There are quite a few. I have some and have read some. But the last time i went for a deep dive in the band was quite a while ago and there seems to be many new books. Obviously Nick’s is tops as it’s the only book by a band member. Problem i have with so many rock books is they mainly focus on the albums. The Performing Artist series of books about Bob Dylan by Paul Williams are the only books i know of that focus on the live performances, which is where the majority of any major artists’ work truly lies (excepting the Beatles I suppose). So i don’t need to read about the albums over and over and therefore i’m wondering which Floyd books might avoid this tireless retread. Fire away Floydians!
My favourite books on the floyd are made by vernon fitch and glen povey. their books are factual information and supremely detailed. vernon fitch- 1. Comfortably numb 1978-1981 the definitive book on the wall and how it was created. 2. the final cut 1982-1983 tons of almost everything you could want on this album. glen povey- his best book is The complete pink floyd(the ultimate reference) this has all the dates floyd ever played live with every setlist information about the gigs. album recording dates. dates of album releases. the ultimate reference for a live floyd collector. the last and final edition was printed in 2016 and looks like this: back in the 90s it was called "the pink floyd encyclopedia" and evolved over the years.
At the moment I am reading the All The Songs book on Pink Floyd, which I would recommend (so far). One book I have my eye on for future reading is the Syd Barrett book Dark Globe by Julian Palacios. I have read good reports about it but it has been out of print. Now however, it seems to be getting a reprint in June, according to Amazon UK.
On Syd: Dark Globe by Julian Palacios. It’s a deep dive into Syd and the closely related London underground scene of those few years. Encyclopedic and well written. Gets a re-read every few years.
The only one I've read is Comfortably Numb: The Inside Story of Pink Floyd by Mark Blake. Only a few posts yet here but I'm surprised it's not mentioned - seems pretty definitive and very in-depth to me. I can't imagine needing to read any other PF-related book that that one, except one from the actual band members, which I haven't yet.
In the Pink (Not a Hunting Memoir) by Roger's old friend Nick Sedgwick is a fascinating insider view of the band's activities circa 1974. They even kept in the marginalia of Rog's scrawled notes alongside the manuscript
I'd love to read something that provides significant insight into how all the songs were written. Long time fan, and somehow I still don't feel like I have a good understanding of their songwriting/composition process.
Agreed on these books, I have Comfortably Numb and the Complete Pink Floyd, both are excellent books on their musical history, both in studio and onstage. i also like Nicks MasonS Inside Out.
There wasn't always a ton of PF books around, before 1995 or so, it was rather sparse, so you took what you could get really... for me it was: One of the earliest and most important ones for me was the, mostly visual, Pink Floyd: A Visual Documentary by Miles... initially published in 1980 I believe. This has had a few covers over the years, but this is the one I had: Next up would have to be the essential Saucerful of Secrets: The Pink Floyd Odyssey by Nicholas Schaffner, published around 1991-ish. Obviously Nick Mason's Inside Out book is pretty great too, but that came about a decade later... it's up there with this one for me for sure! Fun side note, I worked on the original, unused, cover design for Julian Palacios' book Lost In The Woods (which is also pretty dang great!), it was a colourful/trippy version of a popular image (see below) which ended up being rejected due to, as far as I know, licensing issues with the image itself... they ended up just going with a close up of Syd which probably cost less etc. I still got paid though, so there wasn't much to complain about in the end! lol
Lost In The Woods, despite its mistakes (according to one of Syd's exs, who borrowed my copy & annotated it).
You may be interested in this: Pink Floyd All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track by Philippe Margotin
Only one I've read is A Very Irregular Head which I had mixed feelings about. Lots of editorializing and projecting. And the parts that are details feel a little invasive and make me question the idea of a musical bio.
A fantastic book that really puts you 'there' Another great read with lots of technical spec and great anecdotes is Random Precision by David Parker
Obviously Nick's book. I recently started reading this one, and I'm about a third of the way through. So far it's really good; I'm actually learning interesting new stuff. This was my first Floyd book, in fact it was probably the first book about a rock band I ever owned. Now the collection has multiplied and I own a couple of hundred of the things. My wife loves them (not).
Looks like a book that almost entirely overlooks the live aspect of the band and like pretty much every other book talks only about the recordings.
The Comic Book from the '75 Dark Side of the Moon tour: Pink Floyd 'Comic' Tour Book 1975 - Pink Floyd - A Fleeting Glimpse w/lyrics for "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", which was preformed along w/"DSotM" in it's entirety. Got mine at the Cow Palace show South San Francisco: This can be played on YouTube ~ Pink Floyd Live - 13-04-1975 - San Francisco
I prefer the original cover for this excellent early PF History by Mr. Schaffner, may he RIP. . Nick's book is great as well: And one more early, and obviously incomplete, fave PF Bio.
I own and enjoy Inside Out by Nick Mason. Storm Thorgerson’s Mind Over Matter is a nice companion. I am considering the Blake book.
I haven't read any others but I'm curently reading and enjoying PigsMight Fly - The Inside Story of Pink Floyd by Mark Blake.
I got that comic book program, how cool was that! I think every true Floyd fan needs a copy. It’s kinda essential.
