Before There Was a Dark Side of the Moon

The song of the day by The Coral got me thinking about Pink Floyd. It's been a long time since I listened to Pink Floyd and the wait had gone on long enough. In my youth, I was a huge Pink Floyd fan, up to and including the album Animals. Their three albums: Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here, and Animals were the pinnacle of their career and probably the ultimate progressive rock albums ever. Most people are familiar with these albums, however, it is their earlier work which is not so well known. All the selections on this playlist precede the Dark Side of the Moon. On the playlist, you can hear their earlier pyschedelic sound, their folkish influences, and the progression of their style. The list starts with "Arnold Lane," which was Pink Floyd's first single in 1967, reaching number 20 on the charts. Here you can hear Syd Barrett, the original vocalist and guitarist for Pink Floyd. He was eventually replaced by David Gilmour, and you can hear how their sound changes over time, eventually developing that Dark Side of the Moon sound. The songs "Childhood's End" and "One of These Days" both sound as if they could have been from Dark Side of the Moon. However, my favorite tracks are the psychedelic ones, like "The Nile Song." Click here to listen.