Pink Floyd have shared a brand new video of their epic, Shine On Your Crazy Diamond, as a continuous 25-minute long piece of music for the very first time.
Shine On You Crazy Diamond (pts. 1-9) features a brand new stereo mix from James Guthrie, which will be included in the 50th Anniversary edition of the band's ninth album, Wish You Were Here, which is to be released on December 12 via Sony Music.
The video features comedian, actor and artist Noel Fielding creating one of several paintings of Syd Barrett, the band's founding member who left in 1968, and whose legend is celebrated in the lyrics to Shine On.... Barrett famously turned up at Abbey Road Studios while the band were beginning the final mixes of the track, only for none of the band to initially recognise the new appearance of their former frontman.
“I was pretty young when my affinity with Pink Floyd and Syd started," Fielding recollects. "I remember going to the library and hiring the tape of The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn when I was 12. And I just was like, ‘What's this?’ It blew my mind. I couldn't believe it. When I started doing stand up it was all very whimsical. I was always trying to write like I was Syd Barrett. I liked his style, I liked his walk, I liked the way he talked. Shine On You Crazy Diamond is such a beautiful tribute to him.
"What's amazing about Pink Floyd, especially with Wish You Were Here, is that the artwork was as good as the music. When you're 12 and you're seeing two guys shaking hands, one of them's on fire, you’re thinking ‘what?!’ And the music goes exactly with that as well; it’s perfectly in sync with the visuals, with the weird surrealism. And that's all very Syd Barrett. It could be the 70s, but it could be 2040. It's the future and the past at the same time. It is a masterpiece, that album cover, and that album. It's a masterpiece. And it's based on Syd Barrett, who is a walking masterpiece.”
Fielding's painting follows Dear Pink Floyd, a new poem written and performed by Poet Laureate Simon Armitage, which was unveiled last month to celebrate Wish You Were Here at 50.
As well as a Deluxe box set, Wish You Were Here will also be released as a Blu-ray edition, which features three concert screen films from the band’s 1975 tour, plus a Storm Thorgerson short film, and on 3LP and 2CD formats, which include the original album and nine studio bonus tracks.
Pink Floyd previously shared a previously unheard demo of Welcome To The Machine, entitled The Machine Song (Roger’s demo), the first home demo of the song that Roger Waters originally brought to the band, which is one of six previously unheard alternate versions and demos included in the Deluxe box set.
Pre-order Wish You Were Here 50.
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