Pink Floyd Thread - New Old Releases

[Rob McCow]

Don't worry - I've got no intention of reviewing Wish You Were Here until a few more people have caught up! @ Dave

[Dave Tudor]

Well, I'm hoping my review will be up either before or at the weekend - I've been listening to it again today, and I really fear I won't be able to do it justice.

[SiHart]

I'm looking forward to yur review Dave. I think it's probably best not to worry too much about doing it justice and just do it. It's very difficult to be objective about something you really love, so just plunge in and stop worrying.

Si xx

[Dave Tudor]

THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON

Harvest SHVL 804
Released 3 March 1973 (UK) 10 March 1973 (US, Harvest SMAS 11163)
Highest UK Chart Position: 2 (364 weeks on chart)
Highest US Chart Position: 1 (741 weeks on chart – over 1350 weeks in total!)

DAVID GILMOUR (Vocals, Guitars, VCS3)
NICK MASON (Percussion, Tape Effects)
RICHARD WRIGHT (Keyboards, Vocals, VCS3)
ROGER WATERS (Bass Guitar, Vocals, VCS3, Tape Effects)

Produced by PINK FLOYD
Recorded at Abbey Road, Studios, London between June 1972 and January 1973

Engineer Alan Parsons
Assistant Peter James
Mixing Supervised by Chris Thomas

Saxophone on ‘Us and Them’ and ‘Money’ Dick Parry

Vocals on ‘The Great Gig In The Sky’ by Clare Torry
Backing Vocals Doris Troy, Leslie Duncan, Liza Strike Barry St John

Sleeve Design by Hipgnosis
Sleeve Art by George Hardie N.T.A.
Photography by Hipgnosis
Stickers Art by George Hardie N.T.A.

All lyrics by ROGER WATERS

SIDE ONE

1. SPEAK TO ME (Mason) 1.13

An ominous, pounding heartbeat… a ticking clock… a pendulum… a cash register… mocking laughter… a wailing voice… all these strange sounds blend together to make a hugely atmospheric, if rather brief sound collage. A most unusual, though very effective, opening, which crashes into…

2. BREATHE (Waters, Gilmour, Wright) 2.46

A mellow, laid-back number, in the now familiar Pink Floyd style, shrouded in dreamy slide guitar, but now encompassed in a fuller, richer soundscape. David Gilmour’s vocals are crystal clear, and the words of Roger Waters (this is the first time that he would take sole charge of lyric-writing duties) more refined, more achingly poetic. Alan Parsons, effectively the producer of this album, makes his mark straight away, the lush sound filling the room and surrounding the listener – and this is years before 5.1. A beautiful, haunting track, which stops abruptly –

3. ON THE RUN (Gilmour, Waters) 3.31

- transforming into something completely different: On The Run is like no other track produced by the Floyd to date. A persistent hi-hat rhythm, and the strange, other-worldly sounds of the VCS3 synthesiser pan from speaker to speaker, over a bed of airport tannoy announcements and more of those rather unsettling voices which have pervaded the album from the first track. Repetitive but hypnotic, this is another of those sonic experiments which the band have mastered over the years, but, unlike Interstellar Overdrive, A Saucerful Of Secrets et al, this is far from being of its time – instead, On The Run is years ahead of its time: this is basically rave music, twenty years early! Although not an easy track to listen to, and certainly not one which can be enjoyed out of context, it still astonishes in the way it defies expectations, and how it marks out Pink Floyd as true pioneers (of dance music, obviously).

4. TIME (Mason, Waters, Wright, Gilmour) 7.05

A cacophony of chiming, ringing clocks herald this, one of the finest of all Pink Floyd recordings. An epic, dramatic opening, presents a wide vista of sound in which Nick Mason’s drums pound and echo around us, before those heavy tom-toms wallop us into the song. Gilmour’s raw vocals and slick guitar lend the song extraordinary power, balanced with Richard Wright’s more mellow middle-eight. However, this is almost nothing compared with David Gilmour’s stunning guitar solo, perhaps his best ever – soulful and mournful, Gilmour is simply a master, pushing the instrument into places one could never dream, wringing every emotion from the strings, and bringing our every possible feeling from the listener. This is the icing on a quite delicious cake, and with Waters’ brilliantly bleak, intelligent lyrics, Time represents a band finally fulfilling all of its potential. And how.

Breathe (reprise)

As if that wasn’t enough, Time segues effortlessly into this brief reprise, emphasising that The Dark Side Of The Moon is one complete piece. Slower, and more funereal than before, this prepares us for what comes next…

5. THE GREAT GIG IN THE SKY (Wright) 4.47

The solemn piano intro, beautifully played by composer Wright, really sets the hairs on end, while Jerry Driscoll (the Irish doorman at Abbey Road studios) gives us his stark thoughts on the subject of death. Suddenly, this most unconventional track bursts into life, thanks to the soaring, wailing vocals of session singer Clare Torry. Again, this is like nothing we have heard before, by Floyd or any other band. It is quite remarkable that the song conveys such beauty, such power, such raw emotion, without a single lyric, and must get the credit here (after all, she was paid just £30), but Wright’s genius in creating such a piece cannot be understated. The Great Gig In The Sky closes a jaw-droppingly brilliant first half in breath-taking style. Astounding.

