Where do you even start to discuss this band? They’re so absurdly legendary mere words on paper can never do them justice. Pink Floyd has led the way for countless, and I do mean COUNTLESS acts that have come since them. They made it possible for highly thought-provoking bands to have a legitimate chance at wider appeal. In reality though, they should have never made it. The songs are too dense in their sound ranges at times, and way too long at other times. The themes of this band range from high functioning psychedelics, to feelings of anger and sadness, to overwhelming feelings of abandonment and trying to put the pieces back together again.

Pink Floyd may have added and changed members a few times, but those five people who helped to shape the sound are some of the most important to ever make music. Syd Barret carried the weight for a while, and then the Roger Waters’ years began to take shape after Barret could no longer handle his massive drug addiction. The Waters’ years were undeniably the most successful the band ever was, but even then the turmoil was too much for it to keep going. After that the Gilmour years took place, and although the had giant successes, it’s difficult to say who was ever the leader of the band. Throughout all of these changes however, members Richard Wright and Nick Mason were also their to inject their own thoughts and emotions to help with the growing sound. The history of this band is tumultuous, heated, incredibly brilliant and prolific, and they still stand not only as one of the most popular bands of all time, but one of the most musically adventurous.

Pink Floyd launched onto the scene with “Pipers at the Gates of Dawn,” in 1967. Even now the sound is not one you hear often. It’s super thick and lush, and helped to define what’s known as the Pink Floyd sound. Songs like “Interstellar Overdrive” and “Astronomy Domine” feel like you’re traveling down a wormhole in space, unsure of what you’re going to find. Listening to these songs you get the sense that the band was as unsure of where it was heading as the people who ultimately listened and found some sort of kinship with the sound of this band. A band like this would almost never stand a chance at having the kind of popularity that this band achieved in the era that they did. This album, along with the next one, “Saucerful of Secrets,” helped to establish the band as an early art house, prog rock, psychedelic ensemble that would see massive success in the coming decade.

Probably the best song on Secrets, “ Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun,” has a similar vibe to the first album, but it’s much more structurally sound and tight. Barret was still in the band at this point, but this song is one of the early indicators that Roger Waters on bass was also an exciting musician who had a lot to say, and could carry a song. These guys also just kill at telling a story through their music and lyrics. When I listen to this song I imagine a ship in the vastness of space, cold and dark, drifting to find whatever life it will find. I imagine a solitary man aboard a ship going through his duties aboard the ship, much in the same way the actors did In the film 2001:A Space Odyssey. The film, while not related to the to the band in any way, has always made me think that they somehow could exist in the same galaxy. That’s what’s so great about the sound. The band is grounded in science fiction, and their ideas and sounds go so well with many of the themes that other artists expressed through films, books, and art.

After a few more highly experimental albums, the band returned with “Meddle” in 1971. This album was actually something my wife’s parents let us borrow after we were gifted a record player for our wedding. To hear it on vinyl is amazing. It’s so jamming, and although its mostly an instrumental album at heart(words trickle across some songs at a glacial place), it still hits its mark at being a damn fine album. I’d say up to this point this was the best they had done. By this point in the band, they had parted ways with Barret, and although Gilmour had started out as the fifth member of Floyd, he was now taking the front seat next to Waters in shaping the sound of Pink Floyd that would bring the band it’s biggest highs, but also would lead them down a road that would end in a bitter feud and ultimate disbanding.

The early high mark of this band, without a doubt finds us on this album in the shape of the masterpiece that is “Echoes.” This single song sets the stage for the grand theatrics and ideas that become prevalent in the future. At nearly twenty-three and a half minutes, the song is remarkable. It’s winds and turns in directions you don’t expect, and in the end pulls you in to a soft, quiet surrender under the weight of itself. Had this song not come out as well as it did, I doubt if the band would have been as eager to try even more difficult things, but as you can hear from the finished product, it’s a perfect fucking song that likely gave tons of other bands( Tool, Godspeed You! Black Emperor) to explore songs that aren’t of traditional length and scope.

