Customer Reviews

Echoes: The Complete History of Pink Floyd

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Author Glenn Povey discusses the extensive research he did for this book at great length, and it shows in the many otherwise unpublished photos, the nearly comprehensive set lists, and other interesting archival material he managed to dig up. The layout does justice to the material; the book is at nearly every point visually striking. This is a worthwhile purchase (especially at the theft-like price I was able to find it for at Half-Price Books).

However, while I will give Povey the benefit of the doubt that he really did put as much effort into his research as he says, not nearly as much care seems to have been taken to make the text reflect that. In the opening chapter I found one stretch with three errors, or at least things in need of further explanation, in as many pages. In the first full paragraph on page 19 there is a bizarre transition where it suddenly and confusingly jumps from talking about Syd Barrett's personality to David Gilmour's without any warning, as though a couple of sentences had been dropped; on page 20 the text says Barrett would play bass with his other band, Those Without, when in Cambridge, but the picture clearly shows him playing a guitar, with someone else playing bass (we don't see the bass player, only the tuning pegs of his instrument sticking into the picture); on page 21, in the picture of the Ramblers (a band David Gilmour was briefly a part of), I would think their manager would, contrary to the caption, be the older man with the cane third from the left, not the teenaged-looking guitarist on the far right.

A book that much research went into should by all rights be the definitive source on the band, but this just isn't. Not only are there a number of obvious errors or at least "WTF?" moments like the above (perhaps the biggest - Povey claims as fact that Alan Parker has enough footage to make a good Wall concert film, every other source with which I'm familiar says all efforts to shoot one were hopelessly botched), but there just isn't *enough* text for this to be such a book. I estimate that Povey's narrative covers only about a third of the book's 368 pages, and many of that third are dominated by large photographs and blown-up quotes.

The rest of the book is dominated by minutiae like comprehensive lists of concert dates (most with setlists) and an extremely detailed discography. Don't get me wrong, much of this material is interesting in its own right, at least for a slightly OCD Floyd nerd like myself, but scintillating and insightful reading it isn't.

I guess what's there isn't bad, but what isn't there definitely disappoints.

Based on some of the reviewers regarding some mistakes (minor to be honest)it took me some time to decide and order this book. Am I glad I finaly did!
A beautiful, full of great photos and great info. A great product to add to PF fans library. Don't think twice, it's great and very much recomanded.

Whilst I cannot comment on the book itself, I can comment on the state of the book. It was bought as new and when opened the cover was not fixed to the spine of the book, the glue was brittle and there was damage to the corner of the book. This was sent back and money refunded.

Great great book

If you want to know if anything of Floyds is available on film then this is your book

Beautiful beautiful book. Really nice pictures and book design (lovely pages)

I'm not sure if this book is published in the US yet but its well worth a read. Absolutely lovely