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NIC SWANER FEBRUARY 6, 2012

Pink Floyd are one of, if not the most, well-known rock bands of the progressive rock
genre, capturing the essence of lengthy instrumental passages and complementing them
with memorable vibes and clear lyrics. Their concepts were compelling, from early
psychedelic eccentricities to the formation of a concept album. They were shaped by
Barretts inventiveness, Waters writing skill and passion, Gilmours affection for chords
and yet simplicity, Wrights compositional knowledge, Nick Masons resourcefulness, and
the numerous jazz influences they were inspired by and would frequently come back to.
This list attempts to highlight some relatively unknown facts about Pink Floyd as well as
addressing myths about the band. The list is in an order deemed relevant.

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Nick Mason is the longest running member of Pink Floyd, from the Barrett era to the
times of the dehydrated Floyd (i.e. without Roger Waters). In his time with Pink Floyd he
rarely ventured out of his comfort zone of percussive instruments, taking failed violin
lessons and providing special effects and sounds. But how did the band acquire him as a
drummer? According to Mark Blake, author of Comfortably Numb: The Inside Story of Pink
Floyd, Nick Mason was looked well upon as a drummer because he could provide the
funds and transport to buy instruments and get them to gigs. Despite this oversight by
the band, Mason proved to be an effective drummer, and contributed to the composition of
such songs as Time, Echoes, and Speak to Me (solely credited to him). His voice is also
featured on the track One of These Days.

Associated with two similar quotes, the song Any Colour You Like from Dark Side of the
Moon seems to reference Henry Fords quote: You can have it any color you like, as long
as its black. While the titles concept does concern the lack of choice in the modern world,
the origin of the title does not come from Henry Fords quote, it comes from an
observation Roger Waters made while living in Cambridge. As the inspiration for this list
this excerpt was and can be found in an essay titled Which Ones Pink? by musicologist
Phil Rose.
In Cambridge where I lived, people would come from London in a van a truck open the
back and stand on the tailboard of the truck, and the trucks full of stuff that theyre trying
to sell. And they have a very quick and slick patter, and theyre selling things like crockery,
china, sets of knives and forks. All kinds of different things, and they sell it very cheap
with a patter. They tell you what it is, and they say Its ten plates, lady, and its this, that,
and the other, and eight cups and saucers, and for the lot Im asking NOT ten pounds, NOT
five pounds, NOT three pounds . . . fifty bob to you!, and they get rid of this stuff like this.
If they had sets of china, and they were all the same color, they would say, You can ave
em, ten bob to you, love. Any color you like, theyre all blue. And that was just part of that
patter. So, metaphorically, Any Colour You Like is interesting, in that sense, because it
denotes offering a choice where there is none. And its also interesting that in the phrase,
Any color you like, theyre all blue, I dont know why, but in my mind its always theyre all
blue, which, if you think about it, relates very much to the light and dark, sun and moon,
good and evil. You make your choice but its always blue.
In addition to the title of the song, the work in progress had various names, such as Scat

or Scat Section, and has also been known as Breathe (2nd Reprise) due to its similar beat
and chord sequence.

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Staying on the topic of what is considered to be Pink Floyds magnum opus, Dark Side of
the Moon makes use of voices throughout the album. These voices were generated by
questions Roger Waters had written up on cue cards and were subsequently asked to
roadies, doormen, members of the band Wings, and anyone available at Abbey Road. The
approximately twenty questions ranged from When was the last time you were violent
and were you in the right? to What does the phrase The Dark Side of the Moon mean to
you? The laughter that can be heard on Speak to Me and Brain Damage is that of Peter
Watts, a road manager for Pink Floyd. In addition to the voices, at the end of the album,
faint music can be heard, which is presumed to be an instrumental version of Ticket to
Ride by the Beatles in the background. It has been proposed that while recording doorman
Jerry Driscolls response (there is no dark side of the moon really, as a matter of fact its
all dark) that somewhere in Abbey Road, Ticket to Ride was playing and was picked up by
the microphones.

