Thursday, June 26, 2008

the pink floyd





columbia 45: DB8214


Well, this 45 - like yesterday's - has been played incessantly since the day it was released - but who cares, right ? There is only ten years between them, like warring siblings, but a lot of water under the bridge. Pink Floyd's "Animals" was their contribution to 1977's summer of contempt, and the ostracized Syd was by that time as bloated and confused as Roger Waters' mutinous vision.

Pink Floyd may not have been flavour of the month on the Kings Road in 1977, but you would have been hard pushed to find anybody with a safety pin through their nose who had a bad word to say about Syd Barrett.

Originally released on June 16, the flip side to this single would later be found too on August's "The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn", hitting the shops as the solstice celebrations faded towards autumn with the approaching equinox. Wizard. If you hadn't bought "Emily" a month or two earlier you might possibly have been in for a rude awakening since it didn't make the album. While Syd was on the throne, the Pink Floyd were still very much a singles band. Fast forward ten years and the deal couldn't have been more different.

Thematically produced by Norman Smith, who also worked with the Pretty Things, and engineered by Peter Brown.

Afghan coats and enough Paisley Pattern prints to shake a staff at.

PINK FLOYD: SEE EMILY PLAY from "See Emily Play b/w The Scarecrow" 45 (Columbia/EMI) 1967 (UK)

PINK FLOYD: THE SCARECROW from "See Emily Play b/w The Scarecrow" 45 (Columbia/EMI) 1967 (UK)

RESURRECT IT

4 comments:

Your driver said...

I've never liked Pink Floyd. Another one of those situations where I'm in the minority. I can forgive them a lot because of See Emily Play. A truly great song.

ib said...

It is a brilliant piece of pop without any mawkishness. It's always more invigorating to be in the minority anyway, i think. It keeps you on your toes. If somebody says white, more often than not i'll say black. And vice versa. I like being contrary.

Unknown said...

jon~ I am with you, for the most part. There are a couple of their late period (post-Syd, by my tally) that I don't mind, but they usually leave me a little limp. Maybe I don't smoke enough pot anymore.

ib~ I once asked a girl I worked with, named Emily, if she'd ever heard this song. She hadn't. a few days later, I guess her boyfriend played it for her, 'cause she came at me: "Are you saying I'm dumb?!?"

Great tune.

ib said...

Ha! "Emily tries, but misunderstands..."

Maybe she was smarter than you acknowledged ! Funny.