| "Time" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
.png) USHarvest Records single | ||||
| Single byPink Floyd | ||||
| from the albumThe Dark Side of the Moon | ||||
| A-side | "Us and Them" | |||
| Released | 4 February 1974 (1974-02-04) (US) | |||
| Recorded | 3 June 1972 – 1 February 1973[1] | |||
| Studio | EMI, London | |||
| Genre | Progressive rock[2] | |||
| Length |
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| Label | Harvest | |||
| Composers | ||||
| Lyricist | Roger Waters | |||
| Producer | Pink Floyd | |||
| Pink Floyd US singles chronology | ||||
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| Audio | ||||
| "Time" onYouTube | ||||
"Time" is a song by the Englishrock bandPink Floyd. It is included as the fourth track on their eighth albumThe Dark Side of the Moon (1973) and was released as a single in the United States. With lyrics written by bassistRoger Waters, guitaristDavid Gilmour shares lead vocals with keyboardistRichard Wright (his last until "Wearing the Inside Out" on the band's 1994 albumThe Division Bell).
The lyrics deal with the passage of time. Waters got the idea when he realised he was no longer preparing for anything in life, but was right in the middle of it. He has described this realisation taking place at ages 28 and 29 in various interviews.[3] It is noted for its long introductory passage of clocks chiming and alarms ringing. The sounds were recorded in an antique store made as aquadrophonic test by engineerAlan Parsons, not specifically for the album.[4]
The album track also includes a reprise of the song "Breathe". It is the only song on the album to credit all four principal members for songwriting, and the last to do so in the band's discography.[5]
"Time" is in the key ofF♯ minor. Each clock at the beginning of the song was recorded separately in anantiques store. These clock sounds are followed by a two-minute passage dominated byNick Mason's drum solo, withrototoms and backgrounded by atick-tock sound created byRoger Waters picking the muted second and third strings on his bass.David Gilmour sings lead on the verses, whileRichard Wright singslead on the bridges with female singers and Gilmour providing backup vocals. The lyrics deal with Roger Waters' realization that life was not about preparing yourself for what happens next, but about grabbing control of your own destiny.[3] The recording was recorded quadraphonically by sound engineer Alan Parsons in an antique shop and begins with an homage to the songKlingklang (1971/1972) by the groupKraftwerk, or rather, is reminiscent of it.[6]
He [Alan Parsons] had just recently before we did that album gone out with a whole set of equipment and had recorded all these clocks in a clock shop. And we were doing the songTime, and he said "Listen, I just did all these things, I did all these clocks," and so we wheeled out his tape and listened to it and said "Great! Stick it on!" And that, actually, is Alan Parsons' idea.
The drums used on theTime track are roto-toms. I think we did some experiments with some other drums calledboo-bans, which are very small, tuned drums, but the roto-toms actually gave the best effect.
According to an interview by Phil Taylor in 1994, David Gilmour had been using aLexicon PCM-70 to store the circular delay sounds heard in "Time", which could duplicate the kind of echo he used to get from his oldBinson echo unit.[8]
The verse chords cycle through F♯ minor,A major,E major, and F♯ minor again. During this section, Gilmour's guitar and Wright's keyboards are panned to the extreme right and left of the stereo spectrum, respectively. Gilmour sings lead during this section.[9]
The bridge section, with Wright singing lead, has a notably "thicker" texture, with the female backing vocalists singing multi-tracked "oohs" and "aahs" throughout, and Gilmour singing harmony with Wright in the second half. The chords of this section are Dmajor seventh to Amajor ninth, which is repeated. The second half progresses from D major seventh toC♯ minor, thenB minor toE major.[9]
The first bridge leads to a guitar solo by Gilmour, which plays over the verse and bridge progressions. The solo is followed by another verse sung by Gilmour. When the bridge is repeated, it does not conclude on E major as before. Instead, the B minor leads to anF major chord, while Waters's bass stays on B, resulting in an unusualdissonance as a transition to the key ofE minor for "Breathe (Reprise)".[9]
Pink Floyd performed the song live from 1972 to 1975, and after the departure of Waters, from 1987 to 1994. Waters began performing the song in his solo concerts, singing the verses himself, beginning in 1999 withIn the Flesh and again withThe Dark Side of the Moon Live from 2006 to 2008 (occasionally featuring guest appearances from Nick Mason) and theUs + Them Tour from 2017 to 2018. Gilmour has performed the song live on every one of his solo tours sincethe Division Bell Tour, with the late Richard Wright sharing vocals until his death.
In a contemporary review forThe Dark Side of the Moon,Loyd Grossman ofRolling Stone gave "Time" a positive review, describing the track as "a fine country-tinged rocker with a powerful guitar solo by David Gilmour".[10]Billboard andLouder Sound ranked the song number nine and number five, respectively, on their lists of the 50 greatest Pink Floyd songs.[11][12]
"Time" was named one ofThe Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.
During live performances, the band back-projected a specially-commissioned, animated film byIan Emes.[13][14] The film was subsequently included as an extra on thePulse DVD.[13]
with:
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Italy (FIMI)[18] sales since 2009 | Gold | 25,000‡ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[19] | Platinum | 30,000‡ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[20] sales since 2009 | Gold | 400,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
| "Time" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single byRoger Waters | ||||
| from the albumThe Dark Side of the Moon Redux | ||||
| Released | 24 August 2023 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 7:19 | |||
| Songwriters |
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| Producers |
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| Roger Waters singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "Time" onYouTube | ||||
"Time" is a single by English musician and Pink Floyd cofounder Roger Waters, which serves as the second single to his albumThe Dark Side of the Moon Redux, a full re-recording ofThe Dark Side of the Moon.
Around early 2023, Waters announced that in celebration of the 50th anniversary ofThe Dark Side of the Moon, he would be releasing a full-length re-recording of the record not featuring the rest of Pink Floyd that would try and re-address the political and emotional statements made on that record.[21] The record's name, cover, and lead single, "Money" was released on 21 July 2023. "Time" would be released 2 months later alongside a lyric video on 24 August 2023.[22]
Similar to lead single "Money", Waters strips back much of thepsychedelic instrumentation and heavily slows it down from the original, putting a greater emphasis on Waters' crooning vocals, atmospheric production, and in general a more mellow sound.[23][24][25]
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