Purple had failed as would Caravan later (although un-rehearsed), Procol only doing a readaptation of their better stuff, The Nice failing miserably on Ars Longa (etc.) but Floyd managed it well enough, but had to resort to outside help in the name of Ron Geesin. On the A-side, Floyd tried more successfully what many failed to do before them: integrating classical music and the symphonic orchestra and choirs into the rock fusion. No doubt Hypgnosis' cow un-tagged pastoral artwork helped out (it was a fad that Crimson and Zep tried before they did), but that doesn't explain much, especially with the sore studio experience of Ummagumma. Despite the album's flaws and it not always ageing well, I rank in the last category of fans, even if I wonder sometimes how this album became so successful. Alan Parsons / engineer Releases informationĬD EMI United Kingdom - CDEMD 1072 (1994, Europe) Remastered by Doug Sax with James GuthrieĬD EMI - 50999 028940 2 7 (2011, Europe) Remastered by James Guthrie with Joel PlanteĪHM is a very controversial album, decried by many as boring and pretentious (this usually the Barrett unconditionals pissing on Floyd's successful convalescence of their Syd-loss), almost disowned even by some Floyd members and hailed as the first giant step to the group's ascension to perfection ? it was after their first chart topping album. Haflidi Hallgrimsson / cello (uncredited) Philip Jones Brass Ensemble / brass (1,3) Roger Waters / bass & vocals & acoustic guitar (2), tape, Fx Richard Wright / keyboards (Hammond M102), vocals (3) David Gilmour / guitars, bass, drums & vocals (4) See more Your browser does not support the audio element. (P) 2016 The copyright in this sound recording is owned by Pink Floyd Music Ltd., marketed and distributed by Sony Music Entertainment John Alldis Choir, Other - Meriel Dickinson, Alto - Roger Covey-Crump, Tenor - Peter Bown, Engineer - David Gilmour, Composer, Other - Roger Waters, Composer, Bass - Margaret Cable, Alto - David Thomas, Bass - Brian Kay, Baritone - Pink Floyd, Producer, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Norman Smith, Executive Producer - James Guthrie, Mastering Engineer - Joel Plante, Mastering Engineer - Richard Wright, Composer, Other - Nick Mason, Composer, Other - Alan Parsons, Engineer - Rosemary Hardy, Soprano - Brian Etheridge, Baritone - Peter Hall, Tenor - John Alldis, Conductor - Ron Geesin, Composer - Bryn Evans, Baritone - Patricia Sabin, Alto - Kenneth Woollam, Tenor - Haflidi Hallgrimsson, Cello - John Whitworth, Tenor - Hazel Holt, Soprano Saxophone - Jessica Cash, Soprano - Eleanor Capp, Soprano - Unidentified EMI session musicians, Brass - Peggy Castle, Alto - Lynne Hurst, Alto - Geoffrey Mitchell, Other - Celia Piercy, Alto - John Huw-Davies, Baritone ![]() © Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo More info This lack of focus means Atom Heart Mother will largely be for cultists, but its unevenness means there's also a lot to cherish here. That it lasts an entire side illustrates that Pink Floyd was getting better with the larger picture instead of the details, since the second side just winds up falling off the tracks, no matter how many good moments there are. So, there are interesting moments scattered throughout the record, and the work that initially seems so impenetrable winds up being Atom Heart Mother's strongest moment. "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast," the 12-minute opus that ends the album, does the same thing, floating for several minutes before ending on a drawn-out jam that finally gets the piece moving. Of these, Waters begins developing the voice that made him the group's lead songwriter during their classic era with "If," while Wright has an appealingly mannered, very English psychedelic fantasia on "Summer 68," and Gilmour's "Fat Old Sun" meanders quietly before ending with a guitar workout that leaves no impression. Then, on the second side, Roger Waters, David Gilmour, and Rick Wright have a song apiece, winding up with the group composition "Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast" wrapping it up. Still, it may be an acquired taste even for fans, especially since it kicks off with a side-long, 23-minute extended orchestral piece that may not seem to head anywhere, but is often intriguing, more in what it suggests than what it achieves. If anything, this is the most impenetrable album Pink Floyd released while on Harvest, which also makes it one of the most interesting of the era. ![]() Buy the album Starting at $13.09Īppearing after the sprawling, unfocused double-album set Ummagumma, Atom Heart Mother may boast more focus, even a concept, yet that doesn't mean it's more accessible. Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.
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