Pink Floyd are absolute legends within the Rock scene, and The Dark Side Of The Moon is a genuinely legendary album. So much so, that this album which is a live rendition of their legendary album that they released fifty years ago at the time of writing has been released in 2023 to celebrate the anniversary of The Dark Side Of The Moon, despite the fact that Pink Floyd is no longer functioning as a band anymore. This is due to the fact that Roger Waters and David Gilmour are at constant loggerheads over the way that Pink Floyd should be represented, a spat that has gone on for many years. Still, undeniably The Dark Side Of The Moon is undoubtedly Pink Floyd’s best album and this is a good way to reflect on 50 years of this legendary album by hearing a live rendition of the album from start to finish. Let’s take the time to hear this, and hopefully, it ticks all the right boxes, musically speaking.

Speak To Me begins with a fade-in of the audience cheering nicely, a pounding heartbeat and a sense we have something exciting and special on this live album. Some weird and warped keyboard sounds enter, which is somewhat different from the album version. Still, this is very, very good. Vocal samples from the album are present, and the performance is a real thriller. Electronic sounds abound enter which are fantastic, along with the horseshoe sounds present. More vocal samples enter from the album, and this stirs up a huge level of excitement and interest here. The next section arises as this segues into it.

Breathe (In The Air) launches into a great live rendition of the song from the main album. It sounds gorgeous and lush, with the band playing marvellously here. David Gilmour plays some pretty and gorgeous guitar leads here, he shows truly to the shredders out there that melodic beauty is just as important when playing guitar. The whole band is so on top here that their music is truly timeless. Roger Waters comes in with the vocals and this live performance truly gets going. A fine and fantastic listen, this is a great live performance from the start. Pink Floyd makes a really fine live performance on this set, and they sound truly amazing and on point. The sounds of the band, from the vocals to the psychedelic organ throughout, are nothing but amazing. A great tune, without a doubt or question, this leads into the next song at hand. Brilliant.

On The Run maintains the suspense and drama, launching into the famous instrumental section run mainly by electronics. It truly sounds warped, dark and fantastic here, with a load of hi-hats, flight announcer samples and dark and exciting sounds. This is a really awesome and tripped-out performance live by Pink Floyd and sounds freakier than the original. An awesome tune to hear nonetheless, this has some intensely intellectual based and amazing sounds that still sound eerie to this day. This was the future, back in 1974. A great combination of computerised melodies, sounds and samples, Pink Floyd nailed the psychedelic experience of space travel, right then. A real joy to hear, even outside the official album version, this nails it perfectly. A great musical experience for the body and mind, this is one of the best ways you can ever spend your time listening to music. One of the greatest live performances ever done in history. The sounds present are amazing. The explosion towards the end (apparently evoking a plane crashing) is fantastic. A brilliant and evocative piece of music. UFO-styled theremin sounds then follow, and the explosion gradually dissipates with the UFO sounds continuing to be prominent. It leads into the next track.

Time begins with the clocks ringing as alarm bells, right on time. It is a brilliant mixture of sounds right here. The clock ticking then enters, followed quickly by David Gilmour’s guitar leads, which are fantastic. This leads into the eerie intro of this song, just doing marvellously here. The rolling percussion accompanies it as well, just sounding really brilliant. This is quite a pretty, on-point and excellent live performance that sounds totally fantastic for what it is. Pink Floyd nails it, even in a live setting. It quickly launches into the main section of the song about wasting time as one gets older. Roger Waters sings wonderfully here, and the backing vocals from the other members of the band and the female singers are brilliant, as well. A brilliant and moving performance from Pink Floyd. David Gilmour launches into an awesome and well-played guitar solo that sounds marvellous and fantastic. This is very moving, and the whole group are in fine form here. Wonderful listening. This quickly goes back into the next song section. If Pink Floyd doesn’t move you musically, then nothing will. This is a fantastic live performance, even 50 years on. A sweet, lovely and soulful experience. “Hanging on in quiet desperation is the English way”, indeed. A beautiful piece, it goes back into the Breathe (In The Air) section again as a reprise. Roger Waters sings well here, and the band play nicely behind him. An awesome and timeless listen.

The Great Gig In The Sky begins with Richard Wright’s awesome and melancholy piano playing, evocating death itself. There are some gorgeous and nicely playing pedal steel slide guitar parts from David Gilmour here, and this tune sounds really lovely. Soon enough, it launches into a gloriously amazing and tuneful piece with the female singers singing a tune super well. This is amazing, although these ladies are not the original singer here from the main album. It does sound really pretty and amazing, however. A fine, fantastic and gorgeous tune to listen to, all these years later, it works sensationally, even in a live performance. Great and symphonic Rock music to listen to, Pink Floyd does really well here. The singing, psychedelic organ and piano playing are timeless here. There is plenty of light and shade in this performance. Great to listen to, and it knocks off everything else in the charts today. A pleasure to listen to, although this possibly could have been shortened a little as a live tune. Despite that, this is very near perfect by all members of Pink Floyd and guests. Fantastic music to listen to, be it for the first time or the 900th time. Awesome to hear. The piano at the end is a differentiation from the main album, as this gradually enters the next song. Excellent music to hear, every time. One hears the crowd cheer enthusiastically here as well, as this segues into the next song.

