Pink Floyd- Wish You Were Here

After releasing their 1973 hit album The Dark Side of the Moon, which changed rock music forever, Pink Floyd were on top of the world. They had just finished a world tour in support of the album in mid 1973 when they finally started to come back to earth. They now had to do what seemed like an impossible task: create a worthy follow up to Dark Side.

In 1974, Pink Floyd headed yet again to Abbey Road studios to compose new material. Unfortunately, though, the band was completely worn out from the success of their hit album and found creating anything new extremely difficult. They were so desperate to create interesting new material that they returned to an old concept of creating musical sounds from objects around the home, like pots, pans, and rubber bands. These Household Objects sessions, as they were called, we "tortuous" according to main song writer and bassist Roger Waters. Eventually, they scrapped the whole project and took back to traditional instrumentation, which yielded some new work, three long pieces in particular: "Raving and Drooling"and "You've Got to Be Crazy" which were later reworked to become "Sheep" and "Dogs", respectively, on their 1977 album Animals, and "Shine On You Crazy Diamond". Then Roger finally had an idea for the album: about missing someone, someone who was there but not there, absence in general. Pink Floyd used "Shine On", a twenty-some minute long track as the centerpiece to the album, scrapping the two other written tracks for now, and went ahead with recording new material with an idea in mind.

The result of their work is a beautiful album, which is just about as melancholy as Dark Side is, but returning more or less to their more jammy sound, especially on "Shine On You Crazy Diamond". They ended up splitting up the twenty-six minute piece, putting half at the beginning of the album and one at the end to make a bookends feel. In the middle were three shorter tracks that each have their own special and unique sound to them. When Wish You Were Here, as the album was named, was finally released in 1975, it went to number one in the UK and US and is certified 6x platinum! Impressive indeed for a progressive rock band, even if they gained fame from their previous magnum opus.

I often think of this album as a turning point in Pink Floyd's vocal standpoint, as previously Roger Waters, who wrote all the lyrics on this album, sang only a song or two on albums with guitarist David Gilmour singing most of the songs, and occasionally keyboardist Rick Wright here and there, whereas this album is about even, with Gilmour singing lead vocals on two songs, and Roger on two (the two halves of "Shine On") and one leftover that features Roy Harper's vocals (we'll get to that later). By the next album, though, Roger is singing the majority of the lyrics on the albums, which continues up until he leaves in band in the mid-eighties.

The album opens up with the first half of "Shine On You Crazy Diamond". This composition starts out with Rick Wright playing a single note on the synthesizer that fades in as the sound of fingers running around the rims of glasses full of water appears (this is the only part from Household Objects that was used). This builds up for a few minutes when Gilmour begins a bluesy and melodic guitar solo. At about 4 minutes into the song, this fades out and the iconic 4 note riff on guitar comes in. After the riff is played a few times, the drums roll in along with the rest of the band. Rick Wright plays his synthesizers which alternate with the guitar's riff. Roger keeps an almost funky groove on his bass and Nick Mason plays his drums in a standard 6/8. Next comes a very extended guitar solo by Gilmour. The solo lasts for a while and is very bluesy feeling still. It gradually gets louder, every once in a while coming to a soft section until it comes back in full force. At one point, the guitar takes the background and the synth comes out in front with a sad sounding solo of sorts. This sets the mood for most of the song really. Gilmour's guitar finally comes back in, though, and leads the band out for about another minute. When he finishes, the first vocals come in, at nearly 9 minutes into the song. Roger sings the mournful lyrics about old bandmate Syd Barrett who blew his mind on drug overdoses. A chorus comes every line or two featuring the whole band joining in and female backing vocalists. It is truly beautiful and sounds very heartfelt, as the band must have felt a haunting spirit of their ex leader at the time. After the second verse, a sax solo by Dick Parry, who played on several Dark Side tracks, comes in. After playing at the speed of the verses for a little while, the band picks up the pace, making it more groove sounding. This part reminds me a lot of the Soft Machine track "Slightly All the Time" from their album Third. At the end, this all begins to fade out which crossfades into the beginning of track two, "Welcome to the Machine".

"Welcome to the Machine" is sung by Gilmour, which is odd because the song has a very dark and sinister sound to it, portraying music executives and the "big people" in business as just robots with no feelings or individuality. I always thought this track would have been an excellent Roger Waters sung tune, but Gilmour does fine. The song begins with several robotic sound effects until an minor sounding acoustic guitar riff comes in. The acoustic guitar and synthesizers are the prominent instruments on the track. Rick Wright's synths are heavily used and add so much to the track with their wonderful sounds. There are several time signature changes in the song, going from 3/4 to 4/4 a couple of times, which sounds odd, but very cool for those who are interested in the mathematical part of music. The song is actually quite creepy to listen to, but the music certainly reflects the dark lyrics. I just love how much the synths get to stay out in front, it really makes this track great, as with the rest of the tracks on the album. The synths are definitely the personality of this track, as the extended instrumental sections and groove of "Shine On" is it's personality. The whole track ends after a synth solo where an abrupt sound effect that sounds like a rocket launching comes in that transfers into the sound of a room full of laughing people. This is a very odd end to the track for sure.

The next side of the album opens up with the not so popular single "Have a Cigar". This song seems like the darker version of "Money" from Dark Side. The track is notable for featuring Roy Harper's vocals as he would better suit the voice of a snobby music representative for the lyrics. The tune is very blues sounding, with the guitar and bass working together to create a funky sound. The song follows the standard verse-chorus technique and stays to a fairly concise 5 minutes, which is probably why it was released as a single. The track also contains the gem lyrics "Oh, by the way, which one's Pink?" which was inspired by the people who would actually ask the band this question. That is like asking which band member is Lynyrd Skynyrd in the band of that name. The song ends with a guitar solo that is cut off by a swoosh sounding keyboard that turns the guitar solo into the sound of a radio, transferring into the next cut on the album.

