’’Wish you were here’’ as we all know was a tribute to the founding member of Pink Floyd - Syd Barrett. It had been 7 years since Syd Barrett left the band due to his mental illness. A strange incident happened during the recording of ’’wish you were here’’. Band was recording ’’Shine on..’’ at Abbey studios and out of blue, Syd Barrett showed up. Rick Wright calls it - ’’Coincidence, karma or fate who knows, but it was very very powerful!’’.
’’Wish you were here’’ is a musical bliss that begins slowly and leads into a haunting calling sound of A minor tab. In the next seven minutes of instrumental music, Gilmour takes us to divine guitar trip. The song is ’’Shine on you craze diamond 1’’, first part of the 24 minute opus which is the flesh and bone of the album. Rogers’ words describe Barrett and his behavior while Gilmour’s guitar weeps.
Next two grimly funny songs are kind of an interlude in the album while the Band sarcastically conveys their anger at the music business. ’’Welcome to the Machine’’ is a decent keyboard driven piece with lot of electronic noises and some ordinary rhythm guitar. ’’Have a cigar’’ is a jazzy rendition, containing the famous ’’By the way, which one’s Pink?’’.
The next song and the soul of the album is ’’Wish you were here’’. Its intense music and beautiful lyrics might moisten your eyes if you have ever lost a friend. It was the first song I learned to play on my guitar. An absolute masterpiece! The last part of the album is Shine on you craze diamond part 2 that takes you back into the mood that album started with.
This is an album to be listened to in one go, to truly appreciate the atmosphere that is created by it. Gilmour has produced one of the best guitar sounds in Floyd catalogue. Waters has written brilliantly (for a change about topics other than war and his father’s death). No matter if Waters and Gilmour were at loggerheads while this album was being recorded, ’’Wish you were here’’ is one of the best concept albums ever recorded.
So there we have it, emotional, passionate, intense, relaxed, mind blowing, and an album that I can’t live without. Shine on Syd Barrett. We all wish you were here. (I’m just a surrogate guitarist :)