Description
One of the most important recordings from Pink Floyd’s short UK tour in early winter 1972 will finally be available this weekend! Floyd’s UK performance in early winter 1972 is full of recordings that leave a deep impression as first-class research material. Starting with the Brighton Dome performance on January 20th, which was the first day of the UK performance at that time and was in fact the world premiere of “THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON”, there are too many to mention, such as the Portsmouth performance on the 21st, the day after the first day, where several songs were significantly revised and improved. However, the most important performance that cannot be avoided is the Rainbow Theater performance at the very end of the tour. The Rainbow performance at this time is famous for “THE BEST OF TOUR 72,” which contains only the first half of the show on the final day, February 20th, and the dark side part of the prototype, but because the presence of the sound source is so prominent, it is easy to overlook the fact that this Rainbow performance was a four-day consecutive performance. This latest work contains the third day of such a Rainbow performance (February 19th), but it has been a performance day that has not been much spotlighted until now. The recording of the 19th itself had Recorder 1, which was mainly used for overseas titles such as “THE COMPLETE RAINBOW TAPES / Day 3” and “MOON WALK,” which was mistaken for the performance on the 20th, but the source had the disadvantage that the recording ended in the middle of “A Saucerful Of Secrets” because the tape ran out, so it may not have been considered very important. However, Recorder 2, which has been attracting much attention and is a great discovery, has only recently appeared. This other recording from the same day was a different source with exceptional sound quality, that is, the source that was cut out on Recorder 1, that is, the latter four songs of the show that day were recorded. The recorder himself uploaded this source to the Internet in recent years under the name “End of Rainbow”, but what is surprising is that the sound quality of this source is extraordinary. It seems that he used special professional equipment for the recording, but according to his own comments, it was recorded with a microphone of decent performance attached to a general-purpose portable recording device called “Prinzsound”, which was often available at the time, and it was recorded under the coat he was wearing that day, which is a somewhat unreliable equipment and recording situation. However, this was recorded with such amazing high sound quality that it is hard to believe that it was recorded with such a general-purpose device, so the goddess of recording is quite fickle. Unfortunately, the recording takes of other songs, including the “Madness” part in the first half, seem to have been lost, but the fact that the performances after “Echoes”, which was cut off on Recorder 1, are completely recorded until the end of the performance is extremely valuable, and the sound quality is exceptional, so it has attracted a lot of attention from unofficial sound source fans around the world. This latest press 3-disc set of Sigma’s work is a coupling of this exceptional sound quality excavation sound source Recorder 2 on Disc 3 and the aforementioned Recorder 1 (※ Show start to the middle of the second half of the show) on Discs 1 and 2, but since this performance day is the first title for the label, this time we will also focus on Recorder 1, and it is the latest upper version using 2nd gen tape instead of the 3rd gen used in the aforementioned overseas titles. In addition, it will be noted that this work records both sources in their original form without any tinkering other than pitch correction and without any fading processing. As a result, both Recorder 1 and Recorder 2 are high-quality records that show the sound recorded on the tape as it is, and the title of the third day of the 1972 Rainbow Theater, which is the strongest and the first complete recording in the world, has finally appeared! First, let’s introduce Discs 1 and 2, that is, the upgraded Recorder 1. The intro and “Breathe” start with a cut-in, and for about 30 seconds in the first half, there is some sound distortion and some sound loss, but you will be amazed at the vividness of the original sound, which is recorded as it is, even though these sounds are usually cut or faded. After 00 minutes 35 seconds, the sound image stabilizes, and the excellent sound quality continues until the end of the disc, but the first shock of the shift from the brutal sound image to the heavenly sound quality comes in “Travel Sequence”. There is almost no sense of distance, and the electric piano in particular appears so close that it feels like Rick is playing in front of you, and everyone will be captivated by the musical excitement that changes in the rhythm. “Time” has a well-recorded tranquil sound, and the toms, Gilmour’s singing voice, and the harmony with Rick are all captured with exceptional closeness and precision, and you will surely be intoxicated by the musical excitement of these rich sounds intersecting one another. “Money” captures very clearly the deep echo of Gilmour’s singing voice at the beginning of the lyrics, and the guitar solo phrase full of hooks also appears with a special sound, so please pay attention. In addition, there are sporadic sound drops in the left and right channels from around 5 minutes 38 seconds to around 41 seconds, but this has not been restored in order to allow you to feel the original sound realistically. “Us And Them” also has an extremely high vocal texture, and the overall sound is very clear, so you can enjoy the musical dynamism that increases