The fourth track, "Wish You Were Here" is a great and heartfelt one, that, like "Shine On", reflects on the absence of ex bandmate Syd Barrett. The song opens up with the sound of the radio from the previous track being changed until the acoustic guitar on the radio comes to a regular tune. Then, an acoustic guitar, played by, presumably, the listener of the radio, comes in playing a solo overtop. Finally, the radio effect is ditched, and Gilmour sings the first verse. After this verse, the whole band joins, with Rick Wright's piano featured prominently. Gilmour sings the second verse which is followed by a reprisal of the opening tune which has a guitar solo played over it. Finally, the final verse is sung with the whole band, and the band leads out the song playing the same riff over and over with David Gilmour singing scat overtop until the end. This song is short and concise, but is still very beautiful and soulful. The band eventually fades into the sound of wind gushing, which leads into the final track.

The last track is part two of "Shine On You Crazy Diamond". Part two begins with, after the gushing wind sound, a bass and guitar line similar to that of "One of These Days" from Meddle. This plays for a while as it gets louder, with drums coming in softly. What follows is a wonderful synth solo by Rick Wright. This all eventually gains some momentum, and plays a rather quick beat with Gilmour soloing over the top. This speed, though, does not stay for long, as it quickly returns to the melody of the verses. The guitar triumphantly returns to the slow 6/8 groove of the verse to go into the last verse of the song. Roger sings mournfully as he does on the first half, and this all is parallel to the first half. I think this song would have been great if it were kept as one piece because the song would have made more sense as one epic side long piece, but it is fine as it is. After the last verse is sung, the band takes a groovier approach to the tune with the bass forming as a more prominent instrument making the groove, and Nick Mason's drums keeping the rhythm well. The keyboards get a type of solo, as they are right at the front with the bass, as the guitar stays in the background for a while. This whole section reminds me of a jazz fusion type of band. Then it gets even funkier with a very cool bass groove with the keyboards still playing in front. The guitar plays a clean guitar riff similar to the one in "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" from The Wall. This all fades out after a while with the synths coming in to transfer into the next section, a slow 4/4 section with a mournful feel to the synth and piano sound. This is a very different part of the song as it utilizes a chord sequence much different than that of the verses. This is just a wonderful break in the song as it makes way for the soft ending of the song. Something I've noticed is that "Shine On" and "Echoes", two long epics, both end very soft and unassumingly compared to ones like Rush's "2112" which ends with a very loud series of sounds of getting louder and louder, going out with a bang. The song finally ends with Rick's synths playing in a finally major key ending the song in G major which is a stark contrast to the opening of the tune which is in G minor. What a lovely end to the song and the whole album.

This album is definitely one of my favorite albums of all time, I don't like it as much as I like Meddle and Atom Heart Mother, but this is definitely a worthy follow up to Dark Side. I give the album a 10 out of 10.

A live version of "Wish You Were Here" from the band's one off reunion performance in 2005 at Live 8:

Pink Floyd- The Dark Side of the Moon

In 1972, Pink Floyd was just another progressive rock band who was unknown to much of the world, but suddenly in 1973, they were one of the biggest and well known bands in the world. Why the sudden leap in success? It's all because of their album The Dark Side of the Moon which was released in March of that year. The album went to #1 in the US, Canada, and New Zealand, and is also certified 15x Platinum by the RIAA. Now the album, along with it's sleeve design, is one of the most well-known albums of all time.

Pink Floyd began writing their album soon after their 1971 album Meddle. A tour of the to be released album began in early 1972 with an ever changing version of the album being played each night of the tour. It was over these concerts that the album really took shape and helped the band to see what kind of product they wanted and expected when recording it. Pink Floyd took a break from Dark Side in the middle of 1972 to go to France to record music for a movie by Barbet Schroeder. They released their soundtrack to the movie later that year under the title "Obscured by Clouds". At the end of this project, Pink Floyd got back recording The Dark Side of the Moon. In the studio, much of the music for the album was already prepared for recording, and there wasn't much of the nonsense recording to trigger ideas for songs like that of the Meddle sessions.

On "Speak to Me", the album opens up with the iconic heart beat created by the sound of drummer Nick Mason's bass drum. What follows is a gradual fade in of various spoken word snippets and sound effects that along with a piano note played backwards. The spoken word pieces are taken from interviews done by Pink Floyd on random people around Abbey Road studio. The questions are quite random, but the answers are often very different than one would expect. These answers are used throughout the whole album. This all finally builds up with the piano note coming to its loudest and a wailing scream into "Breathe", the first musical piece on the album. "Breathe" is a slow, rather melancholy piece with lyrics written by bassist Roger Waters (he wrote every lyric on this album). Gilmour sings the vocals on this one, and he even double tracked his voice to harmonize with himself. During the second verse of the song, Rick Wright's keyboards become much more prominent in the mix, creating a jammier atmosphere to the song. Gilmour also plays some slide guitar throughout the song.

