Disco de Pink Floyd: “Delicate Sound of Thunder”

As the years went by, PULSE somewhat made a lot of people to "forget" this jewel.

Of course Pulse has been more publicized in the media, has more songs and the complete performance of DSOTM, but...

Delicate Sound of Thunder was released by the time legal conflicts were still ongoing against Roger Waters. So the remaining Floydians, Mason and Gilmour had the enormous challenge of completing a new tour without Waters and originally Wright, and the not-less-important task to cash in on pretended success to cover expenses originated from the numerous legal affairs occuring at the same time (Mason had to sell one of his many collection cars to finance part of the tour, a sad goodbye for him to one of his most beloved -and expensive- collector items).

Rick Wright was legally separated from the band previously by Roger's attorneys and had to appear as a contractor, rather than as a permanent member of the band, situation that was corrected later, in time for the release of The Division Bell.

So, against all odds, Pink Floyd (read Gilmour & Mason + Wright and a whole bunch of session musicians) returned with a vengeance, the most successful tour of 1987, even more than the Roling Stones'.

All that sort of repressed anger became loose and transformed itself into unbelievable playing that, luckily for us, was trapped in Delicate Sound of Thunder.

If you had (I hope you will) the chance to watch the VHS of the same name (when will we have the DVD? Now that Pulse has been announced for DVD release, my hope returns), you'll notice that Gilmour has a big smile on his face most of the time, you can tell they are enjoying themselves and having fun. That sort of environment is felt in its audio portion, the CD.

Go buy it in case you're still "one of the few" "obscured by clouds". Unless you have "brain damage" or have been "eclipsed" by Pulse, you gotta get your hands on this excellent item.

What "Delicate Sound of Thunder" has that "Pulse" doesn't is originality, and more notably, a purpose. Released in 1988, in the wake of the post-split trauma and legal battles with former member Roger Waters, this ably recorded double live set was the group's first release of live material since the psychedelic-era "Ummagumma" in 1969. After the phenomenal success of "Dark Side of the Moon" in 1973, Pink Floyd became an essential live act, their grand stadium/arena shows becoming a musical and visual spectacle that aficionados went so far as to call "a necessary experience in life." So naturally, after the bitter split with Waters, who had asserted himself as the band's principle visionary, Pink Floyd was presumed dead, until longtime members David Gilmour, Nick Mason, and (slightly later) Richard Wright regrouped (but not without a fight). A resulting studio album "A Momentary Lapse of Reason" hit the Top 10 in both the US and UK, and the next step was a no-brainer; Floyd had proved they were still alive in the studio, now it was time for a 200-date concert tour to regain their territory as live kings.

"Delicate Sound of Thunder" contains many features that make it an essential piece in the Floyd catalog. The first disc is mostly made up of material from the "Lapse" album, and what makes them so spectacular is that the presence of Mason and Wright is much more abundant and notable than they were in the studio versions (due to that album's long list of session players). Mason's skilled drumming is "all over the album" as Gilmour proudly put it, and Wright's keyboards make these songs sound much more like Pink Floyd music than they did on the studio album. 'On the Turning Away' is given such a magical treatment that is becomes a full-blown stadium anthem. The second disc is dedicated to familiar Floyd classics, and the results are predictably startling. Session player Scott Page's saxophone compliments and makes variations on the original sax contributions of Dick Parry, and Guy Pratt's bass is much more flexible and notable than that of Roger Waters (especially on 'Another Brick in the Wall Part 2'). It's interesting to see 'Us and Them' placed before 'Money' due to the fact that on the original "Dark Side" album, the latter segued into the former, but it still works and sounds great. The midsection of 'Money' is turned into a much more funky, loose jam, complete with fitting female backing vocals. Speaking of vocals, the verses of 'Comfortably Numb' replace Waters with a more slow, haunting, ghostly-melancholy rendition, which is very appropriate to the mood of the song, making it the best live version of the Floyd classic, complete with Gilmour's extended, emotional guitar solos. The closing crowd-pleaser 'Run Like Hell' even features synthesizer work in short notes that replicates high pitched strings.

This is the document of a great band reclaiming their place in music, and reminding everyone of the power and startling feeling each musician placed into his performance. 1995's double live "Pulse" contained several of the same songs featured here and a less than perfect live rendition of "Dark Side of the Moon" (and the first pressings had a blinking light on the packaging for extra measure), but it was nowhere near as inspired as "Delicate Sound of Thunder," an essential document that saw a legendary band breathing with new life.

This is a stadium-rock recording. That ought to be enough to warn the discriminating listener that this recording is far from perfect. "Another Brick in the Wall" is surprisingly weak. "Money" sounds plain dumb, especially the backing vocals. I don't have a clue why they left off "Great Gig in the Sky." "On the Turning Away" is very nicely done. "One of these Days" sounds really good too. With the exception of Jon Carin on keyboards, the extended band does not have a good enough understanding of the depth of Pink Floyd's music to deliver a convincing Pink Floyd performance. The drums are too busy, and the bass guitar tone is too bright and not really appropriate for Pink Floyd. The saxophone playing is over-the-top and lacks patience, which is a key component of Floyd's sound.

The truth about Pink Floyd, like most major rock bands, is they sound much better in the studio than they do live. In fact, they were wizards in the studio, but their big, live stadium rock sound is just not that great, which is one of the reasons Pink Floyd leader Roger Waters decided it was time to leave the band.

If you want a genuine live Pink Floyd album, buy Ummagumma and listen to disc one. Is There Anybody Out There? is a fair choice for a live Pink Floyd album, since it was a truly legendary concert event (The Wall). Of course Floyd's incredible video "Live at Pompeii" is an excellent live recording - without an audience!

"Delicate Sound of Thunder" has a few good moments, thanks to David Gilmour's exceptional talent with the Stratocaster, but overall this is essentially a pretty boring recording that was overcommercialized and overrated by the mass media. If you really feel you must have it, then definitely get the video, not the CD - the video footage is really excellent, truly wonderful camera-work, and Floyd always put on incredible visual shows at their concerts, so it's much better to watch the performance while you listen than it is to simply listen to it.

I own both sets, and listen to them regularly. I even went to see Floyd live during the Division Bell tour. But, the bottom line is the sound of David Gilmour's guitar is much better on Delicate Sound of Thunder. Gilmour's work on Pulse is way over-processed, and that's his doing (you should see the TWO racks of digital processing equipment he uses.) Don't believe me? Do a side-by-side comparison of "Sorrow", "Time" or "Money". His guitar just sounds bigger and clearer on the DSoT versions.

Additionally, he sings with much more passion (compare the versions of "Money", for instance) on this older release. Often times, Gilmour sounds bored on Pulse, even though his playing is as fiery as ever.

While I was a bigger fan of The Division Bell (and the songs from it) than Momentary Lapse of Reason, Delicate Sound of Thunder remains the definitive live Pink Floyd document.

Only 3.5 stars over all is surprising. I would give it 4.5 as it is an excellent live album that you don't have to listen to endless amounts of applause. We don't have to beat an album up because of who is in the band and who isn't, truth is the music is nothing short of awesome. I would recommend this cd to anyone without hesitation and I own all floyd discs. A very enjoyable listen IMHO although, I don't hold a doctorate in Floydology as some reviewers feel they have.