Pulse

by

Pink Floyd

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When I first saw "Pulse" in stores I thought it was a greatest hits album released so that the remaining Pink members could make one last cash grab. Was I mistaken. The live "Pulse" album consists of the entire "Dark Side Of The Moon" album along with some of the best cuts from "The Wall" and "Wish You Were Here". It also includes excellent selections from post-Waters albums, "A Momentary Lapse Of Reason" and "The Division Bell". Another aspect that makes this album even more complete is the appearence of Astronomy Domine from their debut album, "Piper At The Gates Of Dawn". Overall, Gilmour and company belt out great versions of Pink classics with "random precision" and prove they still have what got them called "the best conceptual album writers of all time and one of the top three bands in history". The choice cuts would definitely have to be Comfotably Numb, Wish You Were Here, Run Like Hell, Brain Damage, Eclipse and from the 1994 "Division Bell" album High Hopes. As an added bonus, the two CD set comes in a deluxe slipcase package with an extensive booklet complete with tour pictures, equipment and track listings. An absolute must. Listen and you will understand why.

Forget the three stars shown -- I voted five, but Amazon's website goofed. This one's a five, believe me!

Somehow, I skipped over Pink Floyd while getting older and never really noticed them. A longing for some good British band music led me to give Pulse a shot and boy was I surprised. I'd always thought their songs that I heard on pop radio were sort of 'down' because of the lyrics. Yes, there are negative themes here, but there are an equal number of passages where the minor keys are resolved into beautiful, shining majors. Gilmour is a stupendous, versatile guitar player. I have to rate him as one of the best lead guitarists I've ever heard -- intelligent work that doesn't rely on cliches that are repeated over and over (Ever take a close listen to Clapton, even going back to the original Layla? I honestly don't know what all the fuss is about him. He's smooth, but not really very inventive -- and he plays off pitch, as well!). These two CD's will satisfy anyone thirsting for guitar elevated to an art form.

At first I was disappointed because Gilmour's voice on these CD's doesn't sound like I was expecting. It's not as clear as the studio versions of these songs that were recorded 25 years ago. But after listening several times, I actually like his mature voice better. It has a nice quality to it.

What amazes me is that these three remaining Floyds have played these songs live countless times. But there is not even a hint of jadedness here. They really put everything they had into the music and that's impressive. The recordings are superb for live recordings.

I could go on -- great backup vocals, great bass, neat interchanges between the fans and the band. The version of "Money" on this album is just really great. It makes the original studio version sound very canned. This one breathes with interesting parts that'll have the darned thing going through your head over and over and over again.

If you're even half interested in Pink Floyd, you won't be sorry with this purchase.