The Dark Side of the Moon
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- This article is about the Pink Floyd album. For the film, see Dark Side of the Moon (documentary). For the general sense of the phrase, see Far side (Moon).
The Dark Side of the Moon is a 1973 concept album by Pink Floyd. (The title is sometimes given as Dark Side of the Moon, without the initial The.) It deals with the pressures of life such as time, money, war, mental illness, and death.
It is considered by many fans to be the band's magnum opus, surpassing even The Wall (1979). A landmark in rock, it features radio-suited rock songs such as Money, Time, Us and Them, and Brain Damage/Eclipse, with ethereal electronic and concrete sound effects. It is a bridge between "classic" blues rock and the then-new electronic music genres. However, it is the softer touches on Dark Side, the lyrical and musical nuance, that make this album stand apart.
The Dark Side of the Moon is one of the best-selling albums of all time worldwide, and the 20th-best-selling album in the United States. It peaked at #1 on The Billboard 200, spent a record-setting total of 741 weeks (over 15 years) on that list, and also reached #1 on Billboard's Pop Catalog Chart. The 2003 Hybrid SACD issue reached #1 on Billboard's Pop Catalog Chart as well and sold 800,000 SACDs in the U.S. alone. Since it was first released, it has sold over 40 million copies worldwide as of 2004. In 2003, 250,000 copies were bought, and as of 2004 it was selling over 8,000 copies a week. It is estimated that one in every 14 people in the U.S. under the age of 50 owns a copy of this album.
Contents |
Concept
The Dark Side of the Moon is a concept album. The album covers the faults of humanity and the pressures of modern life that can drive a man to insanity, including mortality, religion, money, the encroachment of old age, society and conflict. The track On the Run represents pressures of escaping pursuit. Time discusses how quickly life can slip by. The Great Gig in the Sky was known as "The Mortality Sequence" during recording, and has a religious or death theme. Money talks about the greed in the world, and how money is the "root of all evil today". Us and Them deals with conflict and war. Brain Damage is about lunacy and what it is like. Eclipse was to mean the same thing with a different concept of singing.
The theme of The Dark Side of the Moon was in part precipitated by the earlier departure of Syd Barrett, a founding member of Pink Floyd. It is said to have been conceived during a band meeting in Nick Mason's kitchen, when it was decided to make an album about the pressures of modern life.
Roger Waters wrote all of the lyrics (a first for Pink Floyd), and created the early demo tracks in a small garden in his house.
Recording
Recorded at Abbey Road Studios, London between June 1972 and January 1973, the album contains some of the most intricate uses of instruments and sound effects in the studio up to that time, including the sound of someone running around a microphone (On the Run), and the recording of multiple clocks going off (Time). A quadraphonic version was also released, with some re-mixing and different takes. In making DSotM, Pink Floyd perfected other effects such as doubletracking of vocals and guitars (allowing David Gilmour to harmonise flawlessly with himself), flanged vocals and odd trickery with reverb and panning of sound between the channels. To this day, The Dark Side of the Moon is a reference standard that audiophiles use to test the fidelity of audio equipment. Another feature of the album is the snippets of dialogue between and over the tracks. Pink Floyd interviewed various people, asking questions related to the central themes of the album, such as violence and death. Roadie "Roger the Hat" features more than once ("give 'em a quick, short, sharp, shock ...", "live for today, gone tomorrow, that's me..."). The words "there is no dark side of the Moon really ... matter of fact it's all dark" over the closing heartbeats come from the studio doorman at the time, Gerry Driscoll. Paul and Linda McCartney were also interviewed, but their answers were considered too cautious for inclusion. McCartney's bandmate Henry McCullough contributed the famous line "I don't know, I was really drunk at the time". The monologue about the "geezers" who were "cruisin' for a brusin" comes from a conversation Roger Waters taped with his girlfriend about whether he was right to beat up several men in a recent bar fight.
Alan Parsons engineered the album while on staff at Abbey Road. He once said in an interview that he swapped shifts with colleagues in order to work on the whole project.Template:Fact
The title The Dark Side of the Moon had already been used for an unrelated album from the band Medicine Head, so this piece was retitled "Eclipse: A Piece for Assorted Lunatics" when it was played live during Pink Floyd's 1972 tour. But Medicine Head's album flopped, and so the original title was once again used.
