Pink Floyd

Dark Side of the Moon - 1973

As one of the best albums of all time, The Dark Side Of The Moon still remains a strong

seller (has spent over 700 weeks on the charts, with occasional re-entries), a source of

speculation (was it purposely synchronized with "The Wizard Of Oz?") and a testament to the

creativity of Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Richard Wright and Nick Mason — the

quintessential line-up of Pink Floyd.

Recorded over a period of nine months at Abbey Road Studios and released in March of

1973, Dark Side Of The Moon represented the culmination of everything Pink Floyd had been

attempting to tap into since 1967. After stumbling onto a distinctive formula with 1971's

"Meddle" and its epic centerpiece, "Echoes" — Floyd set about to renovate their avant-garde

sets into cohesive and profound songs that ultimately resounded with universal appeal.

The album deals with several themes that simultaneously elongate and punctuate the plight

of human folly. Waters' astute lyrics elegantly slip in and out of the multi-layered sound

effects, overlapping voices and luminous instrumentation. Like the Fab Four before them,

Pink Floyd took full advantage of everything that Abbey Road had to offer — from in-house

frequency translators to staff engineer Alan Parsons to the studio's doorman Jerry Driscoll,

whose insightful mutterings make-up the majority of the album's spoken word fragments. Many

of the songs were performed on stage by the band for almost a year before they finally took

shape in the studio. Once in the studio, the album effectively took on a life of its

own.

From the ascending heartbeat amidst a cacophony of dialogue and screams that erupt during

"Speak To Me" and into the glistening notes and steady rhythm of "Breathe," The Dark Side Of

The Moon assumes a rather misfitting hue from the outset. The listener is whisked along

during "On The Run" and bombarded by a series of fiery alarm clocks that slow the pace and

set the stage before the entire band breaks into "Time." Wright's "The Great Gig In The Sky"

is a lethal piano and slide guitar exchange pushed forward by the soulful and emotional

wailing of Clare Torry. The second half of the album begins with a barrage of cash registers

and coins that continually churn as the bass line intro to "Money" kicks the band into

overdrive. Things settle down for a spell during the morose "Us and Them," only to unlatch

again during "Any Colour You Like" which conversely segues into the climatic "Brain

Damage/Eclipse." A heartbeat fades out — and we are right back where we started. The epitome

of headphone heaven for anyone willing to partake, The Dark Side Of The Moon can supposedly

be found in one of every 12 homes in the U.S. alone.

Track listing

Speak to me (1:16)

Breathe (2:44)

On the run (3:32)

Time / Breathe (reprise) (7:06)

The great gig in the sky (4:44)

Money (6:32)

Us and them (7:40)

Any colour you like (3:25)

Brain damage (3:50)

Eclipse (2:04)

Total Time: 42:53

Line-up

David Gilmour / guitars, vocals

Nick Mason / drums