
But this causes it to feel more like a collage of leftovers than a full-on studio record.īeing entirely instrumental, save for the final song “Louder than Words,” “The Endless River” tends to be a bit on the forgettable side, as it’s often difficult to distinguish one song from another, considering how they blend into each other. It certainly sounds like a spiritual successor to the previous album, what with Gilmour’s guitar tones and its heavy focus on Wright’s ethereal keyboards.

Repurposing many of the outtakes from “The Division Bell” recording sessions, Gilmour and Mason, in part, created “The Endless River” as a tribute to their deceased bandmate. Released 20 years after “The Division Bell” and six years after the death of Rick Wright, “The Endless River” is Pink Floyd’s final record and a bit of an oddity. While “More” does have its flashes of brilliance, it more so represents a band looking for direction, and, considering that “Ummagumma” came next, it clearly took them some time to find it. There are a handful of gems in this mixed bag, including the ominous “Cymbaline” and the lovely folk ballad “Green Is the Colour.” “The Nile Song” stands out as the closest that Pink Floyd ever got to heavy metal, and psychedelic cuts like “Main Theme” and “Cirrus Minor” also warrant attention.īut there are some clunkers here too, such as the grating “Quicksilver,” the absurd “A Spanish Piece,” and the completely unnecessary “Party Sequence.” Pink Floyd’s lone attempt at improvisational jazz, “Up the Khyber,” doesn’t do much to appeal either. “More” itself is an exploratory album, as Pink Floyd forays into all kinds of genres with varying levels of success. Both the film and the album have been largely forgotten by time, but the latter does have some parts worth exploring. Pink Floyd’s first record without any contributions from Barrett also serves as the soundtrack to a film of the same name. But they’re not enough to save “Ummagumma” from earning the bottom spot on this list.

It’s actually quite good, and the versions of “Careful with That Axe, Eugene” and “A Saucerful of Secrets” especially are improvements on their studio counterparts. It’s almost as if Pink Floyd knew they needed something to counteract the studio failures of “Ummagumma,” as the record also comes packaged with a second disc, which features live renditions of old favorites. If anything, “Ummagumma” proved that Pink Floyd was best off when working as a unit. The only salvageable numbers are Waters’ pleasant acoustic ballad “Grantchester Meadows” and Gilmour’s brooding three-part suite “The Narrow Way.” Even then, they don’t quite stack up with the timeless pieces that Pink Floyd would soon unleash. Not good at all, and quite frankly, Wright’s and Mason’s contributions aren’t much better. Nothing encapsulates this sentiment better than Waters’ ridiculous “Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving with a Pict,” which is, quite literally, five minutes of Waters making animal noises and spouting off nonsense in a hokey Scottish accent. They didn’t find it on “Ummagumma,” a wildly experimental record that too often drifts into nonsense for its own good.įor “Ummagumma,” the four remaining band members decided to write and record the tracks separately, and the end results are quite a mess. The departure of Barrett in 1968 sent Pink Floyd searching for the new sound that would redefine their career. In this article, we place all 15 entries of Pink Floyd’s studio record output under the microscope and rank them from worst to best.

Although the quartet of bassist Roger Waters, guitarist David Gilmour, keyboardist Rick Wright and drummer Nick Mason made some incredible music during their time together, some of their works don’t hold up as well as others. That said, not everything they touched turned to gold. Very few can say that they’ve had a discography as thoroughly enjoyable and as impactful as Pink Floyd.

It’s clear to see why, as monumental records like “The Dark Side of the Moon” and “The Wall” have stood the test of time while also providing the blueprint for some of music’s greatest accomplishments. Starting life as a psychedelic outfit under the leadership of Syd Barrett, Pink Floyd eventually grew into progressive rock legends that many revere as one of the greatest and most influential artists of all time. Pink Floyd Albums Ranked from Worst to BestĬhances are that you’ve heard of the name Pink Floyd. Pink-floyd-albums-ranked-from-worst-to-best
