Pink Floyd: the dark side of music

14.04.2019

Pink Floyd - legendary British music group, whose work in different periods can be classified as psychedelic, progressive and art rock, but any Pink Floyd record is much broader than any genre definition.

Starting out as an acid band in the 60s, Pink Floyd quickly became stars of the rock scene and influenced many musicians - from David Bowie to Queen and Radiohead. In each of their albums they experimented with sound, while at the same time emphasizing a strong guitar solo. Most of Pink Floyd's records are united by a single concept; they have toured the whole world more than once with large-scale shows for their albums.

The history of the creation of Pink Floyd

In 1965, university friends Nick Mason, Roger Waters and Richard Wright, passionate about music, formed a group called T-set. The guys studied architecture at the London Polytechnic Institute, which did not bother them at all free time dedicate to music. For several months (until July 1965), the band's rhythm guitarist was Rado "Bob" Klose. A little later, they were joined by their Cambridge friend Sid Barrett, who became the author of most of the compositions of the newly formed group and the frontman of the group. It was he who proposed changing the name to Pink Floyd, combining the names of his favorite bluesmen Pink Anderson and Floyd Council.

At first, the group played classic rhythm and blues, but Barrett was a great hunter of creative experiments, which was clearly felt in the pronounced psychedelic sound of some of his compositions. Sometimes some extraneous sounds were added to the songs, the composition could suddenly be interrupted in the middle, and the audience sat in bewilderment for several seconds in complete silence.

The band's first album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, was written entirely by Syd Barrett and was released in 1967. It is still considered one of the best examples of psychedelic music, and in the year of release it immediately took sixth position in the English charts. But not everyone coped with the unexpected popularity - Steve Barrett, whose psyche was already too vulnerable from the regular use of mind-expanding drugs and mild schizophrenia, began to behave inappropriately at concerts and terribly irritate other musicians with his behavior.

Pink Floyd without Syd Barrett

The following year, he was replaced by David Gilmour, although the other musicians still hoped that Sid would continue to write songs for the group. But all his new compositions, written under the influence of drugs, increasingly resembled a random set of sounds and were perceived by an unprepared public simply as some kind of crazy cacophony. In April 1968, Barrett left the group forever, after which he unsuccessfully tried to pursue a solo career and organize his own band. After that, he returned to his mother in his native Cambridge, where he lived as a hermit until he died of cancer in 2006.

In the summer of 1968, the group’s second album, “A Saucerful of Secrets,” was released, which the musicians began recording under Sid, but the resulting album had a completely different sound. Most of the tracks on the disc were written by Waters and Wright, and only one – “Jugband Blues” – by Syd Barrett. The group's second album was also warmly received by the British public and took ninth place in the local charts.

The following year, the musicians recorded the soundtrack to the film More by Barbe Schroeder and released the double album Ummagumma, which reached number five in the British charts and number seventy in the US.

The highest achievement of Pink Floyd at this stage of creativity was the album “Atom Heart Mother” in 1970 - it confidently took first place in the British chart, and to realize their creative ideas, the musicians turned to the symphony orchestra and arranger Ron Gisin for help.

Pink Floyd – Live in Pompeii (1972)

Career blossoming

But the real breakthrough in Pink Floyd’s creative career was their eighth album “ The Dark Side of the Moon", released at the end of March 1973. Even those who have managed to never hear the songs from this record are certainly familiar with its legendary cover, created by designer Storm Thorgerson, who later collaborated with Pink Floyd more than once.

“The Dark Side of the Moon” became the second highest-selling album in history and has still not lost this position, approaching 50 million in total copies sold. Above it is only “Thriller” by Michael Jackson.

This is the group's first concept album: each song raises some problem of our time or a philosophical question, be it the inexorable approach of old age, the exaggerated importance of money in the world, the pressure on people from religious and state institutions.

It feels like a very meditative album with the improvisational sound characteristic of the group - the musicians themselves admitted that many motives were born right in the studio. The tracks “Time” and “Money” are especially worth highlighting.

With this disc, Pink Floyd turned from a psychedelic group for music lovers into one of the best rock bands of their time and did not leave this pedestal. It would seem difficult to repeat the success of “The Dark Side of the Moon,” but the next album became a worthy successor to its predecessor. Thus, Gilmour and Wright generally considered “Wish You Were Here” (1975) to be Pink Floyd’s best creation. The album consists of only 5 tracks - Pink Floyd have always been distinguished by their attraction to large forms. The musicians dedicated the title track “Shine On You Crazy Diamond”, divided into two tracks with a total duration of almost half an hour, to Syd Barrett.

In the next record, “Animals” (1977), the musicians tried, in the spirit of George Orwell, to compare people with animals and staged a show with inflatable animals, the pig from which migrated to all subsequent performances of the group.

Pink Floyd – Another Brick in the Wall (part 1)

In the fall of 1979, another super-successful album by the group, “The Wall,” was released, which in its structure resembled a rock opera, and the single “Another Brick in the Wall” became the most famous composition Pink Floyd and included in the list of the greatest songs of all time. The wall on the album is a symbol of the alienation that a person may be subjected to. The two discs contain such diamonds of progressive rock as “Hey You”, “Nobody Home” and, of course, “Comfortably Numb”. Three years later, based on the album, director Alan Parker made a film of the same name, similar to a huge video clip with unusual animated inserts.

Pink Floyd – Another Brick in the Wall (part 2)

Pink Floyd breakup

Meanwhile, disagreements gradually accumulated between the team members. During the recording of “The Wall” and the subsequent even darker album “Final Cut,” Roger Waters often pulled the plug on himself and even got Gilmour removed from production, which is why he practically turned into a session musician. This state of affairs did not suit the ambitious David, serious conflicts began between them, as a result of which Waters himself left the group in 1985, announcing the end of Pink Floyd.

In 2008, Richard Wright died of lung cancer, after which the remaining band members stated that a reunion would be impossible without him. In 2014, the album “The Endless River” was released, based on unreleased recordings from the 90s. In 2015, David Gilmour announced the final breakup of Pink Floyd.

Discography

The Piper at the Gate of Dawn (1967)
A Saucerful of Secrets (1968)
Music from the film More (1969)
Ummagumma (1969)
Atom Heart Mother (1970)
Meddle (1971)
Obscured by Clouds (1972)
The Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
Wish You Were Here (1975)
Animals (1977)
The Wall (1979)
The Final Cut (1983)
A Momentary Lapse of Reason (1987)
The Division Bell (1994)
The Endless River (2014)

Pink Floyd now

Pink Floyd no longer exists, but its members continue to work on solo projects. Roger Waters tours with the program “The Wall” around the world (in 2011 he was in Russia), David Gilmour released his solo album “Rattle That Lock” in 2015.

Pink Floyd: to be continued?

No matter how long and multifaceted the history of Pink Floyd may be, it still remains incomplete and incomplete. The life of someone who is still alive today cannot be told to the end; this can only be done for a certain period. And this is good, because it gives anticipation for a creative sequel. And that there will be more than one “to be continued” ahead.

