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| The Dark Side of the Moon Immersion Box Set |
Sep 27 2011 – Worldwide sales of 48 million. 1 out of every 14 people in the US under the age of 50 own or have owned it. 1500 weeks (or roughly 29 years) on the Billboard charts. A CD printing plant in Germany dedicated only to produce this CD 24 hours a day 7 days a week. My favorite album of all time. Let me just get the obvious conclusion out of the way: The definitive release of the best album ever made. Buy it and experience the apex of rock music once more.
Ok, back to the beginning. The Dark Side of the Moon was the 10th album (7th studio album) released by Pink Floyd back in March 17 1973. 14,073 days later we get a 6 disc (CD/DVD/Blu-Ray combo) set full of goodies to make any Pink Floyd fan drool. Before taxes, it cost $94.15 from Amazon.ca to get it delivered to my door.
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| Let’s open the shipping package! |
Rolling Stone Magazine in its original review of The Dark Side Of The Moon attempted to clarify the meaning of the album by stating, “it seems to deal primarily with the fleetingness and depravity of human life”. Vincent Amendolare’s site analyzes the album track by track and offers a very good interpretation of the work. I encourage you to read it while you listen to gain a deeper appreciation of the album. Songwriter Roger Waters himself claimed “that’s what the record is about really – conflict, our failure to connect with one another.” Whatever one’s interpretation of the album is, the genius of Waters’ lyrics are timeless. The segregation of “Us and Them” whose line “Forward he cried from the rear” describe how “Them” always manipulate “Us” (in reference to how the Generals during war order the peons on the front lines to go get themselves killed). Or the bitter description of human mortality in “Time” with a dire warning to not waste your finite time in this world.
“And you are young and life is long and there is time to kill today And then one day you find ten years have got behind you No one told you when to run, you missed the starting gun And you run and you run to catch up with the sun, but it’s sinking Racing around to come up behind you again The sun is the same in a relative way, but you’re older Shorter of breath and one day closer to death”As I was writing this review and listening to the album I got on email and pinged some of my friends and asked them, “What does The Dark Side of the Moon album mean to you?“
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| CD -> DVD -> Immersion Edition |
M.L. – “The Dark Side of the Moon, is a timeless classic with only one issue, no one wants it to ever end. The Dark side of the moon is “music porn” for the auditory sense as nothing could be better, especially when hearing the band live or many of the tribute bands that play this album today and will play for generations to come. The soothing atmosphere, concepts and themes as well as the visuals are mind blowing and make more sense as one gets older. Every time I look at the moon the album plays in my mind and grounds me. And finally, any album that helped with the investment for Monty Python’s Holy Grail has to be on the top of the list.”
F.B. -“Even after all this time, it sounds fresh and seems to take less time to listen each time I put it on. It takes me back to my youth and at the same time is still relevant and current. What a trip”
J. L. – “This album blew my mind when I was young and still does today. First album I can remember that told a story about life from beginning to end, including of course their favorite topics of war, greed and insanity. I’m sure the insanity part has a lot to do with Syd. [ED. Syd Barrett was a founding member of Pink Floyd who had serious mental illness and led a self-imposed isolated life after leaving the band in 1968] Really a ground breaking album.”
E.G. – “Dark side is a beacon of light, reflective of a mad mad world. A sharp departure from Floyd’s extended psychedelic noodling, and back towards a more accessible pop song format of their earlier works with Syd Barret. It’s easy to see why this concept album withstands the test of time.”
Clearly the album is a masterpiece not just because of its commercial success or critical acclaim, but also for it’s strong appeal to fans young and old around the world. The Immersion set takes that masterpiece and rips opens the vaults and gives us access to a larger view of the work than the original 42 minutes have given us for the last 38 years since it’s release. For me, the set’s highlight was the original footage used in the concerts in high bit-rate 5.1 surround as well as the remastered version of The Dark Side Of The Moon.
The Immersion set consists of:
- 36-page 26cm X 26cm booklet designed by Storm Thorgerson (who designed the original album’s iconic front cover), 20 page 26 cm X 26 cm photo book edited by Jill Furmanovsky, exclusive Art Print, 4X Collectors’ Cards featuring art and comments by Storm Thorgerson, replica of The Dark Side Of The Moon tour ticket, replica of The Dark Side Of The Moon backstage pass, 100% viscose collectible printed scarf, 3 X collectible black marbles, 9 X collectible coasters featuring early design sketches, and a 12-page credits booklet.
- Disc 1 – CD The original album, remastered in 2011
- Disc 2 – CD The Dark Side Of The Moon Live at Wembley 1974 (previously unreleased)
- Disc 3 – DVD (audio only) a bunch of Multi-Channel Audio Mixes including 5.1 surround
- Disc 4 – DVD Variety of video clips including a documentary, some live performances and the videos used on stage in the concerts
- Disc 5 – Blu- Ray Repackage of Disc 3 and 4 on a Blu-Ray disc
- Disc 6 – CD Variety of audio including outtakes, demos and the original audio mix.
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| Contents of the Immersion Edition |
The Dark Side Of The Moon is the first Pink Floyd album to get The Immersion Edition treatment but it will not be the last. Wish You Were Here is releasing November 8 2011 and The Wall is releasing February 28 2012. The members of Pink Floyd performing in these masterpieces were David Gimour (Vocals, Guitar), Nick Mason (Drums), Roger Waters (Bass, Vocals) and the deceased Richard Wright (Keyboards, Vocals). I had the privilege and extreme fortune to have seen David Gilmour join Roger Waters for one song during Waters’s The Wall Tour in London May 12th 2011. Read about that magical night and see my YouTube video here. I hope to see them play together again (with Mason as well), but I somehow doubt a Pink Floyd reunion will happen. Note – there is also a more affordable “Experience Edition” for sale which is just Disc 1 and 2 of the Immersion Set and also a Vinyl LP version of Disc 1.
Verdict: The definitive release of the best album ever made. Buy it and experience the apex of rock music once more.
Track Listing: 1. Speak To Me 2. Breathe (In The Air) 3. On The Run 4.Time 5. The Great Gig In The Sky 6. Money 7. Us And Them 8. Any Colour You Like 9. Brain Damage 10. Eclipse
good work Terry, one of my favourite albums too. along with Queens A NIGHT AT THE OPERA.
70s was the best rock era of them all
Excellent review of an excellent album. I dont think I care enough about the collectible swag in the box so im gonna get the cheaper one. Time is my favorite floyd song