Wish You Were Here is a song cycle dedicated to Pink Floyd's original frontman, Syd Barrett, who'd flamed out years before: two grimly funny songs about the evils of the music business ("By the way, which one's Pink?"), and two long, touching ones about the band's vanished friend. The real star of the show, though, is the production: sparkling, convoluted, designed to sound deeply oh-wow under the influence--and pretty great sober too--with David Gilmour getting lots of space for his most lyrical guitar playing ever. And, though the album is big and ambitious, even bombastic, it somehow dodges being pretentious--the Barrett tributes are honest and heartfelt, beneath all the grand gestures and stereophonic trickery. --Douglas Wolk
More Albums by Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd "Oh By the Way: Box Set (14CD)"
$210.70
*Limited Edition *The entire Pink Floyd Studio Collection packaged as CD/Mini-vinyl reproductions -The Piper At The Gates of Dawn -A Saucer Full of Secrets -More -Ummagumma (2CD - Gatefold) -Atom Heart Mother (Gatefold) -Meddle (Gatefold) -Obscured By Clouds -The Dark Side of The Moon (Gatefold) -Wish You Were Here -Animals (Gatefold) -The Wall (2CD - Gatefold) -The Final Cut (Gatefold) -A Momentary Lapse of Reason -The Division Bell
*Each CD is a faithful reproduction of the original vinyl using original artwork, and LP dust sleeve
*Box set also includes: -20" x 30" limited edition high quality paper poster only available in this collection. Portrait collage contains a new Storm Thorgerson arrangement of 40 images from the band's history. -Two Pink Floyd Coasters with classic Floyd images.
Pink Floyd "Dark Side of the Moon 30th Anniversary Edition"
$11.76
Dark Side of the Moon, originally released in 1973, is one of those albums that is discovered anew by each generation of rock listeners. This complex, often psychedelic music works very well because Pink Floyd doesn't rush anything; the songs are mainly slow to mid-tempo, with attention paid throughout to musical texture and mood. The sound effects on songs like "On the Run," "Time" and especially "Money" (with sampled sounds of clinking coins and cash registers turned into rhythmic accompaniment) are impressive, especially when we remember that 1973 was before the advent of digital recording techniques. This is probably Pink Floyd's best-known work, and it's an excellent place to start if you're new to the band. --Genevieve Williams
Pink Floyd "Echoes: The Best of Pink Floyd"
$11.98
Echoes is a double-CD collection of some of Pink Floyd's best songs. It's also a fascinating document of the band's history. They began life as Syd Barrett's phantasmagoric plaything before clasping the wings of Icarus and ascending toward the sun on an epic space-rock odyssey, eventually turning left once they reached the dark side of the moon and burning up on reentry, crash-landing on every earthlings' home hi-fi. And it's all here--30 years of the Floyd's awesome back catalog trimmed down to two handsome CDs. It's worth remembering that, despite a fondness for pyrotechnics, Pink Floyd were never a prog-rock band. Sure, some of their songs are a bit long, and they never released singles (at least not for 11 years), but the same could be said for Led Zeppelin. Clinically devoid of the faux-classical overtures and vainglorious musicianship of that era, Pink Floyd were a pole apart; Meddle's epic maritime tone poem "Echoes" remains the Floyd's apogee. But here, on this collection, "the albatross" which "hangs motionless upon the air" has had its wings clipped--seven full minutes are missing, but you'd never be able to tell. The sonar bleeps, the screeching seagulls, the howling winds are all retained, and whoever wielded the editorial axe, Eugene, did so carefully.
Interestingly, the album's nonchronological track listing works--the summery, childhood enchantment of "See Emily Play" is right next to the school discipline of "Happiest Days of Our Lives"--and at least this way no one will switch off when material from A Momentary Lapse of Reason comes around. Despite the curious omission of "Atom Heart Mother," this really is the very best of the Floyd--from the throbbing "One of These Days" to the pop operatic "Great Gig in the Sky" to the genius silvery fluidity of Dave Gilmour's guitar work. This is timeless, as many members of Sigur Rós, Radiohead, and the Beta Band will attest. --Kevin Maidment
Pink Floyd "The Wall (Deluxe Packaging Digitally Remastered)"
$15.95
The Wall is less a collection of songs than a single work, which is sometimes frustrating; the plot lacks enough coherence to hold the snippets of music together. However, there are occasional flashes of brilliance on what ranks as Pink Floyd's most ambitious project. Most of these come from the fully developed songs, which have become classics in their own right. "Hey You," "Mother," and especially "Comfortably Numb" are subtle, incredible pieces of music. Though complex, they move at a relaxed pace, allowing the listener to absorb them slowly; this kind of pacing was something Pink Floyd excelled at. Also worth noting is the "Another Brick in the Wall/The Happiest Days of Our Lives" medley, which has become a staple of rock radio. --Genevieve Williams
Pink Floyd "Is There Anybody Out There? / The Wall Live Pink Floyd 1980-81 (Deluxe Limited Edition)"
$25.30
Exactly what was Pink Floyd's The Wall? Rock opera? Concept album? Performance art? Mere entertainment? While the truth may lie in a combination of all of the above, during the band's tour of 1980-81, The Wall was a bona fide spectacle. More than anything, Is There Anybody Out There? captures the volume, the bombast, and the grandeur of these famed performances with remarkable accuracy. Meticulously recorded, these concerts are astonishingly faithful to the band's studio versions and flow out of the speakers with practiced authority and absolutely fantastic sound. That said, there are few new revelations to be gained from hearing The Wall live that can't be gleaned from the studio version. Some moments do have an additional spark, however. "Run Like Hell" is launched with blistering intensity, and the first notes of "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 1" will surely raise a shiver. The release also includes two tracks ("What Shall We Do Now," "The Last Few Bricks") left off the original release due to space constraints. Essential for Floyd fanatics as well as those wishing to hear just how terrific a live concert can sound. --S. Duda
Dark Side of the Moon, originally released in 1973, is one of those albums that is discovered anew by each generation of rock listeners. This complex, often psychedelic music works very well because Pink Floyd doesn't rush anything; the songs are mainly slow to mid-tempo, with attention paid throughout to musical texture and mood. The sound effects on songs like "On the Run," "Time" and especially "Money" (with sampled sounds of clinking coins and cash registers turned into rhythmic accompaniment) are impressive, especially when we remember that 1973 was before the advent of digital recording techniques. This is probably Pink Floyd's best-known work, and it's an excellent place to start if you're new to the band. --Genevieve Williams