"Breathe" transfers right into the instrumental "On the Run". This track is composed of a repeated 8 note sequence that was played into a sequencer. The band sped up the sequencer and added various effects to create the soundscape of the song. The piece can really get your heart racing if you listen to the music as carefully and in depth as I do. Over the top of the synth notes, various noises can be heard, such as a man running down the hall, laughing, and a voice coming through an airport radio. The point of the song is how travel can bring fear of one's life, which is portray especially at the end of the song where the sound of an airplane crash can be heard, followed by hysterical laughing. Once the crash dies down a bit, quiet ticking can be heard at the beginning of "Time", the fourth track on the album. The ticking of clocks eventually leads to the sound of various alarms on clocks going off, which will scare you half to death after a very quiet fade out of the crash. This is followed by a metronomic beat that keeps time as drummer Nick Mason pounds away on melodic roto-toms while Dave Gilmour plays a simple riff on guitar. This goes on for about 2 minutes and stops with a drum fill that leads into the main part of the song. Gilmour sings the vocals on the verses pretty harshly, as the tune of the verses is very blues and hard rock sounding, which contrasts with Rick Wright's soft and nice voice during the quieter choruses. After the first chorus, Gilmour plays his first guitar solo on the album, and it is a great one! The words are very melancholy, along with most of the album, as it deals with how time is wasted and there is never enough time in one's life. "Shorter of breath, and one day closer to death," Roger writes. Deep stuff. After the second chorus is sung, there is a transition into a reprise of "Breathe". The organ is less prominent in this one than it is on the original track. It is a very interesting addition to the track, but it is welcome. This ends on a minor note with synth quietly in the background.

This transitions into the side closer "The Great Gig in the Sky". The track is essentially a jam session instrumental with singer Clare Torry singing and wailing wordless vocals over top. Her vocals are very emotional, screaming at some points even. The piece is dynamic to say the least, opening with a very quiet piano line with the bass prominently backing it up. The following section is much louder with the introduction of steel guitar and drums as well as Clare Torry's vocals. This eventually returns to just bass and piano with Torry's vocals getting softer and softer and eventually ending on a single piano note. This is a beautiful piece and fits just perfectly on this album.

The next side opens up with the hit single "Money". The tune is about, who would have guessed, money! Roger writes about how people with loads of money are often jerks, ironic as this song would become their first big hit single! The song opens with a loop of cash register sounds and other money related clips that plays while the bass plays the songs main riff. The truly amazing thing about this song being so popular is that it is composed in an odd time signature- 7/4! The verses are played entirely in 7/4 and the choruses in 4/4. Following the second chorus, Dick Parry plays an excellent saxophone solo in 7/4. For the guitar solo, though, they change into a jam type of sound instead of the funk sound of the verses, and into 4/4 the entire time. This eventually goes back into the 7/4 time signature which is truly awesome for being a hit single. The whole song has a funky sound to it, which is different than most of the other songs on the album. Also I enjoy this song, personally, because it is the first song that I listened to and noticed automatically that something was weird with the time signature, which turned out to be in 7/4. As a drummer, the time signatures matter a lot to me, as I dislike how most bands stick to the simple 4/4 and 3/4 instead of stretching themselves to go into odd time signatures like 7/4, 11/8, and 9/8 for example.

This segues via an organ note into the mellower "Us and Them", another single from the album. The song begins very soft, but changes dynamically when the choruses come as they are played much harder and louder than the verses. Gilmour's voice on this is so beautiful and delicate that it fits the music perfectly. Dick Parry gets more another couple of sax solos on this song too. Rick's melody on the piano is wonderful and guides the melody very well with its interesting chord progression. The whole song seems more like jazz and fusion rather than a traditional progressive rock song, which is a nice song, as each of the songs on the album seem to have their own distinct area of reaching into another genre, yet retaining their standard Pink Floyd sound. This remains as one of my favorite tracks on the album, even though I count the whole of Dark Side as one song that should be listened to in its entirety. If I start the album from the beginning, I can't stop it, I have to play it to the end, because otherwise it seems incomplete. "Us and Them" transitions into the jam song "Any Colour You Like". The song is a good example of the "old" Pink Floyd sound on the record, reminiscent of the jam section of "Echoes" from Meddle and the "Funky Dung" section from "Atom Heart Mother" from the album of the same name. Mason plays a cool groove beat as Wright and Gilmour take turns soloing and then work together to make a wonderful sound as the bass keeps the groove. This track is short and concise, but brings a cool feel to this section of the album.

"Any Colour You Like" ends with a chord sequence similar to that of the end of "Breathe" which transitions into "Brain Damage" one of only two songs that Roger Waters sings. The song is about people who have gone mad, and a lyric in the song is where the album gets its name. The verses are soft and mostly just guitar and a hi-hat keeping the beat. The choruses, however, introduce the whole band which makes everything louder. Also, female backing singers are present during the choruses, adding a new dimension to the song. The second chorus is followed by a synthesizer solo which ends right as the next track begins. The following track is the closer "Eclipse", and is the only other song that Roger sings beside "Brain Damage". The song borrows the chord sequence from "Dear Prudence" by The Beatles, but does so gracefully. The words are almost like a sermon, talking about how everything under the sun and all the toiling "is in tune, but the sun is eclipsed by the moon." The song ties up the album in a way no other song could possibly have done. The track ends after the riff is repeated multiple times with lyrics and female backing vocalists, and the album leads out with the return of the heartbeat and the now iconic phrase "There is no dark side of the moon really, matter of fact it's all dark."

This album is truly one of the best albums of all time. I think it should be viewed and listened to as one complete piece of music, rather than various songs put together. The album is so good that I give it a whopping 11 out of 10.

A live version of "Breathe" from the band's 2005 one off reunion performance in Live 8:

Pink Floyd- Obscured by Clouds

In 1972, Pink Floyd had already begun work on their follow up to their 1971 album Meddle. In the middle of their writing, though, they were approached by French film maker Barbet Schroeder to score his film La Vallée (The Valley in English), which follows a woman and a group of explorers who search through a forest to find a paradise which is marked "Obscured by Clouds" on a map (this is where the album gets the title). The band was experienced with scoring movies as they had done the soundtrack to the film, also by Schroeder, More in 1969 and a few other songs for the film Zabriskie Point.