But, as usual, every story has its beginning. This means that with him we will begin the story about the group, which in itself represents a whole world, complete and harmonious.

Original composition:

Syd Barrett (ur. Syd Barrett) - guitarist, vocalist (1965 – 1968);
Roger Waters (eng. Roger Waters) - bass guitarist, vocalist (1965 – 1985, 2005);
Richard Wright - keyboardist, vocalist (1965 - 1981, 1987 - 1994, 2005);
Nick Mason (English) Nick Mason) - drummer (1965 – 1994, 2005).
David Gilmour - vocalist, guitarist (1968 – 1994, 2005).

To begin with, it should be noted that the first were not Syd Barrett and not the living Roger Waters, but blues musicians Pink Anderson and Floyd Council. It was they who pushed Barrett to come up with such a strange, psychedelically abnormal, but such beautiful name for the group.

Then there were classmates at the architecture college (okay, not the college, the institute), who made something of their own out of rhythm-blues hits. This is how not even a group appeared, but “Blackhill Enterprises” - a corporation consisting of four musicians and two managers.

In 1967, the first fruit of their joint efforts appeared - The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn Pink Floyd. Translated, it sounds like "The Trumpeter at the Gates of Dawn" and represents the best example of British psychedelic music of the late sixties. It's a lot to expect from a foursome who are essentially teenagers, but for the album to reach number six in the UK chart is truly admirable. And surprise.

What happened to Syd Barrett?

But there were also disadvantages to the success achieved. It’s not for nothing that psychedelia was called “acid”. What happened to Syd Barrett remains to this day only a topic for mystical gossip and crazy analogies. What came first: psychedelics, which drove him to schizophrenia, or schizophrenia, which found its guise in psychedelics? This was a time when the diagnosis of “schizophrenia” was made by doctors at the slightest contact with the unknown. He was a student, he needed to get some sleep first, and only then... and then what?

Syd Barrett with Pink Floyd

I'm telling you, he needed a good night's sleep, but because of the heavy tour schedule he began to experience constant nervous breakdowns and psychoses, he became an increasingly unbearable subject, which infuriated others, and Roger in particular. Sometimes Sid would “withdraw into himself” right on stage. Therefore, in 1968, Syd Barrett was fired, and David Gilmour was hired to replace him.

Sid composed most of the first album, so it was initially planned that he would become not a musician, but a composer for the group, but alas, nothing good came of this. The album, which was released in 1968, contains only one of his compositions.

Therefore, the history of early Pink Floyd is divided into two periods: with Sid and without him. A schizophrenic in the family is always too sad not to try to finish him off, if not literally, then at least figuratively. But it was this schizophrenic who made the gang famous throughout the country.

In 1969, the group wrote the soundtrack for the film More, after which they released the album Ummagumma. It was recorded partly in Birmingham and partly in Manchester. Therefore, it was decided to release it as a double album. The first disc was the band's first and only live recording (which remained unchanged for twenty years), and the second disc featured four separate parts, each written by the next member of the band. That is, it turned out to be four miniature solo discs.

This disc took fifth place in the British chart, and also entered the US charts, at a distant seventieth place.

But the third album, with which the group clearly demonstrated the direction in which it began to develop, was called “Atom Heart Mother”. He has already taken first place. To realize the musicians' plans, a choir and a symphony orchestra were used. A professional arranger was also involved in the process, who also did the entire orchestration of the album.

Meddle, released the following year, resembled the previous album only in length and number of tracks. The sound became completely different. The recording was made on sixteen-track tape recorders, using a VCS3 synthesizer. And in one of the compositions, the vocals were recorded by a Russian greyhound named Seamus. By the way, this song was named after her.

"Obscured by Clouds" was released as a soundtrack and therefore remains lesser known. Although, to be honest, it seems closer to me than the previous album. Why, I don't know. He took an honorable sixth place in Britain.

"The Dark Side of the Moon"

Everything changed after The Dark Side of the Moon. Yes, in honor of this album they even made a film that described how the recordings were made and what they used to get the desired sound.

Unlike previous albums, this was not just a collection of songs, but a conceptual work that talked about the pressure and influence of the modern world on the human psyche. At least the group had something to talk about, they experienced this concept themselves, and such an experience leaves a memory for a long time. And not the best memory, I must say. But still, the album turned out to be simply wonderful.

1973. There is a complete lack of adequate equipment - now any schoolchild sitting in front of a computer monitor has much more opportunities for creativity and creating the desired sound than Pink Floyd had thirty years ago. No, wait, not thirty - already forty years ago, I misspoke. How time flies!

Along with a story about the influence of the surrounding world on peace of mind personality in the album talks about the paranoia of “On the Run”, in “Time” they talked about the feelings of approaching old age and the feeling that life has been lived in vain (typical youth thoughts, it must be said). “The Great Gig in the Sky” and “Religious Theme” touch on religion and death, while “Money” talks about the destructive power of money. “Us and Them” is an ode to social conflict. And “Brain Damage” is a song dedicated to poor Sid.

The disc was recorded for almost nine months, which for those years was simply an unforgivable waste of time, but it has become a classic and is perfectly listenable even now, despite the passing decades. What can I say? It was in those years that groups competed in the spirit of “who is faster.” For example, Lead Airship wrote their first album in either nine or twelve hours.

The effort was worth it: the album is now the best-selling album in the history of recording.

Wish You Were Here

The title song from this album was business card Pink Floyd. “It’s a pity you’re not here.” The theme of alienation, the crazy track “Shine on You Crazy Diamond”, which was again dedicated to Syd Barrett (it was necessary to kick him out of the group first and watch how nothing remained of his personality in order to start writing about him / and not for him, as some believe / songs).

This album again reached number one in the UK. What to do, Pink Floyd simply had no worthy competitors.

Animals

“Houston, can you hear me? I have a huge pink pig here on the course.” This is, of course, a joke about Houston, but there really was a pig. I flew over the streets of London. The poor pilot was immediately sent to a psychiatrist, and this was just a video clip for the song Pigs being recorded. Pink Floyd gave vent to their sick imagination. It seems that Syd Barrett retired a long time ago, but in the end he inspired the whole team so much that they still could not move away from completely crazy images and analogies.

1977. The group increasingly comes under criticism from punks. The topic of condemnation was allegedly excessive weakness and arrogance. As a result, the team recorded an album that had only three compositions, but was many kilometers long. Two short ones were in addition to the main topics and more fully revealed the essence of the plan.

In this album, animals are associated with certain representatives of society, as metaphors... tension grew between Wright and Waters, as a result of which guitars began to dominate the sound of the new album. In general, this is not felt at all, but the increase in guitar sound clearly benefited the sound of the group. So we listen, watch and enjoy.

What are these huge heads of boars worth, who cut through concert halls with their ferocious eyes! I didn't make a mistake. At the concerts there were indeed creepy pig heads that would have been the envy of Mayhem in Grandfather's era, but instead of metal there was terribly melodic music.

How is that unlucky pilot doing there, I wonder?

