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In 1975, Pink Floyd was one of the biggest bands in the world, a status that its members \u2013 and most observers \u2013 could have scarcely imagined even three years earlier.<\/p>\nIn 1975, Pink Floyd was one of the biggest bands in the world, a status that its members \u2013 and most observers \u2013 could have scarcely imagined even three years earlier.<\/p>\n
Though the group had embarked upon a five-year journey to find its way in the wake of losing founding singer, songwriter and guitarist Syd Barrett, that journey eventually led to The Dark Side of the Moon<\/i>. That 1973 breakthrough album catapulted the band \u2013 until then a largely underground sensation \u2013 into the big time. But the creative streak that brought forth in Dark Side<\/i> would be sustained: even as they were touring in support of their \u201873 blockbuster, the members of Pink Floyd \u2013 guitarist David Gilmour, bassist Roger Waters, keyboardist Richard Wright and drummer Nick Mason \u2013 were already hard at work developing new material.<\/p>\n
By the time they entered the studio to make 1975\u2019s Wish You Were Here<\/i>, two-thirds of Pink Floyd\u2019s next<\/i> album (1977\u2019s Animals<\/i>) was already in the band\u2019s live set. Meanwhile, Wish You Were Here<\/i> represented a continuation of the band\u2019s best work. In observance of the 50th<\/sup> anniversary of that record\u2019s release, a massive and lavish box set expands and builds upon the original by including copious relevant bonus material. Wish You Were Here 50: Deluxe Edition<\/i> includes four vinyl LPs, two CDs, a Blu-Ray disc and much more. Here\u2019s an in-depth look at what\u2019s inside the black box.<\/p>\n LP1: Original Album<\/b> Few consumers, though, will purchase Wish You Were Here 50: Deluxe Edition<\/i> for that LP, one that they most assuredly have in their collection already, perhaps in multiple formats. It\u2019s the copious extras that make this set worthwhile.<\/p>\n LP2: Rarities 1<\/b> An alternate version of \u201cHave A Cigar\u201d features a dual lead vocal by Waters and Gilmour in place of the official album\u2019s Roy Harper guest vocal. This version is closer to what concertgoers would have heard. The spare mix highlights various subtleties \u2013 mostly from David Gilmour \u2013 not heard in the official release.<\/p>\n While Pink Floyd was recording Wish You Were Here<\/i> at EMI\u2019s studio on Abbey Road, they encountered jazz violinist St\u00e9phane Grapelli; the band asked him to contribute to the title track. This he did, though his work was left off the finished album. A mix of the song with his violin solo \u2013 entering around the three-minute mark of the song \u2013 is featured on this set. It undoubtedly adds to the song\u2019s heart-rending vibe, but in the end it\u2019s neither better nor worse than the official version; it\u2019s just different. Both the \u201cHave a Cigar\u201d and \u201cWish You Were Here\u201d alternate versions first appeared on the 2011 reissue, but this release marks their debut on vinyl.<\/p>\n An early instrumental version of \u201cShine On You Crazy Diamond\u201d features quite a number of different musical elements. Nick Mason\u2019s tom-tom opening is strongly reminiscent of the introduction to \u201cAtom Heart Mother Suite\u201d from 1970. This no-vocals mix highlights the superb instrumental work of the four musicians, and features numerous melodic lines and solos that wouldn\u2019t make it onto the finished version, proving yet again that Pink Floyd had more good musical ideas than space on record to share them. This previously-unheard recording makes its debut on Wish You Were Here 50<\/i>.<\/p>\n A pair of Roger Waters demos of \u201cThe Machine Song\u201d are fascinating; the work tapes demonstrate just how many of elements of \u201cWelcome to the Machine\u201d were in place from the start. The song\u2019s seething, malevolent sonics are even more unsettling here than on the finished song, set as they are against acoustic guitar and Waters\u2019 comparatively understated, near-whispered vocals. Both recordings are released here for the first time; the first is on LP2, and the second opens LP3.<\/p>\n LP3: Rarities 2<\/b> LP3\u2019s second side features a new stereo mix that for the first time links together \u201cShine on You Crazy Diamond\u201d Parts I-V with Parts VI-IX. The edit is seamless, creating an epic 25-plus-minute version of the masterpiece.<\/p>\n
\nThe first LP in the new set is an exact reproduction of the original Wish You Were Here<\/i> album from 1975. It\u2019s pressed on clear vinyl, a nod to the original album sleeve\u2019s back cover art depicting a faceless man in the desert holding a translucent disc. Among Pink Floyd fans, WYWH<\/em> is often considered superior even to its predecessor, 1973\u2019s The Dark Side of the Moon<\/i>. With its extended instrumental passages, emotionally resonant lyrics and deep sonic ambiance, Wish You Were Here<\/i> is a near-perfect combination of meditative melancholy and graceful grandeur. All four musicians are contributing at the peak of their powers, and while contemporary reports reveal that Waters, Wright, Gilmour and Mason weren\u2019t getting on all that well with one another, WYWH<\/i> is nonetheless the product of a cohesive creative unit.<\/p>\n
\nA fascinating piece of Pink Floyd Lore concerns the band\u2019s quandary after creating their masterwork The Dark Side of the Moon<\/i>: Where to go next? One possible answer, oddly enough, was to dispense completely with traditional musical instruments. Having explored the sonic capabilities of guitars, bass, drums and keyboards (most notably the VCS3 synthesizer), the group toyed with the idea of making music using household objects. The experiment quickly proved unworkable, requiring great amounts of time and effort to create music that ended up sounding like synthesizers. For many years, that brief episode in the group’s history remained the stuff of legend, but when the album was reissued in 2011 in expanded \u201cImmersion Box\u201d configuration, the bonus track \u201cWine Glasses\u201d revealed part of the aborted project. The brief piece, however, will have sounded quite familiar to anyone who ever heard the opening of WYWH<\/i>\u2019s \u201cShine On You Crazy Diamond.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nAfter the second demo of \u201cThe Machine Song,\u201d David Gilmour takes center stage for Take 1 of \u201cWish You Were Here,\u201d showing that he had developed many of the song\u2019s signature guitar lines early in the creative process. His untreated vocal emphasizes the up-close-and-personal nature of his performance; it\u2019s relaxed but not offhand, loose but heartfelt. A glorious alternate instrumental mix of \u201cWish You Were Here\u201d features extensive pedal steel from Gilmour, emphasizing the song\u2019s dreamy, elegiac feel with a high lonesome country and western feel. Both of these recordings are new to this release.<\/p>\n