Pink Floyd: they live in the British national consciousness, and they will forever.

How did this group become entwined with the psychedelic backwaters of 1967 London? How did they cope with the traumatic loss of their visionary songwriter, Syd Barrett? Why did they break out from the cult band label to sell over sixty million copies of two iconic 1970s albums? And what happened when a wall appeared, cutting them off from their audience and even from one another? Could they survive the loss of further group members?

This unique group gave so much to Britain, yet in telling the personal stories of the five remarkable individuals comprising it, the impact of their music is sometimes overlooked. This book focuses on that music: Syd Barrett’s melodic childhood nuggets, David Gilmour’s transcendent blues guitar, Roger Waters’ lyrical brilliance, and Nick Mason’s mesmeric drumming; and the keyboards and voice of Rick Wright, whose loss inspired mourning and tributes reinforcing his position as the soul of the group, not least when it came to the final Pink Floyd album.

In its 192 pages, this book tells a fifty-five-year story, from the sun-dappled haunts of Cambridge through stadium concerts and the fourth best-selling album of all time, to the messy but ultimately triumphant conclusion. It includes concert photographs contributed by fans and offers analysis of both the music and the context in which it was created. The book covers every significant album in detail and highlights the unique contributions of each of the five members of Pink Floyd, all while being written by a musician who is also a long-standing fan of the band.

Pink Floyd reside close to the heart of Britain, but their story belongs to the world.

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