The Wall

He is extremely confident that he is right: first you need to get hooked on the album, then fall madly in love, take your girlfriend in the evening and sit her down together to watch The Wall as a film. A charge of extremely intense sensations is guaranteed. And impressions for life.

Still, Waters is a genius of exceptional magnitude. He composed the album almost entirely single-handedly, which again worked to his advantage, the sound was superbly mixed, the atmosphere reached its apogee. The fans were delighted. I wasn't a Pink Floyd fan, but I became one after Another Brick in the Wall, Part II. By the way, that song went to first place in the British charts, which once again showed the excessive commitment of the British to old traditions.

The album was released in 1979, and turned out to be insanely expensive. It seems completely indecent to write about the costs of writing it. But it paid off. And completely and quite quickly.

Waters took the Roman word too literally folk proverb“divide and conquer”, after which he established an unspoken dictatorship, constantly sowing discord among the group members. His plan for the dismissal of Richard Wright ended with Wright becoming the only one who made any money at these concerts - the costs of the show were simply fantastic and were covered exclusively by the pockets of the musicians, which, although they were now exceptionally capacious, were also quickly and empty.

(3 ratings, average: 3,67 out of 5)

The professor's son, who was torn by the spirit of contradictions, dropped out of college in his youth to become a real rocker. And now the rebel who shocked those around him with his antics gets a degree in Cambridge.

People come to Cambridge graduation in formal robes, almost like Harry Potter. The main rumor is passed on from mouth to mouth: today someone whose name cannot be pronounced out loud without aspiration will join us. In the line of the best students and honored guests is the half-educated wizard - Gilmore, the great and terrible. Pursuing a diploma in various arts. Honorary, based on the totality of merit.

David Gilmour, rock musician: “It’s very nice and strange to stand here in a doctor’s robe. Firstly, it’s hot. Secondly, I dropped out of college because of sloppiness and music, which broke the heart of my father, a professor of genetics.”

Gilmore the dropout, who proudly reminded in every bar and in every interview: “Do you know where you need to go with your education? You, a society of pigs on wings, what do you teach? Your books are another stone in the wall in which you have walled up your soul ". This was his revolution against adults, to whom real rockers never consider themselves, against offending boys - such as Roger Waters, a colleague in Pink Floyd, who wrote the famous abstruse lyrics - smart guy, get out of our group, let's sing without scientists!

Gilmour was recognized as the best electric guitar player in the world, a destroyer of the Berlin Wall, a member of the pantheon of immortal Britons, but not an assistant professor, as dad dreamed of. Therefore, in front of the hall where diplomas are given, he practically stumbles under the stern gaze of the dean.

David Gilmour: “You don’t need to take an example from me. I would probably look up to you now. The golden age of rock has passed, rock and roll is dead, and I’m getting a higher education diploma. Study, children, better. In your time It’s impossible otherwise. Although, you know, my friend Syd Barrett, the founder of Pink Floyd, learned, and then went crazy and died.”

Polite applause instead of music - now Gilmore, the great and terrible, educated man and almost a scientist. In academic circles, they expect his image to increase children's desire for education, just as they once expected him to almost roar: “Hey, teacher, leave the kids alone!”

David Gilmour: “This is all nice. But I’m not going to wash my diploma. You know, I’m 63. And somehow all this rock fun is no longer good for my health.”

Picture from the disc cover. It was here, around the white chimneys of Battersea Power Station, that Pink Floyd launched their famous inflatable pig on wings. As Gilmore says today, then it seemed like a powerful protest against social philistinism, today it seems childish balloon. If only because for him this is the natural evolution of the revolution. After all, rockers don't grow up. They're just tired of being naive.

224 chord selections

Biography

Pink Floyd (Pink Floyd) British progressive/psychedelic rock band formed in Cambridge. Famous for her psychedelic songs and grandiose shows. It is one of the most successful in rock and pop music, and is in seventh place in the world in terms of the number of albums sold (more than 300 million copies worldwide). Founded in 1965, the last album (The Division Bell) and tour took place in 1994. Last performance July 2005 (“Live8”).

Band members

Original composition:

* Syd Barrett guitarist, vocalist (19661968);
* Roger Waters (eng. Roger Waters) bass guitarist, vocalist (19661985);
* Richard Wright keyboardist, vocalist (19661981, from 1987 to September 15, 2008);
* Nick Mason drummer (1966 to present).

Joined later:

* David Gilmour vocalist, guitarist (1968 to present).

The name “Pink Floyd” is formed by a combination of the names of jazz, or rather rhythm and blues musicians Pink Anderson and Floyd Council (Floyd Council), of which Barrett was a fan; this name, according to Waters' story, appeared to Barrett in prophetic dream, and he insisted on renaming the group. Before this, the group changed many names: "Sigma 6", "T-Set", "Meggadeaths", "The Screaming Abdabs", "The Architectural Abdabs" and "The Abdabs". Moreover, at first the group was called “The Pink Floyd Sound”, then simply “The Pink Floyd” and only then the definite article “the” was discarded for the sake of “sonority”.

“Which one of you is Pink?”

The first line-up of Pink Floyd included London Architectural School classmates Richard Wright (keyboards, vocals), Roger Waters (bass guitar, vocals) and Nick Mason (drums) and their Cambridge friend Syd Barrett (vocals, guitar). At the beginning of their career, Pink Floyd were engaged in reworking rhythm and blues hits such as “Louie, Louie” (“Louie, Louie”). The group formed Blackhill Enterprises, a six-party business venture involving the four musicians and their managers, Peter Jenner and Andrew King.

The band's debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, released in August 1967, is considered the best example of English psychedelic music. The album's tracks showcase an eclectic mix of music, from the avant-garde "Interstellar Overdrive" to the whimsical "Scarecrow", a melancholic song inspired by the rural landscapes surrounding Cambridge. The album was successful and reached number six in the UK charts.

However, not all band members withstood the burden of success that fell on them. The use of psychedelics (as a result, an exacerbation of congenital schizophrenia) and constant performances broke the leader of the group, Syd Barrett. His behavior became more and more unbearable, nervous breakdowns and psychoses were repeated more and more often, infuriating the rest of the group (especially Roger). It happened more than once that Sid simply “switched off”, “withdrew into himself” (which was caused by catatonic attacks) right at the concert. In January 1968, Roger and Syd's longtime acquaintance, guitarist David Gilmour, joined the band to replace Barrett. However, it was planned that Sid, although not performing, would continue to write songs for the group. Unfortunately, nothing came of this venture.

In April 1968, Barrett's "retirement" was formalized, but Jenner and King decided to stay with him. The six-party company Blackhill Enterprises has ceased operations.

Although Barrett wrote most of the material on the first album, on his second album, A Saucerful of Secrets, released in June 1968, he wrote only one song in its entirety, "Jugband Blues." Blues for noise orchestra"). "A Saucerful of Secrets" peaked at number nine in the UK.

