Pink Floyd Counterculture

At the dawn of the 1960s, Britain was still recovering from the wounds inflicted by the Second World War. After a time of political instability, a revolution was sweeping the nation. The counterculture movement was beginning to take root all across the world; correspondingly, much of the movement was greatly influenced by musical artists originating in Britain (Watson). According to Rolling Stone Magazine, Bands including The Beatles, The Kinks, The Rolling Stones, and The Who, stood at the forefront of what is known as the “British invasion” -- the spread of British rock and roll to America and other parts of the world. Another up and coming band, Pink Floyd, also emerging from the counterculture movement, used traditional rock and roll influences,
Pink Floyd’s ninth album, Dark Side of the Moon was an instant commercial success. After its release in 1971, the album remained on the top billboard charts for a record-breaking 741 weeks. Beyond commercial success, the album represented an important shift of rock and roll into a more mature, avant-garde style that dealt with themes beyond the traditional. According to a critical review by the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, “the album addressed such subjects as aging, madness, money and time.” At the time, these themes rarely could be found in rock music. Roger Waters was the creative force behind the album, penning all of the lyrics and developing the idea of a “concept album” -- an album that flows together between tracks and represents an entire work rather than a series of individual songs (Harris 85). Strikingly different from the music at the time, Dark Side of the Moon represents an important milestone in rock and roll history, and it defined the beginning of the progressive rock
Next guitar, synthesizer, and drums enter in an ominous minor chord that transitions into lighter counterparts. The weight given to the first chord conveys a heavy yet mysterious tone that continues until the lyrics bring clarity to the song’s theme. After the instrumental introduction, David Gilmour enters with the lyrics: “Ticking away the moments that make up a dull-day.” These lyrics set the stage for the rest of the song by introducing Waters’s slightly negative outlook on life and his lament for the passage of time. More importantly, the lyrics emphasize Waters’s frustration and anger towards the idea of wasted time: “You fritter and waste the hours in an offhand way.” Ironically, Waters’s upbringing taught him to take advantage of opportunities which ultimately led him to pursue an architectural degree, yet he gave up his aspirations to become a musician. In response, Waters’s lyrics address a third person, an ambiguous “you” that most likely represents himself in his own struggle with the passage of time. Waters regrets missed opportunities in his early life thus he writes “Time” to express this struggle and serve as a forewarning to others. The first verse is followed by a bridge that addresses the moment at which one finds time has passed him/her by. “And then one day you find ten years have got behind you, no one told you when to run you missed