If you are a Pink Floyd fan then you gotta have the box set "Oh, by the Way". It contains all 14 Studio albums, most of which some people have never heard of. You get everything, yes everything that the boys from Cambridge produced in the studio. You also get 2 collectors posters and some nice coasters. All the great tunes everyone has heard before and a whole bunch of music that the radio stations wouldn't dare to play, but they should have. If you were to purchase all the albums separately they could cost you almost $400. If you are like me and started buying Floyd albums on cassette and then again on CD, because the cassettes wore out, then you might want to buy this box set and rip the albums to mp3s. And yes, you can even get all 14 albums onto 1 CD-R. This will make a great gift for anyone who has an appreciation for listening to and understanding the progression of a rock band that has left such a huge mark on music.
Other than the obvious Albums in this set, Dark Side of the Moon, The Wall and Wish You Were Here. Here are some thoughts on a few of the not so known albums that are noteworthy and should be listened to if only to hear the progression and maturation of the band.
Atom Heart Mother is one of my favorite albums that the average listener wouldn't think was a Floyd Album, but it was the 1st album to be specially mixed for 4-channel Quadraphonic Sound. Quadraphonic is a very early version of what we now know as that modern marvel called Surround Sound. Surround sound has revolutionized the way we watch movies in the theater, our living rooms and the way we play games on the computer and consoles. Just think what kind of a breakthrough it was back in 1970 on some progressive rock bands album. Quadraphonic Sound would be utilized at concerts to create some seriously trippy sound effects. The 1st Song is the Atom Heart Mother suite. It is about 24 minutes long and can seem bizarre at 1st. But when you give it a 2nd chance you can hear the instrumental experimentation paying off.
A Saucer Full of Secrets was a major turning point for Pink Floyd since founding member Syd Barrett started to become too hard to deal with, due to LSD usage, and David Gilmour was brought in to finish the album. You can start to hear Syd's influence mixing with David's melodic guitar.
Animals is a fantastic example of Pink Floyd's ability to change their musical style. This thematic album is based on the Orwell book Animal Farm and the social-political condition that was affecting Britain in the 70's. This entire album has a darker undertone than previous releases that could be perceived as a precursor to the bands turbulent times to come. If you listen closely you can hear every member of the band adding their own touches to the songs complementing each others strengths.
Not included in this box set is Pulse which includes the entire Dark Side of the Moon album performed live and Astronomy Domine which hasn't been performed live since about 1972. The rest of the album is a nice mix of tracks from The Division Bell and the more popular hits like Hey You, Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Learning To Fly and many more.You Gotta have the Pink Floyd Box set Oh, by the Way.