Without Barrett

After the group wrote the soundtrack to the film More (directed by Barbet Schroeder) in 1969, the album Ummagumma was released in the same year, partly recorded in Birmingham, partly in Manchester. It was a double album, the first disc of which was the first (and for almost twenty years the only official) recording of the band's live performance, and the second was equally divided into four parts, according to the number of band members, and each of them recorded, in fact, their own mini-album. solo album The album became the band's highest achievement at that time. It peaked at number five in the UK chart and entered the US hit list at number seventy.

In 1970, the album “Atom Heart Mother” appeared and took first place in the UK. The group grew musically, and now they needed a choir and a symphony orchestra to implement their ideas. The complicated arrangement required the involvement of an outside specialist, who became Ron Geesin. He wrote the intro to the title track as well as the album's orchestration.

A year later, in 1971, “Meddle” (“Intervention”) was released - practically a twin of the previous one (in the form and length of the songs, but not in music; except that they did without an orchestra and choir). The second side of the disc was dedicated to a 23-minute "epic sound poem" (as Waters called it) called "Echoes", where the band used 16-track tape machines for the first time, replacing the four- and eight-track equipment used on "Atom". Heart Mother”, as well as the Zinoviev synthesizer VCS3. The album also included “One Of These Days,” a Pink Floyd concert classic in which drummer Nick Mason promised, in a horribly distorted voice, “One of these days, Im going to cut you into little pieces.” light and carefree “Fearless” and “San Tropez” and the mischievous and hooligan “Seamus” (Seamus is the name of the dog), where a Russian greyhound was invited to the vocal part. "Meddle" took third place in the British charts.

The band's lesser-known album was released in 1972 under the title Obscured By Clouds as the soundtrack to Barbet Schroeder's film La Vallee. The album is one of Nick Mason's favorites. Only 46th in the US Top 50 and sixth at home.

Peak of success

Far Side of the Moon

The 1973 album "The Dark Side of the Moon" became the band's finest hour. It was a conceptual work, that is, not just a collection of songs on one disc, but a work imbued with a single, connecting idea of the pressure of the modern world on the human psyche. The idea was a powerful catalyst for the group's creativity, and together its members compiled a list of themes explored in the album: the composition "On The Run" was about paranoia; "Time" described the approach of old age and the senseless waste of life; "The Great Gig In The Sky" (originally titled "Mortality Sequence") and "Religious Theme" deal with death and religion; “Money” is about money that comes with fame and takes over a person; "Us And Them" talks about conflicts within society; "Brain Damage" is about madness and Syd Barrett. Thanks to the use of new 16-track recording equipment in the studio "Abbey Road", almost nine months (a fantastically long time for that time!), which went into recording, and the efforts of sound engineer Alan Parsons, the album turned out to be unprecedented and entered the treasury of sound recordings of all time.

The single "Money" reached the top 20 in the US, the album went to number 1 (only number 2 in the UK) and remained in the US Top 200 for 741 weeks, including 591 weeks from 1973 to 1988 consecutively, several times getting to first place. The album broke many records and became one of the best-selling albums of all time.

Wish You Were Here

"Wish You Were Here" was released in 1975, and its main theme was alienation. In addition to the Pink Floyd classic title track, the album includes the critically acclaimed track "Shine on You Crazy Diamond", a tribute to Syd Barrett and his mental breakdown. In addition, the album includes “Welcome to the Machine” and “Have a Cigar”, dedicated to the soulless businessmen of show business. The album became number one in the UK and number two in America.

By the time Animals was released in January 1977, the band's music was increasingly criticized by the emerging punk rock movement for being too "weak" and arrogant, a departure from the simplicity of early rock 'n' roll. The album contained three long main songs and two short ones that complemented their content. The concept of the album was close to the meaning of George Orwell's book Animal Farm. The album uses dogs, pigs and sheep as metaphors to describe or denounce members modern society. The music on Animals is significantly more guitar-based than previous albums, possibly due to the increasing tension between Waters and Richard Wright, who did not contribute much to the album.

The Wall

The rock opera "The Wall" was created almost entirely by Roger Waters and again received an enthusiastic reception from fans. The single from this album, “Another Brick in the Wall, Part II,” which touches on pedagogy and education, reached number one on the UK Christmas singles chart. In addition to reaching number three in the UK, "The Wall" spent 15 weeks on the US chart during 1980. The album became very expensive during the writing process and incurred a lot of expenses due to the large-scale shows, but record sales lifted the group out of the financial crisis it was in. During the work on the album, Waters expanded his influence and strengthened his leadership role in the group's activities, giving rise to constant conflicts within it. For example, Waters tried to persuade the band members to fire Richard Wright, who had virtually no participation in the work on the album. Wright eventually took part in several concerts for a fixed fee. Ironically, Richard was the only one who managed to earn any money from these concerts, since the rest of the group were forced to cover the exorbitant costs of the show "The Wall". "The Wall" was co-produced by Bob Ezrin, a friend of Roger Waters who co-wrote the lyrics for "The Trial." Waters later kicked him out of the Pink Floyd camp after Ezrin inadvertently talked to a journalist relative about the album. "The Wall" remained on the best-selling album list for 14 years.

In 1982, a full-length film was made based on the album “Pink Floyd The Wall”. Bob Geldof, the founder of the group Boomtown Rats and future organizer of the Live Aid and Live 8 festivals, starred in the title role of the rock star “Pink”. The film's script was written by Waters, directed by Alan Parker, and animated by renowned animator Gerald Scarfe. The film can be called provocative, since one of the main ideas was a protest against established ideals and the English passion for order. The film was also a definite manifesto in defense of rockers. After all, as you know, in the 1970s a person could be arrested only for wearing ripped jeans or for having a mohawk on his head. The movie "The Wall" doesn't show any of the problems directly. The entire film is woven from allegories and symbols, for example, faceless teenagers who, one after another, fall into a meat grinder and turn into a homogeneous mass.

The making of the film was accompanied further deterioration relationship between two of the band's strongest personalities: Waters and Gilmour.

Latest albums and breakup of the group

In 1983, the album "The Final Cut" appeared, subtitled "Requiem for Roger Waters' Post-War Dream, Performed by Pink Floyd." Darker than The Wall, this album revisits many of its themes, while also addressing issues that were and are still relevant today. This included Waters' dissatisfaction and anger at Britain's involvement in the Falklands conflict with the song "The Fletcher Memorial Home", where Fletcher is Waters' father Eric Fletcher. The theme of the track “Two Suns in the Sunset” is the fear of nuclear war. Wright's absence from the album resulted in some lack of the keyboard effects found on Pink Floyd's previous work, although guest musicians Michael Kamen (piano and harmonium) and Andy Bown made some contributions as keyboardists. Among the musicians who took part in the recording of “The Final Cut” was tenor saxophonist Raphael Ravenscroft. Despite the album's mixed reviews, The Final Cut was a success (No. 1 in the UK and No. 6 in the US) and was certified platinum shortly after its release. The most hit compositions, according to radio stations, were “Gunner's Dream” (“Artilleryman’s Dream”) and “Not Now John.” Friction between Waters and Gilmour during the recording of the album was so strong that they never appeared in the recording studio at the same time, and the group did not tour with this album. Soon after, Waters officially announced his departure from the group.

