Wish You Were Here

This Analogue Productions Pink Floyd WISH YOU WERE HERE SACD has to be the best sounding cd version of this classic LP. The synthesizer really just superbly stands out. Wright's keyboard parts just literally speaks volumes and shows just how versatile and innovative Richard Wright was. Great guitars by Gilmour is just so enthralling. This version is the best cd version to own.

Perfect as described.

Wish You Were Here is frequently referred to as the best Pink Floyd album, by fans and by half the band. It isn't my favorite, but I would still put it somewhere in the top 5 out of the 15 Floyd official studio albums.It contains one of the greatest elegies in classic rock, or any genre, in the form of Shine On You Crazy Diamond. The only thing that subtracts from it is the fact (and by "the fact" I mean "my dumb opinion") that parts 8 and 9 seem real unfocused and low on ideas compared to the rest of the thing.Shine On is a behemoth and it dominates the majority of the album. But the other three songs all stand up; I'd categorize them all as classics. Really, with that in mind, it's no surprise how many people say this is their best. They're highly distinct from each other: Welcome to the Machine is cold, industrial progressive rock, albeit with acoustic guitars, Have a Cigar is futuristic electric Blues-rock, and Wish You Were Here is like an English stoner's version of the Country & Western genre. While the songs are thematically connected, the extreme musical differences between all of them, gives Wish You Were Here a disconnected patchwork quality. The contrast between, say, Have a Cigar and the title track, for example, are so jarring that it sounds like two different bands. I suppose this is appropriate for a band that's said to have been struggling with its own identity by the mid 70's. This apparent disconnectedness works to the album's advantage, making it seem a bit like a nonlinear, surrealist TV or radio drama.Lyrically, you're dealing with a seriously haunted record. It's Roger Waters trademark mixture of human compassion and mechanized cynicism at its most focused. The guy's heart is clearly being pulled in at least two or three directions, and it's messing with the essence of his very soul. If the album could speak it'd say something a bit like this: "Look what they've done to us. Look what they did to Syd Barrett. Look what we did to ourselves. Look what we did to Syd Barrett. Get us out of here, we just want to be a band again."Anyway, right, the bonus material. The coolest cuts on the bonus disc are Raving & Drooling and You've Gotta Be Crazy. They're not quite "lost" songs because they turned into Sheep and Dogs, respectively, but they're different enough from those songs to be pretty fascinating. Without the Orwellian stuff that would later be added, the songs fit in well with the themes of Wish You Were Here. You've Gotta Be Crazy is about sacrificing your sanity to get ahead, to be a "success". Once again there's that underlying, unspoken message: "For God's sake, get us out of here." Raving & Drooling, meanwhile, is brutal-sounding song about the violence of human nature, and the act of "pretending the rest are not real". Without the comical "Sheep" metaphor it's quite disturbing for mid-70's Pink Floyd, a sort of sonic portrait of a full-on psychopath. In addition to those two there's a version of Have a Cigar with Roger's originally vocals on it, the ones he was unsatisfied with and replaced with Roy Harper. I like it better than the version that made the cut. The alternate take of the title track, with the violins, and the live version of Shine On, performed in its entirety, are also great. The two-minute 'wine-glasses' instrumental is kind of underwhelming; it just sounds like the first movement of Shine On You Crazy Diamond, standing on its own.

LLego en perfecto estado, muy recomendado

There's probably little reason to write a review about the studio album Wish You Were Here. What else can be said about this beautifully amazing album that hasn't already been prosed upon? So I'll concentrate on the 2011 remaster and, more importantly the second CD of the Experience Edition.I have to say that, so far, with the possible exception of Ummagumma, most of the 2011 Floyd remasters have been excellent. I do think that WYWH seems to benefit less than, say, Animals did. Why? I believe it's because that I think WYWH already sounded stellar to start with. There wasn't as much room for improvement as some of the other albums. What does that mean? It means this 2011 remaster of WYWH sounds incredible. If you already have any of the previous CDs and are thinking about getting the single CD Discovery Edition I might think twice. If you've never owned WYWH before you should just as well get the 2011 version to ensure top sound quality.However, the Experience Edition isn't just about the studio album. It's about the second live CD. Let me just spill the beans right here and say just buy it. The sound quality of the 1974 performance is stunning. With the Dark Side '74 live CD and this '74 live CD they are amoung the best I've heard from a live rock performance on CD. The bonus is you get to hear Pink Floyd strut their stuff in concert with Roger, David, Rick and Nick all at their peak. And peak it is. The entire ensemble cast together. What more can you ask for?Shine on You crazy Diamond (SYD) is just something you have to hear and sounds somewhat different than the studio version. I was never a huge fan of Have a Cigar but this alternate take is great and has an acoustic sound to it that adds warmth to the (intentionally) cold song. The title song Wish You Were Here (this is not a live version but an alternate studio version) is a wonderful rendition even if the violin is a bit too forward in the mix. Again, it doesn't seem to have a studion sound and comes through a bit more raw in the best sense of the word. The Household Objects track is interesting but a filler.EDIT: I forgot to add the songs Raving and Drooling and You've Got to Be Crazy live. These were Dogs and Sheep before they were finalized for the Animals album. I prefer You've Got to be Crazy. But that's just me. Either way both songs sound sweet and are a nice treat to hear.My only wish would have been to hear a different take on Welcome to the Machine. Other than that great stuff!I think WYWH and the DSotM Experience versions are essential if you're a Pink Floyd fan. 5 stars without hesitation.

Must admit that this has been my favorite Pink Floyd album since the beginning of their magnificent career. A haunting album that's sound its best at 2am.