Customer Reviews

Pickin' on Pink Floyd: Bluegrass Tribute

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I know it is Amazon's policy that reviewers not berate other and previous reviewers. However, potential purchasers of "Pickin' on Pink Floyd" need and deserve to know that Mortie's review here is simply inaccurate. Maybe too much acid in the sixties, I don't know, but he is not reviewing "Pickin." The musicians he lauds in his review do not appear on this cd, and though he praises one Jebediah Greenman's vocals, there are NO vocals on this disc at all. It is purely instrumental. Unfortunately, I bought this disc based on Mortie's false review, and while I still like it, I would not have bought it if I knew it had no vocals. Amazon, if you don't print this review, please at least remove Mortie's or place it with the cd it really reviews--if there is such a disc, I'd like to buy it.

Differences of opinion is indeed what makes this world go 'round. That said, I've been a Pink Floyd fan since the 70's and have always loved Bluegrass as well. I think this album is the perfect blend of both.

There are 2 standout songs that are up-tempo enough for the Blue Grass to really shine "Time" and "Run Like Hell" the rest are solid interpitations of the originals good and in some cases damn good but the harmonic transitions and the banjo work in Time left me flored when i first heard them and i still enjoy listining to it after a year and a half of owning the album. And im a hard rocker

Boy, I thought this was a great idea when I first heard about it. Brilliant!

I wish the musicians on this collection had spent as much time thinking through the arrangements as I did between the time I ordered it and first heard it. A rich trove of very unique songs to be mined, and I could just imagine how bluegrass' rich vocabulary of sounds and feels might give them new life.

These are lame, lifeless reproductions. Not incompetant, not unpleasant. But some tunes seem to have been thrown together from memory or a single listen, and none really capture the elements that make the songs special. "Tribute"? Baloney. "Cash in."

After looking around a bit, it seems to me that this gang mass-produces this kind of stuff. It's January, time to do Pink Floyd. It's February, time for Jo Dee Messina... Zep, U2, you name it, they can cover it.

Save your money, listen to the original "See Emily Play," and use your imagination instead. You'll hear something sparkling inside your head.

Better yet, imagine Bela Fleck leading his Flecktones through the Floyd canon, or Yes' "Siberian Khatra" or ELP's "Tarkus" or Peter Gabriel or Kate Bush. Imagine... but stay away from this CD.

This CD is not about trying to re-create the Floyd experience.

This is Bluegrass.

And, knowing this well ahead of time, I wanted to pick up some quality Bluegrass CDs, and I ordered this because not only are the musicians very skilled and coherent, but since I am familiar with the songs they are covering, it makes it more interesting than just buying any random bluegrass CD. It also helps me appreciate the genre more so I can get into original bluegrass content by similar artists.


As for the instruments, I can discern a colorful variety of acoustic guitar (often finger-picked), lots of banjo, mandolin, upright bass, and the fiddle. As a musician I also find it interesting to see which instruments they're going to use for which parts; it adds a lot of new interesting variety to these older songs.


The songs themselves are typically more upbeat and folk-sounding, (which they had to do in order to pull off a bluegrass cover) which I do not think takes away from the songs, unless you're a Floyd purist and need every note and beat to have equivalents.

Really love this blugrass interpretation of Pink Floyd tunes. "Comfortably Numb" is worth the price of the cd alone.

BTW- Listening the the Pickin' on Zep cd-> it's very good, Black Dog really transfers over well to bluegrass.

A.) This album is easy listening, as long as you have an open ear, mind and heart. A few other reviewers here simply don't have that talent.
B). For ANYONE to take-on ROCK music and put it to another genre and still make it sound good (not fair or great etc.) is miraculous.
C). If you don't have anything good to say, shhhhh!!! OR,.... at least be cordially objective and in a mature manor.
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OK. . . .
What we have here is a fine compliment of/to PinkFloyd into the world of Bluegrass.
Sure it's not AW-INSPIRING nor is it AWFUL, it's right in the middle. It's music one can play over and over in the background without getting tired of it.
Me suggest to BUY IT? Sure if you like Bluegrass, not everyone does.
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Why I gave it 4 STARS?
For one, I'm objectionable. Besides there will be other Bluegrass bands who will make an attempt at this in "their style" of musicianship. THEN maybe it will suffice them who rated this poorly. (but i doubt it)

_____ by: FM (aka: PinkFloyd)_____
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My dad hates my music, I hate my dad's bluegrass. But Pickin' on Pink has brought us together. :)

I actually like the bluegrass version of Astronomy Domine better than Floyd's version. And I simply could not imagine that anyone could burn up a harmonica the way it is played on Time. Hot stuff.

We Floyd music lovers would love for more Floyd music to be produced. After all, there are only so many albums available, and after a while things can get old if we play them over and over again. Here is one way to hear Floyd in an all new setting, one which really does justice to both bluegrass and Floyd.

I liked this CD very much, but I love Pink Floyd and Blue Grass music so it was a home run!

I remember attending a Jim McGuinn concert in Cambridge where he played the Byrds
early catalog solo with a Rickenbacker 12 string and a Fender amp. I began to wonder what the
rest of the band did, as he somehow captured the sound. Some of my favorite music is the Byrds
playing country.

These anonymous pickers astound me in the same way. Sure, Nick Mason's profound percussion and
Rich Wright's stupendous keyboards are missing, but the essence of the sound is here in an amazing
fusion with bluegrass. Wow... This is the essence with such a refreshing new twist. Syd Barrett would
be proud with such a cover....