The Later Years 1987-2019 is an explicit sequel to The Early Years 1965-1972, the 2016 box set that rounded up nearly all the loose ends and detours from the first era of Pink Floyd, the fearless period when they were figuring out what the band could do. The Later Years covers a different time, when their most pressing challenge was demonstrating that they could thrive artistically and commercially without the presence of Roger Waters, the bassist/songwriter who charted Floyd's direction between 1973's Dark Side of the Moon and 1983's The Final Cut…
A companion compilation to the sprawling 2019 box set The Later Years 1987-2019, this 80-minute collection distills that luxury item into something handy and affordable. In the winnowing process, it's revealed that the box indeed consists primarily of live material: all but five of the 12 tracks are live recordings, most taken from either the remixed version of the 1988 live double-LP Delicate Sound of Thunder or the full-length Live at Knebworth, which was recorded in 1990. Two cuts from the rejiggered A Momentary Lapse of Reason – which was revised to sound more like a classic Floyd album, à la The Division Bell – are here, along with an early rendition of "High Hopes" and the unheard instrumental "Marooned Jam," which also dates from 1994. None of this newer material is earthshaking, but it fits well next to the live versions of classic Floyd songs and, in turn, helps make a case for the merits of the Waters-less Floyd, even if it doesn't necessarily act as an enticing endorsement for the lavish accompanying box.
TOTAL ECLIPSE was conceived in 1993, well into Great Dane's ambitious "Pink Floyd Project." Great Dane had wanted to put out a box set that would appeal to the fans who had been terribly dissapointed with "Shine On," Pink Floyd's official release. It's purpose was to attempt to bring to the fans a comprehensive overview of the band's career, substituting rare material and alternative tracks wherever possible. This is the reason why many of the early singles and B-sides were included. Much "Top Gear" material was also included because not only were the sound sources believed to be the better than on any previously released RoIO (RoIO = Record of Illegitimate/Indeterminate Origin), but also because it seemed that these tracks should also be represented in the band's history. TOTAL ECLIPSE was meant to be chronological (although a few tracks are out of order) and comprehensive; something that could be listened to from beginning to end.
This box set devoted to Pink Floyd was somewhat frustrating at the time of its release. Priced at over 100 dollars, it included nine CDs drawn equally from their EMI and Columbia Records, starting with their second album, A Saucerful of Secrets. That seemed to confuse a lot of people who regard that transitional album as a lot less important and alluring than its predecessor, Piper at the Gates of Dawn…
A ten-CD compilation including five Pink Floyd shows from pivotal years in their development, 1970 through to 1974. All decent recordings for the era, they contain plenty of takes of songs from A Saucerful of Secrets up to Animals, and give a good mix of the Floyd's work.
One of the most predominant and celebrated rock bands of all time, prog- and space-rock legends, known for superlative musicianship. Some bands turn into shorthand for a certain sound or style, and Pink Floyd belongs among that elite group. The very name connotes something specific: an elastic, echoing, mind-bending sound that evokes the chasms of space. Pink Floyd grounded that limitless sound with exacting explorations of mundane matters of ego, mind, memory, and heart, touching upon madness, alienation, narcissism, and society on their concept albums of the '70s. Of these concept albums, Dark Side of the Moon resonated strongest, earning new audiences year after year, decade after decade, and its longevity makes sense.
Pink Floyd pioneered an elastic, echoing, mind-bending sound that evokes the chasms of space. Celestial concerns surfaced early in the band's career, with their 1967 debut The Piper at the Gates of Dawn containing the epic instrumental "Interstellar Overdrive" and "Astronomy Domine," a psychedelic masterwork sung by their early leader, Syd Barrett. That initial album and its accompanying singles were groundbreaking psychedelic works, pairing astral voyages with deep explorations of British eccentricity. Floyd continued to pursue this mix after Barrett's premature departure in 1968, with the group spending five years wandering through experiments as they charted the outer reaches of their limitless sound. Bassist Roger Waters emerged as the group's chief songwriter, developing a deep fascination with mundane matters of ego, mind, memory, and heart, touching upon madness, alienation, narcissism, and society.
Animals is the tenth studio album by English progressive rock group Pink Floyd, released in January 1977. A concept album, it provides a scathing critique of the social-political conditions of late 1970s Britain, and presents a marked change in musical style from their earlier work. Animals was recorded at the band's studio, Britannia Row, in London, but its production was punctuated by the early signs of discord that several years later would culminate in keyboardist Richard Wright leaving the band. The album's cover image, a pig floating between two chimneys on Battersea Power Station, was conceived by bassist and writer Roger Waters, and photographed by long-time collaborators Hipgnosis. The album was released to generally positive reviews in the United Kingdom, where it reached number 2. It was also a success in the United States, reaching number 3 on the Billboard 200, and although it scored on the American charts for only six months, steady sales have resulted in its certification by the RIAA at four times platinum.