"Meddle" Album Description:
In the world of progressive rock, Pink Floyd's sixth studio album, "Meddle," stands as a testament to the band's innovative prowess and musical ingenuity. Released in October 1971, this masterpiece emerged during a transformative period in the music industry, leaving an indelible mark on the genre.
The German release of "Meddle" holds a special place in the hearts of collectors and enthusiasts. With its distinctive gatefold cover, adorned with captivating photos of Pink Floyd's band members on the inner pages, the album becomes not just a sonic journey but a visual one as well. The cover design, featuring a Gatefold (FOC) layout, adds a touch of elegance, setting it apart from other releases.
The record, bearing the Harvest label and catalog numbers 1C 072-04 917 / LC 1305, signifies the collaborative effort between the band and the renowned EMI Harvest in Germany. The inclusion of the EMI Harvest logo at the bottom of the album front cover is a nod to the partnership that brought this musical gem to the German audience.
"Meddle" is a fascinating exploration of soundscapes and experimental compositions, showcasing Pink Floyd's ability to push the boundaries of conventional rock. The album's tracks, including the iconic "Echoes," demonstrate the band's commitment to crafting intricate and immersive musical experiences.
Within the context of the early 1970s, "Meddle" played a pivotal role in shaping the progressive rock landscape. The album's release coincided with a period of musical experimentation and boundary-pushing in the industry, making it a relevant and influential work of art.
The enduring appeal of "Meddle" lies in its ability to transcend temporal boundaries. Even today, listeners continue to discover and appreciate the album's sonic richness and conceptual depth. The fusion of ethereal soundscapes, unconventional time signatures, and thought-provoking lyrics creates a timeless musical tapestry.
In Germany, the EMI Harvest 1C 062-04 917 release further solidifies the album's impact on the global stage. The gatefold cover, with its carefully selected band photos, adds a tactile and visual dimension to the listening experience, making it a cherished collector's item.
Album Production Information:
Recorded at Air Studios Emi Studios Abbey Road and at Morgan Studios London 1971.
Engineers: Peter Bown, John Leckie, Rob Black, Roger Quested.
Photography Bob Dowling, Hipgnosis
Hipgnosis – British album cover art design groupHipgnosis is my favorite proof that a record sleeve can be a full-on mind game, not just a band photo with better lighting. Read more... Hipgnosis is the legendary London-based art design group that turned rock sleeves into visual myths. The core duo, Storm Thorgerson and Aubrey "Po" Powell, were childhood friends of the Pink Floyd inner circle in Cambridge—a connection that allowed them to bypass the stiff mandates of EMI’s in-house design department in 1968. Their debut, "A Saucerful of Secrets," was only the second time in EMI history (after The Beatles) that an outside firm was granted creative control. The very name "Hipgnosis" was a piece of found art; Syd Barrett, during one of his more enigmatic phases, scrawled the word in ballpoint pen on the door of the South Kensington flat he shared with the duo. Thorgerson loved the linguistic friction of it: the "Hip" for the new and groovy, and "Gnosis" for the ancient, hidden knowledge. While Peter Christopherson later joined as a third partner in 1974, that initial Barrett-endorsed moniker defined a decade of surrealist mastery for bands like Led Zeppelin, Genesis, and 10cc, before the group dissolved in 1983. |
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Music Genre:
Acid Psychedelic Music |
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Record Label & Catalognr:
Harvest 1C 072-04 917 / LC 1305
Meddle has also been released in Germany as EMI Harvest 1C 062-04 917 |
Packaging:
Gatefold/FOC (Fold Open Cover) Album Cover Design
The EMI Harvest logo printed at the bottom of the album front cover |
| Media Format:
12" Vinyl LP Gramophone |
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Year and Country:
1971 Made in Germany |
Band Members and Musicians on: Pink Floyd Meddle
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Pink Floyd is:
- Roger Waters - bass, vocals
- Roger Waters – Bass, vocals, songwriter
Roger Waters is the guy I blame (politely) when a Pink Floyd song stops being “spacey vibes” and starts staring straight through you with lyrics that feel like a courtroom cross-examination. Read more... Roger Waters is, to my ears, Pink Floyd’s razor-edged storyteller: bassist, singer, and the main lyric engine who pushed the band from psychedelic drift into big, human-scale themes. His key band period is Pink Floyd (1965–1985), where he became the dominant writer through the 1970s and early 1980s, before leaving and launching a long solo career (1984–present). After years of public tension, he briefly reunited with Pink Floyd for a one-off performance at Live 8 in London on 2 July 2005—basically the musical equivalent of spotting a comet: rare, bright, and gone again. Since the late 1990s he’s toured extensively under his own name, staging huge concept-driven shows that revisit Floyd classics like "The Dark Side of the Moon" (notably on the 2006–2008 tour) and "The Wall" (2010–2013), because apparently subtlety is not the point when you’ve got something to say.
