With Brit Floyd’s acclaimed Pink Floyd tribute performing at Grand Rapids’ DeVos Performance Hall this week, Local Spins takes a dive into classics courtesy of three Floyd devotees.
The Best Pink Floyd Tracks of All-Time? What are your favorites?
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Formed in Liverpool 15 years ago, Brit Floyd has become the world’s pre-eminent Pink Floyd tribute band, revered for its accurate and dazzling re-creation of classic and deep-cut tracks from the psychedelic, prog-rock legends.
After a Saturday stop in Detroit, Brit Floyd returns to Grand Rapids for a 7:30 p.m. Tuesday (May 19) performance at DeVos Performance Hall, part of its “The Moon, The Wall and Beyond” tour. Tickets, starting at $56.50, are available online here.
To warm up fans for the show, Local Spins asked three diehard Pink Floyd devotees to list their five favorite Floyd tracks — creating the ultimate playlist for fans of the pioneering British super-group. Listen to all the tracks in a Spotify playlist below and feel free to list your favorites in the comments.
Our panel of experts:
• Don Clapham, college buddy and longtime friend of Local Spins publisher John Sinkevics and a rock aficionado who actually saw Pink Floyd perform “The Dark Side of the Moon” in the mid-1970s at Olympia in Detroit;
• Seth Rivard, co-owner of Rockford Brewing Co., whose Floydhead and Floydian Propulsion Project remixes of Pink Floyd earned a widespread global following back in the day;
• Brian Haik, of Grand Rapids Beer Tours and guitarist/frontman for Hazy Past which has performed Pink Floyd tribute shows in the Grand Rapids area.
Put on your headphones, fire up your blacklights, and away we go …
DON CLAPHAM
1. “Time” (from “The Dark Side of the Moon”) – The clock sounds followed by the drum dominated passage that climaxes with the alarm clock is genius. But, as I get older the lyrics resonate more and more.
2. “Money” (from “The Dark Side of the Moon”) – An iconic bass line and incredible guitar and sax solos combined with Waters’ cynical perspective on wealth and greed makes “Money” one of my all time favorites.
3. “Wish You Were Here” (from “Wish You Were Here”) – The acoustic riff during the introduction is the hook, and Waters’ introspective lyrics makes me think of long lost friendships. Truly, one of the best songs ever written.
4. “Comfortably Numb” (from “The Wall”) – In my humble opinion, the best guitar solo ever played. I crank it full blast every time I hear it.
5. “Mother” (from “The Wall”) – This song is Pink Floyd at its finest; powerful, disturbing lyrics that combine with an amazing melody that penetrates my heart and soul.
SETH RIVARD
1. “Echoes” (from “Meddle”) – An epic journey that seemingly captures the essence of life and existence itself. Feels both endless and over too soon.
2. “Astronomy Domine” (from “The Piper at the Gates of Dawn”) – A psychedelic masterpiece that launched the whole voyage: alien, mysterious, disorienting and thrilling.
3. “High Hopes” (from “The Division Bell”) – A cinematic nostalgia overdose, leaving you forever reaching for something just out of grasp.
4. “Shine on You Crazy Diamond (Pts. 1-9) (from “Wish You Were Here”) – A hauntingly beautiful tribute to Syd that masterfully explores the fragile boundary between genius and madness.
5. “Time” (from “The Dark Side of the Moon” – The ultimate meditation on mortality, and the ultimate example of true classic rock.
BRIAN HAIK
1. “Us and Them” (from “The Dark Side of the Moon”) – If I had to pick just one Pink Floyd song, this may be my very favorite. My favorite for the message of the song, the hypnotic organ, guitar and powerful chorus, and the sax fits in perfectly. It just puts me in a mood like no other song. Perhaps the best way to describe it is: I feel like I had a little bit of reefer, without taking any.
2. “Wot’s … Uh the Deal?” (from “Obscured by Clouds”) – One of the most underrated/obscure, yet beautiful, Pink Floyd songs. The acoustic guitar arpeggios that Gilmour gives us and the acoustic piano parts blend so well. The harmony vocal parts are some of the best they have ever done. The piano solo into an electric slide guitar solo is pretty tasty.
3. “Echoes” (from “Meddle”) – The album version is excellent, but what really made me a fan of this is the Pompeii version. (View the video above.) The music and lyrics fit in with the history of Pompeii quite well. The haunting vocals of Gilmour and Wright blend together perfectly. The guitar playing by Gilmour is some of his most creative.
4. “Pigs (Three Different Ones)” (from “Animals”) – This song really shows Gilmour being creative in the studio with multiple guitar parts all intertwined, and we get a sweet talk-box guitar solo, and the outro solo really rocks. Being a guitar player, especially lead guitar, I may have picked this song mostly for this reason, but the lyrics are quite political (which I don’t mind) and the song as a whole is quite a piece of work.
5. “Welcome to the Machine” (from “Wish You Were Here”) – Some of Mason’s finest work on synth. The 12-string acoustic guitar blends in so well. Lyrics about being part of the machine and your life is pre-determined are some heavy lyrics. What really made me appreciate this song was going to the public museum for the laser light shows and hearing this on their amazing surround sound system when I was in high school.
PINK FLOYD: THE ULTIMATE PLAYLIST ON SPOTIFY
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