Customer Reviews

More

5 star:		(47)
4 star:		(42)
3 star:		(22)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

If I had to pick, I would have to say that this is probably my least favorite Pink Floyd album. It is an incredibly languid (almost stagnant in spots), disjointed, half-hearted effort that never quite takes off. At least that's how I'd remembered it. Yes it had been awhile, but I decided to break out the CD again before writing this review. I must admit, I'm glad I did, because it's better than I'd remembered.

To properly assess this recording, a few things should be considered. First, Pink Floyd was still very much a band in search of its sound. To say that More was "kind of experimental" is like saying Dark Side Of The Moon was "kind of successful". Second, this was the band's first effort at composing a full film score, and by all accounts it wasn't a major picnic. This was due in large part to the supervision of director Barbet Schroeder. Third, the entire record was written and recorded in eight days. Even for an immensely talented band like Pink Floyd, this is hardly an ideal timeframe to create. Finally, unlike soundtracks of today where hits of established pop successes are merely compiled together to generate maximum revenue, the Floyd were composing directly to scenes in the movie (ie; moody sounds and incidental music). The result is that there are as many bizarre fragmented moments as there are actual songs.

Considering all the above, one would likely expect a seriously flawed effort. However, despite all the failings of this record, the band managed to capture several moments of kaleidoscopic beauty. Songs range from the gentle acoustic breeze of Green Is The Color to the pounding rock of The Nile Song (and its evil twin, Ibiza Bar). In between there lies oddities of every sort, including a slight taste of blues; a touch of flamenco guitar (complete with comical "drunken Spaniard" ramblings); and the dark musings of Cymbaline (a song that would become a staple of their stage act for the next couple years). The tracks I find most interesting, however, are the three instrumentals: Main Theme, Quicksilver, and Dramatic Theme. Each are strange moody pieces that depend heavily on Rick Wright's keyboard excursions. Percussion, bass, slide guitar, and various instrumental sounds (along with the intelligent use of panning in the mix) round out the sonic picture. What is created in each is a FEEL, if not quite a substantial song. What intrigues me most about them is that you can see where the band was headed. The songs are glimpses of Pink Floyd working towards their sound; something they will find in two years with the spectacular Meddle album. Perhaps not works of genius, but certainly works of curiosity.

More is not a masterpiece. Nor is it a flop. It is merely a snapshot in time of a young band pushing their creative envelope on their way to musical greatness. Like all of their work, how you rate More depends largely on which facet of Pink Floyd you love most. Fans of the Barrett-led Floyd, who plunged the band into the unshakable image of trippy psychedelia, will probably enjoy it. Fans of what Pink Floyd became - soaring guitar solos, melodic music, and high concepts - will likely be disappointed. This is NOT an album for the beginner. If you are just a casual fan, I would suggest passing this up. An understanding of what Pink Floyd was all about and what they were trying to accomplish will probably allow you to appreciate it most. Start with The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn, and then move on to A Saucerful Of Secrets. If you find yourself eager to hear more, move on to this album. You may find that it has a pleasant surprise or two waiting for you.

Based on what I have read, Pink Floyd did this album because they wanted to start making movie scores. Released in 1969, this soundtrack to the counterculture melodrama More (directed by Barbet Schroeder) really is a very nice listen. From the pastoral serenity of the opening track, through the thunderous Nile Song and Ibiza Bar, and into the spacey and experimental instrumental passages, this is a great album that indicates (somewhat) the direction that Pink Floyd would take as they entered the 1970s. I guess it is worth mentioning that Pink Floyd would take the experimental approach of More to an even greater extent on the follow up Ummagumma (1969).

The instrumental pieces are balanced by the vocal pieces on this, the Floyd's third album, and although some have commented that Dave's vocals sound "feeble" I actually think he sounds great (even on Green is the Colour). Dave's spacey guitar playing is also right on track and he uses a great mix of electric and acoustic textures. With respect to the instrumental tracks there are some pieces that reflect Rick Wright's interest in avant-garde composers (like Stockhausen) especially Up the Khyber, which features a "tribal" drum part by Nick Mason (who co-wrote the piece), some atonal playing on the organ and piano, and electronic effects. Other interesting pieces include the completely "out there" track Quicksilver, which is the most experimental and at 7 minutes the longest track on the whole album, along with the short piece Party Sequence, which features some great percussion parts. At the other end of the spectrum is the softer piece Green is the Colour, which features acoustic guitar, acoustic piano, along with a very soft bass part by Roger and a tiny bit of organ by Rick. Another piece in the acoustic vein is the Spanish Piece, which features some excellent flamenco-ish acoustic guitar playing by Dave.

