Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon

It’s the only album, after half a century of discerning collecting, that vividly takes me back to the first time I played it, every time I play it. I was admittedly ‘perfectly’ ready for it at the time; a big prog/Floyd fan. The anticipation was sweet, the trip to the shop to get my reserved copy, the journey home reading the sleeve and the run upstairs to my bedroom to get that needle down before I’d even taken my coat off - all felt good. But nothing could have prepared me for just how jaw-droppingly good it turned out to be. I see the room, the speakers, the PL12D turntable and even get a little echo of the urge to immediately turn it over and play it again as I did back then - just to be sure.

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I was too young (only by a few years) so I came to Floyd with the Wall. My favourite having mined their back catalogue is WYWH.

Shine is actually a folk song (have a listen)

.sjb

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The Wall was my Floyd introduction as well.
We saw it performed live in London, Hammersmith Odeon if memory serves me correctly ( it’s a bit hazy over those years…:joy:).

I saw the original Wall show at Earls Court in London, an amazing experience. DSOTM still evokes memories of my first headphones experiences. The panning in “On the Run” blowing my (then very) young mind, and then again later for “other” reasons. Oh and yes, the Wizard of Oz thing does kinda work. Can be seen on YT

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Meddle and Ummagumma are my two favorites. And Obscured By the Clouds and Saucerful of Secrets aren’t far behind.

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You’re showing your age there :slight_smile:

Hey, I was listening to music before Clyde McPhatter & the Drifters was born.

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I heard DSOTM 20 or so years after its release. I was about 13 at the time and was slowly discovering Rock/Pop music both classic (through recommendations from people older than me) plus contemporary (U2 had just released Pop, Oasis was very popular, Aerosmith made a comeback with Get a Grip). It wasn’t easy to access classic rock albums in India at that time. The prevailing format was still the audio cassette. HMV released DSOTM in its top end category of tape called Sheer Magic. It cost upwards of Rs. 100 (probably $10 in those days) so definitely very premium. Convinced my parents to buy it for me. Played it ad infinitum on very basic equipment (a standard stereo cassette player). Was still completely blown away. Eventually the tape wore off. The humid climate of Calcutta was never kind to the format anyways.

Since then I have come to own 5 copies of it on Vinyl plus the EMI SACD. Still trying to discover the subtle differences between each pressing as suggested by audiophiles on the SteveHoffman forum. :wink: Am contemplating buying the Analogue Productions SACD just released. Any opinions of that? AP usually does a fantastic job and the WYWH SACD is the best version of the album.

Have also recently set up a desktop listening rig. The album sounds sublime on my Audeze LCD-X cans.

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“Open Your Heart, I’m Coming Home”. - from “Hey You”

Leads into a refrain and then…“Hey you…” (again)

While the first voice is definitely Gilmour (Waters wrote the song), is it Waters who sings the second part?

Indeed it is Roger @7NoteScale

In either the DSOTM or Wish You Were Here “making of” documentary Waters indicates that he regrets having had someone else sing his lyrics - even if David has/had the “better” voice.

While we’re discussing The Wall… how perfect is that huge Gilmour guitar response to Roger’s ‘as you claw the thin ice’ couplet at 1:45 in The Thin Ice?!

When those two were on the same frequency creatively there were precious few who could compete.

Waters has a history of being his own worst enemy. He became increasingly unlikeable over the years, and the suit, the bitterness, and endless political statements in his concerts…well, it isn’t it a pity and isn’t it a shame. He became so alienating that it is reported that they had to tie a steak around his neck so his dog would play with him.

Love his lyrics. But when he declared “Pink Floyd is creatively dead”…he was not incorrect, merely insightless. Glad we had the group during our lifetime.

Gilmour said that he personally lamented that he never had the name recognition of a Clapton, but then, again, he has to hold some responsibility for that outcome.

They are, after all…just people.

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Exceptionally well stated, @7NoteScale!

(Speaking of bands/groups, there is a poster of Keith Richards with his young daughters. It reads “when they die, I’ll be worth a fortune.” His favorite term (he says) is “The Rolling Stones Live! And Keith Richards.”)

It’s a reissue of the original SACD:

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…and it is reported that fame and money do not generally make people better.

You can only get back to the roots of your creative work if you still carry your own old lyrics and melodies in your heart.

I wish it worked in that way, but it comes down to commercial sales, filling venues, receiving royalties and management. The YouTube videos on their “lifestyles” focuses upon their women, homes, cars and net worth. McCartney in excess of 1.2 billion, Jagger in excess of $500 mil.

And at the root of the Pink Floyd drama was not only control, but control of profits; the value of the name. Much like their line about “have a cigar; you’re gonna go far” or Skynyrd’s “Working for the MCA.”

In some cases, Clapton for example, giving up the attention and glory apparently is very painful. What comes after wealth and power…I think for them it is akin to death.

That said, I enjoy Pink Anderson and Floyd Counsil being the root expression for (at the time) “The Pink Floyd.” I do not disparage their going for power and glory, but I accept that when they sat down to write, it was often about “what would sell.” Gilmour relied upon his (now) wife to write his later material. Reminded of what went into Let It Be or Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.

Most of us are consumers. What we consume affords them with unimaginable lifestyles. As Gilmour said in a later concert “Think I’ll buy a Learjet…” adding “or maybe two.”

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Just look at my avatar. I think it says enough.

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There are some (familiar) interesting interviews on YouTube with David Gilmour. The basic riffs that resulted in songs on Wish You Were Here. He bristles when directed (when talking about Syd Barrett) to comment on The Wall. It was the first time that Barrett’s schizophrenia was noted to have been exacerbated by methaqualone and the hangers-on that made his situation that much worse. Overall, he stays quite diplomatic in interview, something that seems increasingly difficult for people to do.

Can you post a link (obv I can search but sounds like a specific interview you had in mind)