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Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here CD (album) cover

WISH YOU WERE HERE

Pink Floyd

 

Psychedelic/Space Rock

4.64 | 4551 ratings

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Mellotron Storm
Prog Reviewer
4 stars How do you follow-up the greatest album ever made ? Well most bands would cave under that pressure but FLOYD creates an album that many (not me) consider to be even better than "Dark Side Of The Moon". It's interesting reading the behind the scenes stuff as they made this album because they went into Abbey Road Studios in January of 1975 having already come up with the track "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" during rehearsals along with two other songs. But like the "Meddle" sessions the band had hit a wall.The ideas that the band were bouncing off of each other weren't working. Roger then suggested they dump the other two tracks from rehearsals (they would end up showing up on "Animals") and bridge the first and second halves of "Shine On..." with material that related in some way to the state they were in at the time. Gilmour disagreed but Nick and Richard said why not. Roger suggested the band members just unburden themselves as it were of what was bothering them. While they did this he took notes. Waters then came up with the lyrics. Like "Dark Side Of The Moon" he wrote all the lyrics for "Wish You Were Here".

On June 5th during the final session this overweight uninvited guest showed up with his head and eyebrows shaven. He was slow speaking and none of the band knew it was Syd for several minutes. Storm Thorgerson who was there relates : "...two or three people cried. He sat around and talked for a bit, but he really wasn't there". Roger was especially hit hard by what Syd had become.That was the last contact the band had with him.This event only makes the lyrics that Waters wrote previous to this even more special in my opinion.The cover art reflects the idea of two business men shaking hands on a deal with the one being burned as soon as he makes the deal.This is a picture of the record industry that FLOYD was apart of and yet despised as seen on those two tracks "Welcome To The Machine" and "Have A Cigar". It makes me laugh to wonder what the big-wigs at Columbia thought of "Welcome To The Machine" a song that is cold and mechanical about the music industry who are more concerned about making money then they are about distributing creative, quality music. Or the song "Have A Cigar" that is again about the music industry's greed and lack of morals. Not even knowing the bands or musicians, as put so well by the line "Oh by the way, which ones Pink ?" You have to love the scathing lyrics of Roger Waters, he sure knows how to rant. And it's very cool to hear Roy Harper sing on this track.

"Shine On You Crazy Diamond" parts one and two, as well as the song "Wish You Were Here" are about former band mate Syd Barret and are all amazing songs. I would say "Wish You Were Here" is one of the greatest songs ever recorded. I'm glad the band invited Dick Parry back to play sax on "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", he did such a good job on this song as well as on "Dark Side Of The Moon". Lastly, the guitar work of David Gilmour is outstanding as usual, especially on the first song "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" and "Have A Cigar". Gilmour suddenly becomes a guitar hero on this album. Also the use of synths is way more prominant than they ever have been on previous FLOYD albums.

I've never been a huge fan of "Welcome To The Machine" or "Have A Cigar" although I appreciate them. Still they keep me from calling this a masterpiece.

Mellotron Storm | 4/5 |

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