Eclipse (song)

The song “Eclipse” was included in the album The Dark Side of the Moon relatively late ^[7] . Suite A Piece of Assorted Lunatics , consisting of the compositions of this album, has been performed at concerts since January 20, 1972 , but Roger Waters wrote and included in the concert program just before the performance in Leicester for the suite (“Brain Damage” / “Eclipse”) February 10 ^[8] . According to Andy Mabbett, editor of magazine and author of several Pink Floyd books, the song “Eclipse” was only recorded after several concerts, when Pink Floyd’s musicians “finally realized that the suite should end somewhere” ^{[5 ]} . According to Nick Mason , the drummer of the group, the tracks of the album The Dark Side of the Moon , even before the recording were improved in the process of concert performances, but the song “Eclipse” was the track to which the performances on the stage made a “tremendous contribution”. Initially, the song was much less dynamic, but over time at concerts, when “it was required to finish this thing on an increasingly majestic note, it gained enough power to make a suitable ending” ^[9] .

The preliminary title of the song during concert performances in 1972 and during studio work was “End - All That You ...” ^[10] .

The title of the song “Eclipse” was for some time the working title of the entire album The Dark Side of the Moon . Initially, during rehearsals and first concert performances from January to March 1972, the band's new album was called The Dark Side of the Moon. A Piece of Assorted Lunatics , but after the Pink Floyd musicians found out that at the end of 1971 the band Medicine Head released the album of the same name, the members of the Pink Floyd band changed their name to Eclipse . This name came from a North American tour in April 1972. But a few months later, in September 1972, Pink Floyd's musicians returned the album to its original name, as the Medicine Head CD remained virtually unnoticed commercially ^{[5] [7] [11]} .

The song “Eclipse” and the whole album ends with a heartbeat, against which Abbey-Road studio employee Jerry O'Driscoll pronounces the phrase: “There is no dark side of the Moon really, as a matter of fact it's all dark” (“On in fact, there is no dark side of the Moon - in fact, it is all dark ”) ^{[12] [13]} . Andy Mabbett believes that in addition to this phrase to complete the sound of heartbeats, a fragment of a very quiet melody is heard. If you set a very high volume level, then at the end of Jerry O'Driscoll’s speech on some versions of the album’s release you can hear something similar to a string orchestra playing The Beatles song “ Ticket To Ride ”. Also at the end of the first minute (1.41) you can hear a whispering voice. These facts have been the subject of lengthy discussion on the pages of The Amazing Pudding. Among the explanations for the appearance of the “Ticket To Ride” fragment, there is an assumption about a joke of Pink Floyd musicians about “interference during the restoration of the recording” and the use of a previously used film, as well as an assumption about playing in a neighboring studio during recording. Andy Mabbett considers all these versions to be “not too believable” ^[5] .

According to the American journalist and author of books on rock music, , in the songs of the album The Dark Side of the Moon "you can hear the echoes of The Beatles." In particular, in the song “Eclipse” you can hear the guitar riffs “ I Want You (She's So Heavy) ” ^[7] .

Principal vocalist Roger Waters is singing along with David Gilmore and Richard Wright . Backing vocalists , , Barry St. John and Lisa Strike also sing in the song.

Andy Mabbett described the lyrics for Eclipse as "maneuvering," calling Roger Waters' compilation of lists the favorite way to write poetry. A similar type of text construction is found in most of Roger Waters' subsequent albums with Pink Floyd, as well as on his solo discs ^[5] .

The final words of "Eclipse" and the entire album The Dark Side of the Moon "and everything under the sun is in tune, but the sun is eclipsed by the moon" ("and everything under the sun is in harmony, but the sun is eclipsed by the moon"), and also the meaning of the whole song, Roger Waters explained as follows ^[14] :

“I do not see any riddle here. In the lyrics of the album, the sun and moon are symbols; light and darkness; good and evil; the force of life opposed to the forces of death. I think this is a very simple idea, explaining that everything good that life offers for us can be obtained, but the influence of some dark force inherent in our human nature prevents this. The song is addressed to the listener and tells him that if you are also under the influence of this force, and if this force does not give you rest, then I also feel exactly the same. The line “See you on the dark side of the moon” means my appeal to the listener: “I know that, like me, you have these unpleasant feelings and impulses, and one way that I can find a common language with you is to share the fact that at times I feel the same bitterness "".