throughout the song with a delightful sound image. In “Brain Damage,” there is a scene where the equipment goes down and the overall sound disappears rapidly at around 3 minutes and 6 seconds, but the audience is confused and starts clapping, and the documentary-like situation of trying to restore the performance is accompanied by the joy of being able to follow it with a highly accurate and vivid sound. “One Of These Days” is slightly off at the beginning, but the texture of the sound and the attack of the low range are exceptional. In the middle part (around 2 minutes and 47 seconds?) when the rhythm disappears, the bass and synth effects create an expression unique to this day that lasts for about 3 minutes, making it a great listening point. Also, be sure to check out the tuning scene of about 2 and a half minutes after the final song, which is included with a special sound. The sound quality improves even further from “Careful With That Axe, Eugene,” and an increasingly detailed sound image hits the ears directly. The scream was also quite abrupt on this day, and the sound waves instantly transformed from the fantastic floating feeling to a crushing weight, and the second half of the song progressed slowly with a high-quality sound. Please pay attention to the density and depth of the mid-range after the singing of “Echoes”. Everyone will be astonished by the vividness and overwhelming volume that you would never think of as a 2nd gen, and the scene that transitions to the cry will leave you speechless with the resolution sound that perfectly picks up the fullness of the muddy sound and the appearance of the wind sound. It should also be noted that the second half of the song and the final song boast a fine sound and sound pressure that cannot be matched by the other source disc 3, which will be introduced later. “A Saucerful Of Secrets” cuts out just before the second half because the tape runs out, but on the other hand, the vividness of the sound suddenly cutting off here is proof that the appearance of Recorder 1 has been dropped as it is, unlike the 3rd gen fade-out processing used on previous overseas releases. And Disc 3 is the recently released Recorder 2, a different recording from the same day, with exceptional sound quality! First of all, “Echoes”, you will instantly notice that the beauty of the slide guitar sound that emerges at the introduction is different from what you could hear on Disc 2. You should be able to intuitively understand that the original sound that was produced at the venue on the day, including the melody of the lick behind it, is exactly what is here. The vocal harmony also clearly shows the difference in the voice quality of the two people, and the second half, which re-emerges from the albatross’s cry, appears with a sharp and overwhelming transparency. “A Saucerful Of Secrets” is the complete version where you can hear what was cut out on Disc 2 (※ and all songs from this point on until the end of the performance are recorded). This also stands out from the introduction with its threatening resolution and closeness of sound that exceeds Disc 2, and its vividness and precision can be said to be almost the same level as line recording, even if it is expressed modestly. For example, the sound seems a little muddy on Disc 2, such as when the rhythm comes in (※ 4 minutes 27 seconds?) (※ Still, Disc 2 is more than enough high quality!), but this Recorder 2 has even more precision there, and is filled with the resolution and volume of sound as if you were looking at a finely drawn drawing. There are tape twists caused by the master around 12 minutes 09 seconds to 13 seconds and 48 seconds to 59 seconds, and a momentary sound drop at 13 minutes 04 seconds, but the sound is so powerful that it is almost unnoticeable, so please look forward to it. “Second Cud (Blues)” has a rare scene at the beginning where they stop playing and start again because they are not in sync, but this is also a sound image filled with precision and three-dimensionality as if they were stretching antennas in all directions. This Floyd-style blues, which was often performed in the encore at that time, can be heard on other recordings, but it is rare to find one that remains with such perfect sound. Of course, this high sound quality is also carried over to the show’s last performance, “Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun,” and you will surely be captivated by the chain of sounds and the radiation of knowledge that is unique to this day that had been sleeping for about 45 years. It is also widely known that the four consecutive performances at the Rainbow Theater in 1972 were the first performances in history to be specifically labeled “THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON – A Piece for Assorted Lunatics,” but in other words, it could be said that it was the first step until they clearly put out a certain vision at that time and grasped a solid form. Now, with the release of this work, which contains all the existing parts as they are in two different sound sources, it is finally possible to get a glimpse of the full story of this concept’s third night, which was full of initial impulses. Live at Rainbow Theatre, Finsbury Park, London, UK 19th February 1972 (2 Diff Sources) Recorder 1 Disc 1 (46:09) The Dark Side Of The Moon 1. Intro. 2. Breathe 3. Travel Sequence 4. Time 5. Breathe (Reprise) 6. The Mortality Sequence 7. Money 8. Us And Them 9. Any Color You Like 10. Brain Damage 11. Eclipse Disc 2 (61:00) 1. One Of These Days 2. Careful With That Ax, Eugene 3. Echoes 4. A Saucerful Of Secrets Recorder 2 Disc 3 (62:27) 1. Echoes 2. A Saucerful Of Secrets 3. Second Cud (Blues) 4. Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun
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