[Dave Tudor]

Pink Floyd, 1973

1. MONEY (Waters) 6.24

The song which changed Pink Floyd concerts forever. Opening with the sounds of cash registers, painstakingly pieced together to form a 7/4 rhythm, this mind-bogglingly brilliant tape loop soons blends into the now-familiar bass line: in turns, jazzy, slick and heavy, Money is largely an out-and-out rocker, and it is not surprising that, from this point on, the fans would no longer be so respectfully quiet at gigs. Waters' lyrics (again sung, in style, by Gilmour) are among his most biting, but I am sure the irony that Money is the most famous track from the album which would earn him shit loads of the stuff was never lost on him! The instrumental section is superb, and it really brings the number exploding into life, thanks to some brilliant instrumental sparring between Gilmour, Mason and saxophonist Dick Parry, who brings real colour to the track. Of course this all-out jam is pure 70's rock indulgence, but what's wrong with that? Overall, Money has never been an absolute favourite of mine, but one cannot deny its power, force and irresistibilty - this is Floyd hitting the jackpot.

2. US AND THEM (Waters, Wright) 7.49

Parry brings his graceful playing to this beautifully haunting epic. Sublimely vast in its sound structure, Alan Parsons creates something really magical here. Listen to how he subtly echoes Gilmour's delicate vocals to bring a hypnotic quality to Waters' simple, poignant lyrics, or how he builds up layers of voices in the middle-eight parts to create a spine-tingling wall of sound. One of the most remarkable songs on the album, Waters deals with everything from poverty and the class divide to - an ever-familiar subject - the effects of war, and this is wrapped up in some exquisite music, largely the work of Richard Wright. Grand and thought-provoking, Us And Them is quite brilliant.

3. ANY COLOUR YOU LIKE (Gilmour, Mason, Wright) 3.25

Effectively a bridging piece (or just an excuse for a group jam, if you like!), Any Colour You Like still stands up on its own merits, and once again conjures a wonderful sound collage, with its whirling synths and treated guitars. Simple and hypnotic, the instrumental never outstays its welcome, and it builds up nicely to the album's finale.

Poster from the original LP release of The Dark Side Of The Moon

4. BRAIN DAMAGE (Waters) 3.51

Roger Waters, vocalist, finally makes his appearance, his darkly humourous lyrics tackling the album's overriding theme (madness) full on. Unsurprisingly, there appears to be an occasional nod to Syd present, the band once again seemingly unable to escape his shadow (a shadow which would loom large over the next album, in more ways than one). In turns Brain Damage is haunting, spooky, and mesmerising, featuring some lovely synth work, and a 'chorus' which is blissfully uplifting (I still get goosebumps every thime I hear those voices join together to sing "I'll see you on the dark side of the moon"). Short and to the point, and also devilishly mischievous, this song is one of the highlights of the album for me, and it builds to a rapturous climax...

5. ECLIPSE (Waters) 2.06

A glorious coda, Eclipse (the original title piece of the suite) is simple in its lyrical and musical structure (basically, another typical Roger Waters list, sung over a four-chord motif), but unashamedly epic, rousing and climactic in its execution. In this one song, Waters sums up what the album is all about, ruminating for one last time on the human condition, and its prospects, and guess what? The prognosis isn't good, folks! However, with Waters and Gilmour providing some great harmonies, Wright and Maosn playing brilliantly, and also some stirring backing vocals in the mix, Eclipse helps us to forget our plight for a while, and provides a hugely satisfying close to this work of art. Magnificent.

The 20th anniversary boxset reissue (left), and the 30th anniversay SACD (right)

There have been many, many words written over the years, trying to explain why, of all Pink Floyd's albums, it's The Dark Side Of The Moon which speaks to so many people across the world. Perhaps it's the impeccable production, or the sheer brilliance of the songwriting and musicianship which sees everything finally gel for the band, or that familiar, iconic cover, which makes the album reach out to so many, rich or poor, old or young, whatever the language - who knows? But speak to everyone it continues to do, and there is little surprise, really, that it should remain one of the world's biggest-ever selling records - this, despite the bleakest of subject matters. But, perhaps, in its dark lyrics, we all recognise something, which remains relevant over thirty-five years on: like an ancient portent of doom, we are all eclipsed by the moon, it seems, and it's driving us to insanity. We need to really look at and redress the themes covered by this album to do something about it - and if that means buying more than 30 million copies of it, then so be it! OK, so music probably won't change much really in the long run, despite its best efforts, but - and despite Jerry the doorman rather cheekily claiming that "there is no dark side of the moon really" - when we have an album such as The Dark Side Of The Moon to enrapture us, then the world, for me, at least, is a far better place. I think it is the finest record ever produced, and as close to perfection as I believe popular music will ever get. A masterpiece - 10 out of 10.

[Rob McCow]

We're waiting with held breath!

Which is probably a rather silly thing to do.

I agree, it's pretty hard to write about something you really love, but I think your passion for the album shows through. I certainly agree that On The Run is miles ahead of it's time and has (sort of) succesfully avoided becoming dated. It's genuinely hard for the average listener to tell what the hell is making those noises!

[Wayne]

Interesting snippet including 'On the Run', in this short segment about EMS Synthesizers:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BPf71frf1RA

(The inclusion of Hawkwind in this clip is entirely coincidental)

[Dave Tudor]

Great clip there, Wayne! I'd love to own a VCS3. I wonder when that programme was shown, then? I love old analogue synths, and that looks like it was a very interesting programme. It's always good to see old Brocky, too!

[Wayne]

I wonder when that programme was shown, then? I love old analogue synths, and that looks like it was a very interesting programme.

Dunno, but i'd like to see the whole thing as well. I'll have to see if anybody knows on the forum at Hawkwind.com.

It's always good to see old Brocky, too!

Indeed. Hawkwind may be a more a cult band these days, but Brocky is ledge! He's 68 this year you know, & still going! They're playing their 40th anniversary shows later this year.

[Dino]

Just finished drafting my Wish You Were Here review. (28KB!)
As much as I enjoy this thread, I've a feeling I'm not going to be able to top the next review somehow. Still carry on though!
And thanks also to Dave for confirming "the power of the Dark Side..."!

