Simon Mitchell - Pink Floyd Tribute

Pink Floyd at Bingley Hall Staffordshire in 1977 was just the best music concert I ever went to. It was Pink Floyd at their ‘prog. rock’ best. Dark Side of the Moon is also my favourite album ever – it has certainly stood the test of time! I know all the words to all the tracks and can sing along to the whole album.

So when I set off to see ‘’The Pink Floyd Show’ a Floyd Flesh tribute act at the Hall for Cornwall in Truro, it was with some trepidation. Would they rekindle the memory or shatter the illusion? In my mind at least the band had some tall order to match the brilliance that was Pink Floyd in their heyday.

On a somewhat more intimate scale, Floyd Flesh were nothing short of brilliant. Absolutely authentic sounds, perfect musical integrity, talented and highly skilled musicians played me some of my favourite songs from 1960’s to 1980’s Pink Floyd.

As a fan of early Floyd, under the influence of Syd, I would have preferred a little less of The Wall and more of their early stuff. For example, the hardly ever heard ‘Nile Song’, on the relics Album, predated punk music by several years and is a song worthy of any contemporary neo-punk band, a song just waiting for re-release. Likewise the mysteries of ‘See Emily Play’, Floyd Flesh’s lead guitar player’s first ever purchased single! How about ‘Careful with That Axe Eugene’ – flirting with dark comedy, or possibly even Syd Barrett’s ‘Bicycle’ – quirky and fundamentalist early Floyd. I would have much preferred these to the dark and twisted, ultimately negative messages of The Wall, for which the band quick-changed into Neo Natzi type costumes. But to be fair that is a personal choice and the Wall is a much better-known album. For me Floyd lost it with The Wall.

Perhaps one of the greatest challenges in replicating music from ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ has to be the female ‘improvised’ vocal on ‘The Great Gig in the Sky’, originally sung by Clare Torry, one of the greatest examples of ‘soul singing’ I know. Audra Mitcheson exceeded all expectations, her rendition was nothing short of fantastic, well worth the three rounds of spontaneous cheering that erupted from the audience during her ‘solo’.

The musicians in the band are:

Chris Thomas: guitars, vocals, Hammond, keyboards.

Steve Loar: Guitars, lap steel, vocals.

Patrick Forbear: bass guitar.

Jeff Glover: drums, vocals.

Steve Wiltshire: saxophones, wind synth, vocals.

Audra Mitcheson and Polly Anna Davies: vocals

They all gave not just a ‘rendition’ of the original material but an interpretation that somehow made it contemporary without stealing the integrity of the original.

Likewise the political intent of the tracks from Dark Side was rendered bang up to date with an amusing but highly pertinent slide show to accompany the music. The messages of Dark Side of the Moon 36 years on are as relevant as they ever were.

I went to the concert with my partner Sarah who is not really a Floyd fan and has much more M.O.R. tastes than me in music. She even went to see ‘Take That’ recently – I mean – Ugh ! We were accompanied by her 16 year-old niece, Ellen. Both enjoyed the concert for its musicality and not least a smashing laser light show.

I would recommend any Floyd fan to go and see this recreation of Floyds amazing music – it is a tribute band indeed. And for anyone who hasn’t entered the world of Pink Floyd, just go to enjoy the music, theatre and spectacle that Floyd Flesh create.

The only thing missing for me was being watched by a 50 foot inflatable pink pig with light-up eyes. And I would like to thank Dave and Justin for carrying me out of that concert in 1977.