Editor's Choice...
And this time, on "Pink Floyd's" first album without Syd Barrett - the soundtrack of the movie "More", released June 13, 1969.
It's an album by a great band that the fans sometimes has a tendency to skip. Maybe because it's not really an official album, but a soundtrack, may be because of the lack of a solid musical direction, the dominance of instrumental tracks or the excess of psychedelia. But whoever enters the gates of this rare magic, will just want only "More" - as the album's title.
The invitation to record a soundtrack to the movie "More" ,was received by the film's director Barbet Schroeder. This was his first film and he contacted "Pink Floyd" members, who also happened to be his friends, to record a soundtrack for the movie.
This was not the band's first soundtrack. In 1967 they recorded music for the BBC's "Tomorrow's World" TV series and a year later contributed several songs to the soundtrack of the movie "The Committee". "Pink Floyd" loved the connection between the world of cinema and the world of music and thought it would be right to go "all in" this time too, especially when it involved helping a friend and a small income.
The film tells the story of a hippie hitchhiker, a German student named Stefan who arrives in
Ibiza with his heroin-addict girlfriend. There in Ibiza, he made a connection with a community of local addicted hippies and slowly becomes addicted to the drug himself, until his tragic death from an overdose.
"Pink Floyd" members were given some scenes from the film to watch and were asked to compose the soundtrack based on the atmosphere. It was the personal interpretation of "Pink Floyd" members to the scenes they watched, that gave birth to all the magic on this album. A beautiful album with a mesmerizing and unique atmosphere, melodic folk, avant-garde, combined with psychedelia and even a taste of hard rock (yes, you read that right), a variety of effects and acoustic sections.
As we mentioned in the introduction, it is the band's first album in the classical lineup of Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Rick Wright and Nick Mason, but what's more amazing, it's the band's only album where David Gilmour is the only vocalist. Waters was not yet confident enough and Wright had not yet discovered his abilities in singing. And if you're looking for more rare facts, then this album features the band's only song by "Pink Floyd" written by Nick Mason and Rick Wright ("Up The Khyber").
Most of the album was written and recorded by the band within eight days, an amazing fact in itself. Most of the lyrics were written by Waters during the sessions themselves and some of the melodies started with improvisations.
The album features some of "Pink Floyd's" beautiful pieces, before their huge breakthrough.
The opening track "Cirrus Minor" which begins with the birds chirping, an effect the band has reused in the song "Grantchester Meadows" from the album "Ummagumma", released later that year. The song is played only by Rick Wright with the ecclesiastical organ and David Gilmour on the acoustic. A stoned track just like the person on which it was written.
The second track "The Nile Song" features distortion-filled guitars, David Gilmour's screaming and rough vocals and howling solos. A real combination of hard rock, heavy metal and acid rock. This is a rare piece by Gilmour and the band, in a style that has hardly been repeated. This song is very similar in melody and atmosphere to the song "Ibiza Bar" that comes later in the album.
Immediately after comes "Crying Song" and flip the atmosphere, just like the Low that comes after the High of the heroin addict. A quiet and magical song with the caressing voice of Gilmour, which is really hard to believe sounded like a crazy "Growler" from the metal scene in the previous song.
And there's also "Green Is the Color", one of "Pink Floyd's" beautiful songs before the big breakthrough, that includes playing by Lindy Mason - wife of .. on flute, and there's "Cymbaline" which tells of "Nightmare" with a reference to "Doctor Strange" with Gilmour's all so beautiful singing and Nick Mason's bongos, and more and more ...
Now listen to this one-time magic: Spotify, Apple Music