The music of Pink Floyd captivated me ever since my brother brought home the then brand new double album "The Wall". I was eight at that time.
Already the first physical impression put a spell on me: The name of the band and the album itself was not a mere print on cardboard, no, there was a slick piece of transparent sticker to be placed by yourself! Without knowing, I felt this was a total work of art; later my brother told me about grandiose Pink Floyd tour stages, and the fabulous show at Linzer Klangwolke, where their music was performed along a then futuristic laser show. Later I have seen the movie "The Wall" with Bob Geldof in a cinema.
This book describes very fine and in detail this 'total piece of art' concept of Pink Floyd. The early biographies of the band members and other participants are given, with focus on Syd Barret, Roger Waters and David Gilmour. The fast evolution from Blues to Psychodelic, shaping the music of that time, and ever more performances as well as lyrics, graphical arts and film where added.
Also, from my perspective, the book really does a good job on adopting a neutral perspective when it comes to the heavy disputes between Roger Waters and the rest of the band (which he then referred to as 'muffins', a funny detail). So my questions in the early nineties, when I was puzzled why it's just Roger Waters in Berlin, and whether 'The Division Bell' is a proper Floyd album, were all answered.
For the real hard-core fan of the band the book might have not too much new material, maybe a lot has been written and documented before; but for people like myself, adoring the art of Pink Floyd, but not being too much familiar with the background information, it tells the story in a full but also entertaining time-line.
Comfortably Numb
The Inside Story of Pink Floydby Mark BlakeNov 25, 2008, Paperback
ISBN: 9780306817526
ISBN-10: 0306817527
Published by Da Capo Press