 | |
List Price: $17.95 | | Publisher: Open Court
Salesrank: 181556
|
| Our Price: $11.00 |
| Used Price: $8.72 |
|
| Media: Paperback |
|
Editorial Review:
Pink Floyd’s sound and light shows in the 1960s defined psychedelia, but their later recordings combined rock, orchestral music, literature, and philosophy. Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall ignored pop music’s usual strictures to focus on themes of madness, despair, brutality, and alienation. Here, 16 scholars set delve into the heart of Pink Floyd by examining ideas, concepts, and problems usually encountered not in a rock band's lyrics but in the pages of Heidegger, Foucault, and Sartre. These include the meaning of existence, the individual's place in society, the contradictions of art and commerce, and the blurry line between genius and madness. The band’s dynamic history allows the writers to explore controversies about intellectual property, the nature of authorship, and whether wholes, especially in the case of rock bands, are more than the sum of their parts.
Pink Floyd and Philosophy (Popular Culture and Philosophy) Reviews:
A terrific book.. 
2008-02-20 - Pink Floyd's dynamic history allows the writers to explore controversies about intellectual property, the nature of authorship, and whether wholes, especially in the case of rock bands, are more than the sum of their parts.
A bit pretentious 
2008-02-18 - Let me start by saying that I am a 36 year old English Pink Floyd fan and count Roger Waters as one of the best lyric writers (and most underrated) of the last century. I expected great things from this book and there are some interesting chapters obviously written by fellow Pink Floyd admirers.
However, the "philosopher" writers tended at times to try and show off about how much they know about previous philosophers and tried to shoe-horn their opinions and characters to fit their arguments. Obviously they are American (and not used to English culture) as some of the arguments are just inaccurate... examples..
Pgs 246 - 248 Clever overblown discussion about Nietzsche and Syd Barrett especially the song "Octopus Ride"... again, an Octopus RIde was a fairground ride so nothing too clever or "philosophical" in these lyrics.
Pg 269 - Comparing the lyrics from the Final Cut of "maniacs don't blow holes in bandsmen by remote control" as a nod to Syd Barrett... umm, no. This is a reference to the IRA bombing of the Royal Marine orchestra in London in 1982.
There's several more of these inaccuracies or contrived writings but overall the book is a lot of fun but doesn't offer any new insights into Pink Floyd. The first chapter is also a weird choice discussing a reggae cover of DSOTM... definitely out of place in this book.
Recommended for the total PF addict only!
Shedding Light on the Dark Side of The Moon
2008-02-03 - Pink Floyd's music has always been a trippy joy for many, but unlike many of their contemporary counterparts in rock, many have found a unique deepness to their lyrics. Couple that with the stormy story of the band's existence and you have an area ripe for exploration. That is exactly what a number of writers do in this entry into the Popular Culture and Philosophy series. Most writers focus either on the "classic" period of Pink Floyd's music (Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here, Animals and The Wall) or upon the unfortunate breakdown of member Syd Barrett. As one might expect, Dark Side of the Moon is minded extensively for insights into alienation, madness and existence. If anything, too much time is spent on Dark Side of the Moon, often trying to mine the same set of lyrics. Some essays touch upon the other albums but not to the extent of Moon. Other essays look at the sad descent of Syd into alienation and madness, and bring connections of his experiences to the band's lyrics showing his influence even when not there.
This volume brings onboard a broad spectrum of writers, including several who are not philosophers or philosophy professors. As a result much of the book carries more discussion of Pink Floyd and the philosophy of life and existence as opposed to viewing the band's work in terms of classical philosophy. There are good examples of the latter - Nietzsche, Foucault and Camus are all mined for insight in essays, but are not used as heavily as earlier volumes. The result is a more accessible entry in the series for non-philosophers to enjoy, gain insight and hopefully listen to Pink Floyd's music in a new way.
Great Book!
2008-01-25 - I recieved this book right on time and it was in great condition the person i bought it for absolutely loved it!
