Happy 40th Anniversary - Dark Side Of The Moon!

Released March 1st, 1973 (in the US).



Dark Side Of The Moon remained in the Billboard Top 200 for 741 weeks, from 1973 to 1989. Once Soundscan was introduced in 1991 it jumped back into the charts where it has returned numerous times over the years.

In the US it has been certified by the RIAA at 15x platinum, it is estimated that worldwide about 50 million copies have been sold.

Time & Money continue to be played on the radio thousands of times per year.

The record is still a consistent seller, in 2012 over 100,000 copies were sold.

Here is the complete album performed live at Wembley Stadium in 1974, brilliant performance of the album that everyone should hear.

Dark Side Of The Moon has been a part of my life since 1979. My family moved to a small town in Kansas that year, there was a great local FM station that eschewed the singles format and played mostly album tracks. Late on Friday nights they would play entire album sides or sometimes complete albums. One such fateful night they decided to play the entire Dark Side Of The Moon album.

I had never heard anything like it up to that point, I was completely mesmerized. It was like a spiritual experience, hearing something greater than I had ever heard before. The very next day I was still under it's spell and bugged my Mother until she took me to the record store to buy a copy. I think I listened to that album every single day for at least the next year.

Soon after I purchased the album "The Wall" was released and I bought it as a new release. Pink Floyd has been my favorite band of all-time ever since.

I've owned many copies of Dark Side Of The Moon since. The LP, a cassette, the MFSL Gold disc that came out in the late 80s, the mid-90s Anniversary edition, the SACD version from 2003 and most recently the Experience edition that featured the complete 1974 live performance from Wembley on the bonus disc. One of those albums that I will always love.

Such a GREAT album Gotta love the Floyd

The "proper" way to listen to this is with

Even though Ken is gonna disagree

Thanks for the Wembley clip Shawn. Floyd was "intense" onstage in the early 70's. Something they weened themselves off of in later tours. Not necessarily a bad thing, just a dynamic I dug alot. Live at Pompeii, (The live parts of Ummagumma) versus Delicate Sound of Thunder and you'll get my drift. They began to place (alot) more emphasis on the visual than the stuff that went in the ears. I have a substantial collection of Pink Floyd vinyl bootlegs and I quit collecting them during The Wall. Due to that practice.

One of the albums that changed music. Gives me some hope that it still sells in great numbers.

I have burned myself out on the album, but once in awhile I throw it on and despite having heard the album 900000000 times, the magic always comes back.

manny wrote:

I have burned myself out on the album, but once in awhile I throw it on and despite having heard the album 900000000 times, the magic always comes back.

try listening to it with

The "proper" way to consume The Dark Side

You guys and your headphones. Everytime I put them on I can't hear anything.

I picked this album up today for the first time. Listening to this on a good stereo brings out quite a few dynamics I never caught before. This was an album on my to get list for years yet never made it to the checkout counter until today. Guess I was inspired by reading this last night.

journeyman wrote:

I picked this album up today for the first time. Listening to this on a good stereo brings out quite a few dynamics I never caught before. This was an album on my to get list for years yet never made it to the checkout counter until today. Guess I was inspired by reading this last night.

Very cool!

A few years ago I was able to listen to the album on a $10,000 all-tube stereo system, an original LP pressing. It was an amazing experience that created an almost surround-sound spectrum even though it was just 2 speakers. Alan Parsons' recording is one of the best ever in my opinion.

S.D. wrote:

A few years ago I was able to listen to the album on a $10,000 all-tube stereo system, an original LP pressing. It was an amazing experience that created an almost surround-sound spectrum even though it was just 2 speakers. Alan Parsons' recording is one of the best ever in my opinion.

They don't do it like they used to

manny wrote:

I have burned myself out on the album, but once in awhile I throw it on and despite having heard the album 900000000 times, the magic always comes back.

me too. It's a brilliant album but i havent heard it in about a year. I've heard it every which way possible, headphones/car stereo/and waking the neighbors with my home stereo. From the numerous remasters to spinning my original and rerelease vinyl versions. Maybe I'll break one of those out in honor of the 40th anniversary.

