This follow-up album to Dark Side of the Moon continues on the theme of madness, but more specifically with former bandmate Syd Barrett who would leave the band after a drug-induced breakdown. "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" begins and ends this album and accounts for 26 minutes of the total play time and ends with a four and a half minute keyboard section that is one of my favorite instrumental sections. "Have a Cigar" was sung by folk singer Roy Harper because Gilmour didn't want to sing it and Waters had burned out his voice.

1. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts 1-5)
2. Welcome to the Machine
3. Have a Cigar
4. Wish You Were Here
5. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts 6-9)

 

 

 

This album was simply a result of wanting to hear more Pink Floyd and it does not disappoint. The guitar solos at the beginning of "Shine On..." are far bluesier than anything on Dark Side which is something I love (one day I'll talk about the blues). This is a great album to chill out to at the end of a rough day since it's a bit slower and doesn't have any really loud moments to knock you out of a relaxed state (like the clocks in Dark Side). This one gets a definite recommendation from me and all Pink Floyd fans.  By the way, this album is my cover art.  Have a good evening.

37 years ago today this album was released and remains a staple for music lovers to this very day.  I could use such cliche terms as Musical Tour de Force, but that just isn't saying enough.  Best. Album. Ever.  I think that says it all.  This was Pink Floyd's first foray into the world of concept albums and it was a success.  The main theme of it is madness, from the amount of time in the day to money to war, it can all lead to the same place.

1. Speak to Me
2. Breathe
3. On the Run
4. Time
5. The Great Gig in the Sky
6. Money
7. Us and Them
8. Any Colour You Like
9. Brain Damage
10. Eclipse

This album has plenty of stories behind it, including the random voices heard throughout the album.  All of the phrases were read from note cards by people who were at Abbey Road studios during the recording sessions (Paul and Linda McCartney did get recorded, but it was not used on the album.  Clare Torry, who is the female vocal on "The Great Gig in the Sky" actually apologized to Waters and Gilmour after she finished recording.  That also happens to be my favorite song off of this album.

I borrowed this album off my mom and immediately fell in love with it and even though she had two copies of it, one was badly worn out from overplay, I had to buy my own copy.  It was a pleasure.  It was also one of my first CD's (but not THE first, that comes later this week) and I did buy the 30th anniversary edition back 2003.  I have watched The Wizard of Oz with the album and while it is intriguing, the idea of actually recording an entire album to sync up with a movie I feel it is only a coincidence.  This album (or CD or tape) is a must-have.

There are albums that are overlooked for many reasons, but there is only one I know of that can say it was released between two of the best albums.  Released in 1972, Obscured by Clouds was not that well-received because of Meddle before it and the ground-breaking Dark Side of the Moon.  This album is the soundtrack for a movie called La Vallee (The Valley) which I have not seen, but it is available on YouTube for free.  This was the fourth movie that Pink Floyd scored and would be their last.

1. Obscured by Clouds
2. When You're In
3. Burning Bridges
4. The Gold It's in The...
5. Wots...Uh the Deal?
6. Mudmen
7. Childhood's End
8. Free Four
9. Stay
10. Absolutely Curtains

I was lucky enough to know a few Pink Floyd fans during the late 80's and early 90's when I was really getting into this band.  I was told that if I wanted a truly excellent album, pick this one up.  It's more or less a straightforward rock and roll album with just enough of the arrangement and synthesizer work that lets one know that this is Pink Floyd.  "Wots...Uh the Deal?" is one of my favorite songs along with "Childhood's End" because of their lyrical content.  Prior to hearing this album, "Free Four" was the only song I heard thanks to the Works album.  Being a Pink Floyd fan, my recommendation is pretty worthless because I like all of their albums.

An album of experimentation and a soundscapes that opened my mind to an entirely new style of music that had existed for years.  I was given this album in the early 80's and found the music to be weird and interesting and I was immediately addicted to this band, Pink Floyd.  Meddle contains six songs in total and none of those songs sound like the other.  Give only the songs to a person and tell them nothing about them and they would think it was six different artists performing them.  This album is credited with transforming Pink Floyd from psychedelic band to progressive rock band.  For a long time, this album was seriously underrated until the reunion at Live 8 a few years back.  Since everybody already had Dark Side of the Moon, they needed to listen to more and sales of this album ramped up.  Many of my regular visitors will recall that this album was near the top of my "Influential Albums" countdown a while back.

Side 1
1. One of these Days
2. Pillow of Winds
3. Fearless
4. San Tropez
5. Seamus

Side 2
1. Echoes

The highlight of Meddle is side two which contains only "Echoes" which is the band's 23-minute opus.  This song, while long, is not the typical psychedelic run-on that is normal among the bands of the time period.  "Echoes" has only three verses and three choruses which are sung by Richard Wright and David Gilmour while the rest of the song is instrumental and strange sounds.  The end of the song is a guitar and keyboard trade-off that is eventually overtaken by a loud droning noise.  I love this whole album for the music and the lyrics and the overall feel of it.

It's Sunday and that used to mean jam night at the Revolution with The Buzz Band (and The BUZZCrew running around taking pictures).  This week I return with some of the jammers from those Sunday nights.  I always enjoyed these nights because it was close to home and I didn't have much work to do.

Jimmy C.

Eroc from Wish You Were Here

Jake the Dog

I can't remember her name

There you have it, the return of My Musical Memories (or lack of memory).  This could very well be a recurring theme if I could actually remember everybody.  Thanks for dropping in and have a good rest of the weekend.  Don't forget Pink Floyd Week coming starting tomorrow.

This year's Oscars will feature ten nominees for best picture.  I know who the nominees are for this award and I still won't watch, which means that the academy has failed.  According to one entertainment reporter (from MSNBC) they included Avatar and District 9 into the category in hopes of attracting the sci-fi fans to watch the awards.  Will it work?  Not from my point of view.

These are the only two nominees that I've seen so far and I liked both.  I'm probably who Manuel was referring to in comments on District 9.  Will the fact that this movie is nominated for best picture change my opinion of it in any way?  Of course not.  Awards don't affect my opinion of anything.  The are several albums I enjoy that have won Grammy awards and many others that have not.  I also won't rush out to see the best picture winner, but I may check it out if I find out that I might like it.

I've made predictions in the past as to which movie will win best picture.  Normally I choose the one that appears to be the long, boring one that I can't figure out who actually saw it (I guessed The English Patient many years ago and was right).  I think I'll make my prediction based on Manuel's reviews and say that A Serious Man will win.  This appears to be the one that fits the criteria.  As far as me watching, though, I think not.  Have a good day.

This past Wednesday I commented on the air traffic controller who let his kid do his job for him.  I think Sebastien's comment really caused me to rethink my position on this story.  I mean, think about how happy some of those pilots were to hear a child's voice over the radio.  Kids can bring joy to every job, not just air traffic control.  I think more professions should be equally welcoming to children (if you're familiar with Sebastien's artwork, picture the little kids doing the following jobs).

Imagine how much more pleasant a murder investigation would be if the homicide detective would bring his kid along.  He could investigate blood spatter patterns, dust for prints, attempt to identify the victim and many other things.  A surgeon could take his daughter to work and sit in the operating room and maybe even try her hand at surgery.  What about the pilots themselves?  They be allowed to bring their kids on the job with them, too.  What a thrill for the little ones to land a plane.  Don't even get me started on prison guards.

Kids could make every workplace so much more pleasant.  I guess it just took me a little while to really think through this story the right way.  Maybe I should take a little time before I jump to conclusions and make generalizations.  I would like to apologize to all of the children of the world.  Have a good day.