Pink Floyd - Atom Heart Mother

[Hudini]

The music if not the arrangement of the title track is supposedly mostly Dave and Rick's, and ASB sounds like their music too.

Supposedly each of the parts of "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast" was conceived by Waters, Wright and Gilmour respectively, but I never really knew which part was whose originally.

[mosespa]

It's the one album by the group where I press "play" and wait for something to happen...and wait for something to happen...and wait for something to happen...and then it's over.

*shrug*

Their most boring album, imo.

[danielcaux]

Supposedly each of the parts of "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast" was conceived by Waters, Wright and Gilmour respectively, but I never really knew which part was whose originally.

Wasn't Sunny Side Up a reworking of an original Zabriskie Point outtake? I believe it was called Baby Shuffle in D and it was a solo guitar song by Gilmour... oh no, that was actually The Narrow Way Part 1. But still it's pretty clear that Sunny is a solo song by Gilmour, and if the above is true, then for sure Rise and Shine is Wright's track and Morning Glory would be the Waters compositon, because is the one that has prominet bass on it.

[thehumanzoo]

Although not perhaps the best album ever made, I occasionally stick Atom Heart Mother on the player if I am not in the mood for too much lyrical content. It is not a bad album, just musically nothing particularly sticks out aside from good moments throughout every track.


However the redeeming feature of this album (which makes me kinder to the album to take it from a 3 rating to a 4) for me is the CD packaging: I have always loved the sleeve design and photography. In addition, I have an additional laminated artwork stuffed in with the sleeve marked "Breakfast Tips No.1" and "Breakfast Tips No.2":

"Breakfast Tips No.1" appears to have a German recipe called "Original Fränkisches kuh Hirn Früstück". (I am currently looking for my translation I made of this back in the day when I studied German, but have since lost).

"Breakfast Tips No.2", on the opposite side, has an English recipe called "Traditional Bedouin Wedding Feast" which is a feast designed to serve up to 250 and comically involves stuffing a series of progressively larger animals.

Does anyone know anything this additional sleeve design? Presumably it was part of the original LP design and is a visual part to "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast", but I have never seen any reference to this before.

[princessDungan74D]

I like the album. Its a little weird at some points but it is good.

[TheLazenby]

I'm fairly certain that the Breakfast Tips card was new to the remastered CD. Storm talks about it in "Mind Over Matter." Incidentally, the German recipe apparently has something to do with brains, and isn't all that bad...

"Summer '68" is definitely a horrendously underrated Rick song. That song needs to be cranked, loud.

[snifferdog]

I've been listening again to the version of the Atom Mother Suite that David Gilmour performed with Ron Geesin last year. I like it better than the album version - it's got oomph. I've never been able to get into Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast but the three other short songs aren't without merit. Fat Old Sun is great, though not in the version that's here. Roger's If is a nice little song that I'd sooner listen to any day than anything off his solo albums. Summer 68 - again, a bit underrated. I don't think Pink Floyd ever played that live, did they? It would have been an interesting choice for a reworking in later years.

[Damn!t]

Summer 68 is a beautiful song. Very much Richard Wright sort of theme and the feel is melancholic.
A true Floyd album. Joint venture. Two of the experimantal, long things were made by all of them and in the other 3
you can clearly hear who made which song.

[malusienka]

I also think that summer 68 is very beautiful. I love the way the mood is changing in the end of the song. It's starting to be sad, a little bit melancholic than at the beggining.
I wish Richard had written and sung more songs...

I like Alan's psychodelic breakfast. "scrambled eggs, bacon, sausages, toast, coffee" - I'm always hungry after this.

I dislike the atom heart mother suite. It just don't sound for me like pink floyd. Maybe I must listen to it more times, but it's just boring.

[Damn!t]

I got used to AHM suite over the years.
BUT, the real treat for my ears was when I discovered the KQED version of it.
Fuck, thats some real Floyd.

[Massed Gadgets]

When I first heard this album, I was completely unprepared, I really knew nothing about it. I was already a Floyd fan from albums like WYWH and Animals, and I'd heard some of their earlier stuff, mainly UmmaGumma, but I had no idea what to expect from AHM. Well, I thought I did. I bought it on a road trip to Toronto when I was a teen. My friend Rob's mom had some kind of appointment in T.O., so she took us along for the ride so we could hit some of the record stores and buy some vinyl (no such thing as CD's in those days!). In the car on the way back, I confidently said I knew what to expect from the AHM Suite..."Lot's of acoustic guitar and mooing cows." Boy, was I wrong. It was such a surprise hearing it that I was completely enthralled. I'd liked orchestral rock music from hearing things like Alan Parson's Project's Tales of Mystery and Imagination (which was the very first album I ever bought for myself), but I had just never expected it from Floyd. I still love the piece to this day. And the other side of the album has some of the quintessential pastoral Floyd on it. I particularly like Summer '68 because it not only has that pastoral vibe, but it also goes all orchestral on us too, which sounds like it would not work at all, but it does. If is one of my favourites of Roger's more personal pieces, and I was thrilled when he performed it live back in '84 on the Pros and Cons Tour. Although Fat Old Sun is fun to hear in the extended live versions, I think it works just perfectly here as a shorter, wistful song, full of youthful memories. And, as I mentioned earlier in the thread, I love Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast. Like Summer '68 combining the pastoral with the orchestral, this one combines the pastoral with the more experimental and sound collage aspects of the AHM Suite, and thus balances out the album bringing it to a perfect (and nicely mellowed out) finish.

[kitkat]

I just figured out that with the cover, Pink Floyd was sending a secret code to their fans that this album was indeed a cow and was filled with bullsheeeet.

In my true opinion of course.

[Stephen]

I just figured out that with the cover, Pink Floyd was sending a secret code to their fans that this album was indeed a cow and was filled with bullsheeeet.

In my true opinion of course.

Maybe you should have one as a heading to all your posts then?

Just my opinion of course.

[Steph22]

I really do like this album. it was the last one I really got into. The title track is so sweeping and grand at the beginning that you tend to overlook the more tender and funky parts a little farther in. Although i could do with out the chanting and hissing voices.
"If" was always a pretty little ditty with brilliant Gilmour guitar, I have always felt though somehow the piano does not belong in this song.

I Love Summer 68. it just rolls along with brilliant Piano from Rick.

Fat Old Sun is not one of my favorite songs, but I do love David's solo at the end.

Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast is pure whimsy, especially the first two parts. And I love it, however I have to be in the mood for it.

[psychocandy]

i love this album, definitely the best thing they've ever done without syd barrett.