A Salty Dog：識途老狗

Procol Harum， 在搖滾的範疇，是我的Beatles，我的Schumann，我華麗詭奇的巴洛克。

The Beatles 何時寫過如此不naive，又具可深思的歧義性偉大作品? Procol Harum 從第一張專輯起，就不去碰那些 She loves you, yeah yeah yeah 的歌詞、或是時顯廉價的 「流行鉤子梗」(pop hooks)。先不提PH他們的搖滾國歌級名曲" A Whiter Shade of Pale"，同張專輯裡不那麼sentimental，較為達觀釋然、卻一樣美如詩的"Homburg" 歌詞所提到一個詭異的、Dali 畫作般的鎮上大鐘：

The town clock in the market square
Stands waiting for the hour
When its hands they both turn backwards
And on meeting will devour
Both themselves and also any fool
Who dares to tell the time
And the sun and moon will shatter
And the signposts cease to sign

Procol Harum 的團名來自經紀人的朋友的一隻暹羅貓，procol harum 是癟腳拉丁文，意義可作「那些久遠的事物」。該團前五張，Robin Trower 這位鬼才吉他手離開之前的唱片都非常值得收，光是Keith Reid這位詩人所寫歌詞的豐富、晦澀、超現實，以及少見 electric organ 加 guitar 的濃郁編織之語彙，就值得你的入場入甕。

對多數人的入門磚，或許首張同名專輯是最適當的選擇。自己對我的朋友，會強烈推薦這張第三張專輯 "A Salty Dog"，靈魂人物風琴手兼製作人Matthew Fisher ，亦即 A Whiter Shade 這首名作中彈Hammond organ 部份的那位，離團前製作的唱片，唯一也是最後的一博。專輯曲與概念裡，「見過世面的水手行船人」意象（也帶著些性暗示），已在 "A Whiter Shade of Pale" 裡玩過。海裡來、潮裡去、上岸後遊戲人生的煙燻酒臭體味等「痞味」，讓音樂與歌詞都很有態度與畫面：許久沒上岸的水手，砂砂的、又鹹、又濕、又黏，很真實，很像人生。

可是，如果你覺得這個團只有玩世不恭，那就大錯特錯了。"A Salty Dog" 這首專輯同名曲的歌詞就像一首航海的哲思之詩（個人較喜歡原曲，Youtube 可以欣賞到現場版，請邊自調Salty Dog 這杯調酒，一飲而盡)：

'all hands on deck, we've run afloat!' I heard the captain cry
'explore the ship, replace the cook: let no one leave alive!'
Across the straits, around the horn: how far can sailors fly?
A twisted path, our tortured course, and no one left alive

We sailed for parts unknown to man, where ships come home to die
No lofty peak, nor fortress bold, could match our captain's eye
Upon the seventh seasick day we made our port of call

A sand so white, and sea so blue, no mortal place at all

We fired the gun, and burnt the mast, and rowed from ship to shore
The captain cried, we sailors wept: our tears were tears of joy
Now many moons and many Junes have passed since we made land
A salty dog, this seaman's log: your witness my own hand

再遠，水手能「飛」得多遠？一輩子，能夠容載幾次暈船及上岸?

這些詞，遠勝過千句 blowing in the wind 的軟弱無力。