Dark Side of the Moon: Richard Wright Died
posted by Deven Desai
To those who know Pink Floyd’s work the news that Richard Wright died is a bit of a blow. The band is one of my all-time favorites. Dark Side of the Moon is brilliant. Wright composed Us and Them (still pertinent in a world of anger politics) and the Great Gig in the Sky on that album. If you do not know Floyd’s work, I recommend almost everything they did with Waters. I am less of a fan of the post-Waters era. The early years offer many good albums such as A Saucerful of Secrets (1968), Ummagumma (1969), Atom Heart Mother (1970), and Meddle (1971). Their first album Piper at the Gates of Dawn has some rather interesting material, but it and Obscured by Clouds (1972) have never been up there for me.
The best work for me begins with The Dark Side of the Moon (1973) and then the run is amazing: Wish You Were Here (1975), Animals (1977), and The Wall (1979). I easily recommend all of these albums. They are true albums; a theme and related concepts are explored throughout the album.
Here is Floyd’s Web site.
Some more after the jump.
Us and Them:
September 15, 2008 at 4:13 pm
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Responses (3)
Jack S. - September 15, 2008 at 5:51 pm
No doubt the departure of Syd Barrett accounted for what I would consider a significant change in style. I listed to Piper at the Gates of Dawn after have gone through most of the later stuff. I couldn’t believe it was even the same band. Unrelated to all of this, syd met a particularly sad end
Losing Richard Wright must be a significant, but not unexpected blow to the group. What a fascinating life he must have lived though. wow. Rock on Richard!
I had the opportunity to see the band at the old Cleveland Lakefront Stadium for the Momentary Lapse of Reason tour. Not the height of their work, but perhaps a once in a lifetime opportunity.
Man, this just brings back a lot of memories.
Marc Blitz - September 16, 2008 at 1:29 pm
Don’t forget the 1971 compilation album Relics. It has two Richard Wright-written (and sung) songs — Remember a Day (originally from “Saucerful of Secrets”) and Paintbox (originally the B-side of “Apples and Oranges”)– that I like quite a bit. Also some other terrific songs from the Piper at the Gates of Dawn era.
I’ve read in a number of places that Wright was the major songwriting force in early Pink Floyd after Syd Barrett. While their early stuff has an entirely different sound than “Dark Side of the Moon” and afterwards, I like it just the same and am happy that YouTube makes up (to a small degree anyway) for having missed the chance to see a live show during any of Pink Floyd’s different heydays.
geoff - September 16, 2008 at 6:21 pm
I do think you should carry that run of great albums through to The Final Cut. Yes, it was mostly Roger Waters–but it’s an incredible album; Gilmour’s playing especially, but also that of the other boys stellar; and a thematic and musical appendix to The Wall. A truly exceptional string of albums.
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