James B. wrote:

They don't do it like they used to

Parsons still does actually, his recording of Steven Wilson's new album is one of the best I've heard in years. Basically everything except the vocals and the strings were recorded live in the studio with Parsons engineering. The entire album was recorded in a week.

This was an album that I hated when it was released; I thought it was boring.
Fast-forward to my college years when I heard Dark Side in a completely different "context". Thus began my love of Pink Floyd. After trippin' to Dark Side the resident DJ put on "Animals" and the rest is history.
For the record, I still think "Animals" is the best Floyd album but "Dark Side" is right up there with it.

S.D. wrote:

Dark Side Of The Moon has been a part of my life since 1979. My family moved to a small town in Kansas that year, there was a great local FM station that eschewed the singles format and played mostly album tracks. Late on Friday nights they would play entire album sides or sometimes complete albums. One such fateful night they decided to play the entire Dark Side Of The Moon album.

I had never heard anything like it up to that point, I was completely mesmerized. It was like a spiritual experience, hearing something greater than I had ever heard before. The very next day I was still under it's spell and bugged my Mother until she took me to the record store to buy a copy. I think I listened to that album every single day for at least the next year.

Soon after I purchased the album "The Wall" was released and I bought it as a new release. Pink Floyd has been my favorite band of all-time ever since.

I've owned many copies of Dark Side Of The Moon since. The LP, a cassette, the MFSL Gold disc that came out in the late 80s, the mid-90s Anniversary edition, the SACD version from 2003 and most recently the Experience edition that featured the complete 1974 live performance from Wembley on the bonus disc. One of those albums that I will always love.

Have you ever seen the documentry on Classic VH1 Pink Floyd Which One Is Pink? its a great documentry and everytime I see it I end up on a Pink Floyd kick. It started with Dark Side of the Moon for me, After that I got the Wall then Wish You Were Here. All great albums Ive been thinking of getting Obscured by Clouds or Atom Heart Mother next. I do like Animals as well I think its a great album.

I also liked their first album, Favorite song is Lucifer Sam

I like Dark Side of the Moon, it's a fantastic record, but I'm a Syd Barret nut so I'm always more likely to pick up Piper at the Gates of Dawn.

S.D. wrote:

journeyman wrote:

I picked this album up today for the first time. Listening to this on a good stereo brings out quite a few dynamics I never caught before. This was an album on my to get list for years yet never made it to the checkout counter until today. Guess I was inspired by reading this last night.

Very cool!

A few years ago I was able to listen to the album on a $10,000 all-tube stereo system, an original LP pressing. It was an amazing experience that created an almost surround-sound spectrum even though it was just 2 speakers. Alan Parsons' recording is one of the best ever in my opinion.

Speaking of Parsons, he also did a Quad mix of this album that I would like to hear.



On a side note, Where I picked up those records was at a high end audio shop and he was playing Take Five on his tt through his very high end tube equipment and......... WOW!!!!

Wasn't a special copy, he said that it was just from the used record collection that he sells in his shop.

Here's a cool article with a bunch of trivia about Dark Side Of The Moon:

http://music.yahoo.com/blogs/stop-the-presses/pink-floyd-dark-side-40-years-later-40-205227757.html

manny wrote:

I have burned myself out on the album, but once in awhile I throw it on and despite having heard the album 900000000 times, the magic always comes back.

This is me! Whenever I hear it, its brilliance always shines through, but I rarely choose it. When I need a Floyd fix I usually reach for Wish You Were Here or Animals. Happy Anniversary to a great album, though!

The flow is a little jarring for me but I still enjoy the record. I am slightly only burnt out, not nearly as much as I could be. One thing I'd like to note is how irritating it is that the 'Comfortably Numb' solo is always jerked off about above everything else Gilmour has done, when the one in 'Time' is just so much more rich and a high point of Dark Side, heck one of the 'Echoes' leads is more appealing too...