The Floyd even take on the blues with More Blues, although it is the blues as only Pink Floyd could play it - very psychedelic and spacey. The fact that Nick Mason does not play his drum kit all the way through, but rather in "fits and starts" also gives the piece a vaguely experimental feel.

Unfortunately, albums like More, along with all of their pre-Dark Side of the Moon (1973) output and even Animals (1977) tend to fall through the cracks. This really is too bad given that the 1967-1972 timeframe was a very creative period in their career. Not to diminish the significant achievement of Dark Side of the Moon however, which brought progressive rock to an even wider audience and was an extremely significant work, it is just that I love Pink Floyd's late 1960's/early 1970s material. As such More is highly recommended along with Atom Heart Mother (1970), Meddle (1971); and Obscured by Clouds (1972). Although from 1977, Animals is also very highly recommended too.

"More" is probably the least-noted studio album in Pink Floyd's history. This is not very surprising; these thirteen tracks were written and recorded for Barbet Schroeder's 1969 hippie-film of the same name, which was about--what else?--a junkie couple addicted to heroin. Why Schroeder appointed Pink Floyd--a band relatively inexperienced in film scoring--to create this soundtrack is questionable, but the result isn't really as bad as it would be with lesser bands.
There are as many fine songs on the "More" soundtrack as there are poor ones. Bassist Roger Waters reveals his blossoming songwriting talent with remarkability. This is exceptional when one looks at the strong hold the bassist would have on the band in the years to come. But there are also some wonderful "group tracks," those written by the entire body of Pink Floyd. Such Waters staples as 'Cirrus Minor,' 'The Nile Song,' (probably the only Floyd heavy metal song) and two cult classics, 'Cymbaline' and 'Green is the Color' are good songs that prove music can be psychedelic without the futile use of drugs. Speaking of which, another thing that makes "More" somewhat of a stepping stone for Pink Floyd is that it was their first work in which they were completely rid of Syd Barrett, their former leader whose damaged mental state as the result of drug use forced him out of the band a year earlier. "More" shows how Pink Floyd had taken the absence of their leader and used it as an oppurtunity to create a whole new set of craftworks in which to vent their talent; group compositions like the raw 'Ibiza Bar,' the groovy 'Main Theme,' and the tiring 'Quicksilver' show their ambitions.
The tracks here that do not live up to Pink Floyd's talent however, are 'Crying Song' which starts out fairly but becomes uninspired and repetitive, the pointless 'Up the Kyhber' and most notably, a musical joke 'Spanish Piece' (which was the first song in which guitarist David Gilmour received sole credit).
All that aside, "More" also contains many songs that would later be used in parts of Floyd's live suite "The Man & The Journey" which they performed throughout 1969-70. So it is a supreme studio document of an integral part of the band's history, though some songs are quite drab. But when the listener finds the quality of "More" becoming overwhelmed by some of the less notable songs, they can take comfort in the thought that after all, its purpose was to accompany a hippie film, and not necessarily to make a true "Pink Floyd album."

This is sometimes my second favourite Floyd album, after Meddle. (Other times it comes in fourth, behind Meddle and the first two.)

It contains more beautiful songs, probably, than any other Floyd album; the Cirrus Minor, Cymbeline, Crying Song and others. And the drum-and-keyboard jams between Wright and Mason are brilliant, some of the best stuff Wright ever did. (He used to be one of the best things about Pink Floyd's sound, in the early years; then he either got lazy or he lost his confidence, and contributed less and less of interest. Back then he was a brilliant player, and composer.)

The heavy-metal stomps are also great songs (though the track order is unfortunate. The Nile Song always breaks the mood after Cirrus Minor, in a rather unwelcome way; I'd program my CD to hear it later on, myself.)

This is an album that shows what originally made Pink Floyd great; they were experimenters, interested in doing new things, and creating new sounds. Not everything on More succeeds, but it's one of their most _interesting_ and therefore entertaining albums.

So different from the pompous, musically complacent (and uninteresting) dinosaurs they became in their final "pity-me!-It's-awful-being-rich" phase.

THIS is essential Floyd. The Wall, say, is not.

Cheers!

