Interstellar Overdrive
"Interstellar Overdrive" | |
---|---|
Instrumental by Pink Floyd | |
from the album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn | |
Released | 5 August 1967 |
Recorded | March and April 1967 |
Genre | |
Length | 9:41 (album version) 16:49 (London '66-'67 version) 3:02 (Tonite Lets All Make Love in London version) 14:57 (1966 recording) |
Label |
|
Composer(s) | |
Producer(s) | Norman Smith |
"Interstellar Overdrive" is an instrumental composition written and performed by the English rock band Pink Floyd. The song was written in 1966 and is on their 1967 debut album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, clocking in at almost ten minutes in length.[1][2] It features long sections of free-form instrumental improvisation reflective of the group's live performances.
The song originated when guitarist
Composition and music
"Interstellar Overdrive" was one of the first psychedelic
"Interstellar Overdrive" shares an emphasis on
Recording
The stereo version of the song has an organ moving from speaker to speaker; the effect is lost on the mono version of the song, where it simply gains an extra organ and guitar sound.
Alternative versions and live performances
The studio recording on The Piper at the Gates of Dawn is the one that most listeners are familiar with, yet several other versions survive from both the recording studio and the stage. It was first recorded as a demo on 31 October 1966,
For the session, which was booked for two hours, Wood and
Despite its encapsulation of their concert repertoire under the leadership of guitarist and composer Barrett, the long, improvisational, freeform structure of the piece is not particularly representative of the group's recorded output. As drummer Mason states in his book
In 1969, Frank Zappa joined the band onstage at the Actuel Festival in Amougies, Belgium, to perform a long loose version of the song.[50] Although Zappa himself later had no recollection of the performance, Floyd drummer Mason praised him, saying, "Zappa is really one of those rare musicians that can play with us. The little he did in Amougies was terribly correct."[51]
The song has been released in many different lengths across different releases, original 1967 Piper at the Gates of Dawn releases have the track at 9:41, whilst the edited 1968 Tonite Lets All Make Love in London version clocks in at 3:02. This same recording was released in its entirety twice, first on the 1990 reissue of the album, and then again in 1995 on the EP London '66–'67 clocking in at 16:49. The earliest studio recording of the song to be released was the 1966 recording with a running time of 14:57 and was released in 2017 on the Interstellar Overdrive single. Three live performances of the song featured on The Early Years 1965–1972 boxset, with timings being 4:24 (recorded in 1969), 8:57 (recorded in 1967) and 9:37 (recorded in 1968).
Covers and legacy
"Interstellar Overdrive" has been covered by many artists, including Teenage Fanclub[52] and Kylesa.[53]
- Camper Van Beethoven covered the song[54] on their studio album Camper Van Beethoven.[55]
- Nick Mason's Saucerful of Secrets included it in their repertoire of early Floyd material. "What I don't want to do is slavishly copy what we did on the album," Mason noted. "The great thing with 'Interstellar' is that it's a piece that lends itself to improvisation. What I'd like to do is capture some of the weirdness – some of the very specific things that Syd did – but actually bring a bit of our own language into it."[49]
- The album version was ranked number 36 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 100 greatest guitar songs of all time.[56]
- The song featured on Pink Floyd's compilation Relics,[57] and was considered for—but ultimately left off—their career-spanning retrospective Echoes: The Best of Pink Floyd.[58]
- "Interstellar Overdrive" was used in the 2016 film Doctor Strange, starring Benedict Cumberbatch in the title role.[59][60]
Personnel
Personnel per The Piper at the Gates of Dawn liner notes.[61]
- Syd Barrett – guitar
- Roger Waters – bass guitar
- Farfisa organ
- Nick Mason – drums
with:
- Norman Smith – drum roll[27]
References
- Footnotes
- Citations
- ISBN 1-84195-551-5.
- ^ ISBN 0-7119-4301-X.
- ^ ISBN 1-84353-575-0.
- ^ Pinnock, Tom (24 July 2015). "Pink Floyd's 30 best songs". Uncut. p. 11. Archived from the original on 19 March 2016. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
"Interstellar Overdrive" was avant-garde rock music.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-85965-431-9.
- ^ Cavanagh, John (2003). 33 1/3: Pink Floyd's The Piper at the Gates of Dawn. Bloomsbury. p. Ch. 1.
- ^ "The History of Prog in 50 Albums". Prog. 6 November 2016.
