The Dance of the Fingers

Life is a dance and we are all dancers. We move in new directions and discover what we always had within us all along but see it for the first time; a movement of calculated chaos that chooses to please the mind.

Pink Floyd saw this need in us to let go and let loose and they gave birth to a whole new dance altogether; one that rested on the neck of the guitar, making our fingers our feet and the frets our floor. With Barret as the brain, Waters the spine and Gilmour as the feet to this unusual dancer, the sound that escaped the amplifiers found a quick solace in the hearts and the minds of millions.

The Blues might have come from the deep southern taverns of the United States, but it was never as calculated and precise to invoke a cosmic thought within their listener. Gilmour used the blues as his notebook rather than a textbook and altered it in a way the guitarist could actually walk across the 24 frets of a guitar and produce a non- cacophonous melody that drilled its way into the soul. It was very similar to that of the classical Blues scale, punctuating the notes that make up a chord, but Gilmour mixed this with the pentatonic scale, used mostly in rock music. This not only gave a new touch to the sound but brought a sense of rejuvenation from the moody blues. The blues now rested on another set of thoughts.

“Coming Back to Life” from the album The Division Bell, was probably one of the best examples of this scale which is so complex but yet again has a reassuring simplicity to the sound. Gilmour wrote it as a memoir of his change in life and his coming back into reality after his drug problem. The magic of the song lies in the notes and chords chosen to discuss such a dark matter with such a happy tone, as if to look back in relief and not terror. Any musician who covers Floyd would know of this peculiar dance along the entire neck of the guitar, testing up to almost three octaves of pitch, but to both the listener and the musician, a feeling of calm sets in when the notes fall perfectly in place, causing the mind to sway, and eventually, dance...

About

Totally, the group comprised of five very talented members. Founding members comprised of old time colleagues and friends Syd Barret, Roger Waters, Richard Wright and Nick Mason. David Gilmour later took the place of Syd Barret as vocalist and lead guitarist. After the band was founded in 1964, undergoing various name changes such as 'Sigma 6', 'The Adabs', 'The Pink Floyd Sound', the group settled on the name 'The Pink Floyd'. It is estimated, that as of 2010, Pink Floyd has sold over 250 million albums world wide!

 Let us gain a closer look at the members.

Syd Barret (1946-2006)

Born in the English city of Cambridge, Roger (as he was known as then) grew up in a house belonging to music. Both his parents belonged to the Cambridge Philharmonic society. After learning the piano at an early age, barret taught himself how to play the Banjo and ukele by age 11, by the time he was 15 he had learnt how to play the electric guitar. Other than musical interests Barret loved to write and sketch.

As time moved on, and after the passing of his father, Barret's mother encouraged him to pursue his musical career. Starting with small gigs with the band he had formed back then. One of his regular audiences comprised of his child hood friend, Roger Waters.

In 1962, Waters and Barret later attended the Cambridgeshire College of Arts and Technology where they met future band member David Gilmour. During this time Barret and Waters were well acquainted with Richard Wright and Nick mason, by 1964 The Pink Floyd Sound was formed.

Barret took responsibility as band leader, he was the bands lead vocalist along with lead guitarist. 

In 1968, Barret was dismissed from the band by his fellow members after realizing Barret's problems related to the consumption of drugs, most prominently LSD. This reflected negative and irrational behaviour from his side, which reflected poorly on the group as a whole.

At age 60, Barret passed away on July 7th, 2006 after battling diabetes and mental disorders for years. His main cause of death was pancreatic cancer. RIP.

Roger Waters (1943-Present)

Water's was born in Great Bookham, Surrey. Raised during the time of the second world war, some of his music and work relates back to his experiences in his childhood. His ideas and talents kept Pink Floyd running as he took over as band leader after the dismissal of Syd Barret. Some of his notable works comprises of The Wall (along with various other compositions), an album later turned into a movie. Even though Water's was an all round musician like some of his band members, hiswork in Floyd primarily consisted of playing the bass guitar, but along with that, he has taken the role of vocalist several times, and he is greatly responsible for the sound effects and music writing for Pink Floyd. Waters diverged from the band in 1984 where he pursued a solo career, but later reunited with the band in 2005 for one final performance with the remaining three members - Wright, Gilmour and Mason.

Richard Wright (1943-2008)

Wright grew up in Hatchend, North London. He taught himself the guitar by age 12 as well as the trumpet and piano soon after. Ideally Wright played the role of pianist for Pink Floyd, but also participated in vocals, sound effects and music writing. Being one of the founding members of Pink Floyd, he stuck with the band till the day of his death on 15th September 2008. According to me, Wright may be one of the most talented and under rated members of the group based on some of his musical compositions through out his career. Some of my favourite works by Wright includes Time, Wearing the inside out and the great gig in the sky. May he rest in peace.

Nick Mason (1944-present)

Born in Birmingham, Mason can be said to be one of the quieter and outspoken members of the band, but that accusation gets put to rest every time the man sits in front of his drum set. That is right, Mason was the one and only drummer for Pink Floyd, as well as a founding member who struck with the band till their last gig after Wright's death in 2008. Along with being an active member of the group, Mason enjoyed racing, and his second occupation including auto driving. Till date he is spoken of, and said to be one of the greatest drummers to have lived!

David Gilmour (1946-present)

Last but not least, let us introduce the final member of Pink Floyd, David Gilmour. 

Gilmour, also from Cambridge, was already acquainted with the rest of band due to his past connections with Barret and Waters. In 1967 he was approached by Nick Mason to fill in for Syd Barret who was unable to take consistent part in the band's word. After Barret's departure Gilmour filled in as lead guitarist and vocalist. Not only is he one of the guitarists to have ever lived, he has made many notable contributions towards the band as song writer, music composer, etc. He remained with the band even though he lead a solo career outside Pink Floyd and took it to another level after Water's departure in 1984. Pink Floyd's finaly piece of work, The Division Bell, was greatly influenced by Gilmour. Even today he can be seen performing the way he did even 40 years ago, a man devoted to his guitar...

My world of Pink Floyd

Have you ever appreciated a music to an extent where you go pass the point of actually 'listening' to it but rather, inhaling it, feeling it, not only with your ears, but all of your senses? On a physical and mental level? This is what Pink Floyd makes me feel, seeing something for more than what it actually is.

The Dark Side Of The Moon happens to be one of Pink Floyd's best selling albums, and even today it is part of the the top 10 selling music albums of all time. The image on the left symbolizes a ray of light passing through a glass prism (album cover from TDSOTM), the beam is broken down to its core, separating the ray of light to what it actually is. This is how I feel about Floydian tracks, to look beyond the musical melodies or the words... to see the composition beyond what it is or what it could be. To come to your own conclusion based on personal experiences, thoughts, etc. I write this blog to express to you - My world of Floyd.