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Pink Floyd History 1976

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In 1976, Pink Floyd began eight months of continuous recording for their next album, Animals, at their own studio facility, Britannia Row, in North London. The album’s cover, featuring a 40ft helium-filled inflatable pig floating above London’s Battersea Power Station, was conceptualized by Roger Waters and photographed by Hipgnosis. The photo shoot took place over three days in December 1976, with the pig famously breaking free and landing in Kent on the second day. The final cover was a composite of the pig from the third day and the location from the first day.

This period marked a significant phase in the band’s history as they continued to push the boundaries of progressive rock with their new album Animals. The band played no concerts this year, the first year without concerts for a long time.

January 1976

1975 David Gilmour with Unicorn in the studio
1975 David Gilmour with Unicorn in the studio

David Gilmour produced Unicorn Album Too Many Crooks Released

David Gilmour’s involvement with Unicorn goes back to 1973 when he discovered them at a wedding and later funded recording their first album. David Gilmour covered the No Way Out of Here song on his solo album self-titled David Gilmour.

Pete and Pat from Unicorn also played on Kate Bush’s first demo recordings at Gilmour’s studio. Gilmour got her signed to EMI Records.

The album Too Many Crooks was released under Harvest Records in the UK. In the United States, it was released by Capitol Records under the title “Unicorn 2.

Learn more about the David Gilmour / Unicorn partnership, Discuss the collaboration, Read article by Bill Kopp about the band

April 1976 for 8 months

1976 Nick Mason Britannia Row Studios on Animals
1976 Nick Mason Britannia Row Studios on Animals

Pink Floyd record Animals over 8 Months

In April 1976, Pink Floyd began eight months of continuous recording for their tenth studio album, Animals, at their own studio facility, Britannia Row, in North London, a 24 track recording studio. The album was engineered by Brian Humphries, a previous collaborator with the band. The recording process continued until early 1977.

Given that Pink Floyd’s unlimited studio time deal with EMI had come to an end, it was cheaper to make their own studio, or so they thought.

Many of the songs from Animals already existed prior to recording them… officially. Dogs was being performed even before Wish You Were Here was recorded the previous year. It was being performed live as “You Gotta Be Crazy”. Elements of Sheep had appeared as “Raving and Drooling”. Towards the end of the recording process Nick Mason says in his book, “Towards the end of recording Roger created two pieces called Pigs on the Wing to open and close the album”. Nick mentions a slightly raw point that people are paid for quantity of songs on an album, not the length, so the song co-written with David, namely Dogs, will have earned him less than Roger’s two Piggies!

David Gilmour was focusing on setting up his family life rather than contributing songs to Pink Floyd’s new album with the birth of first child Alice Gilmour. He co-wrote Dogs and had no credits on the other songs. Nick Mason and Richard Wright contributed less than usual with Richard Wright having no credit at all. He would exit the band two years later.

Reflecting on his contribution, Rick would later say, “I don’t really like a lot of the music on the album. I have to say I didn’t fight very hard to put my stuff on, and I didn’t have anything to put on it. I think I played well, but I didn’t contribute to the writing of it but I think that also Roger was kind of not letting me do that. This was the start of the whole ego thing in the band”.

Snowy White popped up on the album recording lead on Pigs on the Wing before it was split in two and erased for the LP release but kept on the 8 track version. Snowy would play on the Animals tour In The Flesh in 1977.

Johnny Rotten’s I Hate Pink Floyd is symbolic of the reason why this album had a particularly heavy sound compared to previous albums. The band didn’t want to be called dinosaur rock like other bands were getting targeted with. Listening to Sheep on the last Roger Waters tour in 2023 and hearing the heaviness of it was fantastic.

The album, released on January 21, 1977, marked a departure from their previous works, focusing on the socio-political conditions of mid-1970s Britain. The cover, featuring an inflatable pig floating between two chimneys of Battersea Power Station, was conceived by Roger Waters and designed by Storm Thorgerson. The album did not contain any singles but was promoted through the In the Flesh tour in 1977.

April, May or June 1976

David Gilmour with wife Ginger Gilmour and child Alice Gilmour
David Gilmour with wife Ginger Gilmour and child Alice Gilmour

Alice Gilmour Born, David Gilmour’s First Child

David Gilmour and his then wife Ginger Gilmour had their first child together, Alice Gilmour. Not sure when she was born, but records online say the birth was registered in Hammersmith in April, May or June 1976.

2-4 December 1976

1976 Rejected Animals Cover Art Sketch
1976 Rejected Animals Cover Art Sketch

Animals Album Artwork Photo Shoot

Album sleeve designers Hipgnosis arranged a three-day photo shoot at London’s Battersea Power Station for the cover of Pink Floyd’s album, Animals. With a concept suggested by Roger Waters, the team photographed a 40ft helium-filled inflatable pig floating above the power station.

On the first day, the marksman who had been hired to shoot down the pig if it escaped its mooring ropes was not needed, but it took so long to inflate the pig that the photographers could only get coverage of the building. On the second day, the pig was installed but broke free and sailed away; the marksman hadn’t been rehired, so it escaped, coming down in Kent and was discovered by a farmer who was furious the giant pig had been frightening his cows! On the third day, Hipgnosis got their shot, but the final cover was a composite of the Day 3 pig and the Day 1 location.

17 December 1976

Capitol Radio Nicky Horn and David Gilmour
Capitol Radio Nicky Horn and David Gilmour

The Pink Floyd Story broadcast by Capitol Radio

“The Pink Floyd Story” was a six-part radio documentary broadcast by Capital Radio in London, from December 1976 to January 1977. The show was presented by Nicky Horne and featured interviews with Pink Floyd band members, including Nick Mason, Roger Waters, David Gilmour, and Syd Barrett. It also included insights from other key figures like John Peel and Norman Smith.

The series provided a comprehensive look at the band’s history, from their early days and the UFO Club to the creation of iconic albums like “The Dark Side of the Moon” and “Wish You Were Here.” It’s a fascinating listen for any Pink Floyd fan, offering a deep dive into the band’s journey and the personal experiences of its members.

The Pink Floyd Story broadcast by Capital Radio was split into 6 episodes of around 45 minutes each. The titles of the Six Parts:

Part 1: The Early Years (Listen)
Part 2: Piper at the Gates of Dawn to Atom Heart Mother (Listen)
Part 3: More to Dark Side of the Moon (Listen)
Part 4: The Dark side of the Moon (Listen)
Part 5: Wish You Were Here (Listen)
Part 6: Animals (Listen)

Each part covers different phases and albums in Pink Floyd’s career, providing a comprehensive look at their journey.

Here are some of the biggest selling albums of 1976:

  • “Hotel California” by Eagles
  • “Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975)” by Eagles
  • “Boston” by Boston
  • “Oxygene” by Jean-Michel Jarre
  • “Frampton Comes Alive!” by Peter Frampton
  • “James Taylor’s Greatest Hits” by James Taylor
  • “Best of the Doobies” by The Doobie Brothers
  • “Chronicle: 20 Greatest Hits” by Creedence Clearwater Revival
  • “Linda Ronstadt’s Greatest Hits” by Linda Ronstadt
  • “Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap” by AC/DC

Pink Floyd 1976 Sources – Nick Mason A Personal History of Pink Floyd and For the Love of Vinyl The Cover Art of Hipgnosis and Mind over Matter The Images of Pink Floyd by Storm Thorgerson and Peter Curzon.