Success
In the U.S., Dark Side is the 20th-best-selling album of all time and has spent a total of 741 weeks on the Billboard 200 with the longest continuous period lasting 591 consecutive weeks. It reached the #1 chart position in the US, Belgium and France, but due to a quirk in the computer system, it was only awarded a gold disc. The LP was released before platinum discs were "invented" on January 1, 1976. The album would eventually be certified Platinum in 1990 and then Diamond in 1999 by the RIAA. Even in 2002, thirty years after the album's release, over 400,000 copies were sold in the United States, making the record the 200th-best-selling album that year. In 2003, over 800,000 copies of the Hybrid SACD version of DSotM were sold in the US alone. "Time", "Money" and "Us and Them" have become radio call-in favourites (with "Money" having also been a bestselling single in the USA). The Dark Side of the Moon is now certified 15 times platinum in the US.
The Dark Side of the Moon has been released as a 30th anniversary hybrid Super Audio CD (SACD) with a 5.1 channel DSD surround mix, mastered from the original 16-track studio tapes. Some surprise was expressed when longtime producer James Guthrie was called in to make the SACD mix, rather than the original LP engineer Alan Parsons. This 30th anniversary edition won four Surround Music Awards in 2003.
In 1997, The Dark Side of the Moon was named the 6th greatest album of all time in a 'Music of the Millennium' poll conducted by HMV, Channel 4, The Guardian and Classic FM. In 1998, Q magazine readers placed it at number 10, while in 2001 the TV network VH1 placed it at number 51.
In 2000, The Not So Bright Side of the Moon was released by The Squirrels featuring a full cover of the entire album.
In 2003, the United States cable television channel VH1 named The Dark Side of the Moon's album cover the 4th greatest album cover of all time. Also in 2003, a "Classic Albums" DVD about The Dark Side of the Moon was released; it included interviews with Gilmour, Mason, Waters, Wright, Alan Parson, Storm Thorgerson and Chris Thomas about the making of the album.
Also in 2003, Rolling Stone name The Dark Side of the Moon the 43rd greatest album of all time.
Some argue that Acid House evolved out of the EMS synthesizer flurries on The Dark Side of the Moon.
New York reggae label Easy Star commissioned a reggae version, Dub Side of the Moon, based on Dark Side, but with additional material.
In 2005, Dream Theater performed and recorded Dark Side Of The Moon in its entirety, in the legendary Hammersmith Apollo in London. A previous performance took place in Amsterdam, Holland, but this was not released. Guest musicians included Norbert Satchel from the Roger Waters Band and Theresa Thomason on vocals.
In 2006, Richard Cheese releases his greatest hits album called The Sunny Side Of The Moon and contains a covered version of Another Brick in the Wall originally from the album The Wall.
Track listing
| Track title | Credited to | Vocals | Original CD and 1994 remaster release | Shine On (box set) version, and 20th anniversary re-release | 30th anniversary SACD re-release |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| "Speak to Me" |
| instrumental | 1:00 | 1:13 | 1:13 |
| "Breathe" |
|
| 2:59 | 2:46 | 2:46 |
| "On the Run" Image:Sound-icon.png (vorbis sample (112K)) |
| instrumental | 3:35 | 3:34 | 3:35 |
| "Time" Image:Sound-icon.png (vorbis sample (271K)) |
|
| 7:04 | 7:04 | 7:04 |
| "The Great Gig in the Sky" |
| 4:48 | 4:44 | 4:48 | |
| "Money" |
|
| 6:24 | 6:32 | 6:24 |
| "Us and Them" |
|
| 7:49 | 7:40 | 7:49 |
| "Any Colour You Like" |
| instrumental | 3:26 | 3:25 | 3:26 |
| "Brain Damage" |
|
| 3:50 | 3:50 | 3:50 |
| "Eclipse" Image:Sound-icon.png (vorbis sample (102K)) |
|
| 2:04 | 2:02 | 2:04 |
Some more recent pressings of the album, starting with those included in the Shine On box set and the live version on P*U*L*S*E, have slightly different credits. These versions add Roger Waters' name to the writing credits for "Speak to Me" and "The Great Gig in the Sky", and Richard Wright's name to "On the Run".
