IT WOULD BE SO NICE

'It Would Be So Nice' is a single that was essentially disowned by almost all members of Pink Floyd. Described by Nick Mason as 'f*cking awful', the single was not very successful, and especially with the problems facing the frontman Syd Barrett, things were fairly dark for PInk Floyd at this time. However, despite the band hating this track, this is quite a pleasant track, paired with a decent b-side. Penned by keyboardist Richard Wright, 'It Would Be So Nice' feels closer to being a Beatles track rather than Floyd, featuring some vaudevillian pianos and nice vocal harmonies. Moreover, the lyrics are close to the sort of whimsical approach the Beatles had at this time; making the mundane seem magical. With lyrics even just about things like reading the newspaper, it is a surprisingly charming song, sounding almost as if Syd Barrett wrote it rather than Wright. That being said, the vocal harmonies and arrangement can get a little too overwhelming and make the sound fuzzy.

The other track here 'Julia Dream' is a rather melancholic and sad-sounding tune, taking a much more sombre approach than most other material heard on the early Floyd singles. Relying mostly on some soft vocals with keyboard and acoustics, it is fairly simple and much less complex than the single here. As well, it is not nearly as memorable, generally taking one approach and sticking with it throughout the song. The b-side here is nothing special, but 'It Would Be So Nice' is a very nice track from the Pink Floyd, even if they may tend to disagree.

In Side One, there is "It Would Be So Nice", composed and sung by Rick Wright. A song that almost nobody liked in the band, with Roger Waters and Nick Mason saying very bad things about it years later. A very Pop song with some Psychedelic influences, similar in style to some of the songs that Barrett wrote for the band like "See Emily Play". Not bad as I expected it to be after reading Waters' and Mason's commentaries about it. It sounds like the band was trying too hard to sound like some of the songs that they released while Barrett was still in the band. Wright sang it well, and it also shows some influences from other bands like THE MOVE. If the band as a whole didn't like "It Would Be So Nice", why they decided to record the song to release it on the Side One of a single? I don't know if the band was trying to please their record label trying to sound as they previously sounded with Barrett.

In the Side Two, there is "Julia Dream", composed by Waters. A good Psychedelic song with good sound effects and a mellotron, and sung by David Gilmour (the first song that he recorded as lead singer with the band). I first listened to this song in 1976 in their "Relics" compilation album.