[Philipnet]

Dark Side of the Moon

When this Time Team was first announced, Dark Side of the Moon was one of the albums I wanted to review. Along with two others, Dark Side is an epitome of how I see Pink Floyd. Yet, as I write this, I feel the words I type won't do the album the justice it deserves.


The Album
What I love about the album is that there is, in most cases, a segway or continuation between each track; no track is an island unto itself. The listener - me - goes on a journey for the 42 minutes and 54 seconds that the album is playing. In fact this album has been very difficult to review; every time I put it into the CD player my mind just gets swept up in this journey! Re-engaging my conscious mind and turning on the critic takes effort.


The Tracks

Speak To Me
It sounds like a collection of samples of bits and pieces from the whole album - it's the sound of things to come

Breath
This piece is so mellow and relaxed; life has to be this chilled out
"Run, rabbit run"

On the Run
No obvious song/melody, only a progression; a feeling of travelling (running?) with this piece as the soundtrack.

Time
Wakey wakey!
Bye, bye life; hello death. What would it be like to be at the end of you life? You might just find out listening to this piece - or indeed the album.
"And then one day you find, 10 years have gone behind you,
No one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun."
"Hanging on in quite desperation, is the English way"

The Great Gig in the Sky
It's mellow, again
The female opera singer parts are my favourite of this track.
The gentleman talking about death and dying has a 'meaning of life' quality about it.
"Why should I be frightened of dying?
I see no reason for it; you've got to go sometime"

Money
There's a blues/jazz/soulful feeling with this track; helped no doubt by the sax. There's a materialistic quality coming through with the lyrics.
"Grab that cash with both hands and make a stash."

Us and Them
Things turn rather retrospective with the slow 'resigned' sound of Us and Them. The sax comes in and we know this is going to be a slow piece.
"And after all, we're ordinary men"

Any Colour You Like
No lyrics, and I don't mind that. Some synthesiser work/effects, but I'm just too into where ever my mind has gone to. In fact most of the later half of the album could just be one long track for I care .

Brain Damage
The track begins and you suddenly find your mind is some way away from where it started 37 minutes and 3 second ago .
"The lunatic is in my head [manic laughter]"
"I'll see you on the Dark Side of the Moon"

Eclipse
The end; the final finale! Short and very sweet and it ends just like it started.
"The Sun is eclipsed by the Moon"


Notables
At the beginning of my forth year at University I went to a poster sale at the Union. I picked up a couple of pieces; including poster of a prism which had a beam of light being shone onto one side and a rainbow coming out of the other. I saw the poster and thought "Oh, that looks cool" .

It was several months later that I found the physical album in HMV, and that's when I realised that the poster wasn't just the poster. I already owned other Pink Floyd albums; seeing Dark Side of the Moon on the shelves it was natural to purchase and listen to it.

[Anthony Williams]

So, having recently aquired the Pink Floyd back-catalogue, Ant joins the time team, and begins by playing catch-up, starting with....

The Piper at the Gates of Dawn

1. Astronomy Domine

It's difficult to believe that this was happening in 1967. This is my first real taste of early Pink Floyd, and when compared with other music from the same era, this really is ground-breaking stuff. An absolutely storming introduction to their first album, with some great guitar work and drumming. Many bands have tried to copy this sort of sound, but very few have even come close to succeeding! Superb.

2. Lucifer Sam

In complete contrast to the previous track, this song is really of its time - the guitar riff is very very 60s, as well as the sound of Barrett's vocals. Whilst the track is nothing special, it certainly has a very enjoyable 60s sound, and there's nothing wrong with that!

3. Matilda Mother

What a wonderful piece of early psychedelia! Admittedly, I've gotten used to later psychedelia, but this a great example of how the genre started out and evolved. Certainly, I agree with Si Hart when he said that it's in the style of The Village Green Preservation Society, or Ogden's Nut Gone Flake. I really like this one - it's certainly got some very nice chilled-out parts, particularly at the end.

4. Flaming

My first impression is that I don't like this track very much. There's just something that doesn't quite gel - the keyboard-harpsichord break towards the end, along with the guitars and Syd Barrett's vocals. It's just not for me!

5. Pow R. Toc H.

The beginning of this one left me thinking "what the f***?!?!?" I like the nice jazzy-piano, before it goes really bizarre. Despite that, I quite like it - surely one of the origins of prog!? Experimentalism at its best!

6. Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk

I really like this one, too. It's experimental, yet noticeably different to everything else on this album. Thank god for Roger Waters throwing in something different into the mix from Syd Barrett's hippy ramblings! There's a fantastically groovy bassline, and some wonderful drumming and keyboard playing.

7. Interstellar Overdrive

This feels like a bit of a showcase for the abilities of the band members. Certainly, all are at the top of their game for this early period. Every band member reallyl gets their chance to shine on this instrumental track. Like the album opener, this track is really ahead of it's time - creating a fantastic soundscape that has undoubtedly influenced countless prog and psychedelic bands over the last 40 years. Even so, I can imagine that they were on a significantly large amount of drugs when recording this album... enjoyable, none the less! Oh, and the ending is great.

8. The Gnome

How very 60s! This is a bit more back to Earth after Interstellar Overdrive. Whilst the lyrics are nothing special, this is a wonderful antidote to the psydelic soundscapes of the previous track. It's a little silly, but I do quite like this one, even if some don't. However, it certainly isn't a stand-out track.

9. Chapter 24

I like the organ/stylophone effects through the beginning of this one. However, Barrett's voice is really beginning to irritate me by this point - whilst it's acceptable for a few songs, I find that it really begins to grate by now. It's not a brilliant track, and I think that it's a bit dull, if I'm honest.

