Exactly 50 years ago today, on March 7, 1973, Pink Floyd took to the stage of the International Amphitheatre, Chicago, IL, USA, in celebration of the release of The Dark Side of the Moon, in a set spanning over 2 hours, featuring songs such as Echoes, Obscured By Clouds, When You’re In, Childshood End, Careful with That Axe, Eugene, and the entire Dark Side of the Moon album with the encore of One of These Days.

As part of the celebrations currently ongoing for the 50th anniversary of “The Dark Side of the Moon,” Mark Campbell, a budding fan of the band who was in attendance at the International Amphitheatre, has very kindly given us permission to share his collection of photos online for the first time.

These were taken exactly 50 years ago, on this date.

When sharing these photos, Mark had this to say: “ Fifty(!) years ago tonight, I saw Pink Floyd from the eighth row on their Dark Side of the Moon tour at the International Amphitheatre. The album had just been released a week earlier, so we had no idea it would attain such legendary status. These photos were taken by me with my cheap Kodak Instamatic and by my friend with his Nikon 35mm. It was back in the days before heavy security, when you could leave your seat, walk right up to the front of the stage, and take pictures. Back then, their stage set looked (and was) incredibly high-tech. Now it almost looks like a high school band. And I still wonder why the band didn’t cover up that stockyards-era ad behind the stage for the Sirloin Room restaurant. At the time, the staging was incredibly high-tech, but now, it looks pretty tame. I took these pictures from my 8th row seat.”

Our thanks go to Mark for allowing us to use his collection.

As part of the 2023 Record Store Day celebrations, Sony Classical Masterworks has announced that Stravinsky’s The Soldier’s Tale, narrated by Roger Waters, is going to be pressed onto 1000 limited edition 12″ vinyl on April 7, 2023.

Originally released in 2018 on Sony Classical Masterworks, Stravinsky’s The Soldier’s Tale is a new adaptation of the narration for Stravinsky’s 1918 theatrical work solely for orchestra, where Waters is set to narrate the story and voice all of its characters. Waters worked with seven musicians associated with the Bridgehampton Chamber Music Festival, forming an ensemble that sought to honor Stravinsky’s work while reinterpreting it for a new audience.

According to the original press release, this project is but the latest in a string of forays into the world of high art for Waters. “Both here and in other works Waters certainly feels an affinity with this moment in the history of music whenever he has to decide how atonal to make his music. How radical should it be? And how is music related to the Classical and Romantic tradition? This is arguably the most important question that progressive music has to ask itself today.”

Waters’ choice of The Soldier’s Tale is serendipitous, give that “he has wanted for a long time to engage more deeply with the work of a composer whose weight and occasional inaccessibility may perhaps have much in common with” his own music.

Stravinsky’s The Soldier’s Tale in limited edition clear vinyl is set for release April 7th via Sony Classical Masterworks

To pre-order your copy of one of the 1000 clear edition vinyls, you can do so by Clicking Here

A very happy birthday to Snowy White, who began his association with Pink Floyd in 1977 for the In The Flesh tour.