Because the original LP record was two sided, there was a break between "The Great Gig In The Sky" and "Money". Alan Parsons added a small crossfade between these two tracks for the digital remaster. The remastering was supervised by James Guthrie and Doug Sax.
On later CD pressings a hidden, orchestral version of The Beatles' "Ticket To Ride" is audible after "Eclipse", although very faintly. Why this is so is unknown, and was possibly a mastering mistake. (The bootleg A Tree Full of Secrets includes an amplified, enhanced version of this oddity.)
Personnel
- David Gilmour — Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals, VCS 3 Synthesizer
- Roger Waters — Bass Guitar, Vocals, VCS 3 Synthesizer, Tape Effects
- Richard Wright — Keyboards, Vocals, VCS 3 Synthesizer
- Nick Mason — Percussion, Drums, Tape Effects
with
- Lesley Duncan — Vocals (background)
- Doris Troy — Vocals (background)
- Pink Floyd — Producers
- Dick Parry — Saxophone
- Barry St. John — Vocals (background)
- Liza Strike — Vocals (background)
- Clare Torry — Vocals
- Peter James — Assistant Engineer
- Chris Thomas — Mixing
- Alan Parsons — Engineer
- Hipgnosis — Design, Photography
- Storm Thorgerson — 20th and 30th Anniversary Edition Designs
- George Hardie — Illustrations, Sleeve Art
- Jill Furmanosky — Photography
- David Sinclair — Liner Notes in CD re-release
Quotes
"It's very well-balanced and well-constructed, dynamically and musically, and I think the humanity of its approach is appealing. It's satisfying. I think also that it was the first album of that kind. People often quote S.F. Sorrow by The Pretty Things as being from a similar mould - they were both done in the same studio at about the same time - but I think it was probably the first completely cohesive album that was made. A concept album, mate! I always thought it would be hugely successful. I had the same feelings about The Wall. [...] But of course, The Dark Side of the Moon finished The Pink Floyd off once and for all. To be that successful is the aim of every group. And once you've cracked it, it's all over. In hindsight, I think The Pink Floyd was finished as long ago as that."
- — Roger Waters in June 1987, with Chris Salewicz.
- Note: S F Sorrow was released in 1968, having been recorded at the same time as Pink Floyd's debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn.
Singles
In some countries, notably the UK, Pink Floyd did not release any singles between 1968's Point Me at the Sky and 1979's Another Brick in the Wall (Part Two). However, the following were released in the US and many other countries:
- "Money"/"Any Colour You Like" - Harvest/Capitol 3609; released June, 1973
- "Time"/"Us and Them" - Harvest/Capitol 45373; released February 4, 1974
The latter is sometimes considered a double A side.
Charts
Album — Billboard (North America)
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1973 | Pop Albums | 1 |
Album — Billboard (North America)
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | The Billboard 200 | 1 |
Singles — Billboard (North America)
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | "Money" | Pop Singles | 13 |
| 1974 | "Time" | Pop Singles | 101 |
Synchronicity with The Wizard of Oz
- Main article: Dark Side of the Rainbow
When the album is played simultaneously with the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, the images of the movie occasionally appear to be synchronized with the music and lyrics. This effect has been called "Dark Side of the Rainbow" or "Dark Side of Oz". It is said that the album can be repeated three times during the course of the movie, with new synchronicities each time the album is repeated. Band members say that the album was not intentionally made to synchronize with The Wizard of Oz, but those who have seen it nevertheless report that the syncronicity is striking. Pre-syncronized versions are available online.
References
- The "Dark Side of the Moon": The Making of the "Pink Floyd" Masterpiece, John Harris, Fourth Estate, (2005) ISBN 0007190247
- "The Complete Guide to the Music of Pink Floyd", Andy Mabbett, Omnibus Press, (1995) ISBN 071194301X
External links
- The official "The Dark Side of the Moon" webpage
- A Full Conceptual Analysis of Pink Floyd's "The Dark Side of the Moon"
- Recording and history of the album
- The Pink Floyd HyperBase
- Dark Side of the Moon - anniversary audio review
- Dark Side of the Moon A Cappella
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