Their soundtrack to the film, entitled Obscured by Clouds, was released in June, a month before the movie was released. The album spawned a somewhat successful single, "Free Four", which was the first Floyd song that got much airplay in the US. Even with the success of that single, though, the whole album and prior years of their career would be eclipsed by their following album which they were already working on and performing regularly live.

The album opens with the first of four instrumental tracks on the album, the title track "Obscured by Clouds". The song opens with one synthesizer note that acts like a persistent drone followed by a steady drum beat. The rest of the song features guitarist David Gilmour playing a solo over the drums and synthesizer. This eventually fades out and segues right into the next track, "When You're In", another instrumental. This one is a bit faster than the title cut and is also more jammy sounding. Gilmour plays lead over a steady drum beat and bass line. Occasionally, Rick Wright's organ plays a fill when the guitar  takes a break. This whole sequence is repeated until the end of the song which fades out over a long period of time. I feel that these two tracks would have been better if they were extended, but then again, they had to fit in certain time spans for the film.

The third track "Burning Bridges" is the first song with the appearance of vocals on this record, and if you are only listening for the lyrics, you'll easily realize that it is worth the wait for the vocals as Gilmour and Wright harmonize beautifully on song's lyrics written by bassist Roger Waters.. Their voices create a certain magical tone to whatever they sing together, as they do in "Echoes"from Meddle. Rick Wright's organ is very prominent, creating the melody.  The beat is nice and slow, similar again to "Echoes. As a side note, I enjoy the drum line by Nick Mason as it adds a new texture to the song. The beat is a standard 6/8, but Mason plays the snare on the third beat instead of the usual fourth beat which creates a seemingly odd time signature as there is 5 beats in between each snare hit. I find these small things interesting, being a drummer and all.

This is followed by a faster song "The Gold It's In The..." which has a boogie feel to it and guitar sounds and soloing similar to the style of Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin. There is no Rick Wright on the track, which is okay on this track because I think it is aiming to be more like a standard rock song without organ. Gilmour sings the lyrics as a typical rock singer would, but adds his own charm to it which gives the song more feeling.

The fifth track is titled "Wot's... Uh the Deal" and features words written, unsurprisingly, Roger Waters. David Gilmour plays a folky sounding guitar riff which is a nice contrast to the previous, heavier track. Gilmour's vocals are beautiful as normal and sound even better as he harmonizes himself via double tracking. During a bridge section, Rick Wright gets a piano solo, the first appearance of piano on the track, followed by a slide guitar solo by Gilmour. This piece feels like one of the most cohesive and well put together tracks on the album, with the whole band joining in, a good length, and the signature sound of Floyd in general. This is followed by the side close instrumental "Mudmen". The song reprises the theme "Burning Bridges", but plays it in a 4/4 beat, which is a lot different than how it was played on "Burning Bridges". The song is a lot more dynamic than that track and I think of it as similar to "Great Gig in the Sky" from Dark Side of the Moon. As it transfers from soft sounding to loud very quickly and easily. I enjoy the piece because it gets a good balance of guitar and organ along with the other instruments, as the bass carries the rhythm section along well with Nick Mason on drums.

The next side opens with the Gilmour written tune "Childhood's End". The song follows a blues style structure after a fade in intro similar to the first track "Obscured by Clouds", but with a softer edge in the synthesizer sound. Gilmour's guitar sound on the track is similar to "Breathe" and "Time" from Dark Side, which I enjoy quite a bit. The sound is also very similar to Gilmour's solo albums of the future. The tune is quite like "Time", but with a different edge and more prominent organ. Mason keeps a steady 4/4 beat on the drums which locks into a groove. The guitar solo fits very well into the song, maintaining the blues rock sound. This is another very memorable track on the album, although I think that, along with most of the album, the track could have been better if extended a bit. The track ends with a short segment of the synth from the beginning repeated.

The eighth track is the Roger Water's written single "Free Four". It is the only track that he sings on the album, and, even with a poppy tune, the lyrics are rather dark and depressing, dealing with death and reflecting on the deeds in one's life at an old age. The song has a single note on the synthesizer that occurs every couple of bars which I love a lot as it makes the song stand out. Unlike the rest of the songs on the album, I find that this one seems to go on for too long, as it just repeats the same verse structure multiple times and features the same change in key for a guitar solo twice. The song was a small hit in the US and, although it is not my favorite track on the album, it's not too bad. The next track, though is definitely a standout. The Water's written "Stay" is a slow ballad wonderfully sung by Rick Wright. The verses have a somewhat major tune whereas the choruses have a minor tune to them. Gilmour's guitar is prominent and features a wah peddle effect on it. I feel like this is the better tune of the "Free Four" single even though it was only featured as the b-side. I know that "Free Four" was more single sounding, but the loveliness of "Stay" just blows my mind, especially as it is not a well know song.

The closing track "Absolutely Curtains" is one of the most experimental songs on the record and the longest, at 6 minutes long (which is weird for a band used to doing 23 minute epics). The song opens with some soft piano and synthesizer notes as cymbals crash in, creating a dramatic effect. There is no definite tune, but rather just a free floating melody on the keyboards. Eventually, the instrumental fades out as a chant from the tribe in the film comes in. It is a very odd ending to the album, but gives a sense of completeness.

This album is not nearly my favorite album, but does include a few memorable tracks. My major gripe about this album is how short the tracks are. As I said earlier, I know that they had to fit within certain time limits of the scenes in the film, but the short time limits don't give the tunes much room to breathe, which makes things very repetitious and uninteresting at times. I give Obscured by Clouds a 7 out of 10.

The track "Stay" from this album:

Pink Floyd- Meddle

Question: What can a band do once it has become known as a pioneer of progressive rock?

