285: WISH YOU WERE HERE | PINK FLOYD

Wish You Were Here is the ninth studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 12 September 1975 through Harvest Records and Columbia Records, their first release for the latter. Based on material Pink Floyd composed while performing in Europe, Wish You Were Here was recorded over numerous sessions throughout 1975, at Abbey Road Studios in London.

The album encompasses a variety of themes, including criticism towards the music business, alienation, as well as a tribute to founding member Syd Barrett, who left seven years earlier due to his deteriorating mental health. Like their previous record, The Dark Side of the Moon (1973), Floyd used studio effects, synthesizers and brought in guest singers, including Roy Harper, who provided the lead vocals on "Have a Cigar", and Venetta Fields, who added backing vocals to "Shine On You Crazy Diamond". To promote the album, the band released the double A-side single "Have a Cigar" / "Welcome to the Machine".

Wish You Were Here received mixed reviews from critics upon its initial release, who found its music to be uninspiring and inferior to their previous work. It has retrospectively received critical acclaim, hailed as one of the greatest albums of all time, and was cited by keyboardist Richard Wright and guitarist David Gilmour as their favorite Pink Floyd album. The album reached number one in the US and UK, and Harvest's parent company, EMI, was unable to keep up with the demand. Since then, the record has sold an estimated 13 million copies.

During 1974, Pink Floyd sketched out three new compositions, "Raving and Drooling", "You Gotta Be Crazy" and "Shine On You Crazy Diamond".[nb These songs were performed during a series of concerts in France and England, the band's first tour since 1973's The Dark Side of the Moon. As Pink Floyd had never employed a publicist and kept themselves distant from the press, their relationship with the media began to sour. Mason said later that a critical NME review by Syd Barrett devotee Nick Kent may have had influence in keeping the band together, as they returned to the studio in the first week of 1975. Full Article