foresyte t1_je7k7ag wrote on March 29, 2023 at 11:54 PM

I love Whiter Shade of Pale so much, it was a huge part of my musical experience while growing up. But, and I'm sorry to be that guy, but Matthew Fisher was forced to fight for decades against Gary Brooker and Keith Reid to get his fair share of recognition for his absolutely definitive Hammond Organ part of this song. He didn't even win past royalties, only future ones. But they always insisted that he didn't write those parts at all.

I just can't be an 'rip' person for Keith when he screwed over Matthew for most of their lives.

Again, I'm sorry, but I love this song too much to ignore the history and the harm Keith and Gary selfishly caused.

vch01 OP t1_je7m0g6 wrote on March 30, 2023 at 12:08 AM

For better or worse, it’s actually a very common practice in songwriting. The riff, however crucial to the song it is, was merely part of the arrangement. In a band setting the person who mapped out the basic song structure is the one getting the songwriting credit.

For instance, Freddie Mercury is credited as the sole writer of Bohemian Rhapsody even though the legendary guitar solo was entirely composed by Brian May.