10. The Scarecrow

The intro to this is just wonderful - with the percussion and the organ. It's simple, but very effective. I also like the folky guitars, which work very well with the other instruments. Barrett annoys me slightly less on this track, and it doesn't outstay its welcome. Not brilliant, but not bad.

11. Bike

This is one of those tracks on this album that everyone knows. Certainly, the most famous song from this album. I don't think it's bad - I like the music, and the rhythmic drums and vocals. I certainly don't mind Barrett's vocals here, and I think that they work very well. Rick Wright's pianos etc. work wonderfully. Yes, the lyrics may be a bit silly, but I still like them.

Round-up

I was less enamoured by Pink Floyd's first effort than I thought I'd be, but it's by no means bad. I look forward to seeing how they develop, particularly in the post-Barrett era, to the Dark Side and onwards sound that I'm used to!

Stand-out tracks: Astronomy Domine, Take Up thy Stethoscope and Walk, Interstellar Overdrive, Bike.

3/5

Ant x

[SiHart]

Hooray! Good review Ant and nice to have you onboard!

Si xx

[Anthony Williams]

so, moving very swiftly on...

A Saucerful of Secrets

1. Let There Be More Light

Wow! What a fantastically funky opening! I really like the way it builds, starting with the bass and drums, bringing in the organ until.... it all changes pace, and the guitar comes in in a pseudo-Egyptian sound. The lyrics are wonderful. This really excites me much more than anything on the previous album. The repetitive verses work well in contrast to the chorus parts. Dino Cloud said that this wasn't a brilliant introduction to David Gilmour, but I disagree - I think that his guitar parts work really, really well. This was a really enjoyable, slightly psychedelic track. Absolutely brilliant, and this really should've been on Echoes.

2. Remember A Day

The opening to this track is very nice - chilled out, and some wonderful work from all the band members, before going a bit more upbeat. A wonderful beat, but very 60s. It does sound like it could have been on Piper, but it's not at all bad. The song itself isn't bad, but it goes on for slightly too long, in my opinion. I very much doubt that it could become a favourite of mine.

3. Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun

I already knew this song from Echoes. I've always thought that the soundscape created in this song was so wonderfully trippy, and I can just imagine the boys from the Floyd tripping out on acid and then writing this after a come down. It's quite spooky, and has a fairly haunting quality about it. Yes, it is repetitive, but I think that it works here. The whispering, encouraging one to Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun almost comes across as a voice in my head, and it freaks me out. But I like it!

4. Corporal Clegg

The opening to this track is fantastic! But after the vocals come in... oh dear. The lyrics really are just terrible. However, musically, I like it. It's got a wonderfully bluesy tune, with quite a groove going on. It certainly won't be one of my favourites, but I don't think it's nearly as bad as some on here have suggested. It certainly suggests a more humourous side to the band. Hell, I even like the kazoo solo - hilarious! Gilmour is quickly proving his worth to the band, with some fantastic guitar work.

5. A Saucerful of Secrets

Another soundscape-y piece here, which pushes the boundaries. This is bizarre, terrifying and wonderful all at the same time. The first part is really, really eerie, and whilst I normally praise highly rhythmic songs, the second part to this song is likewise... terrifying and unnerving. Were they on a bad trip whilst they wrote this? For some reason, the whole thing just sets me on edge. And for that, I think it's absolute genius - no other track has EVER managed to make me feel like this. The final part of the track is utterly beautiful, and really feels like a relief after the terrors experienced within the first three parts of the track - the calm after the storm, as it were.

6. See-Saw

Although not bad, this song really suffers from its placing on the album. The title track really should have been the final track on the album, and thus this track just doesn't quite sit right. It's actually quite a good song, with some fantastic musicianship throughout - some very nice piano/organ work, and some excellent drumming.

7. Jugband Blues

As has already been said, it's impossible to divorce this track from the knowledge of Barrett's psychological decline. As a result, this song is almost upsetting to hear, despite its more upbeat tone in the first part. The Salvation Army section makes it come across as a bit of a mess, just as I imagine that Barrett's psyche was. The repeated "lalalalalala" comes across as disturbing, including the music that comes in underneath afterwards, with the haunting guitar part. The mellow final 35 seconds create a melancholy feel to the song, and this makes the song even more upsetting. It is because of the effect that this song has, that it is so fantastic - it's a prologue to Barrett's tenure in Pink Floyd, and it's placing on the album shows a band that is trying to look forward, but cannot help look back at the same time - and Barrett's decline will be revisited in later albums.

Round-up

I felt that this album was a lot stronger than Piper - this is moving closer in the direction of the Pink Floyd that I know. Whilst there were some good tracks on Piper, there were also a lot more duds than on this album. The only song I didn't really like was Remember a Day. I'm really looking forward to see the direction that the band go with the next album, devoid of the influence of Syd Barrett.

Stand-out tracks: Let There Be More Light, Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun, A Saucerful of Secrets, Jugband Blues

4/5

Ant x

[Dave Tudor]

Good to see you on board at long last, Any, and what great, enthusiastic reviews! You really seemed to enjoy the first two albums (and rightly so, too!), so I'm sure you'll love the stuff to come - although it'll be interesting to read what you think of 'Ummagumma'!

[Rob McCow]

Well done Ant for taking two days what it took us a month to achieve! Interesting to see that the title track on Saucerful really got to you. Perhaps I'll need to have a few more listens to it in future. It must have been pretty awesome live in the 60's/70's though, with the light show and everything.

[Anthony Williams]

Thank you very much, guys... it's been a real pleasure so far! Anyway, since I'm playing catch-up - moving on with more haste!

