ATOM HEART MOTHER

Oh, I know it's not a favorite of critics. I do know that I like this album. Here we have the Floyd not just explicitly going prog, but they also have an orchestra, for which all parts were arranged by Ron Geesin. This kind of symphonic rock is present on only two tracks of this album, one of which is the 23-minute "suite" as the title track. Richard Wright may not have been very fond of the track many years after its creation, but I happened to like it. The "suite" is very well structured, constituted of somewhat prissy sections. Let's just give the band a chance to explore one more musical style.

Another one of my favorites here is 'Summer '68'. Rick continues his string of urban poppy narratives with this song. I like that soft jazzy-folky middle-eight that has a great contrast with the loud rocksy and orchestral parts. I also like the vocal harmonies on that song; they are just so rich in timbre. This may sound blasphemous and inconceivable to you, but I think that song is a bit ahead of its time. It has David Gilmour projecting a vocal delivery that would be very suitable in the alt-rock scene.

Allow me to also mention my biggest favorite on the album, the widely resented 'Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast'. "What? You like this crap?" Yes, I'm laughing right now, and yes, I like this crap. This long snake has sounds of a guy coming in and out of the kitchen, as if they were the exposition and recapitulation of a long piece of, ahem, music. You also have sounds with the same guy heating up water for tea, discussing the meals on the menu - basically, making breakfast, which gives this 13-minute "atrocity" a humorous edge. Let the band have a joke at it. My most favorite of the three sections on this "piece" is the hypnotic, ambient-folky middle section featuring a slide guitar and an acoustic guitar. I must have spent an hour trying to learn at least the first 30 seconds of that intricate acoustic guitar part.

"Wait a second, what about 'If' and 'Fat Old Sun'?" I'm not going to answer this question. Just enjoy what you have on the hand.

Ratings/comments (if you have to ask):

1. 'Atom Heart Mother' - ****

2. 'If' - **

3. 'Summer '68' - ****

4. 'Fat Old Sun' - *

5. 'Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast' - *****

Stamp: "I like it."