Money begins with the cash register sounds and a bass guitar version of the main riff. A little odd, but that’s fine here, as it still sounds good. The song then launches into it and sounds amazing. Roger Waters sings about the cynical and dark nature of the Capitalistic greed of hoarding money away for oneself. A wonderful tune that sounds really interesting and expressive, Pink Floyd maintains their musical sense and style here with their music, which remains timeless to this very day. The saxophone solo here, possibly by Dick Parry himself (the original saxophonist on The Dark Side Of The Moon) plays absolutely wonderfully here. A fine and tremendous effort musically, this sounds totally mindblowing and amazing as a song, even live. Most live performances do not add to the originals, but Pink Floyd does the opposite here. David Gilmour’s guitar solo is absolutely fantastic, and this song about the nature of money is very, very good. The breakdown with the guitar solo is really great, with David Gilmour playing nicely over Roger Waters’s basslines. Pink Floyd could cut it live as well. There is an extended and somewhat improvised guitar solo section by David Gilmour here along with the rest of the band playing brilliantly here. It goes quite subtle here, with Nick Mason providing flourishes of drumming here and there. Brilliant and beautiful music, these guys obviously were seasoned professionals at making music full-time. David Gilmour’s extended and soulful guitar solo sounds really excellent here, he plays excellently. Eventually, the rest of the band seep back in and this progresses nicely. This is fantastic, and Pink Floyd plays a great song with dramaticism and finesse. Towards the end, we reach a gradual conclusion that is pretty and impressive. Roger Waters begins to wrap up this song well, and this reaches a nice finish throughout. Great music, and is worth your ears, 100% of the way.

Us And Them leads into the piece with a swirling organ and some improvisation from Richard Wright. It is really lovely, warm sounding and beautiful here. It just adds a little colour and dimension to the original Pink Floyd tune. David Gilmour plays some pretty and interesting Fender Stratocaster leads here as well. Some sultry saxophone enters, which is really awesome to hear. Fine and fantastic music, as a live performance, you cannot get much better than this. Instead of delay on the vocals, there is a human effort of that delayed effect, which is interesting, and worth listening to. A really great and awesome tune to listen to regardless, which is fantastic. This is a treasure of a live performance, and this tune is no different in that respect. Saxophone and other sounds enter the climax of this song, and this sounds really brilliant, intense and beautiful. A wonderful, intricate and interesting live performance, Pink Floyd very much prove that they could cut their studio work well live, too. A real pleasure to listen to and even the differentiations from the album sounds are appreciated. If this doesn’t make you smile, nothing will. The saxophone returns in the second half to perfectly articulate the themes of the song. A sensationally great listen, this is the live album by Pink Floyd you must have in your collection. Rolling drum beats by Nick Mason enter in the second half, as this piece nicely progresses along. Worth your ears, all the way. Towards the end, the playing by the band reaches an honestly exciting climax that sounds really awesome and psychedelic. A great, great song, even live that works wonders psychologically. It ends with a great segueing into the next song.

Any Colour You Like is a cool rendition of the nature of the Psychedelic experience, if you have ever taken Psychedelics. The guitar sounds are completely different on this song to the album version, and Richard Wright plays some tripped-out keyboard sounds and progressions here. Pink Floyd was obviously not a one-trick pony, they had many musical surprises up their sleeve. A thoroughly amazing, fantastic and visual listen. Obviously, this song is drug-inspired but done so wonderfully and in a pleasant way. The climax throughout is really brilliant, and David Gilmour’s guitar playing is a perfect match for this song, which makes Metallica’s thrash metal work look lame. The playing and music here are fantastic. Towards the middle, this goes rather subtle and plays very nicely and quietly to their audience, which sounds absolutely superb. A really great tune, complete with bass guitar harmonics here, which is different. Excellent music to listen through and enjoy, this is a stunning instrumental piece that has the band purposely working together well as a unit on this song. Organ swells are present in the second half of this tune, and there are some nice and neat musical touches throughout. A cool and interesting listen, Pink Floyd blows every other Psychedelic and Progressive Rock band away with this awesome tune. Eventually, this progresses nicely with steady drumbeats, funky basslines, pleasant guitar parts and trippy keyboards. Excellent. It builds up to a noisy frenzy towards the end, and this instrumental is a real pleasure to hear. Well done, Pink Floyd. Very loud right at the end, it sounds great. It gradually segues into the next song.

Brain Damage is the next song, and has much applause at the start. Roger Waters sings nicely here, and the whole song is a great and wonderful tune to hear. The playing by the band perfectly complements the sounds present here, and this glorious song about life and its events comes alive here. Indeed, The Dark Side Of The Moon is about life itself, and this live performance brings it to life as well. If you have ever wondered about your own mental health, even if you are totally sane, this song is a good listen for that thought. A really fine piece of music, the combination of singing, backing vocals, mellow guitars and dramatic themes make this a real live performance treasure to hear. A grand listen, with canned laughter repeated in the background, this is really quite cool. It segues into the next tune, the last one here.

Eclipse begins to wrap up this continuous live performance by Pink Floyd and Roger Waters articulates perfectly the concept at hand. The Dark Side Of The Moon, although open to interpretation, is a concept album about life itself. It reaches a brilliant conclusion that will make you smile. This ends with hi-hats, clock chiming and loads of well-deserved audience applause. Roger Waters thanks the crowd, and one should like to thank the members of Pink Floyd personally for both the original record and this live performance. Amazing.

This is likely not just the best live performance by Pink Floyd ever done, but likely the greatest live album ever. It is so perfect on so many levels that you must hear this today, even if you aren’t a huge fan of Pink Floyd. Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Richard Wright and Nick Mason do well here. Even Syd Barrett, if he were in a good mindset, would have loved this. A fantastic album, seek this out today after hearing the 50th-anniversary edition of The Dark Side Of The Moon.

Superb and live music perfection.

9/10