Soundtrack from the Film More

1. Cirrus Minor

Well... this is different to the openers from the first two albums. The vocals have a somewhat ethereal quality to them, and the organ and guitar is very reminiscant of the title track to A Saucerful of Secrets, which really was one of my favourite parts of that track. I immediately prefer Gilmour's vocals to Barrett's. This is a definite change in style, and one that I quite like!

2. The Nile Song

ROCK! This is heavier than anything that we've had from the Floyd before, and really seems to be a Led Zeppelin-influenced song, or could even be described as sounding a bit like The Who. Nout wrong with that! The somewhat screamed vocals work well with the song, giving it a further oompfh.

3. Crying Song

Well, this is chilled-out! Quite hypnotic, with a haunting melody. Waters' bassline is fantastic, as is Gilmour's guitar work, with the latter fast becoming one of my favourite guitarists. However, I'm not entirely sure whether I like this or not, but I could really imagine having it as background music.

4. Up The Khyber

Bizarre! How very avant-garde. I'm not overly keen on this one, the out-of tune piano work with Nick Mason's drumming just doesn't quite work for me. This is a psychedelic freakout that really belonged on the previous album.

5. Green is the Colour

This is much better! Nice and chilled-out again. Whilst not too exciting, the folky sound and the lyrics to this one are quite nice, and Gilmour's vocals really suit the song. This is light-years on from the Syd Barrett era - if this had been on the album before, it would've been much more hippy in style. They're making steps towards the Pink Floyd eras that I know. Nick Mason's piano at the end is wonderful

6. Cymbaline

Whilst laid back, the chorus packs a poppy punch that sounds quite wonderful, with Gilmour's singing continuing to impress. Waters' lyrics, whilst not necessarily brilliant, are good, and somewhat post-modern at times. All in all, whilst I don't have a huge amount to say about this one, I do like it, and I think it probably should have been on Echoes.

7. Party Sequence

The beat here sounds quite tribal in places. I haven't hear any music like this at any party I've been to, however. Maybe things were different in the 60s? Not one for me, although it probably works quite well as a piece of soundtrack music.

8. Main Theme

This one gets off to an eerie start, but the introduction of the drums and bassline begins to change that. I can imagine that this track works very well as a piece of soundtrack music, but I feel that it would be completely out of place on a normal album. I must admit to getting slightly bored towards the end of this. To me, it's background music, more than anything.

9. Ibiza Bar

Fantastic! More late 60s rock! I love it! Gilmour continues to shine as a guitarist, and the semi-screamed lyrics are very reminiscant of The Nile Song - as Dave Tudor said, it's basically a re-tread of that, which I don't really mind! It's a well-needed break from the tedium of the last two songs. I like it!

10. More Blues

A blues jam, unsurprisingly. Gilmour is fantastic here, and the band really did make the right decision in bringing him in. It's very much of the time, being the sort of thing that the likes of Jimmy Page and Jimi Hendrix were playing around with.

11. Quicksilver

Well, this gets off to an interesting start, seeming to promise to be almost as terrifying as A Saucerful of Secrets. Whilst it may work in the context of soundtrack music, it comes across as dull listening. Not my bag, I'm afraid.

12. A Spanish Piece

Well, this is slightly more exciting! It's as it says on the tin, really. The "vocals" are awful, but it shows Gilmour's versatility as a guitarist.

13. Dramatic Theme

This has quite a nice bass groove to it from Waters, and Gilmour's guitar work compliments that well, as does Mason's drumming. This is basic, but effective, space-rock.

Round-up

Overall, I was disappointed by this album. I understand that it was designed as a soundtrack, but it just didn't do it for me. It had its moments, though (see my choice of stand-out tracks). Overall, It's not bad, but I just feel that Pink Floyd's attempt at a soundtrack is not really the sort of thing that I expect out of them. I'd take the first two albums over this anytime, to be honest.

Stand-out tracks: The Nile Song, Green is the Colour, Cymbaline, Ibiza Bar

2.5/5

Ant x

[Rob McCow]

wish you were here

ESSENTIAL INFORMATION
Recorded at - Abbey Road Studios, London, between January and July 1975.
Released September 15, 1975.
Highest UK Chart Position – No.1
Highest US Chart Position – No.2
(Another) one of the most awesome album covers of all time shows a man shaking hands with someone – himself? – and burning. They’re standing in a huge, open film lot. The right hand side of the cover is a partially burnt white insert, with a stylised graphic of two hands shaking in a circle in the bottom corner.

TRACK LIST
SIDE A
Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V) (Gilmour, Waters, Wright) – 13:31
Welcome to the Machine (Waters) - 7:30

SIDE B
Have a Cigar (Waters) – 5:08
Wish You Were Here (Gilmour, Waters) - 5:26
Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts VI-IX) (Gilmour, Waters, Wright) - 12:28

HOT LINKS
Lyrics - http://www.pink-floyd-lyrics.com/htm...re-lyrics.html
Wiki – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wish_You_Were_Here_(album)
The far better Pink Floyd & Co Link - http://pinkfloyd-co.com/disco/wish/wish_album.html
Rolling Stone TRASH the album: http://hk.geocities.com/waylonyeung/...youcomment.htm
But it’s “Das beste Album aller Zeiten!” http://www.wdr.de/radio/wdr2/sonderdetail/407811.phtml
Pulse version of Wish You Were Here – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DXCH...eature=related
Shine On You Crazy Diamond – it demanded a Ukulele version. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYEDSQOAdxQ
Become the Ultimate Pink Floyd Fan! http://www.pinkfloyd.ultimatefanpage.com/
Relive the vinyl experience! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Pep2ZVUqwI