Laon

I've always felt that "More" has been a terribly underrated album. This probably arises from the fact that it is, and always will be, compared to the rest of Pink Floyd's output. But taking a look at it on its own (or even comparing it against other Floyd) I think it's an album that still stands up well after all these years. To be honest with you, I have always preferred pre-"Dark Side of the Moon" Floyd, ever since I "discovered" them back in my high school days, but for those who prefer the more accessible 70's Floyd, "More" is still a fascinating study in what the band would become.

In "The Crying Song" Waters makes his first mention of "The Stone", an image signifying the weight of life that he would use throughout his career, especially on "Animals". And the gorgeous track "Cymbaline", a PF classic, is the earliest example of a theme that would continue to obsess him for years, namely that of the pressures of fame, and the cutthroat nature of the music industry. This theme, of course, would come into full fruition 10 years later, on "The Wall".

Because "More" is perhaps not as thematically cohesive as other Floyd albums, it often gets written off as their "least essential" album. Well, that may be true, but there is still plenty here to enjoy. Besides, you can only have so many "concept" albums. "Cirrus Minor" is a wonderful trip into space. With its bird noises and Rick Wright's droning organs, it makes a connection between nature and the cosmos similar to "Set the Controls For the Heart of the Sun". "The Nile Song" is Floyd at their all time heaviest, and could possibly be seen as proto-stoner rock (a direction Pink Floyd would not take, but other bands would). "Up the Khyber" is a nifty little experimental jazz piece concocted by Mason and Wright that is still enjoyable to rock fans (I know, I used to enjoy it in my high school days, before I discovered jazz). "Green is the Colour" is one of Waters' most beautiful folk numbers, with a plaintive tin whistle giving it a mellow, pastoral feel. "Party Sequence" is a brief, but effective little psychedelic coda to the original release's first side. Now, it leads effectively into one of Floyd's instrumental masterpieces, the dark and trippy "Main Theme" featuring a spine tingling keyboard melody by Wright, unlike anything else really in PF's catalogue.

Sure, there are some throwaway tracks, most of which occur in the latter part of the album. "Ibiza Bar" is little more than a re-write of "The Nile Song", "Quicksilver" is a somewhat directionless ambient piece, and "A Spanish Piece" is silly at best. But "More Blues" and "Dramatic Theme" are both low-key yet effective instrumental numbers.

So maybe it's the least essential Floyd album. Yet I keep returning to this album, year after year, and enjoying it's intriguing beauty, long after I have grown tired of "Dark Side..." and "Wish You Were Here". You don't have to have seen the movie (I never have) to enjoy what "More" has to offer.

This is probably (along with Obscured by Clouds) the most overlooked album in Pink Floyd's catologue. In one way it hard to consider it a "true" album, afterall this is a soundtrack to a movie. Back in a time when a single band could be commisioned to do it all (a rarity these days). If you're coming right off of the heels of Dark Side or The Wall this will most likely won't appeal to you right off the bat. Before venturing into this, work your way back with "Meddle", "Atom Heart Mother", and when your brave enough "Ummagumma". One must remember two things when listening to this. One: it's a soundtrack and two: it's early Floyd.

Now that you have that in mind lets look at the music. The album begins with Cirrus Minor, a beautiful but strange track that in a way parallels with the movie (I haven't seen it but have heard of it.). We don't hit anything interesting untill Up the Khyber, a intstrumental track with spastic piano and drums throughout. The next two songs are the best on the album, Green is the Colour and Cymbaline. Both of which showed up frequently in the bands live shows afterwards in 1970/71. Green is the Colour is a simple yet beautiful accoustic track, while Cymbaline is an accoustic but later synth expansive song. When the band played this song live they had a "footstep sequence" where they would play tapes of a person walking about the house in daily rutine. Using a Quadrophonic sound system it would sound to the audience as if he were walking around them. Skipping a few tracks is the Main Theme which as you would guess in the theme to the movie (duh!). This is one spaced out track. Apparently this was completely studio improv. This is song haunting to say the least! Finally the last standout is Quicksilver. This is a long soundscape performed by the band. Forshadowing to soundscapes the likes of Brian Eno. This is truely a gem in their musical cannon. Words cannot describe this spacy tune.

In closing it's not the best the early sounds (pre Dark Side) of Pink Floyd have to offer but nonetheless is a gem of music from the psychedelic/hippie era. Good music from a film nobody's seen =)

First take into account that there are very few Pink Floyd recordings I do not own, or would not pay good money to have.

