Pink Floyd The Music .coming soon.The results were interesting. It was immediately apparent . "Pink Floyd" continued to be its own, distinct creative entity. Nick Mason, the drummer, stood out as not having the best song-writing instincts. Roger Waters, on the other hand, stood out as having produced well executed and innovative material. "Grantchester Meadows" was a long and lilting accoustic guitar piece that was really quite lovely. Through multi-track recording, Roger accompanied himself on guitar, and sang his own backup vocals. Roger's other piece is legendary for having the longest title in rock and roll. It was called "Several Species Of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together In A Cave And Grooving With A Pict." It was beyond innovative. Roger was learning tape recorder techniques, and he made an entire song out of body sounds. There were breaths, grunts, slaps, and other non-musical noises made by a human body. Sped up, slowed down, played back to front, and jumbled up into a bizarre montage of sound, it was truly unlike anything before or since. It really did sound like several species of small furry animals gathered together in a cave. The pict's oration, in my opinion, goes down in the history of rock and roll as the greatest lyrical mystery. Some guy in a heavy Scottish accent ranted on through heavy echoes in an arcane Pictish dialect. It struck me as a little like Beowolf recited in Old English, only this was a different tale and a different dialect. To this day no one knows exactly what the translation is (Internet translations are getting closer, but are still very inaccurate.) I can pick out phrases like "claymor cut and thrust," "down he fell," "Never! Never shall I let you..." And finally, "The wind cried Mary." It remains to this day a one-of-a-kind song. Each band member taking a half an album side was an interesting gamble for this still-young band who was still finding its way through the music scene in the transition from the 60's to the 70's. I think it is arguable as to whether the result was "successful" or not, but it was quirky, like the band and its reputation, and it made each member of the band equally independent in the studio. Not only did they as a band have independence in the studio, but each band member was equally skilled in the production of audio recordings. They were poised to go places. <-- back