DARK SIDE OF THE MOON was a benchmark record. It turned the musical world on its ear with a hitherto unseen combination of sounds, and changed things considerably for Pink Floyd. The pyramid-like prism refracting the thin white light into a rainbow became synonymous with the band, as did the album, a collection of epics steeped in Roger Waters' lyrics of paranoia, alienation and schizophrenia.
For this project, Pink Floyd resurrected older and unfinished numbers, some of which came from the multitude of soundtracks the band members had previously worked on. The film "Zabriskie Point," a study of American materialism from a foreigner's perspective, provided "Us And Them" (originally titled "The Violence Sequence"). Waters rewrote "Breathe" after its appearance on his and avant-garde composer Ron Geesin's score for "The Body," a surreal medical documentary. To bring the songs into a clearer light, Floyd and their long-time engineer, Alan Parsons, used a multitude of sound effects--from stereophonically-projected footsteps and planes flying overhead ("On The Run") to a roomful of ringing clocks ("Time").
The band brought in female singers to sweeten the harmonies throughout the album. Gospel singer Clare Torry was given a solo, albeit lyric-less, turn on Richard Wright's "The Great Gig In The Sky," shrieking, sobbing and sighing in orgasmic waves. Floyd also enlisted Dick Parry's saxophone on "Us And Them" and "Money," which became the group's first American Top 40 hit. Further adding to the record's mystique, barely audible spoken passages were sprinkled throughout--a result of hours interviewing random Abbey Road occupants about their views on insanity, violence and death.
The combination of creative and technological concepts must have struck a nerve; DARK SIDE OF THE MOON remained on Billboard's albums chart for an astounding fourteen years. It made Pink Floyd a household name, elevating them to the level of the Rolling Stones and The Who in the rock pantheon. Maybe most important, DARK SIDE found Roger Waters for the first time using the group as a tool for his own concepts and personal views, foreshadowing conflicts that would come to a head in the band's future works.
Engineer: Alan Parsons Recorded: At Abbey Road Studios, London, June 1972-January 1973
CD Ref.: HARVEST CDP7 46001 2
N. CDs: 1
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Tracks
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01. Speak To Me (Mason)
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02. Breathe (Waters, Gilmour, Wright)
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03. On The Run (Gilmour, Waters)
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04. Time (Mason, Waters, Wright, Gilmour)
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05. Breathe - Reprise
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06. The Great Gig In The Sky (Wright)
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07. Money (Waters)
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08. Us And Them (Waters, Wright)
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09. Any Colour You Like (Gilmour, Mason, Wright)
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10. Brain Damage (Waters)
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11. Eclipse (Waters)
Lyrics
- 01. Speak To Me (Mason)
(Instrumental)
"I've been mad for fucking years, absolutely years, been over the edge for yonks, been working me buns off for bands..." "I've always been mad, I know I've been mad, like the most of us...very hard to explain why you're mad, even if you're not mad..."
- 02. Breathe (Waters, Gilmour, Wright)
Breathe, breathe in the air Don't be afraid to care Leave but don't leave me Look around and chose your own ground For long you live and high you fly And smiles you'll give and tears you'll cry And all you touch and all you see Is all your life will ever be Run, run rabbit run Dig that hole, forget the sun, And when at last the work is done Don't sit down it's time to start another one For long you live and high you fly But only if you ride the tide And balanced on the biggest wave You race toward an early grave.
- 03. On The Run (Gilmour, Waters)
(Instrumental)
"Live for today, gone tomorrow, that's me, HaHaHaaaaaa!"
- 04. Time (Mason, Waters, Wright, Gilmour)
Ticking away the moments that make up a dull day You fritter and waste the hours in an off-hand way Kicking around on a piece of ground in your home town Waiting for someone or something to show you the way Tired of lying in the sunshine staying home to watch the rain You are young and life is long and there is time to kill today And then the one day you find ten years have got behind you No one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun And you run and you run to catch up with the sun, but it's sinking And racing around to come up behind you again The sun is the same in the relative way, but you're older And shorter of breath and one day closer to death Every year is getting shorter, never seem to find the time Plans that either come to naught or half a page of scribbled lines Hanging on in quiet desparation in the English way The time is gone the song is over, thought I'd something more to say
- 05. Breathe - Reprise
Home, home again I like to be there when I can When I come in cold and tired It's good to warm my bones beside the fire Far away across the field The tolling of the iron bell Calls the faithful to their knees To hear the softly spoken magic spells.
- 06. The Great Gig In The Sky (Wright)
(Instrumental)
"And I am not frightened of dying, any time will do, I don't mind. Why should I be frightened of dying? There's no reason for it, you've gotta go sometime." "I never said I was frightened of dying."
- 07. Money (Waters)
Money, get away Get a good job with more pay and your O.K. Money it's a gas Grab that cash with both hands and make a stash New car, caviar, four star daydream, Think I'll buy me a football team Money get back I'm all right Jack keep your hands off my stack. Money it's a hit Don't give me that do goody good bullshit I'm in the hi-fidelity first class traveling set And I think I need a Lear jet Money it's a crime Share it fairly but don't take a slice of my pie Money so they say Is the root of all evil today But if you ask for a rise it's no surprise that they're giving none away
"HuHuh! I was in the right!" "Yes, absolutely in the right!" "I certainly was in the right!" "You was definitely in the right. That geezer was cruising for a bruising!" "Yeah!" "Why does anyone do anything?" "I don't know, I was really drunk at the time!" "I was just telling him, he couldn't get into number 2. He was asking why he wasn't coming up on freely, after I was yelling and screaming and telling him why he wasn't coming up on freely. It came as a heavy blow, but we sorted the matter out"
- 08. Us And Them (Waters, Wright)
Us and Them And after all we're only ordinary men Me, and you God only knows it's not what we would choose to do Forward he cried from the rear and the front rank died And the General sat, as the lines on the map moved from side to side Black and Blue And who knows which is which and who is who Up and Down And in the end it's only round and round and round Haven't you heard it's a battle of words the poster bearer cried Listen son, said the man with the gun There's room for you inside Down and Out It can't be helped but there's a lot of it about With, without And who'll deny that's what the fightings all about Get out of the way, it's a busy day And I've got things on my mind For want of the price of tea and a slice The old man died
- 09. Any Colour You Like (Gilmour, Mason, Wright)
(Instrumental)
- 10. Brain Damage (Waters)
The lunatic is on the grass The lunatic is on the grass Remembering games and daisy chains and laughs Got to keep the loonies on the path The lunatic is in the hall The lunatics are in my hall The paper holds their folded faces to the floor And every day the paper boy brings more And if the dam breaks open many years too soon And if there is no room upon the hill And if your head explodes with dark forbodings too I'll see you on the dark side of the moon The lunatic is in my head The lunatic is in my head You raise the blade, you make the change You re-arrange me 'till I'm sane You lock the door And throw away the key There's someone in my head but it's not me. And if the cloud bursts, thunder in your ear You shout and no one seems to hear And if the band you're in starts playing different tunes I'll see you on the dark side of the moon
"I can't think of anything to say except... I think it's marvellous! HaHaHa!"
- 11. Eclipse (Waters)
All that you touch All that you see All that you taste All that you feel All that you love All that you hate All you distrust All that you save All that you give All that you deal All that you buy beg, borrow or steal All you create All you destroy All that you do All that you say All that you eat everyone you meet All that you slight everyone you fight All that is now All that is gone All that's to come and everything under the sun is in tune but the sun is eclipsed by the moon.
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