Pink Floyd: The Making of Dark Side of the Moon (2003)

In March of 1973 the English rock band Pink Floyd released their eighth studio album.  It came after the loss of band member Syd Barrett in 1968 due to problems with mental illness and extreme drug use (cf. the song "Lunatic"), and was called The Dark Side of the Moon. The album has sold over 45 million copies worldwide and become one of the most critically acclaimed albums of all time. It remained atop Billboard's best-seller charts for 14 straight years (1973 to 1988). Its album cover might be the single most recognizable sleeve in music history, with its image of a beam of light refracting through a triangular prism.  This 49-minute movie commemorates the 30th anniversary of Dark Side. It interviews the band members, music critics, journalists, and studio engineers about the making of the album, which back then was an expression of "early adult disenchantment," a plea for authenticity, and the epitome of what is now called a "concept record"—boldly experimental, musically progressive, a "sonic experimentation." The ten tracks consider the themes of insanity, greed, ambition, death, relationships, conflict, and time. Band member Roger Waters describes the album as an "expression of political and philosophical humanitarian empathy that was desperate to get out." He says the album poses a question to us all: is the human race capable of being humane? The lyrics of "Breathe," to take just one example, begin with the words, "Breathe, breathe in the air / Don't be afraid to care." I watched this movie on Amazon Prime.

Dan Clendenin: dan@journeywithjesus.net