For many of those who embrace the wonders of psychedelic/exploratory music, it starts with Pink Floyd and ends with the countless musical spawns they have subsequently inspired in the the years that have followed since the 1967 release of the seminal Piper At The Gates of Dawn debut record. Whether a friend or sibling introduced you to Dark Side of the Moon when you were a musical tabula rasa effectually awaiting the tipping point where music became an important factor of life, or you experienced some other casual encounter with the band’s material inspired a lifetime of fandom, everyone seems to have had a “click” point at some point with the band’s material and chances are, if you took a liking to the strange sounds, your music tastes never were quite the same thereafter.
Syd, Roger, Richard, David, and Nick are on a short list of musicians with the ability to show the world what imagination sounds like by harnessing the outer bounds of creative energy and capturing this magic for posterity in a studio setting (if only the walls of Abbey Road Studios could speak). Years of inner strife, lineup changes and unprecedented in-studio and on-stage innovations were the band’s m.o. and millions followed along through stratospheric peaks and cavernous valleys, even as the band released albums like the studio side of Ummagumma with almost zero semblance of the psych-pop sensibility the band had shown on earlier recordings. Needless to say, the trajectory of Floyd’s dramatic storied career has been filled with interpersonal relations at both ends of the spectrum, in step with their epic catalogue, and perhaps the story has not reached it’s end and many fans (like yours truly) may finally get their wish in the form of a cathartic denouement, achieving closure for fans and band alike. Or perhaps the ride is long over
and we’ll have to wait for the proverbial Great Gig in the Sky to have our musical dreams unfold, and that’s fine too, but we can always hope. Now onto the news inspiring this rant…
Every few years there is a news item that whips the vast Pink Floyd fan kingdom into a frenzy of speculation and last week when Roger Waters announced that he would be joined by Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour for a surprise appearance at one of the 94 shows on his massive upcoming Wall Tour, the interweb immediately exploded with speculation
that perhaps pigs would fly once again, and a full performance under the Pink Floyd moniker may just happen (although a real reunion is sadly impossible since the death of keyboard player and “Echoes” author Richard Wright in 2008). A four-song performance in 2005 at Live 8 whetted many fans’ appetite for more despite Waters’ declaration way back when that Pink Floyd was a “spent force” and numerous other hints that such a reunion was impossible (including Gilmour’s recent appearance with Waters at a benefit).
But with this recent news of a reunion between the two central creative forces and the two with the most conflicted past history, perhaps the final cut has not been made after all giving those of us third-generation fans too young to have attended the “Pink Gilmour” (as many fans referred to it) PULSE tour a final chance to see a tour with David and Roger again making music together with their friend Nick Mason. For now, the only sensible solution is to keep your ear to the ground and await any hints that are out there and a few lucky fans will get the chance of a lifetime to witness what is sure to be the reunion of 2010 when Gilmour again shares the stage with his estranged friend and bandmate on Waters’ solo tour.
Roger Waters talks about gig with David Gilmour, including future appearance! [brain damage]
