Yearly Archives: 2023

Pink Floyd : Zabriske Point 53rd Anniversary

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Happy 53rd anniversary to the Zabriske Point film, which was released on this date in 1970 in the U.S.

Pink Floyd’s contributions to the album were recorded in November and December 1969, after the release of Ummagumma. “Come in Number 51, Your Time Is Up” is a re-recording of “Careful with That Axe, Eugene,” originally released as a b-side in December 1968.

“Love Scene (Version 4)” is a Rick Wright solo piano composition. “Country Song” (also known as “The Red Queen”) is a ballad filled with chess metaphors. “Unknown Song” (also known as “Rain in the Country”) is a relaxed instrumental. “Love Scene (Version 6)” (also known as “Alan’s Blues”) is a bluesy instrumental. A track entitled “Fingal’s Cave” and another called “Oenone” were recorded but did not appear on the finished album.

Pink Floyd also recorded other unreleased material during the same sessions. Most notable is a lengthy composition which at that time was known as “The Violent Sequence” (later released on Dark Side of the Moon Immersion Box Set).

This was later reworked, as “Us and Them” from The Dark Side of the Moon. An additional number of tracks of previously unreleased studio work from these sessions have been released in 2016 on The Early Years 1965–1972 (Volume 4: 1970: Devi/ation).

Roger Waters Lockdown Session Scheduled For June 2023 Physical Release

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On the 9th of December, Roger Waters released digitally the much-talked-about “Lockdown Sessions” that were recorded remotely during the COVID-19 global pandemic.

We are pleased to say that there is a physical vinyl and CD release are being prepared for June 2023.

Released digitally in December 2022, The Lockdown Sessions feature songs recorded between 2020 and 2022 during the COVID-19 global pandemic. Various songs were recorded and posted on Rogers’ official YouTube channel, including “Two Suns In The Sunset And The Gunners Dream” from Pink Floyd’s 1983 The Final Cut album, “Mother, Vera, and Bring The Boys Back Home” from 1979’s Pink Floyd The Wall, and a new arrangement of “The Bravery Of Being Out Of Range” from Rogers’ 1992 Amused To Death album and the new version of the recently released This Is Not A Drill Tour’s “Comfortably Numb”.

Whilst these songs were initially released on Rogers official YouTube and Facebook platforms during the pandemic all material has been remixed and remastered for both the digital and physical releases.

Keep your eyes pealed for an official announcement coming very shortly.

Nick Mason Sits With Modern Drummer For Tour Kit Rundown

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Nick Mason - The Saucerful of Secrets - Tour Kit Rundown

Towards the end of Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets 2022 tour, which concluded in November 2022, Nick Mason and drum tech Phil Manchester were kind enough to spend time with Modern Drummer, the world’s #1 publication on drums and drumming, to give us a rundown of Nick’s drum kit for Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets North American Tour 2022.

More information on the artwork featured on Nick’s current and 1973 Ludwig kits that was painted by Katy Hepburn can be found by Clicking Here

Roger Waters New Interview With Telegraph”The Dark Side Of The Moon” Reworked Version Released May 2023

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Roger Waters recently revealed new details about the re-recording of “The Dark Side of the Moon” in a new interview with the Telegraph.

The album’s original March release date has been pushed back to May because Waters hasn’t finished tinkering with the recordings. A big concert that was meant to launch it in March has also been postponed to May and moved to a different venue.

Waters is adamant that the Dark Side is his to muck about with however he sees fit. “I wrote The Dark Side of the Moon. Let’s get rid of all this ‘we’ c–p! Of course we were a band; there were four of us, we all contributed, but it’s my project, and I wrote it. So… blah!” (Waters, who wrote the album’s lyrics, is credited with composing three of its 10 tracks, and co-writing music for two others.

Waters seems to have decided that what was wrong with the original album’s beautiful instrumental tracks was that they didn’t have Waters talking all over them. Now they do.

After a bad dream one night, he splurged down a description of it on his laptop, and recites the whole dreadful prose poem over On The Run unedited: “It was a revelation, almost Patmosian whatever that means… a fight with evil, in this case an apparently all-powerful hooded and cloaked figure… it brooked no rebuttal.”

This somehow ties in to his grand idea about following “the voice of reason” – in this dream, a bonfire with the voice of Atticus Finch – a phrase he uses constantly in the Telegraph interview, and which he says is the theme of the album. It was the message of the 1973 Dark Side, too, he says. So why has he remade it? “Because not enough people recognised what it’s about, what it was I was saying then.” This new version, he hopes, will hammer the point home.