OTHER ALBUMS OF 1975
Bob Dylan – Blood on the Tracks
Neil Young – Tonight's the Night
Bruce Springsteen – Born to Run
Patti Smith – Horses
Joni Mitchell – The Hissing of Summer Lawns
David Bowie – Young Americans
Led Zeppelin – Physical Graffiti
Queen – A Night at the Opera
Fleetwood Mac – Fleetwood Mac
Lou Reed – Metal Machine Music
ABBA – ABBA

[Rob McCow]

Shine On You Crazy Diamond Parts 1-5
This is the correct opening for an album. Drifting towards you out of nowhere, a simple synth sound. It’s like the setting for a movie, with something huge and awesome hovering into view.
The lead is taken up variously by the vocals, synth, guitar and saxophone, but for me the most successful is the guitar, particular the way it interplays with the vocal line.
It’s quite hard to tell who’s singing in this song, I suspect its Dave and Roger singing together, possibly with Rick as well. This is part of the whole concept of the band disappearing from their music and being completely anonymous. The same thing occurs when the guitar sounds and synth sounds start to overlap. The listener has to struggle to work out what instrument is actually playing, or indeed if they are instruments at all!
The famous four notes that open the guitar line at 4:19 are so different and strange. It’s not a typical chord structure, it’s more like a random sequence, yet it’s almost two notes repeated. The way it then gets absorbed into the melody of the song is impressive.
The saxophone playing is damned fine.
It wasn’t until quite recently that I found Syd’s name in the song title. Shine on You crazy Diamond indeed.

Welcome To The Machine
After the smooth sound of SYD comes their dirtiest, bleakest noise yet.
I have to say, much as I love this album I’ve never liked Welcome To The Machine / Have A Cigar as much. They always feel like the pain that has to be got through before the reward of the other tracks, which is unfair. This is a spectacular song in it’s own right, the building guitar sequences and sweeping synths are fabulous.
What I really love though are the linking sound effects. This track ends with the listener being whisked away in a lift to a party that slowly gets quieter… and quieter… it’s all very unsettling! Pink Floyd were absolute masters at creating this kind of atmosphere on their albums by this point and it’s a shame that such involved sequencing isn’t developed on their later albums. Even on The Wall, the songs simply flow into each other, rather than being interrupted by these mood pieces.

Have A Cigar
Things get even dirtier with Have A Cigar. Try and work out which member of the Floyd is singing on this one and you’re f***ked – it’s Roy Harper!
Truly, by this point there is no Pink Floyd. There is only the music and it’s almost impossible to imagine that any human being is responsible for producing it.
The problem is that this is too similar to Welcome to The Machine. However, it’s more or less nullified because the lyrics are spot on. Comical and cynical, but sung with absolute dirt-fuelled passion.
The guitar solo at the end is especially exciting. Blistering is the word. Then it all gets sucked up into a radio! Genius!

Wish You Were Here
The best Pink Floyd song.
Oh yes, it is! It’s spectacularly moving. I love the opening. It makes me think of a drunk old guitarist playing along with the radio. The rest of the band then fall in and it goes to the next level… it’s simply beautiful.
And… Beautifully simple!
Sorry, that’s a bit crass. Anyway, it’s a bloody masterpiece, the absolute pinnacle of Floyd’s career and a song that always reaches out to me, even though I’ve worked it out and played it a hundred times on the guitar.

Shine On You Crazy Diamond Parts 6-9
This starts off quite far away from the previous parts of the song, with some dramatic and heavy synth and guitar work. Gilmour’s slide playing is astonishing, it doesn’t sound like guitar at all, more like the screech of an alien war machine.
Then he swaps over to ordinary guitar… the whole thing slows down and the organ growls… and we’re back in the original refrain! It’s a brilliant segue. We get a little bit of singing, a heart-wrenchingly honest and direct tribute to Syd, before the five minute outro. Which is probably the most prog-sounding five minutes of any Pink Floyd album. Those synth sounds may have dated horribly, but they’re absolutely perfect, cutting through the air with pristine precision. It’s the only part of the album that sounds truly sci-fi, an appropriate ending for such an earthy, Earth-bound album.

Overall – despite not liking two of the tracks quite so much, this is my favourite Pink Floyd album. The whole artist package is gorgeous, from the sand / heat themes of the photographs on the sleeve to the swirling noises that introduce the second half of Shine On You Crazy Diamond.

I wouldn’t even call it a work of genius. Pink Floyd create a whole artistic world that sucks the listener in every time they listen to it. Which is surely the point of any artistic endeavour!

[Dino]

And it begins!
Will have to put my review in two parts. And it does end in a face off between Dark Side Of The Moon and Wish You Were Here fight fans!!
Interesting stand you have on this album's position Rob...

[Dino]

When Lollipop women, cooks and others win the lottery, you usually see reports about how they went back to work the next day...
Wish You Were Here is a lot like this.

SIDE ONE

SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND (part I)

Another tried and tested fade up then on basically the sound of what would become the regular default production for the 1980's? Although not even Phil Collins, at his height where he just had to fart into a microphone for it to top the charts, would have left the first chord change until over a minute in!
A soft, electronic cathedral of Richard Wright accepts the request of the guitar of David Gilmour, to kneel before the altar and pray for a miracle.

SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND (part II)

The prayer is answered.
And just when it appears to have been a flash in the pan, the answer is repeated, though still sceptics to this day deny proof Pink Floyd existed?
The band rushing up after the fourth riff is one of the most exciting rushes you can get from listening to Pink Floyd.
I remember on the Rock 'N' Roll Years, this part of the song was used to soundtrack 1975 footage of the death of Franco.
The Gilmour moment of the weeeeek kicks off early.

SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND (part III)

At least Nick Mason wasn't asked to contribute to this piece! A Richard Wright solo but without San Tropez-style soloing. Just (and even then the word "just" in this context carries a lot of merit) a chord sequence I can imagine being played by a lonely organist in a small chapel.

SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND (part IV)

Oh come on! This second guitar is hardly worth the part it's allowed? The last part would easily have lead into part five, as it does on the Echoes version, but English guitarists in the 1970's with their egos, eh? Nowhere near as haunting as the solo from part two. Thankfully edited out of Echoes.

SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND (Part V)

Roger Waters takes lead vocal in this song that more than makes up for the last instrumental section we've just gone through. I'm not sure how treated his vocals are but the tone is mournful, but able to rise above the sorrow to sing the lyrics. Gilmour and Wright relegated to backing vocals with The Black Berries and break one of the Floyd's golden formula's. And they let Roger get away with it! Shine On is in the top ten Waters lyrics but I can't help but feel he's just name checking Barrettesque images rather than opening his heart any more than he feels comfortable doing? There's a theme to this albums lyrics, that plays down the bands own involvement with the issues. "Well you wore out your welcome" yeah, so was he pushed or did he jump?
Tenderness comes in the final verse before the saxophone solo but even that doesn't go a little way to excuse the saxophone solo.
And if they were going for the Barrett effect, why didn't they get two girl saxophonists?

WELCOME TO THE MACHINE

This begins as the promised follow up to On The Run. Sound effects of elevators and futuristic technology that still relies on steam power for some reason? I like the instrumentation on this one. Just an acoustic guitar and layers of keyboards. Not as futuristic as it thinks it is as the bpm is far slower than the future predicted. I've no idea if it's two or three voices on this. Very bitter, but it does fall into the "Poor us eh? Being rich stars and having to deal with people in organisations etc?" trap. It's always the machines fault. If it had a lyric like "And you didn't say no at the time?" or "And you knew what you were signing up to?" this song would at least be a lot more human. After all, why would a machine compose a song about being a machine? Just what the British wanted to hear in 1975... The ending space taxi to the party is a fantastic ending and seems a welcome throwback to Ummagumma days.
Side one then, it was epic in length, sound and scale....but still not as warm, united or with the range of side one of Dark Side Of the Moon?

[Dino]

SIDE TWO

HAVE A CIGAR

The lesser known brother to Money. I can see a slight influence from King Crimson's 1973 song "Easy Money". The band is locked into a convincing groove that gives the impression of a bloated, sleazy Bransonesque grotesque behind the heart of the company, with the synth providing a sorrowful tune of the real world looking open mouthed at the wealth, power and greed on display. No time to find words for the bitterness and disgust the synthesiser sees as the groove drags the listener into the heart of the machine for a pleasant five minutes+
Security breach! The ship has a Roy Harper sized hole in the hold! He puts in an impressive vocal that captures insincerity with insanity although why Waters or Gilmour couldn't bring themselves to sing their own songs suggests a bit of guilt at biting the head that feeds? But they are all to happy to ride the gravy train... in return for record company employees actually working hard to make Dark Side Of The Moon a success, so thanks Roger! It's great for you to let them know you appreciate it!
The ending of the tune as heard through a crap transistor radio miles away from the action brings the album back down to earth.

WISH YOU WERE HERE

Is the guitar on the radio being heard in a garage? Someones bedroom? The only time Pink Floyd ever acknowledged poverty exists by using a crap on it's last legs transistor. And after scanning through the channels which are surprisingly (and perhaps depressingly) more varied than the Smash Hits, Heat and Kiss digital radio stations we have to scan through these days, the bedroom guitarist plays along with more soul than the radio performance, As if to keep the dream alive.
The song itself is a complete anomaly for the album. It sounds timeless as opposed to futuristic and it has a tender lyric which makes a welcome relief from the moaning and piss taking from the last two songs.
The best lyric of the album by far. Not quite the anti-Vietnam song people have distorted it to mean. It's just a song about loss. And it's the best song about loss or at least top three?

SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND (Part VI)

This is the weakest part of the Shine On... piece and it's not as paced as the Echoes edit, and given they had to fade out a Stephane Grappelli solo at the end of the last song it doesn't compensate. The pace is too slow and drags, a well fed drummer instead of a hungry drummer. They've just told us the record business is not what it's cracked up to be... so here's some music to make the record business sell more records! So buy it you Muppet's and make the record business rich! Thoughtless blues jam, nowhere near the outer space of the first parts. Only good touch is after it's unnecessary lengthy groove, Gilmour accidentally plays something close to the second part's chord sequence and everyone suddenly remembers where they are...

SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND (Part VII)

The previous albums trick of placing the last verse of an earlier song after other material gets another use. This verse is more like a toast to Syd as opposed to an "elegy". There was the story of Syd, a fat, balder Syd, turning up at the studios "ready to do his part" only to be told it had all been done. (and Syd was reported to say the song was "A bit old") so only his madness could deflect the sorrowful situation of being toasted by a band who just made their biggest selling and best album...without him the year before?
Waters finally relents and gives us a "Chin up, God bless!" sort of lyric before the song dissolves in the way on Pink Floyd could dissolve. On a not disharmonious, but not angelic, more mysterious tone.

SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND (Part VIII)

Idiots edited this out of the version on Echoes! I'd gladly leave off When The Tigers Broke Free and even Learning To Fly to accommodate the closing piece of Shine On... which is the highlight of the album. The synth from Have A Cigar has been taken under the wing of the band and basically taken out on the town. There's a reason Rick Wright appears on a BB King album... Not even the image of the band, in purple shirts and black and white checked trousers mincing down the High Street in the evening, checking out all the finnne assss out there, can take anything away from the coolest musicianship getting dowwwnn by getting it ohn!... until they turn around and see a familiar figure staring back at them...

