PINK FLOYD

A history of the rock pioneers in the words of its members and those who knew them well.

Author Blake told the story of Pink Floyd in his 2008 book Comfortably Numb, and he returns to the psychedelic well in this oral history of the legendary psychedelic-rock band, which incorporates interviews he has done over the past 35 years with the band’s members and associates. He begins the book, appropriately, with a chapter on Syd Barrett, who left the band after their first two albums, haunted by severe mental illness; Blake speaks to Barrett’s beloved sister, Rosemary Breen, who remembers her late brother as “a child who never grew up.” The band persisted with its other members—Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Richard Wright, and Nick Mason—and released a series of moderately well-received albums before becoming global superstars with their seminal 1973 album The Dark Side of the Moon, which Waters describes as “all Star Wars. The light side and dark side.’ Pink Floyd would release another legendary album, The Wall, which formed the basis for the cult-favorite 1982 film directed by Alan Parker (fun fact: Roald Dahl was initially approached to write the screenplay), but after Waters quit the band in 1985, the group never approached its previous heights. Blake mostly lets the band members and associated figures speak for themselves, which is a good decision: The irascible Waters and more careful Gilmour in particular prove eloquent. They also provide fascinating insight into the band’s early days, including a very funny story about an inflatable pig that slipped the surly bonds of Earth before alighting in a field of frightened cows. Floating like an angel above the book is Barrett, whose legacy Blake honors beautifully.

Pink Floyd fans will love this tribute, as should anyone with an interest in rock history.