«The Dark Side of the Moon» is the eighth album by British band Pink Floyd, released on 1 March 1973 in the US via Capitol and on 16 March 1973 in the UK via Harvest. It was recorded in 1972 and 1973 at EMI Studios, today’s Abbey Road in London.
“`Country: United Kingdom
Style: Progressive Rock
For fans of: King Crimson, Yes, Genesis
The line-up was David Gilmour, Roger Waters, Richard Wright and Nick Mason. The recording engineer was Alan Parsons, who also brought session singer Clare Torry to «The Great Gig in the Sky».
It is a concept album about time, money, death and mental health, with snippets from the crew’s interviews and philosophical extracts between the songs. Part of the inspiration came from the health problems of former member Syd Barrett.
The record was born through live performances: the band worked the material on stage before entering the studio, giving every sound its time. That is why the album flows like a single piece rather than a collection of songs.
The band used multitrack recording, tape loops and analog synthesizers, building a sound that became a reference point for progressive rock and record production in general.
Standouts include «Time», «Money», «The Great Gig in the Sky» and «Us and Them», with «Brain Damage» and «Eclipse» closing the circle. Two songs were released as singles, «Money» and «Us and Them».
The prism-and-rainbow cover was designed by Storm Thorgerson. The album reached number one on the US charts, sold over 45 million copies and stayed on the Billboard chart for hundreds of weeks, while in 2012 it was inducted into the US National Recording Registry.
See also
The Emerald Dawn – The Land, the Sea, the Air (Volume II) and Polymoon – Mariposa Magic!.
