Home · Songs · Pink Floyd · Speak to Me
From album
The Dark Side of the Moon
Pink Floyd · 1973
Details
TonalidadBm
Compás3/4
Tempo112 BPM
Duración1:04
ÁlbumThe Dark Side of the Moon
Año1973
ISRCGBN9Y1100076
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The story behind
The first piece we hear on *The Dark Side of the Moon*, *Speak to Me*, is an intriguing sonic construction. It's not a song in the traditional sense, but rather a collage of effects and fragments. Here we find the constant heartbeat that later reappears in *Eclipse*, the ticking of a clock that anticipates *Time*, and even the sound of a cash register, a nod to *Money*. Fragments of recorded conversations also sneak in, such as Peter Watts' laughter, which links to *Brain Damage*, and a scream from Clare Torry, which anticipates her work on *The Great Gig in the Sky*. In the end, a reversed piano chord prepares us for the next piece, *Breathe*.
This track, which lasts barely a minute and a half, has the peculiarity that Nick Mason is credited as the sole composer. However, accounts of how this came to be differ. Mason states that he created it himself, while Richard Wright and Roger Waters suggest it was a gesture to allow Mason to earn publishing income. The album, released in 1973, was conceived as an exploration of the pressures of the band's life and the mental health issues of Syd Barrett. For its creation, new ideas were recorded in two periods during 1972 and 1973 at EMI studios in London. During the album's preparation, Waters collected questions to interview people, including Paul McCartney, who was recording *Red Rose Speedway* in another studio. McCartney's answers were recorded but ultimately discarded from the album's final mix, as Waters considered them too formal.
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