It is not only one of the biggest selling albums of all time, but also one that possesses one of the longest chart run in music history. And it is hitting the big 4-0.
It was March 1973, that Pink Floyd released their album the Dark Side of the Moon. It was the album where the tracks revolved around many themes including greed, conflict, and insanity, especially when it came to the band’s founding member Syd Barrett, who left the band in 1968, and who the band had based some of their music on. Musically, the Dark Side of the Moon was full of conventional instrumentation filled with not only the usual sounds of guitars and drums, but also the use of various synthesizers, which help give the album the experimental and spacey sound. Among the tracks on the album include the two hits “Money” and Time”, and the centerpiece “the Great Gig in the Sky”, which featured the operatic lead vocals of Clare Torry (who also co-wrote the song).
Perhaps “the icing on the cake”, when it comes to the Dark Side of the Moon, is the cover. Perhaps one of the greatest albums covers of all time, it features a simple black background with a prism attracting light and producing a rainbow. Once released, the album became an immediate success, as it hit number one on the US charts. However, the chart topping was only for one week, but that was just the beginning. It remained on the charts for nearly fifteen years, and sold over fifty million copies worldwide. Forty years after it’s released, the Dark Side of the Moon is regarded as one of the top fifty greatest albums of all time, having already influenced countless artists including Radiohead, and is bound to influence many more in the future.
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: Pink Floyd, inducted in 1996.
Comments