Who’s Next

Richard Wright: Wish You Were Here
Posted Mon Sep 15, 2008 12:40pm PDT by Billy Altman in Stop The Presses!

The news that founding Pink Floyd member Richard Wright has passed away from cancer at age 65 will no doubt bring a barrage of stories detailing the assorted onstage/offstage twists and turns of the group’s long career. And make no mistake: Over the years, the group’s combination of both the bizarre and the bitter when it came to their internal affairs was as much a source of fascination to their legions of fans as their often brilliant music, which have generated enough album/CD sales that if laid end to end would probably stretch from the London architecture school where they first met in the early 1960s all the way to that dark side of the moon and back again–and probably a few round trip’s worth at that.

Trips, of course, of both the physical and mental variety, were what Pink Floyd’s earliest recordings such as “Interstellar Overdrive” and “Astronomy Domine” were all about–especially in the day-gloed days before their original guiding force guitarist Syd Barrett went on a few too many of them and had to leave the group. And while the emergence of bass player/songwriter Roger Waters and Barrett’s skilled replacement David Gilmour certainly led the way for Floyd’s ascension in the 1970s as one of rock’s premier acts with 1973’s aforementioned Dark Side or 1979’s epic The Wall, it was in many respects Richard Wright’s expansive keyboards that served as the musical compass that allowed Pink Floyd to continually (as the song said) “Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun.”

Those familiar with the band’s history probably know that it was during the recording of The Wall that the increasingly difficult to work with Waters forced Wright out of the band as an “official” member, leading to an increasingly period in the 1980s in which the keyboardist toured with his own group–as a salaried accompanist. It wasn’t until the latter part of the decade after Waters finally left the band–and unsuccessfully sued Gilmour and drummer Nick Mason over rights to the Pink Floyd name–that Wright rejoined as a full member. (In the interim Wright released a solo album, fittingly titled Identity.)

Anyone who saw Wright perform alongside Gilmour, Mason and yes, Waters, too, in their short but power-packed set at the Live 8 megaconcert in England in 2005 can attest to the still potent collective sound made by this ever-strange quartet of players.

5 Responses to “Who’s Next”

  1. Thanks. I hadn’t heard this.

    Have to go listen to the intro to “Sheep” now.

  2. HELLLLOOOO….. hello….. hello….. Is there anybody in here?

    [IMO, The Wall is overrated, but it fit.]

  3. Maybe no one wants to “Meddle” into “A Saucer Full of Secrets” for fear it will turn them into Syd.

  4. Guess I answered my own question.

    Kingston Trio’s Nick Reynolds, 75, dies in SD
    Oct. 2, 2008, 8:19 PM EST

    SAN DIEGO (AP) — Nick Reynolds, a founding member of the Kingston Trio who jump-started the revival folk scene of the late 1950s and paved the way for artists such as Bob Dylan and Joan Baez, has died. He was 75.

    Reynolds had been hospitalized with acute respiratory disease and other illnesses, and died Wednesday in San Diego after his family took him off life support, said son Joshua Reynolds.

    “Dad was so happy he turned people onto music in a way that people could really approach it, in a simple and honest way,” Josh Reynolds told The Associated Press. “He was a very gracious and loving performer. He was a devoted family man.”

    The Kingston Trio’s version of the 19th century folk song “Tom Dooley” landed the group a No. 1 spot on the charts in 1958, and launched the band’s career.

    Born on July 27, 1933, in San Diego, Nicholas Reynolds demonstrated an early love of music and did sing-alongs with his two sisters and their Navy captain-father, who taught him to play guitar.

    He graduated from Coronado High School in 1951 and attended the University of Arizona and San Diego State University before attending Menlo College, a business school near Palo Alto. He graduated from Menlo in 1956.

    It was during the mid-1950s that Nicholas Reynolds met Bob Shane, who introduced him to Stanford student Dave Guard. Guard and Shane knew each other from playing music in Guard’s native Hawaii. The three formed the Kingston Trio.

    In 1958, “Tom Dooley” earned Reynolds, Guard and Shane a trophy for best country and western performance at the first Grammys. The group, defined by tight harmonies and a clean-cut style, went on to win a Grammy the next year for best folk performance for its album “The Kingston Trio At Large.”

    Later member John Stewart joined the group in 1961, replacing Guard. Stewart died in January, also in San Diego.

    After leaving the Kingston Trio in 1967, Reynolds moved to Oregon, where he stayed until the 1980s and took a break from music to raise his family, his son said.

    Reynolds moved back to California in the mid-1980s and rejoined Stewart for one album. In 1991, Reynolds rejoined Shane in a reconstituted version of the Trio. He remained with the group until retiring in 2003, his son said.

    Reynolds is survived by his wife Leslie, sons Joshua and John Pike Reynolds, daughters Annie Reynolds Moore and Jennifer Reynolds, and his two sisters.
    Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

  5. Richard Wright, you were one of the padding greats. I’m sad to hear you’re gone. I’ve got to go get some Sheep.

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