Text by Nando Machado
Fifty years ago, one of the most important albums in music history was released. Pink Floyd finally reached the top of the charts and achieved their long-awaited commercial success with the fantastic Dark Side of the Moon .
To this day one of the best-selling albums of all time, the work proved that rock was art, and art could sell, and sell a lot. A dense, original and unique album, it showed a band at its peak, at its creative zenith.
The four extremely talented and intelligent musicians who formed the classic Pink Floyd lineup seemed to have reached the pinnacle of rock's creative chain, equaling the Beatles in artistic and commercial terms, and vying with Led Zeppelin for the title of the biggest band on the planet in the 70s.
Despite the undeniable talent of the band's incredible guitarist David Gilmour , the mastermind behind Dark Side of the Moon was Pink Floyd's bassist, vocalist, leader, and composer of all the album's lyrics, Roger Waters .
Fast forward to 2023, the year he turns 80, and the Pink Floyd frontman decides to re-record and re-release a new version of Dark Side of the Moon . What has happened in the last 50 years? Many incredible albums, countless world tours; and for us fans, (unfortunately), many fights and the breakup; Waters leaving the band in 1985, the death of keyboardist Richard Wright in 2008.
Pink Floyd continued releasing albums and performing without their main composer, and Roger Waters dedicated himself to a very successful solo career. In my opinion, Amused to Death and Is This The Life We Really Want? are the high points of this solo career, but the commercial and financial success really came from world tours, filling stadiums around the world, playing Pink Floyd classics; songs from Meddle , Animals , Wish You Were Here , but especially The Wall and the wonderful songs from Dark Side of the Moon.
In 2023, Roger Waters decided to re-release a new version of Dark Side of the Moon . This fact alone makes me think about several questions (and answers): Does the world need a new version of this classic and perfect album? Probably not.
What were the reasons that led Roger Waters to re-record this album? I have no idea and I'm not interested. Does the new version replace the original? No. Is the new version worth listening to? Absolutely! Is the result good? Very! How could it not be?
With excellent production by Waters himself and his solo band's bassist, Gus Seyffert , Dark Side of the Moon Redux is a sonic journey and has a very different atmosphere from the original album. Listening to this album on headphones is a musical trip and takes us to different places than the 1973 album. The original is like a grand film in the cinema, the redux version is a theatrical piece.
It's a more introspective, calmer, more tranquil album, while at the same time the lyrics recited by Mr. Waters transport us to a very tense other reality. It's a mix of sensations. Is the new version better or worse than the original? It's simply different. It's proof that once again, these songs, this repertoire, are timeless, wonderful, and they sound incredible with different, new, current arrangements and productions.
Why do we need to compare one with the other? Why do we need to have a definitive opinion on what is better or worse, whether or not the artist should reinterpret a classic work? Art is free, the artist is free to do what he wants, and why do we have difficulty accepting that? Well, Roger Waters doesn't have that; on the contrary, he has to have courage to tamper with such an important, perfect, and definitive work. But isn't that the role of the artist? To raise these questions? To question his own work? His past? To reinvent himself? Even if it's reinventing a perfect work? Yes, it takes courage, and Roger Waters has it, and plenty of it.
Controversial, polemical, there's no doubting the genius of this great artist. The more I listen to this new version, the more certain I am that these songs are timeless, absurdly wonderful, relevant, and play such an important role in my life, whether in the 1973 version, the year I was born, or in the 2023 version, the year of the 80th birthday of the brilliant Roger Waters. And to think that Pink Floyd released Dark Side of the Moon when the guy was 30 years old!
The Dark Side of the Moon Redux worth listening to ? Absolutely. The words in "Time" seem to have a different meaning; the album's lyrics seem to hold a distinct relevance for whoever wrote them 50 years ago: "The sun is the same in a relative way, but you're older, shorter of breath and one day closer to death. Every year is getting shorter, never seem to find the time…"
The new version of Dark Side of the Moon brings a melancholy that perhaps didn't exist in the original version. Is this how Roger Waters feels? More melancholic? Certainly angrier at the 'system' than ever, "The Great Gig in the Sky" has transformed into a completely different piece, already being played live in a completely different way. "Money" has become an angry blues, Roger Waters practically reciting the lyrics with a voice reminiscent of a mix of Leonard Cohen , Bob Dylan , and Tom Waits . "Us and Them" is too beautiful, whether in 1973 or 2023: "And after all, we're only ordinary men." Is that so? Mr. Waters is definitely not an ordinary man.
Waters' band also helps, despite not having any solos on the album; Jonathan Wilson is a giant in guitar and acoustic guitar arrangements, Joey Waronker is a genius on drums, with extreme dynamics and precision.
Every detail in this new version is precious; it's worth listening to carefully, turning everything off—your cell phone, the lights—putting on good headphones, and getting lost in the new arrangements, the lyrics, Roger Waters' voice, and the beautiful string arrangements. " Brain Damage" and "Eclipse" are among those songs that move us and make us feel something inexplicable, pure art. It's a strange feeling, a little sad, perhaps because 50 years have passed, because death is getting closer, the only certainty is that Roger Waters is a genius and that we are lucky to inhabit a planet at the same time as this great artist.
Listen, draw your own conclusions, but listen, it's worth it. Revisit the original, compare, don't compare, discuss with friends, read reviews, complain, curse, praise, do whatever you want, but don't let this work of art go unnoticed. And best of all, Roger Waters is coming to Brazil! And we'll be able to see him live again, maybe for the last time? I hope not, but he doesn't seem like the type to do 10 farewell tours, so don't miss this opportunity. See you at the show!
“Speak To Me” opens the album with Waters’ wise words:
The memories of a man in his old age
Are the deeds of a man in his prime
You shuffle in gloom of the sickroom
And talk to yourself as you die
For life is a short, warm moment
And death is a long cold rest
You get your chance to try in the twinkling of an eye:
Eighty years, with luck, or even less
So all aboard for the American tour
And maybe you'll make it to the top
But mind how you go, and I can tell you, 'cause I know
You may find it hard to get off