Annie Lennox – Whiter Shade Of Pale [Gary Brooker / Keith Reid] Photography by © Vincent Peters. Album: Medusa (1995) by Annie Lennox. Release: Date March 14, 1995. Sound recording administered by SME. Medusa is the second solo album by the Scottish singer Annie Lennox, released in March 1995. It consists entirely ofcover songs, all originally recorded by male artists. “Whiter Shade of Pale” is the debut single by the English rock band Procol Harum, released 12 May 1967. Keith Reid is a songwriter who wrote the lyrics of every Procol Harum song , got the title and starting point for the song at a party. 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. The song is based on J. S. Bach’s Orchestral Suite N° 3 in D Major by Fisher’s Hammond organ. Although he did not sing or play an instrument, lyricist Keith Reid was a pivotal element to the long-term success of art rock mainstays Procol Harum.