Someone said that Roger Waters at his lyrical best was on The Final Cut. I have to disagree. I find the Floyd's two soundtrack albums to be his best lyrical Floyd work. With More, the first of two soundtrack albums, I find some truly great songs. I love Cirrus Minor, the Nile Song, Green is the Colour, and of course Cybaline the best, but the whole collection works on a wonderful level. This album clearly rests far above most of what passes for soundtrack albums these days.

One thing that I enjoy doing is playing The Nile Song for heavy metal junkies and seeing their faces turn to a question mark after discovering they are enjoying a non metalica song. But more than that, I enjoy turning off the lights and playing this album as a prelude to Dark Side of the Moon.

I highly reccomend this album and would not hessitate introducing it to new Floyd fans who want to go deeper into what Pink Floyd is, and was in the past.

This is one Pink Floyd album most floyd fans should own one time or the other. It is truly a wonderful journey through music. The first song "Cirrus Minor" introduces the listener to magical atmosphere only Pink Floyd can create. The lyrics written by Mr. Waters, relates to an out of world experience. The rest of the album is just as interesting with joyful songs such as "Green Is The Color" to darker more stranger tracks such as "Main Theme" and "Quicksilver". All in all a truly excellent album from a group that is known to create quality music.

"More" (besides having served as the musical framework to a movie that few people recall) constitutes one the last of a stream of highly psychodelic albums by the masters of the genre. Still to be followed by the more experimental "Ummagumma" and "Atom Heart Mother", "More" seemed to carry a lot of the legacy of Syd Barrett in it. Granted that there are some more 'upbeat' moments in the album, the absolute best songs are the quieter ones: the trippy "Cirrus Minor", the melancholic "Crying Song", the evocative "Green is the Colour" and one of Floyd's most amazing musical creations, "Cymbaline" (which coincidentially was the song that introduced me to "More" in the first place).

The album wraps up in style with four songs that are not typical Pink Floyd, but nevertheless capture your interest: "More Blues" giving a blues edge to their work (more like listening to a Led Zeppelin jam); a fairly experimental track ("Quicksilver") that starts to set the stage for the longer pieces to come in the following albums; "A Spanish Piece", where a Spanish guitar runs up against a few creepy dialog lines; and "Drametic Theme", a fantastic closing track that has one foot in psychodelia and the other one in blues territory. As a whole, the album lacks cohesion, but the brilliance of the band shines through all the cracks and corners it leaves exposed, so you go ahead and forgive it. Nothing less than a five star album to me.

If you had to pick the one Pink Floyd album that's talked about the least, it's the band's soundtrack album to Barbet Schroeder's 1969 film, "More," about a swinging young couple's heroin addiction. While the film itself has pretty much disappeared (and, to my knowledge, it still isn't available on home video yet), Pink Floyd's accompanying soundtrack album has thankfully survived, but it's arguably the band's least popular album, which is a shame because it truly is an outstanding Pink Floyd disc that works perfectly well as a stand-alone Floyd album away from the film that inspired it.Five of the album's tracks were written by bassist Roger Waters, and they're all excellent songs: the eerie, melancholy opener "Cirrus Minor," the take-no-prisoners rock of "The Nile Song" (if you ever wanted to hear Pink Floyd do heavy metal, here it is), the light, breezy "Crying Song," the ballady "Green Is The Colour," and the absolutely gorgeous, atmospheric "Cymbaline," one of my all-time favorite Floyd songs. Drummer Nick Mason and keyboardist Richard Wright contribute the aggressive, powerful drums-and-piano workout, "Up The Khyber," and guitarist David Gilmour strums a mighty spanish guitar with his fine solo showcase, "A Spanish Piece." Other highlights include the fine hard rock of "Ibiza Bar" (which is basically the sister rocker to "The Nile Song"), the trippy space-rock of "Main Theme" and "Dramatic Theme," and the avant-garde sounds of "Quicksilver." Even the brief percussion piece "Party Sequence" and the equally-brief blues riff of "More Blues" are pretty cool as well. The band's musical interplay throughout is sharp as a knife, and David Gilmour's voice, whether yelling through the "The Nile Song" or singing the beautiful "Cymbaline," is very commanding.Regretfully, "More" is a very underrated Pink Floyd album, most likely because (A) it's a soundtrack to a very obscure movie, and (B) because the band tossed it off so quickly, as they reportedly wrote the "More" soundtrack in eight days flat (although it's unknown how many days the Floyd took to record it---presumably not many). But in the end, it's the quality of the final product that matters, and "More," while not one of Pink Floyd's most popular albums, is certainly one of their best. It's a powerful, unsung Floyd classic.