The next big leap, and I do mean BIG leap for the band came in the year 1972. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for forty years, that was the year Pink Floyd released it seminal, groundbreaking, chart topping album “Dark Side of the Moon.” This album not only was the first mega album for the band, but it was also probably the thing that got so many teenagers into experimenting with drugs. Even now, that was my first introduction to the band. Everyone I knew loved the album back then, but not because of the music. At that point in teenage years, the album was almost a rite of passage for children discovering all sorts of things, whether it be a completely timeless album, or other things that they might like. If you have forgotten, this is the album that stayed on the Billboard charts for 14 years. That’s not a typo. It really was 14 years. Hearing it now though it’s not hard to see why it’s one of the most popular record albums of all time.

For instance, “Time” is just an exercise in perfection. The opening drums, that kick into Gilmour singing and leading us into the netherworld. It speaks to such a large audience. This song is just one perfect song on an album of near perfect songs. I’ve probably heard it 100 times in my life and it’s still amazing and thoughtful. The level at which Gilmour, Mason, Wright and Waters are playing on this record is nothing short of awe-inspiring. You may also know this album by the theory that it sync’s perfectly with a viewing of “The Wizard of Oz.” As someone who’s seen it done a few times, it is quite interesting, and some parts are dead on ( The clocks ringing when the witch shows up in Kansas to buy Toto), while some aren’t as in tune as you would like. Either way, it’s something fun to try at least once.

Beyond even that though, the album has this seamless quality and natural drift to it. It reaches heights, and layers of sound that you never hear today, and then it switches effortlessly to an equally dense, but much slower, more gentle vibe. The song that best fits this is “Us and Them.” The saxophone in the background leads the song through a forest so gorgeous it’s hard to imagine. As you reach the top of a hill though, the background vocals come creeping in, and you’re presented with a beautiful blue sky and a sun that only wants to warm you.

The album stands as a monument for nearly everyone who is still discovering music that’s left of center, and there’s an extremely valid reason for it. The amount of bands inspired by Floyd is insane. Bands as varied as Radiohead, Nine Inch Nails, Tool, Mastodon, and Animal Collective all have tinges of Pink Floyd in their music.

At this point you might expect the band to dip a bit artistically, but the opposite happened. This is when things for the band started to get personally difficult. After Dark Side, they weren’t sure where to go, and generally the band was in a foul mood. Waters had begun to miss his old friend Barret, and the things he was trying to create ended up being a good-bye letter of shorts to his long-lost friend. While in the studio making this excellent album, Barret showed up unannounced, and was in bad shape. Ravaged by drugs, he was a shell of the man and genius he once was, and the result of that meeting, at least in my opinion, gave us the truly mesmerizing song that is “Wish You Were Here.” The song is still a colossal number, and an extremely personal and heartfelt song. Everyone can relate to the events of losing someone you are so close to you can’t imagine life without them, and once that happens, you try your best to pick up the pieces.

Much of this album is a tribute to Syd Barret. Not only in the names of the songs(“Wish you Were Here,” “Shine on you Crazy Diamond”) but also in the music. This album sounds like if Barret had continued in the band, while also getting better at his instrument, in the way the other members did.

The band would continue with another smaller album, at least in terms of number of songs, with the 1977 album “Animals.” By then the band has been filling stadiums with ease, and although the songs were still powerful, the toll of playing to giant, faceless crowds had begun to take an effect on Waters. This is also the time period where the band took their live show to another level, incorporating giant inflatable animals into the nightly performance. My dad actually attended on these shows, and said it was one of the most incredible performances he’d ever seen. He described it as musically perfect, and with a production that was so good that you heard “ One second of feedback before the technicians fixed the issue.” Among a few of their lesser known albums, “Animals” is definitely a hidden gem that deserves more acknowledgement

After another hugely popular album, the band, now almost completely led by the visions and ideas of Waters, embarked on what would serve as not only the most elaborate, concept album ever made, but also was the beginning of the end of the band in their most popular incarnation.

