This article was originally published in the December 2000 edition of Soul Search, the journal of The Sole Society.

Mention Pete Solley and Procol Harem fans think of "Strangers in Space," one of the outstanding tracks on the "Something Magic" album.

"Something Magic" was not a successful album when it was released, but in contrast, Pete Solley was successful both before and after Procol Harem.

Born 19^th October 1948, he earned a scholarship to Trinity College of Music in London at the age of thirteen, studying violin, piano and composition. After college, Pete was in demand as a session player in London studios, performing every type of music. He performed with the Crazy World of Arthur Brown, (the line-up included drummer Carl Palmer and guitarist Albert Lee), and English cult favorites, the Terry Reid Band. He toured with David Coverdales' Whitesnake.

In the 80's, following his Procol work, Pete began writing T.V. jingles, his clients including British Airways, BMW cars, and Coca Cola.

From jingles, he found his way into record production, and earned gold and platinum records for

C.B.S./Sony, Atlantic, Arista and many others. Some of his best known productions include The Romantics` classics, "What I Like About You," "Talking in your Sleep," John Parr's "Naughty Naughty," and more recently, Motorhead's Grammy nominated album "1916".

Aside from producing records, Pete played keyboards on a diverse range of albums, including discs by Eric Clapton and Al Stewart. Today he operates his own Peter Solley Productions music software company. He also enjoys orchestral and jazz writing, performing and recording, and continues to ever expand his artistic horizons.

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