Pioneering the Pink Floyds sound, Barrett has widely been viewed as a musical genius for
his contributions to the 1960s underground psychedelic scene. Little seems to focus on
the man behind the music aside from his mental meltdown that ultimately led to the
band abandoning him while on the way to a gig in 1968. Slowly, he reverted from Syd
Barrett to his given name of Roger Barrett as he slipped into ever-increasing obscurity
after departing the band. He would continue to release two solo albums with the help of
David Gilmour, but eventually succumbed to a private life in Cambridge. Media outlets and
fans sought him out in the later years of the Floyd, a concept that Barrett did not
understand; he lived firmly in the present and did not take advantage of his past.
Becoming more aware of the materialism that surrounded his artistic creations as he
tried to live as privately as possible, he began to practice a form of self-destruction on his
artwork.
Barrett himself had studied and practiced with paint, ink and pencil while in the bands
oldest incarnations. He would continue this throughout his time with Pink Floyd and after
his era as front-man. With a strong disinterest in materialism and utter disbelief behind
why people sought him out, he continued painting and creating works of art with a
new-found method to deal with the clamor. He took on a ritual of photographing his
completed works and then destroying the canvas, sometimes by burning his own work. As
the metaphor that it unintentionally is for the development of the band, Barrett has
managed to encapsulate the aspect of how he deals with the pressure of attention and

demand in the industry (and earlier in time, the presence of drugs) with this damaging and
brash act. [Source] http://www.sydbarrett.com/biography.htm

Pink Floyds album art is as legendary as the band itself, addressing the themes in their
music with visuals as impressive as the content itself. Gerald Scarfe and Storm Thurgeson,
two artists often associated with Pink Floyd, are behind much of the 1970s era Floyd
artwork. Scarfe drew content for The Wall album and Thurgeson designed the album
artwork behind The Dark Side of the Moon and Wish You Were Here. On the DSOTMs
iconic sleeve is a prism that represents the bands stage lighting, the records lyrical
themes, and keyboardist Rick Wrights request for a simple and bold design. Of the seven
designs presented to the band, the prism was unanimously chosen. As the band could
afford to be pickier however, things became more complicated.
Wish You Were Heres cover image consists of two businessmen meeting in the street,
greeting each other with an empty handshake, one man on fire. The image was inspired by
the idea that people tend to conceal their true feelings, for fear of getting burned. This
was a common phrase in the music industry, used often by artists denied royalty
payments. In the image, two stuntmen were used, one dressed in a fire-retardant suit
covered by a business suit. His head was protected by a hood, underneath a wig. The

photograph was taken at the Warner Bros. studios in Los Angeles. Initially the wind was
blowing in the wrong direction, and the flames were forced into the stuntmans face,
burning his mustache. This was easily remedied, however, with the two stuntmen
changing positions. The photograph was later reversed.
For the Animals cover image, they were careful with how they planned to orchestrate a
pig on the wing. After commissioning a German company Ballon Fabrik (who had
previously constructed Zeppelin airships) and Australian artist to build a porcine balloon,
known as Algie, the balloon was inflated with helium and maneuvered into position with a
trained marksman ready to fire if it escaped. Unfortunately, inclement weather delayed
work, and the bands manager neglected to book the marksman for a second day. The
balloon, obviously testing Murphys law, broke free of its moorings and disappeared from
view. It landed in Kent and was recovered by a local farmer, who was furious that it had
scared his cows. The balloon was recovered and filming continued for a third day, but as
the early photographs of the power station were considered better, the image of the pig
was later superimposed onto one of those.

This is a short summary of a greater and much more in-depth analysis of the album The
Wall and its many moving parts, courtesy of Bret Urick. While the album itself is full of
symbolism, literary devices, themes and other items of significance hammers, bricks,
walls, worms the song Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2 is full of oxymoronic and
contradictory statements throughout despite its unifying stance against the way
institutions stifle creativity in todays classrooms. As Waters, Wright, and Gilmour sing a
choir of restless schoolchildren to rebel against the harsh and cynical treatment of their
teachers, there is a certain antithesis in the air that is apparent in the lyrics.
While fighting for individuality, the lyrics of Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2 ironically are
saturated with references to conformity. There is no I, or singular driven character as with
the rest of the album, there is a we. This plurality is identity-robbing, as evidenced by the
kids actions while under the teachers rules and while ransacking the school in the film
based on the album. The children in the second verse sing lyrics of personal revolution, yet
it is accompanied with their symmetrical lockstep rhythm, both musically and physically.
Notwithstanding their rebellious tendencies, they have become as comparable as when
they were clones of one another. Moreover, one could delve into the effects of mass
psychology and the pressure from amongst peers to contribute to the violence and chaos
that is the literal tearing-down-of-the-school-walls. It is a momentary victory for Pink in
his struggle against his figurative wall, which explains the expressive guitar solo amidst
the rigid disco structure of the song.