The idea of playing to huge, clueless crowds repulsed Waters, and with that frame of mind he envisioned being closed off, and separate from the people who had forced him to build this wall as a means to an end and to escape the pressures. The tensions in the band were at an all time high. During the making of the album, the band became fed up with the increasingly low productivity rates of Richard Wright, and decided to let him go, although he did return to the band for the tour on a paid salary basis.

The central theme and idea of the came from a somewhat original, somewhat autobiographical story about Roger Waters and his life. A main theme in the album is losing someone during war times(Which Waters endured when his father was killed during World War 2). The plot revolves around an entertainer named Pink, who becomes increasingly affected by drugs, and also by his own popularity, who tries to dismantle his image by shutting himself away behind a literal and metaphorical world. In the end though, he truly finds himself, and he is able to become the whole person he once was and regain his grip of his life and subsequent world.

The album is truly a work of genius, and it’s easily my favorite of their albums. I just love a concept album, and this is the one that started the whole trend. Beyond that, it has fucking brilliant songs. All of the “Another Brick in the Wall” pieces are still giant hits, and the song writing is second to none. Everyone at one point or another has sung the words “We don’t need no Education.” The songs still seem relevant today too, which clearly helps.

“Comfortably Numb,” found midway through the second half of the album, is probably one of the better known rock songs ever recorded, and when you hear it for the first time you can see what. The whole thing is just perfect to me.

The stage show though, was something else entirely. Nothing like it had ever been done before, and to this day, it’s probably in my top 5 stage shows ever created. For those who aren’t aware, when the band initially toured the album, it wasn’t a traditional show. No other songs from other albums were presented. You got the full experience of the album. The band would begin playing, and as they did, stage crews would then begin building a physical wall in front of the band. As the last song, “Goodbye Cruel World” was played, only one block remained opened. Waters sang out of it, and as the last words of the song were muttered, the space was filled in, leaving the audience with nothing but a wall to look at during the intermission.

For much of the second act, the band performed behind the world while video and animations were on display on the wall that also served as a giant screen, Only twice during this part of the show was anyone in the band seen. The first happened during “Nobody Home,” which saw Waters emerge in a room that presented itself from inside of the wall. The second, and most important, came during the anthem that is “Comfortably Numb,” when Gilmour appeared on top of the wall for the classic guitar solo and vocals section of the song.

To say “ The Wall” was a success would be a huge understatement. It was massive and changed rock music. But it also spelled the end of the band as it was.

Frictions had become too much, and through much of the making of the next album “The Final Cut.” This is an interesting album if only because its not really even a proper Pink Floyd album. All of the songs were written solely by Waters, and minimal work was given to the rest of the band. It’s essentially a Waters solo album. The three remaining members of the band: Mason, Gilmour and Waters, were all seemingly over it. Tensions were especially high among the two leaders, David Gilmour and Roger Waters. The album does have some good songs though. “The Fletcher Memorial Home” has always been one of my favorite “Pink Floyd” songs, and the guitar playing on it is as good as anything else you hear them play. But you can tell the band had run it’s course, and people wanted out.

This is where things get tricky. Both sides clearly have their valid arguments, but it kind of just depends on who you favor. I personally think at this point they were all just acting like children. The band broke up, Waters sued for the rights to the name, then Gilmour counter sued, and then Waters lost. After that, Gilmour began playing with the other two original members of the band, Richard Wright and Nick Mason, as Pink Floyd. During this time they made two decent albums, but if you’re a fan of Waters like I am, you always miss that last piece of the puzzle. The best song to come out of these albums in my opinion has to be “Learn to Fly,” off of the album “A Momentary lapse of Reason.” Released in 1987, it’s a good album, but nowhere near as good as the band was used to.

The last proper album came in 1994 with “The Divison Bell.” Like all the rest, it was a hit, but in my opinion it didn’t really add anything to the legacy of the band, although it didn’t take away anything either.

The legacy has been built and stabilized though, and little could knock it over. These five men had managed to not follow any of the traditional rules and had come through as one of the best bands in the history of music. Thank you for reading, and I hope you’ve enjoyed it.