After The Final Cut, the band members went their own ways, releasing solo albums until 1987, when Gilmour and Mason began reforming Pink Floyd. This gave rise to heated legal disputes with Roger Waters, who, after leaving the group in 1985, decided that the group could not exist without him anyway. However, Gilmour and Mason were able to prove that they had the right to continue their musical activities as Pink Floyd. Waters, however, retained some of the band's traditional imagery, including most of the props and characters from The Wall and all rights to The Final Cut. As a result, the group, led by David Gilmour, returned to the studio with producer Bob Ezrin. While working on the band's new album, A Momentary Lapse of Reason (No. 3 in both the UK and US), Richard Wright joined the band, first as a session musician with a weekly payment for his work, then as a full-fledged participant until 1994, when the Floyd's last work, “The Division Bell” (No. 1 in the UK and USA), was released and the subsequent tour, which became the most profitable in the history of rock music to date.

All members of the group have released solo albums, achieving varying levels of popularity and commercial success. "Amused to Death" by Roger Waters was received most warmly by the public, but was still met with mixed reviews from critics.

Later activities of the group

Pink Floyd haven't released studio material since 1994's The Division Bell, and there aren't any plans to do so anytime soon. The only results of the group's work were the 1995 live album "P*U*L*S*E" ("Pulse"), a live recording of "The Wall", compiled from concerts in 1980 and 1981 "Is There Anybody Out There?" The Wall Live 1980-81" ("Is There Anyone Outside? The Wall Live, 198081") in 2000; a two-disc set containing the band's biggest hits, "Echoes" in 2001; a 30th anniversary reissue of "Dark Side of the Moon" in 2003 (remixed on SACD by James Guthrie); re-release of 2004's "The Final Cut" with the added single "When The Tigers Broke Free" Echoes has been the subject of much controversy due to the fact that the songs flow into each other in a different order than on the original albums, significant portions of some have been torn out, and the song sequence itself, which, according to fans, should not be logic.

David Gilmour released a DVD of his solo concert "David Gilmour in Concert" in November 2002. It was compiled from recordings of shows from 22 June 2001 to 17 January 2002 at the Royal Festival Hall in London. Richard Wright and Bob Geldof were invited on stage as guests.

Due to the fact that the band members are mostly involved in their own projects - for example, Mason wrote the book "Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd" due to the death of Steve O'Rourke (Steve ORourke) October 30, 2003 band manager for many years, due to David Gilmour's solo project (On an Island album and concert tour of the same name) and due to the death of Rick Wright on September 15, 2008, the band's future is uncertain.

Although on July 2, 2005, putting past differences aside for one evening, Pink Floyd performed with their classic line-up (Waters, Gilmour, Mason, Wright) at the worldwide show “Live 8”, dedicated to the fight against poverty.

On July 7, 2006, one of the group's founders, Syd Barrett, died due to complications of diabetes in Cambridge. Over the summer, Barrett's few surviving paintings were auctioned off, as were his furniture and some manuscripts. On May 10, 2007, the Madcap's Last Laugh concert took place in his memory, but Roger Waters performed at it separately from Pink Floyd.

On September 3, 2007, Pink Floyd's first album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, was re-released in honor of its fortieth anniversary. The edition includes 3 discs: a mono version of the album, a stereo version, early tracks, as well as several scanned sheets from notebooks Syd Barrett.

Pink Floyd show

Pink Floyd are known, among other things, for their incredible performances, combining visuals and music to create a show in which the musicians themselves almost fade into the background. In the early period of their creativity, Pink Floyd were practically the first group to use special equipment for light show in their presentations slides and video clips projected on a large circular screen. Later, lasers, pyrotechnics, balloons and figures were used (most notably the huge inflatable pig that first appeared on the Animals album).

The biggest stage performance was for the album "The Wall", where several session musicians played the first song wearing rubber masks (showing that the band members were unknown as individuals); Then, during the first part of the show, workers gradually built a huge wall of cardboard boxes between the audience and the band, onto which Gerald Scarfe's cartoons were then projected, and at the end of the performance the wall collapsed. This show was later recreated by Waters with the help of many guest musicians, including Bryan Adams, the Scorpions and Van Morison, in 1990 among the ruins of the Berlin Wall.

Album illustrations

An integral part of the band's creativity for fans is album illustrations. Album covers and record sleeves provide an emotional boost to music through vibrant, meaningful visuals. Throughout the band's career, this aspect was primarily supported by the talent of photographer and designer Storm Thorgerson and his studio Hipgnosis. Suffice it to mention the famous images of a man shaking hands with his burning double (“Wish You Were Here”) and a prism with light passing through it (“Dark Side of the Moon”). Torgeson was involved in the design of all the albums except The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (which was photographed by photographer Vic Singh and featured a back cover art by Syd Barrett), and The Wall (which featured art by Syd Barrett). the band hired Gerald Scarfe) and "The Final Cut" (the cover was designed by Waters himself, using a photograph taken by his son-in-law Willie Christie).

Discography
Studio and live albums

* The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (LP; EMI; August 5, 1967; Barrett/Wright/Waters/Mason)
* A Saucerful of Secrets (LP; EMI; June 29, 1968; Barrett/Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason)
* More (LP; EMI; July 27, 1969; Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason)
* Ummagumma (2 LP; EMI; 25 October 1969, studio and live recordings; Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason)
* Atom Heart Mother (LP; EMI; October 10, 1970; Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason)
* Meddle (LP; EMI; October 30, 1971; Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason)
* Obscured by Clouds (LP; EMI; June 3, 1972; Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason)
* The Dark Side of the Moon (LP; EMI; March 24, 1973; Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason)
* Wish You Were Here (LP; EMI; September 15, 1975; Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason)
* Animals (LP; EMI; January 23, 1977; Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason)
* The Wall (2 LP; EMI; November 30, 1979, 2 LP; Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason)
* The Final Cut (LP; EMI; March 21, 1983; Gilmour/Waters/Mason)
* A Momentary Lapse of Reason (LP; EMI; September 7, 1987; Gilmour/Mason)
* Delicate Sound of Thunder (LP, live; EMI; November 22, 1988; Gilmour/Wright/Mason)
* The Division Bell (LP; EMI; March 30, 1994; Gilmour/Wright/Mason)
* P*U*L*S*E (2 CDs, live; EMI; June 5, 1995; Gilmour/Wright/Mason)
* Is There Anybody out There? The Wall Live 198081 (CD, live; March 27, 2000; Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason)

