic, actor-driven narrative format tailored for emerging cable TV music video culture. High curatorial value as a documented anomaly in Procol Harum's video catalog: the only version of 'A Whiter Shade of Pale' to entirely replace the band with dramatic actors, and one of the clearest surviving examples of the Deja-View retrospective series format. The video's fast-cut narrative structure (105 scene changes, 3.72s avg shot length), warm tonality, and theatrical visual style make it a textbook specimen of mid-80s prestige music video production. Its confirmed directorial attribution to David Hogan — a pivotal figure in early American music video history — further elevates its archival significance. Context: Produced for Joel Gallen's Deja-View series in 1985–86, this video represents the mid-MTV era practice of retroactively commissioning music videos for pre-video-era classic rock catalog songs. 'A Whiter Shade of Pale' — originally released May 12, 1967 as Procol Harum's debut single — reached #1 in the UK for six weeks and #5 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming one of the defining anthems of the Summer of Love. By the mid-1980s, the song had accrued over a decade of cultural mythologization, and the Deja-View format allowed cable television to create fresh visual contexts for such canonical tracks. The choice of Harry Dean Stanton — then at a career peak following Paris, Texas (1984) and Repo Man (1984) — as the video's lead reflects the era's intersection of indie film credibility and music video prestige. The absence of any Procol Harum band member is a defining characteristic of this version. Director notes: This video, catalogued as 'Version 3' on IMDb (tt9045156), was produced as part of Joel Gallen's Deja-View music video series, originally airing on various networks from late 1985 into 1986. Notably, it featured no member of Procol Harum, instead casting Hollywood character actor Harry Dean Stanton and lyricist Bernie Taupin in a cinematic narrative format. It has also aired on VH1 Classic. The runtime is approximately 6 minutes, shot in color. The video represents a distinctive product of the mid-80s trend of commissioning actor-fronted, short-film-style music videos for classic catalog songs.