Answer: Become more progressive!

As silly as that question and answer may sound, it is true, or at least it should be. For Pink Floyd it most certainly was. After releasing their 1970 album Atom Heart Mother, which climbed to number 1 on the UK charts, they were unsure of what to do next. They booked time in Abbey Road Studios in early 1971 to start writing for the next album and eventually ended up with several short ideas called "Nothings" of which were mostly just jammed songs. Finally, though, songs began coming together and Pink Floyd created one of their finest albums to date: Meddle.

Meddle, released in late 1971, is one of the most musically diverse albums for Pink Floyd. There is, as with their previous album, a side long epic, which was smartly put on side 2 so that it did not scare away the casual listeners. Also, there are several acoustic tunes and also a very energetic opening track that is one of the most memorable instrumentals in progressive rock's history. 

The opener "One of These Days" contains energy unlike any other Pink Floyd song. Its primary instrument is the bass- actually two basses played by primary bassist Roger Waters and one by lead guitarist and vocalist David Gilmour. They play a fast one note riff repeatedly with faded in keyboard effects over the top after the sound of rushing wind is heard at the beginning. The cymbals roll in a couple of times which build up to nothing until, after a bass solo of sorts, a deep and slow voices threatens "One of these days, I'm going to cut you into little pieces" after which the drums and full band come in full force. Gilmour plays a guitar solo and a slide solo at the same time by multi-tracking while the whole band plays powerfully. This, along with "Echoes", are, for some strange reason, the only two tracks that most people care about on the album even though the middle songs are very well written as well.

The second song, "A Pillow of Winds" is a soft acoustic song written by Roger Waters that transfers out of "One of These Days" by the sound of wind. Although the song sounds like a regular Floyd tune, the lyrics are about something uncharacteristic of Waters: love. The song stays low key most of the time and David Gilmour's vocals sing sweetly over the top. The piece is a drastic difference from the opener, but pave the way for the rest of the first side of the album. I like the song a lot because it changes quite dramatically from a major key to a minor key by the end of the song.

The third track, "Fearless", is another favorite of mine. In all reality, I enjoy all of the songs on this record and I listen to them pretty much equally. The song is based off of a guitar riff in the key of G that climbs until it reaches the next octave G which is simple, but brilliant. Throughout the song and at the end especially, there is a recording of soccer fans chanting the tune "You'll Never Walk Alone" which is weird to hear, but adds to the point of the song.

The fourth track, sung and written by Roger Waters, is "San Tropez". It is a very catchy song, with acoustic guitars, drums, bass, and standard piano which keeps things simple yet nice. Although this track is often overlooked, it is a personal favorite of mine. Gilmour plays a slide guitar after the first verse and Wright plays a piano solo over the second which is nice seeing as Rick doesn't have many big moments to showcase his incredible skill on this record. For a band who is very experimental and progressive, this jazzier feel is very unusual to hear, but extremely nice to hear.

This song is followed by the side closer and joke track "Seamus". It is a standard blues song about a dog with the dog barking over top. Now this isn't really a memorable track per say, but it's nice to see that the band doesn't take themselves too seriously.

The second side of the record is dominated by the epic 23 minute piece "Echoes". This track remains as my favorite track by Pink Floyd because of the musicianship and the tightness of the work. It opens up with a single note played by Rick Wright on his keyboard which is played through a rotating Leslie Cabinet. Gradually, more instruments appear, with Gilmour playing a short guitar and bluesy guitar solo followed by Nick Mason coming in with the drums in a way which I can only describe as sounding like it's being sucked into a vortex, similar to how they would use the drums in "Sheep" off of Animals. After the end of the guitar solo, a beautifully harmony performed by Rick Wright and David Gilmour in the verse. This is followed by a very iconic riff, as it was reportedly stolen by Andrew Lloyd Webber for his soundtrack to The Phantom of the Opera. Even it was stolen, I don't blame him because it is an ingenious riff that I love to play. Another verse comes after and goes into a short guitar solo playing over the verse chords with Rick's synths becoming more prominent. After revisiting, the main riff once more, with Nick Mason pounding away at the drums, a jam section comes. The drums are playing in a locked groove that seem almost to say "don't even try to break this away." The bass plays along in a two note pattern which is also locked in with some improvisation here and there. Rick's organ comes in and plays along with the chords and adds in some solos making it even more jammy. David Gilmour and Rick Wright seem to take turns soloing with Gilmour taking a few bars and then Wright taking a few. This whole section is lovely and reminds me of the "Funky Dung" section of "Atom Heart Mother". All of this fades out eventually into the sounds of seagulls, imitated by Gilmour by messing with the cables of his wah peddle, and the sound of wind, created by Waters playing his bass with a slide and putting it through an echo system. This whole section would make a good soundtrack to a scary movie going down a dark wooded street at night. This is followed by a reprise of Rick Wright's high pitched "Submarine Sound" that is heard at the opening of the track. Gradually all of the band comes back in, building up with a very dramatic chord sequence until it finally leads into the final verse. The harmony of Wright and Gilmour is again so beautiful. The main riff is played again and then the whole band plays the verse melody with a guitar solo over top which cross fades into the wind sound heard at the opening of the whole record which gives the album a bookend feel. This piece is so well put together and intricate and so awesome- it's hard to even put in words! Pink Floyd really showed just how far they could go with this one, and it shows in their musicianship especially. 

This album is one of my all time favorite albums for sure. Although, Seamus can be kind of annoying, I'm glad they included it because it shows the fun side of Pink Floyd. I give Meddle a 10 out of 10.