Most agree or are of the opinion that Syd Barrett had a breakdown in early 1968 due to
the increasing notoriety of the band and his drug use. Rob Chapman, author of Syd
Barrett: A Very Irregular Head, however, argues that Syds madness was a
misunderstanding of his artistic intent. He claims the motive behind the other band
members abandoning Syd is that when the band was on the verge of becoming financially
successful, Barrett wanted to turn to a different form of sonic experimentation. He
attributes Barretts actions (such as playing one untuned string during a whole
performance) as acts of defiance against the band members who disagreed with him.
Chapman takes it even further by analyzing Syds Pink Floyd songs and work from his solo
years. He reasons that had Syd had a mental breakdown, that his writing would have
suffered as much as he had. Like in his years with Pink Floyd, Chapman finds references
and quotes spread throughout, from Huff the Talbot and our Cat Tib (Mother Goose
rhyme), Thomas Nashes Summers Last Will and Testament (an Elizabethan masque play),
Shakespeares King Henry VI Pt. 1, Kenneth Grahames The Wind In The Willows, poems
from: Anonymous (Mr Nobody), John Clare (Fairy Things), Sir Henry Newbolt (Rilloby-Rill)
and William Howitt (The Wind in a Frolic) all in the song Octopus from the album The
Madcap Laughs. How near or how far into this we delve, his music remains influential.

In 1972, Pink Floyd released a live performance album recorded from the amphitheater of
Pompeii and a studio in France. While the location of Pompeiis amphitheater without an
audience served as an excellent statement against the live recordings of the time in which
bands were shown alongside their adoring fans, it most importantly was symbolic of the
history of Pompeii.
The initial idea behind Live at Pompeii wasnt Pompeii at all, but was, as conceptualized by
the director, combining the Floyds music with contemporary art. In a meeting with David
Gilmour and the bands manager the band declined this idea, agreeing to talk about it at a
later date. Adrien Maben, the director, went on holiday to Italy in early summer 1971. It
was in Pompeii that Adrien Maben lost his passport, and retracing his steps, was
surprisingly let back into the ancient city. There is no better way to sum up the spirit of
the Live At Pompeii recordings than what Maben described seeing in the empty
amphitheater:
I returned alone, retracing my steps along the empty streets of Pompeii, back to the
amphitheater of stone walls and seats.

It was strange. A huge deserted amphitheater filled with echoing insect sounds, flying
bats and the disappearing light which meant that I could hardly see the opposite side of
this huge structure built more than two thousand years ago.
I knew by instinct that this was the place for the film. It had to be here. It somehow all
came together that evening in the ancient city. Film the empty amphitheater, resurrect the
spirit of Pompeii with sound and color, imagine that ghosts of the past could somehow
return.
It is a complete myth that Italian authorities would only let Pink Floyd play in Pompeii as
long as there wasnt an audience; the Soprintendenza of Naples (the official board that
controls the site of Pompeii) was skeptical of a rock group playing at a site of cultural
value, but the idea that there would be no audience was not imposed by the
Soprintendenza.

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The Publius Enigma is a mystery surrounding the Division Bell album, and is suspected of
being both an early example of a viral marketing campaign and a puzzle that was
eventually abandoned by its creators. Whether or not the enigma is an officially solvable
puzzle still remains unclear but has been confirmed by Mason in his book Inside Out: A
Personal History of Pink Floyd as being a marketing ploy of EMI and that Publius was

not a fictitious spokesperson for the band, but rather, an actual person coordinating an
orchestration of events geared to stir and stimulate Floyd fans for the Division Bell Tour.
Publius promised an unspecified reward for solving the riddle and further claimed that
there was an enigma hidden within the artwork, music and lyrics of the album. Outcries
from skeptics soon followed, only to be shushed when Publius affirmed his appearance at
a live venue: Monday, July 18, East Rutherford, New Jersey. Approximately 10:30pm.
Flashing white lights. There is an enigma. Sticking to his promise, the words ENIGMA and
PUBLIUS appeared in bold white lights during the song Keep Talking. Further
authenticating Publiuss existence during the televised and recorded concert at Earls
Court, London, the word ENIGMA was projected onto the backdrop during the song Another
Brick in the Wall, Part 2. On the PULSE DVD of that concert, extra markings were also
added with the clue L = mc, only to be quickly overlaid with E = mc.
Adding to the validity and perpetuation of the Publius Enigma are further clues from Pink
Floyd paraphernalia: Publius Enigma can be heard spoken just before the song One of
These Days on the 2003 DVD release of Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii. Page 13 of the The
Division Bells CD booklet contains an anagram of the word enigma, hidden in the third
column from the right of the lyrics to Wearing the Inside Out. The following are wild and
often irrational associations to other significant events, but keep in mind this was EMIs
brainchild.
The page numbers of The Division Bells CD booklet are written in various languages and
printed on silhouettes of the head statues shown on the cover of the album. Page 11
shows two head silhouettes. Printed on either one is the German word for eleven, elf,
resulting in elf elf, or, eleven eleven. The trailer for the 2009 film 11:11 features the song
High Hopes. High Hopes is the 11th track on The Division Bell. The release date of David
Gilmours On An Island, March 6, 2006, is exactly eleven months and eleven years after the
U.S. release date of The Division Bell, April 5, 1994.
On June 11, 1994, Publius made his first enigma post to the Pink Floyd newsgroup. Eleven
years later, on June 11, 2005, Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Nick Mason, and Richard
Wright agreed to reunite as Pink Floyd for Live 8. During the broadcast (and as seen on the
Live 8 DVD), the band took the stage just shortly after 11:00 p.m., and by 11:11, Pink Floyd
were playing together as a four-man lineup for the first time in twenty four years.

