HW: Various

[Jon Jarrett]

On Thu, 1 Jul 2004, Henderson Keith wrote:

        <snip>

> P.S.  Last night, I saw the movie "More" on TV (1969), which of course has a
> Pink Floyd soundtrack.  So I heard the original "Cymbaline" for the first
> time, which was kinda haphazardly done IMHO, so I prefer the Brock version.

        I've never quite been able to choose between the two. The Floyd
version seems anything but haphazard to me, it's perfectly rhythmical and
measured but very low-key. This makes it a very peaceful piece of
listening, but also a listless one. It seems to me to fit onto the album,
well, as a kind of siesta when it's too hot to move very much. Possibly
I'm too metaphorical here but I do find it very peaceful, despite the
lyrics. On the other hand the spaciness and eeriness of the Hawkwind
(Zoo?) version play the lyrics up much better and it's generally more
exciting. They both work, I think, but the Hawkwind once might be the more
coherent version (shocking!); only, not because of the playing, just
because they're matching sound to lyrics better.

> Actually, Floyd's music only shows up here and there and not really very
> powerful stuff to be honest, compared to other material from the same
> period.  But then I was watching the movie just to see what it was about.
> Pretty simple affair really...just two young kids travelling around Europe
> and experimenting with various drugs.  It seemed to glamorize marijuana and
> LSD while demonizing heroin, which I suppose is not an unfair treatment
> (though I'm not really one to know), but I suppose the irony is what
> happened to Syd Barrett stemmed mainly from LSD.  (Unless that's myth.)

        Syd's not on the album, of course, and the script wasn't Floyd's,
but I see what you mean. I think it's quite a nice little album, actually,
very much on the same lines as _Ummagumma_ and if without the tremendous
live stuff also without the nadir of the solo pieces; a lot of experiments
and mostly at least partway sucessful, and an overall feel and atmosphere
that fits very nicely with what stills they give you from the film in the
sleeve. You can imagine it operating as soudtrack in a way that I
personally can't inagine _Obscured By Clouds_ doing. _More_ is certainly
one of the three Floyd albums I listen to most now that I've mostly got
over the teenage angst that had me (and how many others?) lauding _Wish
You Were Here_ and _The Wall_, not that they're not both great as they go
but I very rarely want to play them any more. _More_ has retained my
interest for longer. Yours,
                            Jon

--
                Jonathan Jarrett, Birkbeck College, London
    jjarrett at chiark.greenend.org.uk/ejarr01 at students.bbk.ac.uk
  "As much as the vision of the blind man improves with the rising sun,
       So too does the intelligence of the fool after good advice."
       (Bishop Theodulf of Orleans, late-eight/early-ninth century)