ECHOES - THE BEST OF PINK FLOYD

It feels utterly unnatural for me to rate a PINK FLOYD album this low, and I am very sorry to do it. Unfortunately, I cannot hide my feelings for this record-company mistake. The story behind this album is quite simply that EMI demanded this release as a way of making money, and it also satisfied a contractual obligation that PINK FLOYD had. So before you read this any further, please remember: Don't blame the band; it's not their fault. While the idea of a greatest hits compilation for PINK FLOYD is not a bad idea in principle, the execution here was severely lacking. There were just too many unforgivable mistakes...in fact, this album would've had a 2- or even 1.5 star rating if not for someone else, not even a band member, who saved it from that cruel fate. But we'll get to him later.

First--THOU SHALT NOT MUTILATE A FLOYD SONG. And I do mean "mutilate"--there is hardly any other word for the horror of editing inflicted upon "Echoes" and "Marooned" most particularly, although "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" suffered as well. I would absolutely hate to introduce a new PINK FLOYD fan to "Marooned" this way--and have them think this utterly gorgeous track is just a minute of filler! If you have to cut it down THAT much, DON'T put it on there. It's that simple. As for "Echoes", editing that is like editing Beethoven's 9th Symphony. You just DON'T do that.

Secondly--the track list has some severe problems in my opinion...songs that should have been on there were ignored, and songs that should have been dropped in favor of others WERE there. Where was "Summer '68"? Where was "The Gunner's Dream" or "The Final Cut" or "Two Suns in the Sunset", all of which SHOULD have had the spot held by "The Fletcher Memorial Home"? And what was "Sheep" doing there, anyhow? In my experience, the majority of FLOYD fans, myself included, consider "Dogs" to be the true greatest accomplishment on Animals. I'm sure if I sat down and drew up a list, there would've been several other changes I would've made to the track listing.

The only reason I have kept this album (besides my being a FLOYD completist) has nothing to do with PINK FLOYD...but rather with the album art master known as Storm Thorgerson. What he did with the cover art and the booklet is nothing short of stunning. Scrutinizing the pages is really quite entertaining and fascinating, and if you are at all a fan of Mr. Thorgerson's work, you'll want to get a look at this.

Unfortunately, though, I can't say this is a very good release at all. I'm sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but I can't deny it.