A live version of "One of These Days" from their live film Live In Pompeii:

Pink Floyd- Atom Heart Mother

After releasing their ambitious double album Ummagumma, a half live and half experimental album, in 1969, Pink Floyd was ready to take the next step in their career. Now they wanted to do a full side, 23 minute, concept. Even more ambitious was that they wanted to have a whole orchestra and choir on it. Employing Ron Geesin to write the score, Pink Floyd headed back into the studio to record one of their most ambitious albums ever.

Released in 1970, Atom Heart Mother was released to some pretty bad reviews by critics who thought the first half of the album, the title track, was pompous and pretentious, yet it still managed to make it to number 1 on the UK charts. This album was truly the most cohesive album they had put forth yet, and it also showed that they were now more a progressive rock band than anything else. To this day many hate this album completely, but I think otherwise. It is well put together and very progressive, which I enjoy very much.

On the first side, there is the epic 23 minute "Atom Heart Mother" and on the other side there are four more tracks- one by bassist Roger Waters, one by keyboardist Rick Wright, one by guitarist David Gilmour, and then one written by all four members, the instrumental "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast".

The title track leads off the record very well, and very differently than previous and future records. Although Wright would use part of the horn section of the orchestra for his track on the album "Summer '68", this is the only track that uses the orchestra prominently throughout. The piece is formed by several sections that all lead into each other beautifully, which makes this song seem like a movie soundtrack almost, very cinematic. There is a main theme that reappears throughout the piece that sounds very triumphant as if it is trying to tell a story even though it is an instrumental piece (although the choir does sing wordless vocals over top in certain sections). The level of musicianship is extremely high, especially with how intricate the song is going from section to section. One of my personal favorite sections is "Funky Dung" which sounds a lot more like traditional Pink Floyd than with the orchestra. Rick plays some very jammy organ riffs alongside Dave Gilmour who plays some guitar solos with him. The other half of the band stays in the jam mood for a while and they all seem so tight in their performance even in jamming. "Atom Heart Mother" ends by triumphantly reprising the opening theme with the choir even joining in and coming to an epic end with everyone joining in unity on the last major chord. This piece is truly magnificent, showing just how far Pink Floyd had come in their talent.

The second side opens with an acoustic tune written by Waters entitled "If". The song talks about how someone's personality would be different if he or she was someone- or something- else, basically analyzing oneself. The piece is very quiet and is similar to "Grantchester Meadows" off of Ummagumma in its country and folky sound to it. It is a hidden gem in the Pink Floyd collection of songs, as with most of the record. I enjoy it because it is a nice break from the loudness and urgency of "Atom Heart Mother".

The following track is even better than Waters'. The Rick Wright track "Summer '68" portrays the story of losing someone that you only knew for a short while yet being very sad over it. Rick Wright's vocals are beautifully sung and David Gilmour's voice perfectly harmonizes with him. The piece is very dynamic with quiet verses on acoustic guitar and piano countering the louder verse and the even louder bridge section that features a horn section that contrasts so well with the rest of the song. The horn melody is very well put together and different than anything else I have heard, different also than any other Pink Floyd song. Another great tune that sticks in your head for a long time.

Next up is the Gilmour track "Fat Old Sun". This track is another soft track that sticks to the acoustic guitar and a soft bass line which is surprisingly prominent all. Eventually the drums come in and the keyboards.. It is dynamic not so much in volume, but in the difference between the verses and the choruses. The verses keep a somewhat major sound to them whereas the choruses have a minor sound to them. Also of note, the chorus's chord sequence is very unpredictably, which I am a fan of as I see too many bands sticking to I IV V progression. Another favorite of mine. By the way, Gilmour plays all the instruments on this track except for the keyboards, pretty talented guy, huh?

The final track is the 13 minute "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast". The piece, another instrumental, is based around the recording of roadie Alan Stiles talking about what he eats for breakfast and how he makes it. It is fun to listen to the sound clips, but what lies beyond is even better. The song is divided into three sections. The first, "Rise and Shine", is based on guitar soloing over a keyboard melody/solo which really work together tightly. Roger and Nick are patiently in the background forming the quiet rhythm section. This then transfers with a couple of organ chords that fade into more of Alan making breakfast. It is quite entertaining to hear this sort of stuff from a band who creates 23 minute instrumental pieces and songs that are very deep lyrically. This second section, entitled "Sunny Side Up", is the part of the record left to Gilmour for guitar showcasing. He plays a beautiful and melodic tune on two acoustic guitars and then overlays them with a steel guitar. Although it is nothing super intricate in the playing, the intricacy is making it all work so well together. At the end of the second section, we hear Alan frying an egg and speaking which leads back into a reprise of the first section. The third and final section is "Morning Glory", which provides an excellent end to an excellent album. Once the music ends, you can hear a car driving away followed by the sound of a faucet dripping, which, on the vinyl, goes on indefinitely by being put in the run-out groove, which loops until the needle is taken off.

This record still astounds me to this day- not only that it is so cohesive, but the fact that not that many people, even Floyd fans enjoy it. Along with Meddle, Atom Heart Mother is one of my favorite Floyd albums of all time, and I can't even think of a negative thing to say about it! I give it a 10 out of 10.

A live version of "Atom Heart Mother":

Pink Floyd- Ummagumma

After the release of their 1969 studio album More, the soundtrack to the film of the same name, Pink Floyd knew how it felt to release an album without their old leader, Roger 'Syd' Barrett, and they enjoyed it. Without having to conform to the pop specifications that Syd created his songs within, they were able to truly expand their music, extending songs longer and longer, 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes. This was especially true of their live shows which audiences knew were much different than the concise album versions of the songs played live. Pink Floyd now wanted to release an official recording of a live show to give everyone the opportunity to hear just how awesome their shows were. Soon that idea evolved into making a double album- disc 1 being a live album and disc 2 being devoted to each of the band members' individual songs. Each member would get a quarter of the second disc to themselves which led to a lot of experimental music on the album.

