" PINK FLOYD " 30 years of blowing minds

[Spirit Catcher]

> The enduring qualities of Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon have made it an
> epic in the annals of music, and carried it to a remarkable milestone.
> Perhaps a toast is in order. The band's Dark Side of the Moon release is on
> e of the top recordings of all time and has been on album charts for 26
> years.
>
> Said Glenda the Good Witch to Dorothy from Kansas, "Just tap your heels,
> and you'll take a trip to the Dark Side of the Moon."
>
> OK, that's not how The Wizard of Oz goes. But someone with too much time on
> his hands -- and a ready supply of mind-altering substances -- once
> discovered that Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon album provides a nifty
> alternative soundtrack to the classic movie.
>
> Apparently, if you start the album on the third roar of the MGM lion, the
> music and lyrics perfectly parallel much of the action. But this trippy bit
> of trivia does not begin to explain the album's massive appeal and
> endurance.
>
> Dark Side of the Moon turns 30 today, and continues to enjoy status as one
> of the top-selling albums of all time and an essential part of our rock 'n'
> roll consciousness.
>
> Ironically, as if to demonstrate one of the album's themes, its original
> U.K. release (March 24, 1973, a week after the North American release) was
> marred by a bit of capitalism gone awry. Scheduled for a press showcase at
> the London Planetarium, the planned quadrophonic mix had not been produced
> in time. The record company went ahead with an inferior stereo mix and,
> according to drummer Nick Mason, "they'd got the most terrible speakers."
> The band refused to participate, so the label erected cardboard cut-outs of
> the musicians to "welcome" the press. The reporters had a field day, one
> even quipping that he couldn't tell the difference.
>
> Despite this inauspicious release, and mixed early reviews, Dark Side of
> the Moon has put up staggering numbers, selling more than 29 million copies
> worldwide. It will be certified double diamond in Canada next week, marking
> sales of two million.
>
> It stayed on Billboard Magazine's Top 200 Album chart for 741 weeks in
> total -- more than 14 years. Of those, 591 weeks were consecutive, from
> Dec. 18, 1976 to April 23, 1988. It dropped off due to a change in
> Billboard's chart system, but returned to the Pop Catalog Album chart,
> created in 1991, and has maintained a position there ever since.
>
> Just last month, DSM marked its 1,342nd week (almost 26 years) of chart
> placement, earning it a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records. No
> other album has persisted longer on any chart in history.
>
> But at the time, the album's massive success nearly drove the band apart.
> The recognition that they may have reached their peak left nothing left to
> strive for. In a June 1978 interview with Melody Maker, guitarist David
> Gilmour reflected, "When you have something like Dark Side of the Moon ...
> all those goals suddenly disappear because you've got them. There was
> definitely a danger point at that period. We could have easily packed the
> whole thing in."
>
> Fittingly, DSM was one of the first albums available on CD in August 1984
> -- in fact, its catalogue number is EMI001 -- and remains one of the top 10
> best-selling compact discs of all time. And to commemorate the anniversary,
> EMI will release DSM on Super Audio CD (SACD) format next Tuesday. Remixed
> and re-mastered from the original analogue tapes, the hybrid SACD will be
> playable on any conventional CD unit, but those with SACD-compatible
> systems will hear it in 5.1 surround sound.
>
> Mark Collen, senior vice-president of global marketing for EMI, says DSM is
> perfectly suited to a high-resolution format like SACD, "which can
> faithfully capture the subtle nuances of the Floyd's intricate music."
> Original sleeve designer Storm Thorgerson has also re-worked his prism
> design for the 30th anniversary cover.
>
> DSM is a staple of the programming on Ottawa's classic rock station, CHEZ
> 106. Tracks like Time, Money and Us And Them combine for approximately 11
> spins every week, and the album is played in its entirety about four times
> a year, "just for fun", says station manager, Danny Kingsbury.
>
> Kingsbury feels that the album's prevailing feature is its revolutionary
> production.
>
> "People probably didn't even appreciate it at the time, but when you listen
> to it now, it's not dated at all. It's brilliant sonics. It will last
> forever."
>
> Craig Bailey is the host of Floydian Slip, a weekly Pink Floyd radio show
> heard in Vermont since 1995.
>
> "Dark Side is a blast," he muses. "Full of layers of ambient sounds,
> effects and dialogue-solid songwriting, excellent production and fine
> musicianship. It's one of the best-recorded albums ever made."
>
> The inventive dialogue on DSM provides some of its most memorable moments,
> like the infamous lunatic laughter of Pink Floyd roadie Roger The Hat, on
> Brain Damage.
>
> And the closing words of the album, "There is no dark side of the moon,
> really. Matter of fact, it's all dark," uttered by Jerry Driscoll.
>
> These were culled from interviews conducted by engineer Alan Parsons.
> Participants flipped over cards and answered questions compiled by the
> band, like "Do you fear death?" and "Are you mad?".
>
> Erik Haller, general manager of the HMV superstore in Toronto, is a big fan
> of the album.
>
> "Way ahead of its time. The way the voice and sound are mixed is timeless.
> The theme and music appeals to all generations."
>
> He also notes that current electronic artists were most certainly
> influenced by the atmospheric sound of DSM. In fact, Radiohead cites Pink
> Floyd as an influence on its breakthrough OK Computer album.
>
> Clearly, DSM's dark, introspective motifs struck a universal and timeless
> chord. It's easy to see that the album's themes of alienation, greed,
> wasted time, death -- all the things that drive people mad -- are still
> frighteningly relevant. The extent of its abiding popularity is evident
> from SoundScan's sales figures, still tracking an average of 8,000 copies
> sold weekly in the U.S., and almost 700 in Canada.
>
> And new generations of fans continue to discover this influential album,
> apparent on the many Pink Floyd forums on the Internet.
>
>
>
>