- ^ a b c Manning 2006, p. 26
- ^ Chapman 2010, pp. 125–6
- ^ Chapman 2010, p. 126
- ^ ISBN 978-1-908538-27-7.
- ISBN 9780812696363.
- ^ a b Palacios 2010, p. 189
- ^ Palacios 2010, p. 129
- ^ Palacios 2010, p. 200
- ^ Palacios 2010, p. 319
- ISBN 978-0-85965-431-9.
- ^ Palacios 2010, p. 187
- ^ a b Palacios 2010, p. 195
- ^ "Pink Floyd - Relics (Vinyl, LP) at Discogs". Discogs. 14 May 1971. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
- ^ "Pink Floyd - Relics - A Bizarre Collection of Antiques & Curios (Vinyl, LP) at Discogs". Discogs.com. 1971. Archived from the original on 1 February 2014. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
- ^ "Pink Floyd - A Nice Pair (Vinyl, LP) at Discogs". Discogs.com. 18 January 1974. Archived from the original on 20 December 2013. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
- ^ "Pink Floyd - A Nice Pair (Vinyl, LP) at Discogs". Discogs.com. 1975. Archived from the original on 26 June 2012. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
- ^ Manning 2006, p. 34
- ISBN 978-0-306-81752-6.
- ISBN 978-0-8264-1497-7.
- ^ a b Chapman 2010, p. 170
- ^ a b Manning 2006, p. 28
- ^ Palacios 2010, p. 136
- ^ Palacios 2010, pp. 136–137
- ^ a b c Palacios 2010, p. 156
- ^ a b c d e f g Palacios 2010, p. 157
- ^ a b c d e Manning 2006, p. 31
- ^ a b c d e f Chapman 2010, p. 123
- ISBN 9781476821368.
- ^ "Various - Tonite Let's All Make Love in London (Vinyl, LP, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. 1968. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
- ^ "Pink Floyd - London '66 - '67 (CD) at Discogs". Discogs.com. 1995. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
- ^ Manning 2006, p. 29
- ^ a b Manning 2006, p. 32
- ^ "Pink Floyd, The* – Arnold Layne (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs. 1967. Retrieved 24 December 2012.
- ^ "Pink Floyd – The Piper at the Gates of Dawn at Discogs". Discogs.com. Archived from the original on 7 February 2014. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
- ^ "Pink Floyd – The Piper at the Gates of Dawn at Discogs". Discogs.com. 11 September 2007. Archived from the original on 21 January 2013. Retrieved 23 April 2013.
- ^ Palacios 2010, p. 232
- ^ Palacios 2010, p. 299
- ^ Palacios 2010, p. 275
- ^ Palacios 2010, p. 301
- ISBN 978-0-9554624-0-5.
- ISBN 1-905139-09-8.
- ^ a b Yates, Henry (July 2018). "Set the controls for 60s Floyd". Classic Rock. No. 250. p. 14.
- ^ "Pink Floyd - with Frank Zappa 1969". YouTube. 3 July 2017. Archived from the original on 13 December 2021.
- ^ Fanelli, Damian (21 November 2017). "Watch Frank Zappa Jam with Pink Floyd". Guitar Player.
- ^ "The King - Teenage Fanclub : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 11 December 2012. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
- ^ Sullivan, Patrick. "Like Black Holes in the Sky: The Tribute to Syd Barrett - Various Artists : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 15 January 2013. Retrieved 22 April 2013.
- ISBN 1-84195-017-3.
- ^ Raggett, Ned. "Camper Van Beethoven - Camper Van Beethoven : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 4 March 2013. Retrieved 18 June 2013.
- ^ "Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time". Stereogum. 30 May 2008. Archived from the original on 30 September 2012. Retrieved 30 September 2012.
- ^ Kellman, Andy. "Relics - Pink Floyd : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 1 June 2013. Retrieved 18 June 2013.
- ^ Guthrie, James. "James Guthrie: Audio: Building A Compilation Album". Pink Floyd. Archived from the original on 2 June 2010. Retrieved 17 June 2013.
- ^ "Benedict Cumberbatch on playing Doctor Strange: 'The real superhero is my wife'". inews.co.uk. 27 October 2016. Archived from the original on 30 September 2017. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
- ^ Hoffman, Jordan (2 November 2016). "Why Doctor Strange shares its psychedelic DNA with Pink Floyd". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 30 September 2017. Retrieved 29 April 2018.
- ^ The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (Media notes). Pink Floyd. EMI. 1967. SCX6157.
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