Original text

"I don't see it as a riddle. The album uses the sun and the moon as symbols; the light and the dark; the good and the bad; the life force as opposed to the death force. I think it's a very simple statement saying that all the good things life can offer are there for us to grasp, but that the influence of some dark force in our natures prevents us from seizing them. The song addresses the listener and says that if you, the listener, are affected by that force, and if that force is a worry to you, well I feel exactly the same too. The line 'I'll see you on the dark side of the moon' is me speaking to the listener, saying, 'I know you have these bad feelings and impulses because I do too , and one of the ways I can make direct contact with you is to share with you the fact that I feel bad sometimes. "

“Eclipse” was performed at Pink Floyd concerts in the 1970s only as part of The Dark Side of the Moon Suite (by 1975, before the festival in Nebworth , this suite was performed by the group 385 times) ^[15] . Nearly 20 years later, Eclipse, along with the rest of The Dark Side of the Moon, was performed by Pink Floyd during the 1994 tour of . Instead of Roger Waters, David Gilmore performed the vocal part in the song.

In the 2000s, Eclipse was performed by Roger Waters during his solo concert tours. In 1999 - 2002 - at the concerts of the ^{[~ 2]} , in 2006 - 2008 - at concerts of the tour .

The song "Eclipse" is often used in ceremonies, in feature films and even in space programs. So, for example, “Eclipse” was included in the final part of the program of the Opening ceremony of the Summer Olympic Games 2012 in London , called “And in the end”. The song also sounded in a number of television films, in particular, in the episode " Mergers and Acquisitions " of the television series " Clan Soprano ". In addition, on March 10, 2004, the second rover of NASA 's Opportunity space agency for the 45th sol of his mission was awakened by the song “Eclipse”, which was associated with the transit of the rover through the Martian moon Phobos ^[16] .

Pink floyd

• Roger Waters - bass, vocals, music;
• David Gilmore - guitar, backing vocals;
• Richard Wright - keyboards ( Hammond organ ), backing vocals;
• Nick Mason - drums.

and

• - backing vocals;
• - backing vocals;
• Barry St. John - backing vocals;
• Lisa Strike - backing vocals.

Comments

Sources

1. Povey, Glenn. Echoes: The Complete History of Pink Floyd . - Chesham: Mind Head Publishing, 2007 .-- 368 p. - ISBN 978-0-9554624-0-5 .
2. Mabbett, Andy. The Complete Guide to Music Pink Floyd = The Complete Guide to the Music of Pink Floyd. - M .: “Eurasian Region”, “Lokid”, 1997. - 190 p. - ISBN 5-86217-026-X .
3. Mason, Nick . Along and across: A personal history of Pink Floyd = Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd. - 3rd ed., Rev. - SPb. : Amphora , 2009. - 468 p. - ISBN 978-5-367-00721-3 .
4. Poluyakhtov I., Galin A. Pink Floyd. Book of Songs (1967-1994). - M. , 2003 .-- T. I. - 288 p. - ISBN 5-87109-061-3 .
5. . Saucer full of miracles. Odyssey Pink Floyd = Saucerful of Secrets. The Pink Floyd Odyssey. - M .: Publishing house of Sergey Kozlov, 1998 .-- 365 p. - ISBN 5-901013-01-8 .

• Pink-Floyd.ru (neopr.) . - Discography. The Dark Side Of The Moon. (Retrieved September 12, 2016)
• Pink-Floyd.ru (neopr.) . - Discography. The Dark Side Of The Moon. Eclipse (Retrieved September 12, 2016)