Pink Floyd

One of rock music’s most respected bands, Pink Floyd formed in 1965 and originally called themselves The Pink Floyd. Led by singer/guitarist Syd Barrett, the group also featured bassist Roger Waters, keyboardist Richard Wright, and drummer Nick Mason. Debuting with several singles at the height of the psychedelic era, the group released their debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, in 1967. However, the band’s creative force, Syd Barrett, began to suffer mental health issues and guitarist David Gilmour was brought in to cover some of his guitar duties. After five months as a five piece, Barrett left the band and Waters took over as the band’s leader and creative force. The group released their second album, A Saucerful of Secrets (1968), which was followed by the soundtrack to the film More (1969). Their final album of the 1960s was the experimental studio and live double album Ummagumma (1969). Pink Floyd began the 1970s with the conceptual Atom Heart Mother (1970) and Meddle (1971), which laid the foundations for future productions. Their ground-breaking 1973 album The Dark Side of the Moon became the third best-selling album in history and managed to remain on the Billboard album chart for 741 weeks. Under the creative guidance of Roger Waters, Pink Floyd released the albums Wish You Were Here (1975) and Animals (1977), although the latter showed signs of tensions which were exposed on The Wall (1979). The album gave the band their biggest hit with the Number 1 single "Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. 2." Roger Waters' grip on the band’s musical output was evident on the autobiographical album The Final Cut (1983). Determined to close the history of the group, Roger Waters disbanded Pink Floyd and began a solo career. He was sued by the remaining three band members for rights to the band’s name and lost. Under the leadership of David Gilmour, Pink Floyd took a new musical direction on the albums A Momentary Lapse of Reason (1987) and The Division Bell (1994), and the live releases Delicate Sound of Thunder (1988) and Pulse (1995). The rift between Roger Waters and David Gilmour was temporarily set aside in 2005, and the four members reunited for a short musical set at the Live 8 charity concert. As a recording unit, Pink Floyd remained dormant although several reissues and compilations were released. Keyboardist Richard Wright died on September 15, 2008. Utilizing several unreleased tracks recorded by Wright, Gilmour and Mason created a ‘new’ Pink Floyd album entitled The Endless River (2014). Several box sets were released containing the band’s albums including 2016’s The Early Years (1967-1972) and 2019’s The Later Years (1987-2019). In 2022, Pink Floyd delivers its first new recording since 2014 with the charity single "Hey Hey Rise Up", which protested Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The song featured vocals by Ukrainian rock star Andriy Khlyvnyuk.