Always following The Voice of Reason is good advice, or would be, if so many of history’s most unreasonable voices hadn’t presented themselves as precisely that.

Others on the album include Waters’s multi-instrumentalist collaborator Gus Seyffert, and Seyffert’s girlfriend, Azniv Korkejian (a brilliant Syria-born singer who performs as Bedouine), plus a Baptist minister on Hammond organ. Waters sings throughout, but only actually plays an instrument on one track, a terrific bass solo on Us and Them, which made me wish he’d played across the whole thing; it seems such a missed opportunity.

In another interview prior to this, Roger was quoted as saying, “the new concept is meant to reflect on the meaning of the work, to bring out the heart and soul of the album,” he says, “both musically and spiritually.” “I’m the only one singing my songs on these new recordings, and there are no rock and roll guitar solos.” The spoken words, superimposed on instrumental pieces like “On the Run” or “The Great Gig in the Sky,” and over “Speak to Me,” “Brain Damage,” “Any Color You Like,” and “Money,” are meant to clarify his “mantra,” the message he considers central to all his work.

A release date is currently being planned for May, and a launch concert date is also being finalised at present, but we will bring you further details as they become available.

Mark Blake’s New Book : Us and Them: The Authorised Story of Hipgnosis Released

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Between the late ’60s and early ’80s, design house Hipgnosis created some of the most iconic and ubiquitous album artwork of all time. Their original lifespan coincided with the golden age of the 12-inch LP, beginning just as the Beatles’ Sgt Pepper made the record sleeve the ultimate blank canvas and ending just as new technology looked set to usurp vinyl.

Having originally been approached to design an album cover for their friends Pink Floyd, students Aubrey ‘Po’ Powell and Storm Thorgerson would go on to define the visual identity of rock and roll for the next fifteen years, swiftly gaining international prominence for their famed The Dark Side of the Moon artwork. This paved the way for other major musicians to set foot in the surreal photo-design world of Storm and Po, resulting in seminal Hipgnosis creations for the likes of Led Zeppelin, Paul McCartney, Genesis, Black Sabbath, ELO and Yes.

In this authorised account, with access to previously unpublished material and exclusive contributions from David Gilmour, Jimmy Page, Peter Gabriel, Roger Waters, Robert Plant and even Aubrey Powell himself, Mark Blake goes behind the scenes of the Hipgnosis partnership to reveal the pioneering ambition and grand vision that led to their success, as well as the clashing egos and artistic differences that undermined it. The Hipgnosis story also offers hitherto-untold insight into some of music’s most legendary bands, as viewed through the prism of the people who shaped their imagery and cultural legacy.

With the work of Hipgnosis continuing to be referenced, reproduced and revered worldwide, Us and Them serves as a celebration, a cautionary tale and a compelling human drama, exploring the vital intersection between art and music.

The book is now available to order at Resident Music, where you will find very limited signed copies by clicking here 

You can also find the Kindle and Non singed version over on Amazon UK and Amazon USA

Steven Wilson mixes debut solo records by Richard Wright and David Gilmour in 5.1 surround sound

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It was recently revealed that Steven Wilson of Porcupine Tree (also a well-known solo artist) has been working on a 5.1 surround sound remix of Richard Wright’s 1978 debut solo album Wet Dream.

Sources claim online that the album has been completed and has the approval of Gala and Jamie Wright, who are now the holders of the Richard Wright estate. Many fans have been commenting online about the lack of Rick’s solo work being available online via streaming platforms; could this be an indication of things to come?

As an added bonus to this new information, it was noted that Steven had also been working on a 5.1 mix of David Gilmour’s 1978 self titled debut album, which he can be seen and heard playing snippets of in his Audeze studio interview back in October 2022. It was reported that David was originally reluctant to sign off on this project, but we can confirm that both Richard and David’s debut solo albums have been signed off and are pending their future release status.

We have no indication of the timeframe or when this will happen, but we will bring you the latest information as it becomes available.

Roger Waters : A Reworked Version Of “The Dark Side Of The Moon”

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In November 2021, we shared the news that Roger Waters was back in the studio working on some new projects. In a recent interview, Roger confirmed that he has been working on a new re-recording of Pink Floyd’s 1973 classic album The Dark Side Of The Moon, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year with a brand new Dolby Atmos mix and box set release.

The interview states that “the new concept is meant to reflect on the meaning of the work, to bring out the heart and soul of the album,” he says, “both musically and spiritually.” “I’m the only one singing my songs on these new recordings, and there are no rock and roll guitar solos.” The spoken words, superimposed on instrumental pieces like “On the Run” or “The Great Gig in the Sky,” and over “Speak to Me,” “Brain Damage,” “Any Color You Like,” and “Money,” are meant to clarify his “mantra,” the message he considers central to all his work.