Compilations

* Relics (1971) compilation of some scrapped material and songs from the B-sides of early singles
* Masters of Rock issue 1 (1974) compilation; The collection was originally released under the title “The Best Of Pink Floyd”
* A Nice Pair (1973) compilation combining the first two discs of the group in one album “The Piper at the Gates of Dawn” and “A Saucerful Of Secrets”
* A Collection of Great Dance Songs (1981) compilation includes several alternative versions of famous songs, especially interesting is the new recording of Money, in which David Gilmour performed all the parts except the saxophone.
* Works (1983) compilation, including the unreleased composition “Embryo” and two alternative versions of “Brain Damage” and “Eclipse”
* Shine on (CD Box Set, 1992) luxuriously packaged CD set including remastered "A Saucerful Of Secrets", "Meddle", "Dark Side Of The Moon", "Wish You Were Here", "Animals", “The Wall”, “A Momentary Lapse Of Reason”, as well as a collection of the group’s first singles
* 1967: The First Three Singles (1997) compilation of the group's first three singles
* Echoes (2 CD, 2001) compilation of the best compositions of the group

* “Live at Pompeii” (1973, concert, director Adrian Maben; Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason) recording of the band performing ten songs against the backdrop of the ancient ruins of Pompeii (Italy)
* “Pink Floyd The Wall” (1982, MGM, directed by Alan Parker; Gilmour/Wright/Waters/Mason) film based on the 1979 album The Wall
* "The Final Cut" 1983, short film
* “Delicate Sound of Thunder” (1988, concert, director Wayne Isham; Gilmour/Wright/Mason) recording of a concert at Nassau Coliseum (USA)
* “Pulse” 2006, concert

Soundtracks

* “Tonite Lets All Make Love In London” (Let's all make love in London tonight) (1967, directed by Peter Whitehead, UK) only two short parts of the composition “Interstellar Overdrive” were used, but the film allowed the band's first studio recording of four songs.
* "The Committee" (1968, directed by Peter Sykes, UK) used, in particular, an early version of "Careful With That Axe, Eugene".
* “More” (1969, directed by Barbet Schroeder, France) film about the adventures of hippies in Ibiza. Not very famous in the world, but has become very popular in France. The soundtrack used modified old and several new songs of the group.
* “Zabriskie Point” (1970, directed by Michelangelo Antonioni, USA) four fragments of the group’s songs were used.
* "La Vallee" (1972, director Barbette Schroeder, France) this film is also known as "Obscured by Clouds" (Hidden by Clouds). It talks about hippies who went to New Guinea in search of the lost valley. The band's music used in the film differs from that heard on the Obscured by Clouds album.
* “La Carrera Panamericana” (Pan American Highway) (13 April 1992, director and producer Ian MacArthur, UK) documentary about the 2,500-mile auto race in Mexico. David Gilmour and Nick Mason took part in these competitions and were one of the sponsors. Pink Floyd provided the soundtrack for the film. In addition to several tracks from the album "A Momentary Lapse of Reason", several new tunes were recorded for the film, which were never included in the band's next studio album, although they surfaced on several pirated discs.

Pink Floyd(Pink Floyd) - English progressive/psychedelic rock band. Famous for its philosophical texts, acoustic experiments, innovations in album design and grandiose shows. Is one of the most successful groups in rock music - about 70 million albums sold in the USA (seventh place), about 200 million were sold in the world.

The band was founded in 1965 by fellow Regent Str. Polytechnic architecture students Richard Wright (keyboards, vocals), Roger Waters (bass, vocals) and Nick Mason (drums), and their Cambridge friend Syd Barrett ( vocals, guitar).

In 1968, David Gilmour joined the foursome to replace Barrett following his "retirement". After Barrett's departure, bassist Roger Waters and keyboardist Richard Wright initially became the dominant figures in the group, but over time Wright gave way to guitarist David Gilmour. With each new album, Waters consolidated his leadership, gradually achieving unity of command. After Barrett's departure and until 1983, Waters was the author of the vast majority of the lyrics of the group's songs (for example, since 1973, only he wrote the lyrics) and the main author of the rock opera "The Wall". The group's last album ("The Division Bel"), last tour and unofficial disbandment took place in 1994. Each of the group members has made a successful career to one degree or another, mainly relying on the experience of their alma mater. The last performance of the classic lineup took place in July 2005 at the "Live 8" concert.

Name

Name Pink Floyd arose after a series of renamings of the groups Sigma 6, T-Set, Meggadeaths, The Screaming Abdabs, The Architectural Abdabs and The Abdabs. At first the group was called The Pink Floyd Sound, and only then simply The Pink Floyd in honor of two blues musicians from Georgia - Pink Anderson and Floyd Council (Floyd Council). The definite article “The” was dropped from the title only after 1970 (see, for example, the cover of the record with the music for “Zabriskie Point”).

Story

Formation (1963-1964)

Nick Mason and Roger Waters met at the University of Westminster in London, where they were both studying architecture. They began playing together in a band formed by Keith Noble and Cleve Metcalfe. Later, Richard Wright joined them, and the sextet was named Sigma 6. Wright's girlfriend, Juliet Gale, was a frequent guest at the group's rehearsals. Roger Waters played rhythm guitar before switching to bass guitar. Sigma 6 played songs The group Searchers and material written by student Ken Chapman, who became the band's manager and songwriter. In September 1963, Mason and Waters moved to a cheaper flat in Stanhope Gardens, owned by university lecturer Mike Leonard. Leonard helped the young group with rehearsals. Sigma 6 used this apartment for their rehearsals. Mason later moved out of the apartment, and new guitarist Bob Close took over his room. During the performances, the name of the group changed several times. Soon Metcalf and Nobel left the group. In the autumn of 1963, seventeen-year-old Syd Barrett arrived in London to study. Waters and Barrett were childhood friends (Waters often visited Barrett at his mother's house). Barrett joined the Tea Set in 1964 and moved in with Waters and Close.

Period with Syd Barrett (1964-1968)

Like The Pink Floyd Sound

After the departure of Nobel and Metcalfe, Tea Set lost its vocalists. Severely lacking vocals, Close introduced the band to Chris Dennis. Under the leadership of Dennis, the Tea Set changed its name to The Pink Floyd Sound, in honor of two blues musicians whose recordings Barrett kept in his own collection - Pink Anderson and Floyd Council. Barrett renamed the group because at one of the performances he found out that there was a group present that also bore the name Tea Set. Dennis himself later left for Bahrain, appointing Syd Barrett as the band's frontman.

The first visit to the recording studio took place in December 1964. The band members got into the studio through Wright's connections. A friend of his was working in a studio in West Numpstead and used the break to record some sets for The Pink Floyd Sound. Their sessions produced four songs that became the band's first demos, including a cover of the R&B classic "I'm A King Bee" and three songs written by Syd Barrett: "Butterfly", "Lucy". Leave" and "Double O Bo".

Then The Pink Floyd Sound became regular guests at London's Countdown Club, where they played for 90 minutes from late evening to early morning. The group was also invited to the TV show Ready Steady Go!, which was looking for young talents. Bob Close left the group in 1965, and Syd Barrett became the band's lead guitarist and vocalist.

The Pink Floyd Sound continued to play predominantly rhythm and blues compositions in clubs. At one of these performances in March 1966, Peter Jenner noticed them. Jenner, a lecturer at the London School of Economics and Political Science, was delighted with the acoustic effects that Barrett and Wright had recreated during their performance, and he, along with his friend Andrew King, became the group's managers. It was at this time that the group began to experiment in music and with their performances. Under the leadership of Jenner, the group began performing at London underground concerts (London Underground), and the group's producers organized a management company for rock bands called Blackhill Enterprises. The Pink Floyd Sound's relationship with Blackhill Enterprises has grown into a hexagonal venture. By October 1966, the group's recordings were replenished with several more sets of their own songs.

