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Pink Floyd - The Dark Side of the Moon CD (album) cover

THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON

Pink Floyd

 

Psychedelic/Space Rock

4.61 | 4736 ratings

From Progarchives.com, the ultimate progressive rock music website

VianaProghead
Prog Reviewer
5 stars Review Nš 17

"The Dark Side Of The Moon" is my second review of a Pink Floyd album on Progarchives. The first was "Wish You Were Here". "The Dark Side Of The Moon" is the sixth studio album by Pink Floyd and was released in 1973. The album was recorded at the famous Abbey Road Studios, between May 1972 and January 1973, with the staff engineer of Alan Parsons, who was directly responsible for some of the most notable aspects of the album. Parsons had previously worked with the group as assistant tape operator on their fifth studio album "Atom Heart Mother" released in 1970. For his work on that album, Parsons received a Grammy Award for "Best Engineered Album".

"The Dark Side Of The Moon" sold approximately forty five million copies, and became as the Pink Floyd's most commercially successful album and one of the best selling albums in worldwide. In addition to its commercial success, this musical work became the most popular album from the band, among fans and critics, and is frequently considered the best rock album of all times. "The Dark Side Of The Moon" would remains, more than twenty years, among the most sold albums, and definitely established the strength of the group.

The art cover of the album was originally released in a gatefold LP sleeve, and was designed by Hipgnosis. The design is a dispersive light prism. The prism design was inspired by a photograph taken during a brainstorming session. So, the art cover of "The Dark Side Of The Moon" became probably the most famous cover art from an album in the history of music. It's very interesting and curious to note that the cover of the album is in general immediately recognized, even by those who aren't usually very familiar with the progressive rock music.

"The Dark Side Of The Moon" has ten tracks. This is a concept album where all the lyrics were written by Roger Waters. The first track "Speak To Me" written by Waters and Nick Mason is an instrumental track only composed with sound effects. This is undoubtedly a very original track. The second track "Breath" written by David Gilmour, Waters and Richard Wright, deals with the frustration of chasing empty goals in life. It's quite smooth, and the Gilmour's slide guitar, contributes even more to the quiet tone of the music. The third track "On The Run" written by Gilmour and Waters had to be about paranoia. It's an instrumental track with vanguard and futuristic music. This track represents one of the highest points of the album. The fourth track "Time" written by Gilmour, Wright, Waters and Mason is about the man's fixed habits, and people waiting for their life to start. It has an introduction of clocks and is the second lengthiest track on the album. The fifth track "The Great Gig In The Sky" written by Waters and Wright is about the fear of dying. It's a very melancholic song with the participation of Clare Torry on vocals, and is one of the most beautiful songs on the album. The sixth track "Money" written by Waters is about the pressure that the money can give in the people's every day. In the beginning it has an introduction sound of a cash register and coins. It's the most successful song from the band and reached the top ten in the US. The seventh track "Us And Them" written by Waters and Wright deals with three contradictions: rich and poor, employers and workers and us and them. It's the lengthiest track on the album. It's a very sweet song with two saxophone solos performed by Dick Parry. The eighth track "Any Colour You Like" written by Gilmour, Wright and Mason is an instrumental track with synthesizers and a Gilmour's solo guitar. This is the only track on the album not co-written by Waters. The ninth track "Brain Damage" written by Waters is about a person beyond his facade that the outside world sees. It's a track with the support of backing vocals. The tenth track "Eclipse" written by Waters is the last, and represents a kind of a prolongation of "Brain Damage". It represents the contradiction, the image of the cold, a dead moon eclipsing the warm, and the life and warming given by the sun.

As a curiosity, "The Dark Side Of The Moon" is probably the most covered album. For instance, Dream Theatre covered the album several times into many of their live shows. They even released a cover album with the same name.

Conclusion: "The Dark Side Of The Moon" is one of the best albums of the world, is the best known album of Pink Floyd, has the most known cover art of a progressive album, and is also probably, for some, the best album ever. It's also probably the most influential album, of the most influential progressive rock band ever. This is a work of art where the sounds expressed by it, seem to flow naturally and ordered, yet complex and so interesting that you'll, listen to it over and over again, yet never honestly catch every last detail, about how living your life, in a so sublime piece of music. "The Dark Side Of The Moon" is undoubtedly one of the best albums ever made. However and despite that, it's not my Pink Floyd favourite album. My favourite album is and always was, without any doubt, "Wish You Were Here".

Prog is my Ferrari. Jem Godfrey (Frost*)

VianaProghead | 5/5 |

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