Comments pulled from YouTube: @tailsfromtinpanalley-thedo6198 I am the published author of The Ghosts of A Whiter Shade of Pale about Procol Harum (2012). Further to below, some people have asked about this theme tune, the composition, and it's connection with Procol Harum's early manager, one Jonathan Weston, in the Spring and early Summer of 1967. This is what I know..Jonathan Weston was and remains associated with the World in Action theme tune. Crucially, one question remained! Was he the man who took all of the royalties for the World In Action theme? If so? How? And, more to the point ,why? In the early months of 1967. Procol Harum's 'then' manager was one Guy Stevens, the man who gave Procol Harum their name and coined the phrase, "turned A Whiter Shade of Pale". He was bust for Cannabis (3 Joints, only) as the band was forming, but already ready to record their debut single AWSOP.. Stevens went on to serve 6 months in Wormwood Scrubs, London in 1967. According to Procol's AWSOP organist Matthew Fisher, Olympic Studios was booked before Jonathan Weston was actually signed-up to be their manager. AWSOP hit number 1 on June 10th 1967. By week 5 of being Number 1 (a six week run at Number 1) Weston had departed. At that point World In Action producer John Sheppard approached Weston whom he thought was the man who rep'd/managed Procol Harum, allegedly, but Procol Harum had already split from him in July of 1967. It would appear that Sheppard had wanted Procol Harum to compose the theme tune for Granada ITV's series. There is also the possibility that Weston had approached Sheppard in this regard. Weston hired Trident Studios in St Anne;'s Court, Soho. He booked the 2 session men Mick Weaver & Shawn Phillips John Sheppard paid for the studio hire. In a youtube posting still online by a channel called 'fivestring', in a post from 15 years ago, the musicians Weaver, Phillips, and 'businessman' Jonathan Weston all gave their side of the story. Shawn Phillips who gets the writing credit for the theme tune, said this, "Jonathan Weston had nothing to do with this piece of music. In fact, he walked into the session, as we were finishing up. I improvised it on the spot with Mick Weaver, and John Sheppard, (Producer for World In Action), paid for the session, adding, "Never did any of us dream that this music would run for more than 30 years. it was only 20 years later that I found out Weston had been collecting the royalties all those years. He collected over £189,000 and never gave me a penny of it"
Mick Weaver said, " I can't stand it any longer. My name is Mick Weaver, and I played the B3 on the World in Action theme music. Shawn Phillips gets all the bloody credit. Yes, he came to me with a descending chord progression, I did the rest. We spent an evening in a recording studio in the west end of London putting together segments of different lengths, and Granada T.V. used it for 20 plus years. Not only did I not receive one word of credit, I didn't even get the session fee. Philips gets the musical credit, Jonathan Weston got the money, and I am down the price of the tube fare I payed to get to the bloody studio" Jonathan Weston stated, "I produced every mili second of this theme, which was edited together from a jam session at Trident Studios actually on time, while I was producing for Polydor Records. Just for the record" What I might add, though, is some years ago, when I spoke with Mr Weston, while writing the biography of Procol Harum Mr Weston claimed that he had, in fact, played the organ on World In Action's famous theme tune.
If John Sheppard is reading this it would be interesting to see what he might recall from 49 years ago? .