Once their ideas were in place and recorded, Ummagumma was released in October 1969 in the UK (November for the US close after More was released. The artwork would become iconic with its picture in picture in picture in picture idea. Various sources have different stories about the title. Some say it is a slang word for sex while others say its just some gibberish made up by the band.

The album's first disc comprises the live album. This is essentially their live set at the time, although it excludes "Interstellar Overdrive" because it was too long, clocking in at 13 minutes. The first track is an 8 and a half minute version of "Astronomy Domine" from Piper at the Gates of Dawn. I have always perceived this as a great opener ever since I heard it open the Piper album, and even live it is a great opener. The tune is extended by repeating the first verse and making the instrumental middle section very dynamic, building up from a small organ solo by Rick Wright into the whole band very powerfully. After this, it transfers into the last verse and ends. As with all of the songs on this live record, I really prefer the live version of this song. All of these are beautifully constructed and obviously longer. I also sense more heart in what they are playing. These versions really show the band's progress and transfer into the realm of progressive rock, which is very cool. I usually do not enjoy live albums by most bands because they don't re-imagine their songs or even attempt to make any differences to their songs, but this is a very good example of a fantastic live album.

Following the opening track is "Careful With That Axe, Eugene", the b-side to their "Point Me at the Sky" single. This one is also brilliantly played and shows how far the band had come since the actual single was released. Roger's screams scare me half to death every time I hear them and they send shivers down most people's spines. The musicianship is great as well. The piece is very dynamic transferring from a relatively soft opening to the loud blood curdling vocals of Waters.

Next up is Waters' "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun"from Saucer. Live, it creates a whole new atmosphere that wasn't present on the original recording. This one is extended with a quieter middle section that loses the drums. Rick really shines on this version of the track. The whole band gradually joins in for the end. Roger Water's vocals are quiet, but wonderful, sung with much meaning. I would say this is a standout track, but all of the live tracks standout!

The last one on the live album is "A Saucerful of Secrets" from the album of the same name. The funny thing about this one is that they've changed it so much from the studio recorded version that it makes more sense as a whole song now, showing their advancement from psychedelic to progressive. The track still has the sound clips and effects that the original has, but in this one, it sounds more like the band as a collective whole which is an improvement in my eyes. The way that Roger, Rick, Nick, and David work together to create these atmospheres is incredible. The last 5 minutes or so are my favorite as a quiet organ solo gradually builds up with the drums, bass, and guitar all powerfully come in with a pretty chord sequence. The "Celestial Voices" section is also sung with much more emotion than on the original.

Next comes the second disc which contains all of the solo songs by each member. I have to say that I always prefer a band that works as a whole and this disc is a good example of why. The quarter given to each person is spent mostly in experimentation, which wouldn't be too bad if it were executed in a better way. The first track "Sysyphus" is Rick Wright's solo piece which is comprised of experimentation with his piano and synthesizers. Divided into four sections, "Sysyphus" tells the story of the Greek mythological character Sisyphus in music. Part one consists of symphonic drums building up with synthesizers acting as orchestration play over the drums. Part two is a piano showcase that starts out just fine, but soon becomes dissonant and frankly quite annoying. It sounds like he just banged on the piano randomly. Part three is perhaps the weirdest section in the song, featuring strummed piano strings and drums in the background, which gradually becomes more and more chaotic as birds start chirping very loudly over top the instruments. Part four consists of orchestration gradually building up until the tune to part one is reprised. I really am not a fan of this song at all. I could understand it as a shortened live piece, but on record its just recklessly banging on instruments.

The second half of the first side of disc 1 is comprised of Waters' two pieces, "Grantchester Meadows"and "Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving With a Pict". The first sounds like a standard Pink Floyd song, reminiscent of "Cirrus Minor" from More. The track features acoustic guitar and vocals all done by Waters. All the while, the sounds of birds chirping can be heard in the background. This is definitely a standout track from the second disc. Towards the end of the song, Waters begins to harmonize his own voice in a beautiful way, sounding like Simon and Garfunkel. Unfortunately, Waters' other track is not as well constructed. "Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving With a Pict" is a collection of sounds of animals all made by Roger. It's fun to listen to the first or second time, but it really is just annoying. Later on, Roger imitates the voice of a Scotsman and just rants about nothing.

The next side opens with David Gilmour's quarter "The Narrow Way". This one is much better than Wright's contribution and can be seen as a sort of guitar showcase. The track is divided into three sections. The first has acoustic guitars playing a shuffle sort tune that has some synthesizers that play over top. The second section features Gilmour on electric guitar, bass, organ, and drums. He plays a riff on bass and guitar that is repeated the entire portion of the song. Overtop is more of the spacey effects. Halfway through the section, all the parts are modulated into a drone that segues into part three. Part three finally introduces Gilmour's vocals which are overtop a guitar. Midway through the section, drums come in and the piece gradually gets louder. This is my favorite track on the studio portion of the album because it feels the most complete.

The final piece of the album belongs to drummer Nick Mason. His multi-parted instrumental piece "The Grand Vizier's Garden Party" is, as with the most of the second disc of Ummagumma, extremely experimental. The first part consists of a flute playing followed by a drum roll and an abrupt cymbal crash. The second section is more experimental with multiple percussion sound effects and multiple instrument sounds being created. Nick eventually gets a sort of drum solo at the end of the track but then abruptly ends, cutting into the third and final section. This only comprises of the flute melody from section one and is a very odd way to end the album. I'm not a huge fan of this track because it just lacks any form, which can be cool if shorter and leading into something, but this just doesn't add up to anything worthwhile.

