Pink Floyd meddle underrated?

That's a bit strong

I first heard it on a borrowed (official EMI) cassette**in 1985 when I was 12 or 13, played on my £20 Sanyo portable cassette player with feeble earphones, and that was it, I was blown away. But yeah, if I had to listen to it on that piece of crap now, 31 years later... uurgh. So I see your point!

**thankyou schoolfriend Tim Farrant who I haven't seen since 1988, wherever you are, for lending me that pile of Floyd cassettes! Am not an overall fan, but Meddle and Animals, yes sir thankyou very much, a colossal fan indeed of those to this day.

 

"San Tropez" is one of the most overlooked songs in their whole catalog - odd, considering that it's one possibly the best-known pre-1973 album. Rick must have had a lot of fun playing that. I once described it as "the best pseudo-ragtime-swing-jazz song you've never heard". Side one is really just the band having fun, and one of the last recordings of them actually having fun before they buckled down and got serious. I love the album but sometimes I feel that "Echoes" overshadows the great fun of the flip side, which, although I don't think it's as good, is far more enjoyable to listen to.

Either way, I still think it's a perfect album, and easily in my top five Floyd albums.

 

" San Tropez" is a low point IMHO. Doesn't sound like Floyd and doesn't fit. I usually skip it. However, the two official.singles from.side 1 are great, however one usually hears Echoes on classic rock radio.

 

I love the laid back vibe

 

Any Echoes fans have thoughts on the famous live version for DSOTM tour BBC?

 

Other than Echoes, I think the original Harvest LP sounds fantastic. That's always been enough to make it a favorite for me, content not withstanding.

 

Nice. I've been trying to track down a clean copy. I have the mofi CD , 80s Lp reissue, and a domestic EMI copy. Anybody have product #s for Harvest side 1/2 or what too look for?

 

Me too! Pillow Of Winds is such a beautiful piece and I love the smooth, breezy jazz of San Tropez. Makes me wish I was sitting on a yacht or a beach with a cold margarita

And Echoes. That's all I need to say about that.

 

Underrated. It's their best as far as I'm concerned.

 

Along with Piper... , which I consider Syd Barrett's Floyd as an almost totally seperate band, Meddle is my fave Floyd album. To me it's the last Floyd LP that has any trace of Psychedelia. I also rate my mid 70s UK pressing as one the best sounding records in my collection. Just stunning.

 

On the planet I live on, Meddle has always been hailed a classic, up there with its higher grossing cousins. Now,
Obscured By Clouds you'd have a case.

 

This LP is right up there in the Floyd cannon .

Ive got an early 70's UK vinyl with textured sleeve. It sounds fabulous .Echoes has such a deep , detailed , yet relaxing sound. Better to me than the 2011 CD & by quite some margin.

 

The UK 70s pressings of Floyd albums really are special.

 

The opening and closing track are my 2 favourite post-Syd Pink Floyd tracks.

 

I remember the first time I heard "Echoes". At a party hosted by my girlfriend's friend & husband probably sometime in '93/'94. It was about that time. You know, when a few people have started to leave... That buzz is really kicking in... And you need to make a decision... I'm either going to start sobering up 'cuz I got crap to do tomorrow or screw it, I'm rollin' pretty good right now so I'm going to grab another. The husband announces that it's time for "Echoes", grabs me a beer and the rest is history... Just exactly what I needed at that moment!

Not overrated at all IMO!

 

I enjoyed this in the days when i was obsessed with Floyd, and consider it to be one of their better albums. Certainly better than anything post WYWH.

 

For me it was a case of two firsts in one night: my first acid trip and the first time listening to Meddle. That was in 1992...it sounded like a brand new album to me As you can probably imagine, it was quite the experience!

 

Someone on this forum mentioned the last two tracks on side one should have been replaced by an electric version of Embryo, and I agree that would have been something! In my view, that track could also replace Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast on AHM.
Incidentally, which two "official singles" are you referring to? I know One Of These Days was released as a single in sone countries, but what's the other one?

 

My second fave Floyd behind DSotM.

 

Interesting - I never got around to picking up that release and this has me intrigued!

 

The live in Gdansk is very good, if you haven't already it's a no brainer.
Gary

 

I can see why people who are really into Floyd might think Meddle is underrated and doesn't get the attention it deserves. That's because we understand that Meddle is where the classic Floyd lineup finally "got it" and found their way with the song "Echoes". We know that. The average classic rock fan doesn't and certainly the people who can only sing the songs Money, WYWH and C.Numb have no idea how big Echoes was in the history of Pink Floyd. I really like Saucerful of Secrets, Ummagumma, More and Atom Heart Mother, but you can tell they were a band struggling to find their direction in many of the tracks on those records...

The knock against Meddle could be the songs San Tropez and Seamus. Again, I personally like them - I'm a total Floyd nut - but those two tracks are not generally well known/liked among non-Floyd diehards. I would really like to see the order the songs were created that ended up on Meddle. If you're introducing a friend to Floyd's deep cuts - someone who only knows of DSoTM, WYWH & The Wall - I think Meddle would be a fantastic record to expose them to next. I think it works well as a bridge into their earliest work.

 

Meddle & Animals. Top two PF albums. The two opposites. Yin & Yang.

The one being lush, dopey, flowing with the energy of life while there are smidges of darkness looming over the horizon. The other. Dark, claustrophobic, depressing with an occasional shimmer of light puncturing through its opression.

Both suck you into their dimension and don't let go of you a while after the needle had hit the runout groove.

Regards

 

I agree. A very good album, less known to the casual fan than "Dark Side" or "The Wall" but I don't think its underrated.

 

It's better than it has any right to be, seeing how kinda disjointed and casual it is. I suppose that the only candidates for "clunker" tracks are "San Tropez" and "Seamus", and two duds on an LP isn't quite so bad considering the high quality of the rest of it. And "San Tropez" really isn't a bad track, it's just a bit too Steely Dan for the Floyd.

There's a tendency to see this album as a write-off except for "Echoes", but that's really not true. The first three tracks are right up there with anything the Floyd did pre-Dark Side. "A Pillow Of Winds" is, to me, a kind of quintessential Floyd track. Listen to how it dips into a minor key for a few seconds - extraordinary!