SHINE ON YOU CRAZY DIAMOND (Part IX)

The drums from part two reverse to the funeral march of the album's close. The perfect ending to Shine On... as it's an instrumental electronic lament for the ones who got acid-induced schizophrenia who weren't even in a band... all the barbiturate overdoses... every heroin death... peace and love raped... Britishness beginning to disappear after Heath's 1973 signature... the radicals now driving Mercedes... The whole procession marches slowly to take a pew in Richard Wright's electronic cathedral from Part I. I have never heard a VCS 3 keyboard sobbing before. And just at the end the doors close and lights shoot out from the windows as the cathedral reveals itself to have been a spaceship all the time! And the closing moments fade out as it lifts off into the sky slowly.
I have two memories of this piece. It always takes me back to Christmas Day 1990 staring at a picture of Pink Floyd's PA set up for their Venice show on a calender and also in the mid-nineties after I lost my copy of the tape, I recorded it off a friend on vinyl. And the record got stuck right near the end and I left it on the tape as it was all ambient and perfect.
And there is an extra sadness to this piece as it would be 19,(count 'em!) that's right, 19 long, cold years before Richard Wright got so much as a songwriting co-credit on a Pink Floyd album. That is just a big an injustice as their early singles failing to chart and the collapse of Syd Barrett.

THE VERDICT

The great Dark Side of the Moon vs Wish You Were Here face off begins!

1. Nothing on Wish You Were Here rocks as hard as Time.
2. Nick Mason got three co-writing credits on Dark Side of the Moon, he gets none on Wish You Were Here. So the previous album was more of a band effort.
3. There are no acoustic guitars on Dark Side... (unless I've gone deaf) so that works as a complete piece compared to the break of the title track.
4. The lyrics to Dark Side... although a bleak subject matter, are at least warm and compassionate. Wish You Were Here's lyrics are the exact opposite. Not heartless, but certainly stunted. Repressed upbringings much?
5. There is nothing as overtly experimental as Speak To Me or On The Run on Wish You were Here.

However in it's defence, Have A Cigar is better than Money and Wish You Were Here is more direct and simple compared to Us And Them. Although, Wish You Were Here is lesser to brain Damage, especially when you also include Eclipse at the end of it.
The final part of Shine On... is the equal to The Great Gig In The Sky, although David Gilmour uses blues scales more than he did on the previous album.

So Dark Side of the Moon still champion after all this time. Wish You Were Here runs the very closest second and basically kills off Prog! King Crimson had split the year before, Peter Gabriel left Genesis this year. forcing them to become more shorter song orientated. And Emerson,Lake & Palmer had stopped working with each other and bought out triple live albums... and eventually double albums with each member given a side each. (Sound familiar?) Wish You Were here may as well have been called "Epitaph" as this was their last collective work of genius.

RIP Prog Rock 1967-1975

5 out of 5.

[Anthony Williams]

Whilst everyone cracks on with Wish You Were Here, I look back in time to...

so, moving very swiftly on...

Ummagumma (live album)

1. Astronomy Domine

What a superb live rendition of this track! I think that Gilmour does a good job at emulating Barrett's guitar sound and style, and it sounds very polished. This is a great way to open a concert. The band is on top form, and this really does sound great. The audience seem transfixed, not making a sound - much like the audiences in Gabriel-era Genesis live bootlegs that I've heard. Superb!

2. Careful With That Axe, Eugene

I haven't heard this one before, but my first impression is that I really like the opening. The way it slowly builds, starting with the bass and the drums, before Rick Wright comes in with some lovely organ work, is just fantastic. My god! That screaming is terrifying, but the music that it goes into is, quite frankly, fantastic. This has a real groove given to it by the bass, and Mason's drumming is superb. I'm really enjoying this, and I look forward to hearing the studio version on Relics later on in the Time Team. All in all, I really like this track - could it be the highlight of the live album segment of Ummagumma?

3. Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun

This extended version is every bit as haunting as the studio original. Whilst it may become a little dull after a while, but Mason's drumming really holds this together. There's not a huge amount to say here, to be honest.

4. A Saucerful of Secrets

This is an interesting take on this track. Obviously deprived of much of the studio trickery, this actually works surprisingly well. However, it doesn't have anything near the emotional effect that the studio track had on me. Whilst it still comes across as avant-guarde, the fact that its been stripped of its studio trickery means that it doesn't sound quite as strange. The last segment is still wonderful, though.

Round-up

This is absolutely wonderful - every single track works really well, and gives us a real insight into the early live shows of Pink Floyd. I really, really enjoyed this - from previous reviews that I've read on this thread, I'm not sure that I'll be able to enjoy the studio album as much!

Stand-out tracks: The whole damned thing!

5/5

Ant x

[Rob McCow]

So many reviews in one day! What's happening here?

4. The lyrics to Dark Side... although a bleak subject matter, are at least warm and compassionate. Wish You Were Here's lyrics are the exact opposite. Not heartless, but certainly stunted. Repressed upbringings much?

It's the evolution of Roger Waters' journey of Introspection that will inevitably lead to The Wall. Oh no!

So Dark Side of the Moon still champion after all this time.

No way! Wish You Were Here is the GREATEST!!! (This argument could last a long time).

Yes, the Ummagumma live album is certainly the best thing about Ummagumma in general. I bet you'll be one of these perverse people who actually like their studio noodlings, Ant!

[Jon Masters]

Wish You Were Here
The best Pink Floyd song.

You need to use your spellcheck there , Rob. You've spelt Comfortably Numb completely incorrectly.

Loving reading all these great reviews - sadly, I can only join in on a couple of live albums later and Division Bell.