In rating the album, I will give three ratings:
1. Live Album: 10 out of 10, my only gripe being the sound quality which is minor as its only the limitations of live sound recordings of the time.
2. Studio Album: A weak 5 out of  10 because only a few parts are interesting and not too experimental.
3. Both together: 7 out of 10.

The live version of "Careful With That Axe, Eugene" from this album:

Pink Floyd- Soundtrack to the Film More

In 1969, Pink Floyd was recovering from the loss of their leader Syd Barrett. The 4 piece Pink Floyd- comprised of Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Nick Mason, and Rick Wright- had tried their hand at creating   pop songs and singles as popular as Barrett's. In 1968 they released their first post-Barrett single (and last for several years) entitled "Point Me at the Sky" which was very unpopular in comparison to their Syd Barrett written singles such as "See Emily Play" and "Arnold Layne". The b-side of the single contained a far more popular song entitled "Careful with that Axe, Eugene" which would be played in a much more extended form live. This was the point where things turned for the band. They realized that they would much rather play the extended music that was hardly single material than the hits that the record label wanted. This proved to be key in the future of Pink Floyd.

Pink Floyd was approached in 1969 by film director Barbet Schroeder to create the soundtrack for his film More, an indie drug film. This was the perfect opportunity, the Floyd thought, for them to record what they wanted to record- songs that focused a lot on instrumentation and that didn't have to focus on being a hit.

The soundtrack, entitled Soundtrack from the Film More, was released in the summer of 1969. It has a noticeably proggier sound to it than their previous works, although it does also touch on genres like hard rock on "Ibiza Bar" and "The Nile Song". The album opens with a soft, acoustic number written by Waters (most of the non-instrumental songs are written by him) that acts as a prelude of sorts to the album. It sounds like your outside with the band next to you in the grass playing the song. There are multiple sound clips of birds chirping and the breeze blowing that gives a very cool feel to the song. The vocals have an almost trancy sound to them with a lot of echo on them. This track is followed by a rude awakening of sorts, the hard rocker "The Nile Song". This is the hardest Floyd song in their career up to that point with heavily distorted guitar and raging vocals from Gilmour. I am not a big fan of this track because it sounds like they are trying to imitate other groups, but I applaud their trying to reflect the lyrics in the music. The third track "Crying Song"returns to the softer sound of the first track with more trancy lyrics that sound like a tribal chant almost. Standard Pink Floyd of the time. This is followed by "Up the Khyber", the first of 6 instrumental tracks on the album (7 if you count Gilmour's "A Spanish Piece"). This sounds very similar to parts of the title track from A Saucerful of Secrets, with a constant drum loop and keyboard chaos overtop. It's a refreshing piece from Mason and Wright after the Gilmour and Waters compositions.

Next is the standout acoustic track "Green is the Colour". The song, written by Waters, features a wonderful guitar melody and equally wonderful vocals from David Gilmour. This is one of my favorites from the album because it finds a good middle ground between hard and soft songs with its acoustic guitar and piano, but well sung lyrics by Gilmour which keeps this song in your head for a long time. This is followed by another fantastic track "Cymbaline". The track tells about a nightmare, very vividly sung by Gilmour. The chorus is short but catchy, and the song also finds a good middle ground between hard and soft. There is even some scat performed by Gilmour in the middle section. Rick Wright's playing on this track is soft but melodic which gets across the mood, going from major to minor within one chord. This is followed by the side closer "Party Sequence", another short instrumental. This one sounds very tribal as it is played with tribal percussion and features a penny whistle over top.

The next side begins with a build up of a gong on the track "Main Theme". The third instrumental on the album, the song goes through various changes throughout. After the gong at the beginning, Wright's organ plays for a while alone until Roger and Mason come in with a bass and drum sequence very reminiscent of the opening of "Let There Be More Light" off of Saucer. David Gilmour eventually comes with his guitar played with a slide. This piece is very atmospheric, almost like a soft version of "One of These Days" from Meddle. The following track "Ibiza Bar" is essentially "The Nile Song" part 2. It contains a hard rock sound, which, as I said, I am not a big fan of. I do enjoy, though, the excellent solo from Dave Gilmour in the middle and another at the end. "More Blues", the tenth track, is another instrumental, with (as the title suggests) a blues feel to it. It sounds similar to Led Zeppelin's "Since I've Been Loving You", but with a less in-your-face guitar sound. I like it, although it seems too short as I think it would have made a great extended piece. The following track "Quicksilver" is completely different than any other track on this record and I can only somewhat compare it to "A Saucerful of Secrets". The instrumental opens with eerie sound effects and then transition into what sounds like an organ with church bells playing over it. Mason also plays a gong in the background. This goes on for a while, showing the experimental approach that Pink Floyd loved to use in their pieces. It makes perfect sense especially in a soundtrack, but I have a feeling most casual listeners won't care for it. I personally like it because I like the experimental stuff to a certain degree. There is a certain place for that sort of stuff and I think the band nailed it on this track.

The last two songs are also instrumentals. "A Spanish Piece" is the second to last track. It features Gilmour playing in a traditional Spanish guitar way with a flamenco guitar riff. Overtop are several spoken word parts done by Gilmour that pretty much act out a scene in a Spanish bar. The closer "Dramatic Theme" reprises the bass/drum sequence found on "Main Theme" but with a jazzier feel. Gilmour's guitar is very prominent and Wright plays the organ quietly in the background. This is another track that I think would have been even better if extended out longer. All in all, though, the number makes a fantastic end to the album.

More is far from flawless, but certainly is not a bad album. It contains many more experimental ideas and acoustic numbers than in prior albums, but that often works to its advantage. I give it a 7 out of 10.

The track "Green Is the Colour":