The Piper at the Gates of Dawn

The band's debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, was released in August 1967 (a common mistranslation of the album's title is "The Piper at the Gates of Dawn", although in fact this is just the title of a chapter from Syd's favorite book, "The Wind in the Willows" by Kenneth Grahame, where “The Piper” is, of course, not a “piper”, but the god Pan playing the pipe, translated by Irina Tokmakova - “The pipe at the threshold of dawn”) is considered the best example of English psychedelic music. The tracks on this record showcase a musical mixture, from the avant-garde "Interstellar Overdrive" to the whimsical "Scarecrow", a melancholic song inspired by the rural landscapes surrounding Cambridge. The album was successful and reached number six in the UK charts.

However, not all band members withstood the burden of success that fell on them. Drug use and constant performances broke the band's leader, Syd Barrett. His behavior became more and more unbearable, nervous breakdowns and psychoses were repeated more and more often, infuriating the rest of the group (especially Roger). It happened more than once that Sid simply “switched off”, “withdrew into himself” right at the concert. In January 1968, Roger and Syd's longtime acquaintance, guitarist David Gilmour, joined the band to replace Barrett. However, it was planned that Sid, although not performing, would continue to write songs for the group. Unfortunately, nothing came of this venture.

In April 1968, Barrett's "retirement" was formalized, but Jenner and King decided to stay with him. The six-party company Blackhill Enterprises has ceased operations.

A Saucerful of Secrets

Although Barrett wrote most of the material on the first album, the second album, A Saucerful of Secrets, released in June 1968, featured only one song he wrote, "Jugband Blues" " (Blues for noise orchestra). "A Saucerful of Secrets" peaked at number nine in the UK.

Without Barrett (1969-1972)

More, Ummagumma

After writing the soundtrack for the film "More" directed by Barbet Schroeder in 1969, the group released the album "Ummagumma" in 1969, partly recorded in Birmingham and partly in Manchester. It was a double album, the first disc of which was the first (and for almost twenty years the only official) recording of the band's live performance, and the second was equally divided into four parts, according to the number of band members. The album became the band's highest achievement at that time. It peaked at number five in the UK chart and entered the US hit list at number seventy.

Atom Heart Mother

In 1970, the album "Atom Heart Mother" appeared and took first place in the UK. The group grew musically, and now they needed a choir and a symphony orchestra to implement their ideas. The complicated arrangement required the involvement of an outside specialist, who became Ron Geesin. He wrote the intro to the title track as well as the album's orchestration.

Meddle

A year later, in 1971, "Meddle" was released - similar to the previous one in structure (but not in music): one side of the record is occupied by short songs and one instrumental piece, the second - an extended multi-part suite, 23 minutes "an epic sound poem" (as Waters called it) called "Echoes", in which the band pioneered the use of 16-track tape machines, replacing the four- and eight-track equipment used on "Atom Heart Mother", as well as the VCS3 synthesizer. The album also included "One of These Days" - a concert classic Pink Floyd, where drummer Nick Mason, in a terribly distorted voice through a vocoder, promised to “cut you into little pieces” (“One of these days, I’m going to cut you into little pieces”), light and carefree “Fearless” and “San Tropez” and mischievous "Seamus" (Seamus is the dog's name), where a Russian greyhound was "invited" to sing along. "Meddle" took third place in the British charts.

Obscured by Clouds

The band's lesser-known album was released in 1972 under the title "Obscured by Clouds" as the soundtrack to Barbet Schroeder's film "La Vallee". The album is one of Nick Mason's favorites. Only 46th in the US Top 50 and sixth at home.

Peak of success (1973-1982)

The Dark Side of the Moon

The 1973 album "The Dark Side of the Moon" became the finest hour for Pink Floyd. It was a conceptual recording - not just a collection of songs on one disc, but a work imbued with a single, connecting idea of the pressure of the modern world on the human psyche. The idea was a powerful catalyst for the group's creativity.

Together, its members compiled a list of themes to be explored in the album: the composition “On The Run” was about paranoia; "Time" described the approach of old age and the senseless waste of life; "The Great Gig In The Sky" (originally titled "Mortality Sequence") is about death and religion; "Money" is about the money that comes with fame and takes over a person; "Us And Them" ("Us and Them") talks about conflicts within society; "Brain Damage" is dedicated to madness.

Thanks to the use of new 16-track recording equipment at Abbey Road Studios, nearly nine months spent recording, and the efforts of engineer Alan Parsons, the album was unprecedented and entered the treasure trove of recordings of all time.

The single "Money" reached the top 20 in the US, the album went to No. 1 (only No. 2 in the UK) and remained in the US Top 200 for 741 weeks, including 591 consecutive weeks from 1973 to 1988, and several getting to first place once. The album broke many records and became one of the best-selling albums of all time.

Wish You Were Here

"Wish You Were Here" was released in 1975 and featured alienation as its main theme. In addition to the title track, which has become a classic Pink Floyd, the album includes the critically acclaimed 20-minute track "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" as well as the title track, a tribute to Syd Barrett and his mental breakdown. Barrett himself, plump and with his hair cut, unexpectedly appeared at Abbey Road Studios in London, where the band was recording an album dedicated to him, making a strong impression on the members of Pink Floyd. In addition, the album included “Welcome to the Machine” and “Have a Cigar?”, dedicated to the soulless morals of show business dealers. The album became the first in the UK and America. In 1995, Gilmour and Wright named this album their favorite album Pink Floyd.

Animals

By the time Animals was released in January 1977, the band's music had come under increasing criticism from the emerging punk rock movement for being too "weak" and arrogant, a departure from the simplicity of early rock 'n' roll. This is largely a conceptual and textual work and the influence of Roger Waters as a lyricist is obvious. In addition, this album showed trends in “Water” acoustics and the use of everyday sounds as musical elements, so characteristic of Waters’s subsequent solo works.

The album contained three long main songs and two short ones that complemented their content. The concept of the album was close to the meaning of George Orwell's book "Animal Farm". The album uses dogs, pigs and sheep as metaphors to describe or denounce members of modern society. The music on Animals is significantly more guitar-based than previous albums, possibly due to the increasing tension between Waters and Wright, who did not contribute much to the album.

