Poll

Pick your favorite in each bracket

Comfortably Numb
5 (33.3%)
Wish You Were Here
10 (66.7%)

Total Members Voted: 15

Author Topic: Pink Floyd Songs Tournament  (Read 13627 times)

Corndog

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Re: Pink Floyd Songs Tournament
« Reply #50 on: May 09, 2017, 10:04:09 AM »
1. Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2
2. Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast
3. A Saucerful of Secrets
4. Arnold Layne
5. Have a Cigar
6. Fat Old Sun
7. Southampton Dock
8. Careful with That Axe, Eugene
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MartinTeller

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Re: Pink Floyd Songs Tournament
« Reply #51 on: May 09, 2017, 10:39:38 AM »
1. Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2 vs. Up the Khyber

It's hard not to be bored with Brick 2, right? But I'll gladly take it over this brief but annoying throwaway from More. I skip Khyber every time it comes up. Brick it is.

2. Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast vs. Embryo

Embryo was a late entry. I had "Come In Number 51, Your Time Is Up" here but then I remembered it's just "Careful With That Axe, Eugene" under a different title. So I scrambled for a replacement. I couldn't believe I'd overlooked Embryo. A song that was played live a lot, but never appeared on an album, except for the compilation Works and a Harvest Records sampler. The first book of sheet music I ever owned was a Pink Floyd book, and it had this song in it, so I know it really well. I really love it, it would right in on Meddle or Obscured. As for APB, it's got some great parts but it never really comes together. It's never stuck with me (I couldn't hum a single part from memory) and frankly the "breakfast" noises kind of ruin it for me. Easy vote for Embryo

3. A Saucerful of Secrets vs. Pow R. Toc H.

Pow R starts out fantastic but it just breaks down into obnoxiousness. To be honest, I'm not a huge fan of the first 8-9 minutes of Saucerful, but that ending is just stunningly gorgeous. The live version from Pompeii (or the one off Ummagumma) is better, but the studio version is great too. This is tough because each of these is pretty much half an excellent song and half wankery. But Saucerful is more engrossing in general.

4. Arnold Layne vs. Mudmen

Mudmen is nice, but it's just an instrumental take on Burning Bridges. And Burning Bridges is already in round 2, so this is an easy vote for Arnold Layne, a supremely catchy Syd pop song about a perv.

5. Have a Cigar vs. The Gunner's Dream

I'm a big Roy Harper fan. Have a Cigar turned me on to him, and I think he's wonderful. And I like this song but it's the weakest on WYWH for me. Which isn't saying much, because there aren't a lot of songs on that album and they're all pretty damn good. Gunner's Dream though!! Those lyrics are amazing, and that sax solo, and I get goosebumps when I listen to it. It'll probably lose this matchup, but my heart is with Gunner.

6. Vera vs. Fat Old Sun

The Wall was the first record I ever bought (not counting a K-Tel compilation or two). 12-year-old me hated that whole Vera/Bring the Boys part. It felt like dumb filler. But now I think it's great. Vera is incredibly short but it's just lovely and heartbreaking. "Does anybody else in here feel the way I do?" has such a haunting ring to it. But boy, I also really enjoy Fat Old Sun. Another tough matchup. Argh.... I guess Vera but I'd love to pick both.

7. The Trial vs. Southampton Dock

The Trial is the opposite story from Vera. I used to loooove it and now I've kind of soured on it. It just grates me. But well.... I dunno, listening to it right now I don't dislike it as much as I thought I did. I appreciate the artistry and the theater of it, and I know it like the back of my hand. And I'm finding I don't love Southhampton Dock as much as I thought I did. It's great as a preamble to the title track, but on its own it's only okay. No, it's more than okay, but still I'm finding these two tracks on pretty equal footing when I thought it would be a slam dunk for me. I can't believe I'm doing this, but I'm voting for The Trial. Ouch, that one hurt.

8. Careful with That Axe, Eugene vs. It Would Be So Nice

Jeez, another difficult choice. IWBSN is, like Paintbox, a superb Rick Wright track with a lot of delightful little ornate touches. And in the other corner, Eugene is so badass and huge. What do I prefer, the band jamming and exploring space as a tight unit, or crafting great pop ditties? I don't wanna choose, why did I do this to myself? Okay, okay... umm... gonna go with Nice mostly because it seems like the underdog to me and I want it to get at least one vote.

Sandy

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Re: Pink Floyd Songs Tournament
« Reply #52 on: May 09, 2017, 11:17:24 AM »
I'm sitting in the airport and near me is a man quietly strumming and singing a Pink Floyd song. Can't quite hear the words, or remember which tune it is, but it will come to me later.

I'll be home today and hopefully can vote on this next round.

Teproc

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Re: Pink Floyd Songs Tournament
« Reply #53 on: May 09, 2017, 11:32:35 AM »
1. Pink Floyd going jazzy, which I enjoy but doesn't really add up to anything, vs Another Brick Part 2 ? Let's move on.

2. My first exposure to Pink Floyd was through Works, which was one of the CDs everyone in my (big) family could agree upon, so Embryo - while relatively obscure for most - is just part of the canon for me. It has a hypnotic quality, and a calming, relaxing one too. Alan's Psychedelical Breakfast never lived up to its promising title... it's ok, but the "languid songs eventually building up to a strong pay-off" is crowded already, and the pay-off isn't really that great either.

