Random Pink Floyd Tried To Make An Album That Ended Up Being Too Trippy Even For Them (12 items)

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  (#1) The Band Felt Pressured To Follow 'The Dark Side Of The Moon'

  The Dark Side Of The Moon was a breakthrough album for Pink Floyd, hitting #1 on album sales - compared to their previous peak of #46 - and eventually selling more than 15 million copies, and that was just in the United States.

  The workhorse band suddenly found themselves very rich and famous and didn't quite know how to handle it. Bassist Roger Waters even called it "the end of the road." Pink Floyd wanted to deliver an album that was just as innovative as Dark Side, and in search of the perfect idea, they decided to return to their experimental roots.
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  (#2) They Decided To Make An Album With Only Household Objects

  The concept Pink Floyd settled upon was to make an album using no traditional instruments at all - no guitar, no bass, and no drums. Instead, they'd employ things like aerosol cans, forks, and wine glasses. But the band didn't want the album to be a novelty, so they paid great attention to producing quality tones from the unconventional instruments.

  Roger Waters allegedly spent days getting a perfect bass-like sound out of a pencil and rubber band, while drummer Nick Mason attempted to deaden the sound of banging pots and pans so they would resemble snare drums. 
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  (#3) None Of The Experiments Led To Any Finished Songs

  While the band members spent weeks experimenting with the "Household Objects" project, they grew frustrated with the lack of results. Nick Mason later claimed, "[We] never managed to produce any actual music... the most we ever achieved was a small number of tentative rhythm tracks."

  While this isn't exactly true, only a couple of tracks from these experimental sessions have been released, and they seem half-completed compared to the careful compositions on The Dark Side of the Moon.
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  (#4) The Project Was Inspired By Earlier Pink Floyd Songs

  The 1973-1974 sessions for "Household Objects" weren't the first time Pink Floyd had tried to use sound effects in place of conventional instruments. Their 1970 album Atom Heart Mother contains a track called "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast," where sounds including frying eggs and bacon and a dripping faucet were added to a musical riff.

  The band was pleased with the final result and started adding sound effects to future albums, including clocks and rattling bullets on The Dark Side of the Moon. They even made a shorter, less dedicated attempt at using household objects in place of instruments during some 1971 sessions. 
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  (#5) The Band Eventually Soured On The Project

  After months of sessions on "Household Objects," frustration had built up, and most of the band was ready to move on from the idea. "A lot of the time it would just be like plonky noises," guitarist David Gilmour said, calling the sessions "rather unsatisfying."

  Nick Mason came to feel the sessions were a "delaying tactic" keeping them from the hard work of writing real songs. Keyboardist Richard Wright remembered sitting down with Roger Waters and saying, "Roger, this is insane!"

  Eventually, everyone agreed a new direction was needed, and the band abandoned "Household Objects."
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  (#6) Roger Waters Came Up With An Idea For An Album About Absence

  With a fresh start needed, Pink Floyd looked for inspiration. Roger Waters found it in the absences he was beginning to notice in his life. He and his wife were growing apart and on the verge of divorce, and he felt his bandmates weren't as committed to the art of music as he was. Waters also missed his friend, founding Pink Floyd member Syd Barrett.

  Waters felt these feelings of loneliness and the theme of missing those close to you would make a strong album concept, and his bandmates agreed. The album soon became known as Wish You Were Here.
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  (#7) Ex-Member Syd Barrett Showed Up To A Recording Session By Surprise

  Syd Barrett had been a founding member of Pink Floyd, but was replaced by David Gilmour in 1968, partway through work on their second album. Barrett had become unreliable due mainly to mental health problems made worse by heavy substance use, and sometimes even forgot to play during concerts. After the band let Barrett go, his condition only worsened.

  When Barrett paid a surprise visit to a 1975 recording session, the other members did not recognize him at first. He had shaved his head and eyebrows and gained weight. Apparently, Barrett believed he was supposed to play guitar. The sad and disturbing encounter shook Pink Floyd's members and inspired changes in the album.
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  (#8) Half The Album Consists Of Just One Song, Which Is Dedicated To Syd Barrett

  The centerpiece track of Wish You Were Here, "Shine On You Crazy Diamond," is a nine-part epic that lasts a total of 26 minutes. The minimal lyrics refer to a person who is becoming unglued from reality, but who is beloved and unique in the world.

  Along with the psychedelic guitar, the lyrics pay homage to Syd Barrett in a special dedication by the members of Pink Floyd. And while the title track is not about any person specifically, David Gilmour said, "I can't sing it without thinking about Syd."
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  (#9) Tensions Threatened To Drive The Band Apart

  The frustrations that put an end to "Household Objects" didn't disappear when Pink Floyd put down the rubber bands and wine glasses. The increasingly dominant voice of Roger Waters began irritating the other band members, especially David Gilmour. Two of his songs were dropped and replaced with more of Waters's "absence-themed" tracks after Nick Mason and Richard Wright outvoted Gilmour.

  The song "Have A Cigar," meanwhile, was supposed to include Waters's vocals. When experienced rock singer Roy Harper dropped by, however, the others encouraged Harper to record the track. To Waters's annoyance, Harper's voice made it on the final cut of the album. 
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  (#10) The Man On The Album Cover Was Actually On Fire

  Wish You Were Here's famous album art was made by esteemed design studio Hipgnosis, who had created many of Pink Floyd's previous covers. Lyrics on the album inspired the central image of the handshake, and the man on fire represents the fear of "getting burned" when you expose your real emotions.

  The photo itself was shot at Warner Bros. Studios near Los Angeles, CA, with stuntmen Ronnie Rondell and Danny Rogers dressed as businesspeople. Rondell really was on fire, and during the first take, the wind blew flames into his face and burned his mustache. 
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  (#11) The Album Was A Success, But It Changed The Band For Good

  Although Wish You Were Here wasn't the mega-hit that The Dark Side of the Moon was, it still hit #1 in the US and UK, receiving positive-to-mixed reviews from critics. Pink Floyd shows sold out night after night around the world, but the band's direction had changed completely.

  Roger Waters increasingly controlled their next three albums, and the focus fell on the lyrics before the music. The mostly neutral band was suddenly singing strong opinions about human nature, the music business, and corporate greed.
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  (#12) The Album Led To Famous Pink Floyd Stage Gimmicks

  Pink Floyd had been performing concerts for nearly a decade by the time they went on tour with Wish You Were Here in 1975. But during that winter, they first tried the sort of awe-inspiring stagecraft for which their shows are now famous.

  A 40-foot circular screen wrapped around the stage, and different animations and bits of film were projected on it for each song; a mirror ball was hit with a spotlight to provide a blinding burst of light for the band's exit. The whole thing was combined with lasers, fog, and pyrotechnics for a visual spectacular.

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