Some songs have a message or a story that impacts the world with its lyrics. They can inspire a generation to be something greater than they are. Sometimes the lyrics teach us about life and death. Sometimes the lyrics...are nonexistent. That's the way it is with Pink Floyd's Great Gig in the Sky. The song begins with a recording of Gerry O'Driscoll: "And I am not frightened of dying, any time will do, I don't mind. Why should I be frightened of dying? There's no reason for it, you've gotta go sometime." This short quote gives the meaning to the song: Death. After this quote Clare Torry begins singing, but there are no words. There are no lyrics in the entire song. Why is that? According to keyboard player Rick Wright, this song is about life descending into death. The reason there are no lyrics is because it's not so much a message that's being conveyed, but an emotion. The first half is more rough and angry sounding because of a person's unwillingness to give up on life. The second half is tender and easy symbolizing the person's acceptance and release into that sleep known as death. This also happens to be the end of CD 1 of the Dark Side of the Moon which further gives a feeling of death at the end of the song. Check it out:
Until next time, roll the Mellow Dice and hope for Midnight.
No comments:
Post a Comment