3. A Saucerful of Secrets is solid, but I like the live version from Ummagumma better, and it's up against the gloriously fun and weird Pow R. Toc H., which is one of the songs that make all the messy Syd experiments worth it. It reconciles the silly enthusiasm of Bike with the exploratory space rock of Astronomy Domine, which is just the best of both worlds in my book.

4. Mudmen is a typical Obscured song: not particularly remarkable, but very well executed and enjoyable. Arnold Layne, which is also on Works, is one I have more of a personal connection too (keeping in mind I had no idea what it was about for most of my time listening to it), so it gets my vote here, even though Mudmen is generally more in my wheelhouse.

5. The Gunner's Dream is everything that's wrong with The Final Cut. It's Roger Waters coasting with no particular inspiration... I see Martin mentioning lyrics, which... though I understood English by the time I got to The Final Cut, I had grown used to not paying attention to the meaning of lyrics all that much as a default, unless they really jump out to me, as the best Waters stuff does. I have no idea what this song is about, and I'm not about to listen to it again to figure it out. Speaking of lyrics jumping out at you, Have a Cigar has a ton of those ("Oh, by the way, which one's Pink ?") while being a lot more fun and interesting musically.

6. The Wall as a whole is not subject to the whole "not paying much attention to the meaning of lyrics", because they're all so striking. I saw the film pretty early on too (and loved it obviously), so that probably plays an important role. Anyway Vera is short but very powerful, even when I had no clue who Vera Lynn was. It's a shame I have to vote against Fat Old Sun, which always blends with Summer '68 in my mind, but in a good way.

7. I'm worried the amazing scene in the film will make me overestimate The Trial, but it's against a pretty lackluster Final Cut song anyway (nice title drop though), so not a big worry this time around.

8. Had never heard It Would Be So Nice before ! It's very charming ! But I'm afraid it gets the Axe anyway.
« Last Edit: May 09, 2017, 11:34:37 AM by Teproc »
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oldkid

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Re: Pink Floyd Songs Tournament
« Reply #54 on: May 09, 2017, 12:44:28 PM »

Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2 vs. Up the Khyber
As Roger Waters said, "Everyone needs a good protest song, even kids."  Let's face it, ABitW2 is overplayed, but it's catchy and smart.  Up the Khyber is breezy and completely forgettable.

Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast vs. Embryo
Alan's always seemed to me to be a Zappa experiment gone too far, where it is more boring than entertaining.  Embryo is great.  I don't know that I've heard it before, but the Middle Eastern vibe and the slight Several Small Species sound are fantastic.

A Saucerful of Secrets vs. Pow R. Toc H.
Pow R. is one of my favorites of the Barrett era, while Saucerful is my least favorite of the trilogy of space epics (including Intersteller Overdrive and Set the Controls). 

Arnold Layne vs. Mudmen
Tough one.  Arnold is one of the tightest songs of the Barrett era, the one most likely to be heard on the radio.  It's solid lyrically and musically.  But I've always loved Mudmen with Gilmour's guitar front and center, a cool instrumental.  One of my favorites of Obscured.  I guess I'll give it to Arnold, the more complex song.

Have a Cigar vs. The Gunner's Dream
I'm afraid Dream feels like a Wall leftover, while Cigar is unique and has a great hook.

Vera vs. Fat Old Sun
I like Vera in it's placement in The Wall, the theme of nostalgia mixing up with grief and anger, but it doesn't do much for me as a separate song, especially when Bring the Boys is the fitting conclusion to it.  Fat Old Sun is like one of the best David Gilmour solo works with some additional help from his friends.  Going for Sun.

The Trial vs. Southhampton Dock
The Trial is strange for a Floyd song, all dramatic and narrative and orchestra.  And it is completely brilliant, capping off the Wall with a touch of genius.  Dock is a fine Waters piece, but no genius there.

Careful with That Axe, Eugene vs. It Would Be So Nice
It Would be So Nice is a great song, I've not heard it before.  Beatles and Beach Boys influence and a great variety of sounds.  But Eugene has always been one of my favorites and it is so spooky and fun and gentle... very Floyd.  Love that song.
« Last Edit: May 09, 2017, 12:48:36 PM by oldkid »
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MartinTeller

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Re: Pink Floyd Songs Tournament
« Reply #55 on: May 10, 2017, 11:36:13 AM »

Sandy

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Re: Pink Floyd Songs Tournament
« Reply #56 on: May 10, 2017, 01:09:02 PM »
Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2
Embryo
Pow R. Toc H.
Mudmen
Have a Cigar
Fat Old Sun
The Trial
It Would Be So Nice

MartinTeller

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Re: Pink Floyd Songs Tournament
« Reply #57 on: May 11, 2017, 09:57:43 AM »
I was going to move on to the next batch, but we have two ties happening. I'll leave it open a few more hours and see if we get any more votes. I would hate to decide based on seeding, since the seeding was mostly my own invention. I may settle ties with a coin flip, we'll see.

Knocked Out Loaded

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Re: Pink Floyd Songs Tournament
« Reply #58 on: May 11, 2017, 10:01:38 AM »
Had it been possible, I could have modified my vote.
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MartinTeller

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Re: Pink Floyd Songs Tournament
« Reply #59 on: May 11, 2017, 10:07:14 AM »
Had it been possible, I could have modified my vote.

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