- Nick Mason - percusssion
- Nick Mason – Drums, percussion
Nick Mason is the steady heartbeat I always come back to in Pink Floyd: the only constant member since the band formed in 1965, quietly holding the whole weird universe together while the rest of the planet argues about everything else. Read more... Nick Mason is Pink Floyd’s drummer, co-founder, and the one guy who never clocked out: his main performing period with Pink Floyd runs from 1965 to the present, and he’s the only member to appear across every Pink Floyd album. Outside the mothership, he’s had a very “I’m not done yet” second act: in 2018 he formed Nick Mason’s Saucerful of Secrets (2018–present) to bring the band’s early psychedelic years back to the stage. He’s also stepped out under his own name with projects like the solo album "Nick Mason’s Fictitious Sports" (released 1981), which is basically him taking a left turn into jazz-rock just to prove he can. And yes, he was part of that blink-and-you-miss-it full-band moment at Live 8 in London in 2005, when the classic lineup briefly reunited and reminded everyone why this band still haunts people.
- Dave Gilmour - Guitar, vocals
- David Gilmour – Guitar, vocals
David Gilmour is the voice-and-fingers combo I hear whenever Pink Floyd turns from “spacey” into straight-up cinematic: he joined in 1967 and basically helped define what “guitar tone with emotions” even means. Read more... David Gilmour is, for me, the calm center of Pink Floyd’s storm: an English guitarist, singer, and songwriter whose playing can feel gentle and devastating in the same bar. His earliest band period worth name-dropping is Jokers Wild (1964–1967), before he stepped into Pink Floyd in 1967 as Syd Barrett’s situation unraveled. From there his main performing era is Pink Floyd (1967–1995), including the post-Roger Waters years where the band continued under his leadership and released "A Momentary Lapse of Reason" (1987) and "The Division Bell" (1994), with a later studio coda in "The Endless River" (2014). Outside Floyd, he’s had a long solo run (1978–present) with albums ranging from "David Gilmour" (1978) to "Luck and Strange" (2024), and he even did a sharp side-quest in 1985 with Pete Townshend’s short-lived supergroup Deep End. And for one historic night, the classic lineup reunited at Live 8 in Hyde Park, London on 2 July 2005—one of those “you had to be there (or at least press play)” moments.
- Rick Wright - keyboards, vocals
- Richard Wright – Keyboards, vocals
Richard Wright is the secret atmosphere machine in Pink Floyd: the guy who can make one chord feel like a whole weather system, and then casually add a vocal harmony that makes it hit even harder. Read more... Richard Wright (born Richard William Wright) is, for me, the understated genius of Pink Floyd: co-founder, keyboardist, and occasional lead vocalist whose textures are basically baked into the band’s DNA. His main performing period with Pink Floyd runs from 1965 to 1981 (including the early albums through the massive arena years), then he returned as a full member again from 1987 to 1994 for the later era tours and albums. In between those chapters, he didn’t just vanish into a fog machine: he released a solo album, "Wet Dream" (1978), and later "Broken China" (1996), and he also had a proper side-project moment with Zee (1983–1984), which produced the album "Identity" (1984). He passed away in 2008, but his playing still feels like the part of Pink Floyd that makes the air shimmer.
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