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Dark Side of the Rainbow, or the Dark Side of Oz, is an alleged purposeful synchronization
(though sometimes claimed as an unintentional collaboration of creative souls) of the
album The Dark Side of the Moon with the film The Wizard of Oz. The rumors surfaced
around 1994 that the album was a soundtrack for the movie, with connections being made
between actions by the characters and lyrics on the album. For instance, Dorothy balances
on a tight-rope fence during the line balanced on the biggest wave in the song Breathe
and she begins to jog when the words no one told you when to run are sung during Time.
Tracks also transition when scenes change, and songs such as The Great Gig in the Sky
play for the entirety of Dorothys house caught in the Kansas twister. The culmination of
the lions second roar concludes with a heartbeat, a tin man, and the previously mentioned
faint music, making for quite a convincing argument for those who are compelled to
believe that this is a stroke of Floyd genius. The members of the band deny the claims
however and the producers recall no mention of the movie during recording of the album.
Another interesting synchronicity (a phenomenon in which coincidental events seem
related but are not explained by conventional mechanisms of causality, as explained by
Carl Jung) is 2011: a Pink Floyd Odyssey. The final segment, Jupiter and Beyond the Infinite,
is of a similar length of Pink Floyds song Echoes. Stanley Kubrick originally offered Pink
Floyd a part producing the music behind the film, but Waters would decline as he was
trying to distance the band from the space-rock genre. The theory from fans is that after
seeing Kubricks masterpiece, they (or Waters individually) regretted missing out on the
offer and set out to create a piece of music that would fit the movie. While there are
parallels to Dark Side of the Rainbow, such as scenes changing with the music, it is
ultimately a lesser journey in coincidence.

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86 Comments

Mom424

Mod

Great job - more Floyd facts than I ever imagined. I'd heard about the Wizard of Oz
coincidence. And it's a doozy. I wonder if it's just our need to see patterns..? Likely.

Another interesting Floyd fact - They just sued iTunes and won. The Wall is a concept
album and as such it has never been licensed as a collection of singles. iTunes wanted to
cash in and did so. The band objected in court. Yeah for not selling out!

About Syd Barrett; always wonder what came first, the drugs or the mental illness. Did the
mental illness cause him to over abuse the pharmacopeia or did the drugs cause the
separation from reality? I sort of lean towards the illness being responsible - we have a
friend with drug induced schizophrenia - normal folks, even when experimenting, don't take
30 tabs of E. You just don't. Not that the drugs didn't have an effect; I'm sure it made
everything 10X worse.
Again, nice job Nic.

petet2112

@ Meep. I'm a recovering drug and alcohol addict since November 20, 2006 after being
diagnosed with Diabetes Type 2. I have not touched the stuff or anything for that matter in
5 years and 4 months. The result of my living like every night was Saturday night brought it
on, along with about 7-8 other chronic disorders. Sorry that I cant come up with an answer
right now because I am clean and feel great. I am on 11 different medications and see a
doctor every 3 months for check ups. What's best of all is I don't miss it one bit anymore.
Pink Floyd would certainly be my choice for getting wasted on Lysergic Dythalimide # 25
or some "Owsley" Acid. But no more. I know that I have shortened my life with my Jim
Morrison type living for almost 30 years. So please, sympathize with me. I am improving
upon myself.

peter8172

WARNING : Do not listen to most any Pink Floyd album under the influence of a mind
altering substance. Especially "Dark Side Of The Moon", "Wish You Were Here, and
especially "Animals" !!........Just saying

Meep

Why not?