The Wall

The rock opera "The Wall" was created under the dominance of Waters, but with significant composing and arranging influence from Gilmour, as well as the famous Canadian producer Bob Ezrin. This work again received an enthusiastic reception from fans, although there was a clear departure from the usual style of the group (about half of the material became a prerequisite for Waters' solo style). The single from this album - "Another Brick in the Wall, Part II" ("Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2"), touching on the problems of pedagogy and education, hit number one in the Christmas singles chart in the UK and subsequently became the material for remixes in the style of disco and techno. In addition to reaching number three in the UK, "The Wall" spent 15 weeks on the US chart during 1980. The album became very expensive during the writing process and incurred a lot of expenses due to large-scale shows, but record sales brought the group out of financial crisis. During the work on the album, Waters expanded his influence and strengthened his leadership role in the group's activities, giving rise to constant conflicts within it. For example, he tried to persuade the band members to fire Richard Wright, who practically did not take part in the work on the album. Wright eventually took part in the concerts, for a fixed fee. Ironically, Richard was the only one who managed to earn any money from these concerts, since the rest of the group were forced to cover the exorbitant costs of the show "The Wall". Waters kicked Bob Ezrin out of the Pink Floyd camp after Ezrin inadvertently talked to a journalist friend about the show's surprises. However, this same difficult album already contains stylistic signs of the late Gilmour. These new moves will be revealed in full force both in the guitarist’s solo works and in the group’s albums, recorded without Roger, but with the help of the same Bob Ezrin. "The Wall" remained on the best-selling album list for 14 years.

In 1982, a full-length film based on the album, “Pink Floyd The Wall,” was released. The leading role of the rock star "Pink" starred the founder of the group "Boomtown Rats" and the future organizer of the festivals "Live Aid" and "Live 8" - Bob Geldof. The film's script was written by Waters, directed by Alan Parker, and animated by renowned animator Gerald Scarfe. The film can be called provocative, since one of the main ideas was a protest against established ideals and the English passion for order. The film was also a definite manifesto in defense of rockers. The movie "The Wall" doesn't show any of the problems directly. The entire film is woven from allegories and symbols, for example, faceless teenagers who, one after another, fall into a meat grinder and turn into a homogeneous mass. Clips from this tape were censored during broadcasts on American MTV. The making of the film was accompanied by a further deterioration in the relationship between the group's two strongest personalities: Waters and Gilmour.

Last albums and breakup of the group (1983-1994)

The Final Cut

In 1983, the album "The Final Cut" appeared with the subtitle "Requiem for Roger Waters' Post-War Dream, Performed by Pink Floyd." Darker than The Wall, this album revisits many of its themes, while also addressing issues that were and are still relevant today. This included Waters' dissatisfaction and anger at Britain's involvement in the Falklands conflict - the composition "The Fletcher Memorial Home", where Fletcher is Waters' father - Eric Fletcher Waters. The theme of the track "Two Suns in the Sunset" is the fear of nuclear war. Wright's absence from recording the album resulted in some lack of keyboard effects typical of previous works. Pink Floyd, although guest musicians Michael Kamen (piano and harmonium) and Andy Bown made some contributions as keyboardists. Among the musicians who took part in the recording of "The Final Cut" was tenor saxophonist Raphael Ravenscroft. Despite the album's mixed reviews, The Final Cut was a success (No. 1 in the UK and No. 6 in the US), and was certified platinum shortly after its release. The most hit songs according to radio stations were “Gunner’s Dream” and “Not Now John”. The tension between Waters and Gilmour was so intense during the recording of the album that they were never in the recording studio at the same time. The band did not tour with this album. Soon Waters officially announced his departure from the group.

After The Final Cut, the band members went their separate ways, releasing solo albums until 1987, when Gilmour and Mason began re-forming Pink Floyd. This gave rise to heated legal disputes with Roger Waters, who, after leaving the group in 1985, decided that the group could not exist without him anyway. However, Gilmour and Mason were able to prove that they had the right to continue their musical activities as the Pink Floyd group. Waters, however, retained some of the band's traditional imagery, including most of the props and characters from The Wall and all rights to The Final Cut.

A Momentary Lapse of Reason, The Division Bell

As a result Pink Floyd under the direction of David Gilmour, she returned to the studio with producer Bob Ezrin. While working on the band's new album, A Momentary Lapse of Reason, No. 3 in both the UK and US, Richard Wright rejoined the band, initially as a weekly-paid session musician. then as a full member until 1994.

In 1994, the Floyd's last work, "The Division Bell" ("Parliament Bell", No. 1 in the UK and USA) was released and the subsequent tour, which became one of the most profitable in the history of rock music.

All members of Pink Floyd have released their own solo albums, achieving varying levels of popularity and commercial success. "Amused to Death" by Roger Waters was received most warmly by the public, but was still met with mixed reviews from critics.

Later activities of the group

Since 1994 and the album "The Division Bell" Pink Floyd did not release any studio material. The only results of the group's work were the 1995 live album "P*U*L*S*E" ("Pulse"); a live recording of "The Wall", compiled from concerts in 1980 and 1981, "Is There Anybody out There? The Wall Live 1980-81" in 2000; a two-disc set containing the group's most significant hits "Echoes" ("Echoes", "Echo") in 2001; the 2003 30th anniversary reissue of "Dark Side of the Moon" (remixed on SACD by James Guthrie); a re-release of 2004's "The Final Cut" with the added single "When the Tigers Broke Free"; re-release of the band's debut album in mono and stereo versions, with added songs, some of which have never been released anywhere before; anniversary box set "Oh, By the Way" ("By the way"), which includes reproductions of all the band's studio albums in the form of mini-vinyls.

Echoes has been the subject of much controversy due to the fact that the songs flow into each other in a different order than on the original albums, significant portions of some have been torn out, and the song sequence itself is considered inconsistent by fans. logic.

Due to the fact that the band members are mostly engaged in their own projects - for example, Mason wrote the book "Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd" (Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd), due to the death of Steve O'Rourke on October 30 2003 - the band's manager for many years, due to David Gilmour's solo project (the album On an Island and the concert tour of the same name) and the death of Richard Wright on September 15, 2008, the future of the band is unclear.

Performance at Live 8 (2005)

On July 2, 2005, putting past differences aside for one evening, Pink Floyd performed for the last time with their classic line-up (Waters, Gilmour, Mason, Wright) at the global show Live 8, dedicated to the fight against poverty.

This performance temporarily increased sales of the album Echoes: The Best of Pink Floyd by more than 13 times. Gilmour donated all proceeds charitable foundations, which reflected the goals of the Live 8 concert, saying:

"Although the main purpose of the concert was to raise awareness and put pressure on the G8 leaders, I will not profit from this concert. This money should be spent on saving lives."

Group Pink Floyd played only four songs: “Breathe” (Breathe), “Money” (Money), “Wish You Were Here” (It’s a pity that you are not here) and “Comfortably Numb” (Cozy-unemotional), while the track was played as a backing track "Speak to Me", which opens the album "The Dark Side of the Moon", which was followed by "Breathe" on the album, as well as the clinking of coins and sounds of the cash register from "Money" and fragments of radio broadcasts from "Wish You Were Here" .

After the Live 8 concert, Pink Floyd was offered £150 million to tour the US, but the band turned down the offer. David Gilmour later admitted that by agreeing to perform at Live 8, he did not allow the band's story to end on a "false note".

" There was another reason. First, support the cause. Secondly, the complex, power-sucking relationship between Roger and me that weighs heavily on my heart. That's why we wanted to perform and leave all the problems behind. Thirdly, I would regret it if I refused."