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263 of 269 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Birth Of Pink Floyd, November 1, 2002
David Gilmour himself once remarked that Meddle was Pink Floyd's first true album. Though this is their fifth post-Barrett effort, it is musically light-years ahead of any of its predecessors. Of course there are many wonderful, brilliant moments on those early records, but it is clear in those recordings that the band was anxiously searching. Meddle is Pink Floyd finding itself. It is far more focused, far more melodic, and far more cohesive then anything before it. No longer searching, Pink Floyd had finally arrived. The album kicks into gear with the savage instrumental One Of These Days. Howling wind sets the tone as a pulsing doubled bass line (complete with tape echo) pumps along. Intensity grows with organ stabs, reversed cymbal rolls, and fierce slide guitar. After a creepy bass interlude, Nick Mason makes his (distorted) vocal debut with "One of these days I'm going to cut you into little pieces!!" and slams the song into overdrive. Pounding drums and stinging slide guitar dominate for the next two minutes until nothing but wind remains. It is here that (appropriately enough) the gorgeous ballad, A Pillow Of Winds picks up. Made up of acoustic guitars and sparse bass, this is a beautiful floating piece that takes advantage of Gilmour's tranquil vocals. This gentle mood is held through Fearless, a relaxed mid-tempo summer breeze of a song, again driven by Dave's voice. San Tropez and Seamus show off the Floyd's eclecticism as well as humor. The former invokes a bouncy cocktail lounge jazz feel, while the latter stars Steve Marriot's dog Seamus who "sings" along with Gilmour on some acoustic blues. And then there's Echoes. 31 years later, this epic sound journey stands as one of the band's greatest achievements. Every element that would become synonymous with Pink Floyd was crystallized in this one phenomenal song. Swirling, bubbling keyboards and liquid guitar lines mix with floating vocal harmonies and a dynamic rhythm section to move the music through several dramatic and powerful moods. Truly the band's musicianship had taken a monstrous quantum leap forward from Atom Heart Mother. Of exceptional note is David Gilmour who, after years of struggling, managed to firmly define his role in Pink Floyd with complete confidence. That he asserts his unmatched talents on this track is an understatement. Fluid guitar lines; silky bends; gorgeous vibrato; subtle slide; tremolo bar antics; funky rhythms; and soaring leads abound. A significant part of his style - playing sounds and textures as well as notes - is also well represented. In the intro, he carresses the strings with a steel slide (much like an E-bow) to produce a shimmering string section-like feel. During the middle section, when darkness falls, his echo-laden feedback cries can be heard over ominous keyboards, swirling wind, and the distant screech of crows. Then, as daybreak comes in the form of a musical buildup to the final verses, the track ends with a multi-layered guitar part that sounds almost like a ghostly choir rising higher and higher. All this over the single echoing piano note that started the piece off. Fantastic. Meddle is often dismissed as a "transitional" album due to the massive success of it's follow-up, Dark Side Of The Moon. Though it's not quite as perfectly structured as Dark Side, it can easily stand shoulder-to-shoulder with it (and any of the golden era Floyd albums). I would say that if you've digested Dark Side, Wish You Were Here, Animals, and The Wall, move on to Meddle next. This is an incredible album and should not at all be overlooked.
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105 of 116 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Soundtrack to Surrealism, July 27, 2000
Meddle, from the openening pounding of One Of These Days to the Falsetto choir of Echoes, it provides the perfect soundtrack to surrealism. Have you ever been in that state where your almost asleep but still a bit awake. That's the best description of this album. The music is so layered that at times the Four man Floyd sound like a 100 piece orchestra, souring up and down musical peaks and troughs.David Gilmour said that Meddle was when it all started to come together. In a sense he was right. It started to bring them out of avante garde compositions. Meddle, is and essential piece in the Floyd cannon, surpassed only by Dark Side oF The Moon. One of These Days opens a pulse pounding rythmic barrage of bass, organ, guitar, and drums. Mason's pounding drums particulary stand out proving his underrated talent. It is also his only vocal on a Pink Floyd record. Pillow Of Winds is a gentle dreamlike song mixing great accoustic guitar from Gilmour, along with good lyrics from Waters. Fearless, is the albums rocker, with a catchy opening riff and great vocals from Wright/Gilmour. San Tropez is one of Floyd's most versital songs. The Hawaiian guitar by Gilmour is superb and Waters vocals are light and Dreamy. Also present is Wright's jazzy piano. Seamus is a standard accoustic blues number with delicate vocals by Gilmour and then blues by Wright. Echoes is the albums finale. At 23 minutes, it is one of Floyds greatest achievements. The music is dense, almost orchestral, and the lyrics are both depressing and surreal. Gilmour and Wright share lyric duty while the band themselves show each of their talents respectivly. The climax of the song is truly awesome and Gilmours guitar solo is second to none. Possibly Floyds greatest song. Once again another superb entry for the band that defines emotion, lyrically, and musically. After listening to Meddle, all stress will be relieved, and you will feel cleansed.
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33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Nearly Symphonic Magnum Opus, August 24, 2003
Before The Wall, before Dark Side of the Moon, Pink Floyd created a very different kind of masterpiece. While their later albums were a triumph of concept, it is on Meddle where one can hear the *musical* peak of Pink Floyd's career. This is not a concept album--it is a musical journey showing off a variety of musical styles. The lyrics do not demand--they suggest, and allow the music to do the rest of the talking. Perhaps the most wonderful thing about Meddle is the fact that the band was truly functioning as a *band* here. Everyone's talents can be clearly heard, and no one shouts anybody else down.There is no such thing as filler, on Meddle. Bookended by the mindblowing tracks "One of These Days" and "Echoes", the four "interior" tracks are severely underrated. "A Pillow of Winds" and "Fearless" are both pleasant, leisurely guitar-driven songs, and seem fairly well appreciated by fans. However, I believe that the much-maligned "San Tropez" and "Seamus" are also deserving of appreciation. "San Tropez" is particularly notable for some very unique Roger Waters vocals--rather optimistic and even a touch bluesy...a style he unfortunately never pursued after that point. "Seamus" gives a rare glimpse of the fun side of Pink Floyd, as well as a flashback to the band's origins as a blues cover band. This was never a song meant to be taken so seriously as some do. "One of These Days" is an explosive, energetic instrumental that perhaps foreshadows the angry, driven rock of Animals, but with only one lyric--a rare appearance by Nick Mason, whose processed vocals growl menacingly, "One of these days, I'm going to cut you into little pieces!" The album's final piece, "Echoes", may be Pink Floyd's greatest work ever. From first to last "ping", this brilliant near-symphony is fantastic. Each bandsman's talents are clearly audible, even the simple-yet-effective contributions of Nick Mason and Roger Waters. The vocal harmony of David Gilmour and Richard Wright is mesmerising. Without question, this song contains the best verse Mr. Waters ever wrote: "Strangers passing in the street, by chance two separate glances meet, and I am you and what I see is me. And do I take you by the hand, and lead you through the land, and help me understand the best I can?" Unfortunately, this reminder to walk a mile in the other man's shoes was a lesson Mr. Waters forgot in later years, at the price of devastating consequences to the band's output and to the members themselves. This moment in Pink Floyd's history is therefore one-of-a-kind, completely irreplaceable. The entire album can be summed up by the "jam" sequence in "Echoes". Never before, never again do the pieces fit together so seamlessly, each a joy on its own and in combination.
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