Further to this, Roger has recently become known for reworking his material from his time in Pink Floyd into new arrangements, the most recent of which was Comfortably Numb, which was featured on his Lockdown Sessions album.

The idea that the spoken words featured on the original album release are being emphasised in this new recording suggests that it could be in a similar vein to the 2013 Darkside radio play that was featured on BBC Radio 2 on August 26, 2013, the year of the album’s 40th anniversary.

Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade : Pink Floyd’s Animals Live North American Tour

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Les Claypool has reunited the Fearless Flying Frog Brigade, the band he formed during a break from Primus, and will embark on a 41-date date North American tour.

“After a 20-year break, Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade is back and will be canvasing the USA this Spring & Summer on the Summer of Green Tour,“ reads a statement on lesclaypool.com.

“The band will feature Sean Lennon on guitar, Harry Waters on keys, and Paolo Baldi on drums, along with longtime cohorts Skerik on saxophone, and Mike Dillon on percussion. Each night will include a full performance of Pink Floyd’s iconic album, Animals.

The band – which Claypool once described as a “kind of a King Crimson meets Pink Floyd meets Frank Zappa type thing“
– released three albums through the bassist’s own label Prawn Song Records: Live Frogs Set 1 (2001), Live Frogs Set 2 (2001) and Purple Onion (2002).

The Fearless Flying Frog Brigade play the following dates:

May 17: Stateline, NV (venue TBC)
May 19: Napa Blue Note Summer Sessions, CA
May 20: Santa Cruz Civic Auditorium, CA
May 21: San Diego Observatory North, CA
May 23: Salt Lake City, UT (venue TBC)
May 24: Denver Mission Ballroom, CO
May 26: Kansas City Grinders KC, MO
May 27: Chillicothe Summer Camp Music Festival, IL
May 28: Louisville Iroquois Amphitheater, KY
May 30: Buffalo Town BallrooM, NY
May 31: Columbus KEMBA Live!, OH
Jun 02: Detroit Royal Oak Music Theatre, MI
Jun 03: Oak Hill Mountain Music Festival, WV
Jun 04: Chattanooga, TN (venue TBC)
Jun 06: Richmond Brown’s Island, VA
Jun 07: Raleigh Raleigh Memorial Auditorium, NC
Jun 09: Asheville Rabbit Rabbit, NC
Jun 10: Atlanta The Eastern, GA
Jun 11: Columbia Township Auditorium, SC
Jun 13: Dallas Music Hall at Fair Park, TX
Jun 14: Austin The Moody Amphitheater, TX
Jun 16: Houston White Oak Music Hall Lawn, TX
Jun 17: New Orleans Mardi Gras World, LA
Jun 19: Mobile Saenger Theatre, AL
Jun 20: Tampa Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, FL
Jun 22: Baltimore The Lyric, MD
Jun 23: Port Chester Capitol Theatre, NY
Jun 24: Westbury NYCB Theatre [In The Round], NY
Jun 26: Northampton The Pines Theater, MA
Jun 28: Portland State Theatre, ME
Jun 29: Boston MGM Music Hall at Fenway, MA
Jul 01: Scranton Peach Music Festival, PA
Jul 02: Chicago Salt Shed [Indoor], IL
Jul 03: St. Paul Palace Theatre, MN
Jul 07: Bonner Kettlehouse Amphitheater, MT
Jul 08: Redmond Marymoor Park Live, WA
Jul 09: Forest Grove Grand Lodge, OR
Jul 11: Wheatland Hard Rock Live, CA
Jul 13: San Luis Obispo Madonna Inn, CA
Jul 14: Los Angeles The Wiltern, CA
Jul 15: Phoenix Van Buren, AZ

June 6-20 are co-headline shows with Jerry Harrison & Adrian Belew Remain In Light
Support at various dates comes from: Fishbone, Neal Francis, Budos Band, Moon Duo and W.I.T.C.H.

Happy 72nd Birthday To (El Magnifico) Phil Manzanera !!

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AFG wish to send our best wishes to Phil Manzanera who celebrates his 72nd birthday today.

Starting with the song ‘One Slip‘ from the Pink Floyd’s 1987 A Momentary Lapse Of Reason album, Phil was a key person behind Pink Floyd’s The Endless River, as well as being a long-term collaborator with David Gilmour on his On An Island and Rattle That Lock albums.