Album of the Month

Dark Side Of the Moon - Pink Floyd

1.  Speak to Me / Breathe — 4:00
2.  On the Run — 3:32
3.  Time — 7:06
4.  The Great Gig in the Sky — 4:44
5.  Money — 6:32
6.  Us and Them — 7:40
7.  Any Colour You Like — 3:25
8.  Brain Damage — 3:50
9.  Eclipse — 2:04

Click Here to Download the Full Album

          I recently watched a documentary about the making of Dark Side of the Moon and it convinced me that this album certainly does deserve to be the album of the month. Dark Side of the Moon came out in 1973 and has been on the rock charts most of the time since.  In my opinion, it is Pink Floyd at their creative best. This album is a must have for any collection - great guitar work, magical synthesizer moods and some sultry sax action. Add to that the haunting lyrics and almost operatic back-up vocals and you find yourself soaking in a psychedelic audio sauna. Dark Side of the Moon has 3 instrumentals and 6 lyrical tracks. It focuses on certain pressures people encounter during their life. Time (Breathe, Time), Stress (On The Run), Money (Money), Division (Us and Them, Any Colour You Like), Death (Great Gig), and finally mental instability (Brain Damage). Within each of these topics resides more metaphor and meaning, which varies from listener to listener. This album is truly a powerhouse of music which is not only a great place to start in the realm of Pink Floyd, but also for music in general.

           I heard this album for the first time when I was 15 years old. I instantly fell in love with this band which could convey so much emotion to me without saying much at all. I ended up tracking down and vinyl copy and would play it into the wee hours of the night, letting the music take me anywhere else but where I was. My brother was diagnosed with (what they can only call) a mental condition similar to schizophrenia a few years ago. He was in his late 30s with two kids and no mother to care for them, and after he became disabled my family was bound together and yet torn apart in more ways than I care to explain here. It left him in a state very similar to that of Syd Barrett, strange/sadly enough. Since then I have found a deep appreciation for music associated with mental illness.  If for no other reason than if I can’t understand what is going on in my brother’s head, I can at least find comfort in understanding the music that somewhat describes it…or maybe I’m just glad that it understands what I’ve seen…either way. This part is more my personal reason for a reignited interest in this CD than why everyone and their mom should go out and buy this album on the double, even though they totally should.

Click Here To Download The Full Album

Please Note: I encourage the sharing of music through mp3s for sampling purposes. If you like what you hear I must strongly suggest that you purchase music from the artists of the albums I post. I understand most people don't have a lot of money to spend on media these days, but please do what you can. The only way to keep talented musicians making great music is to support them. In the case of Pink Floyd, some artists which no longer produce music have made such great contributions to the history and evolution of music that I find it almost my obligation to express their value to others.