"I don't know if pop is an art form? I should think it is as much as sitting
down is."
Syd Barrett, 1970

[Spirit Catcher]

ON VH1 CLASSIC: Monday, March 24
VH1 Classic honors a true classic--the remastered 30th Anniversary edition of Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon." The tribute features special concerts and videos from the band as well as a listening party for the new release -- a day before it arrives in stores. This exclusive Pink Floyd event begins with "Headline Act: Pink Floyd," which includes an interview with band veteran David Gilmour on his London houseboat/recording studio and Pink Floyd videos such as "Wish You Were Here," "Welcome to the Machine" and "Another Brick in the Wall Part 2."

The rest of the evening:
7:30 - Listening Party: "Dark Side of the Moon - 30th Anniversary Edition"
8:30 - Live Pink Floyd Concert: "Delicate Sound of Thunder"
10:00 - "Tonight Let's All Make Love In London" "Tonight Let's All Make Love in London" is a combination of studio footage and live footage from an event called the "14 Hour Technicolor Dream", in the late 60's. It was the last time Syd Barrett played with Pink Floyd.
10:30 - A block of classic Pink Floyd videos
Premieres at 7:00 PM

[Spirit Catcher]

From: [email protected]
Subject: Fwd: "Dark Side" at 30: Roger Waters

In a message dated 03/22/2003 10:07:34 AM Pacific Standard Time,
[email protected] writes:


> A brainchild born of insanity
> By John Harris
>
> After Syd Barrett descended into mental illness, Roger Waters took over as
> Pink Floyd's driving force. From Dark Side of the Moon until The Final Cut,
> he wrote ninety-five percent of the lyrics and devised the concepts that
> underpinned the albums. Despite the band's messy 1987 splintering, he is
> now on friendly terms with Rick Wright and Nick Mason, but he has yet
> reconcile with David Gilmour.
> Dark Side of the Moon is partly based on the underlying theme of insanity.
> Was that there from the start?
>
Roger W.; Yeah, I think so. There is a residue of Syd in all of this. Syd had been
> the central creative force in the early days, and so his having succumbed
> to schizophrenia was an enormous blow. And also, when you see that
> happening to someone you've been very close friends with, and known more or
> less your whole life, it really concentrates the mind on how ephemeral
> one's sensibilities and mental capacities can be. For me, it was very much
> "There but for the grace of God go I." That was certainly expressed in
> "Brain Damage."
>
> You've said in the past that your direct style of lyric-writing on Dark
> Side of the Moon was influenced by 1970's John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band
> album.
>
> I just think that's one of the truly great moments in the history of rock &
> roll, or of the history of any writing. It's a remarkable piece of work.
> Who knows? He might have found his way back to making something of similar
> power had he lived. It's so raw. There are a number of records that, when
> one's young, knock you into a different place and give you the will to go
> on trying to do something. That record is one of them. Another one was the
> Band's first album. That completely changed everything about records for
> me. Pet Sounds and Sgt. Pepper, too.
>
> What's your memory of writing "Money"?
>
> Although it's based around a bass line, I wrote it on an acoustic guitar.
> Occasionally, I would do things and Dave would say, "No, that's wrong.
> There should be another beat. That's only seven." I'd say, "Well, that's
> how it is." A number of my songs have bars of odd length. When you play
> "Money" on an acoustic guitar, it's very much a blues thing. That's how the
> demo was. There's a very bluesy feel to it.
>
> And how did you come up with the tape loops on that track?
>
> I made those recordings in a shed at the bottom of the garden, throwing
> coins into a big industrial bowl that my wife used for mixing clay. I
> recorded those sound effects on my first proper tape recorder, chopped them
> up and glued them together, stuck them in the machine, put a mike stand
> there to hold tape taut, and off we went.
>
> What do you recall of recording "The Great Gig in the Sky"?
>
> It was something that Rick had already written. It's a great chord
> sequence. "The Great Gig in the Sky" and the piano part on "Us and Them,"
> in my view, are the best things that Rick did -- they're both really
> beautiful. And Alan [Parsons] suggested Clare Torry. I've no idea whose
> idea it was to have someone wailing on it. Clare came into the studio one
> day, and we said, "There's no lyrics. It's about dying -- have a bit of a
> sing on that, girl." I think she only did one take. And we all said, "Wow,
> that's that done. Here's your sixty quid." Years later, I moved house, and
> she lived just round the corner. I used to run into her all the time,
> walking her dog.
>
> It was your idea to record the snippets of speech that are all over the
> album . . .
>
> I thought it was a terrific idea. I wrote questions down on a set of cards,
> and they were in sequence. Whoever was in the building came and did it.
> They would read the top card and answer it -- with no one else in the room
> -- and then take that card off, and do the second one. So, for instance,
> when it said "When was the last time you were violent?" the next one said,
> "Were you in the right?" It provided essential color for the record. The
> questions that provided us with the best material were the ones about
> violence.
>
> Looking back on your relationship with Dave Gilmour, what do you make of
> the theory that your input was based around organizing ideas and
> frameworks, and he contributed his intuitive musicianship?
>
> That's crap. There's no question that Dave needs a vehicle to bring out the
> best of his guitar playing. And he is a great guitar player. But the idea,
> which he's tried to propagate over the years, that he's somehow more
> musical than I am, is absolute fucking nonsense. It's an absurd notion, but
> people seem quite happy to believe it.
>
> How did you feel as you watched the album become so successful?
>
> We were very pleased, but not surprised. It went up the American charts
> quite quickly. We were on tour in the States while that was happening. It
> was obviously going to be a big record -- particularly after AM as well as
> FM radio embraced "Money." From that moment, it was going to be a big
> record.
>
> How did your life change?
>
> If I'm honest, I have to accept that at that point, I became a capitalist.
> When you suddenly make a lot of money, you have to decide whether to give
> it away to poor people or invest it. I decided to give some of it away to
> poor people and invest the rest. I was faced with that dilemma, coming from
> the background I did. I could no longer pretend that I was a true
> socialist, but twenty-five percent of my money went into a charitable trust
> that I've run ever since. I don't make a song and dance about it. One of
> the good things about being a capitalist, is that you become a
> philanthropist, to a certain extent.
>
> Did Pink Floyd ever make another record as good as Dark Side of the Moon?
>
> Well, I think The Wall is as good. I think those are the two great records
> we made together.
>
> (March 12, 2003)
>
>
>


"I don't know if pop is an art form? I should think it is as much as sitting
down is."
Syd Barrett, 1970