The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
| Pink Floyd
The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
The Piper at the Gates of Dawn is the debut studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, and the only one made under founding member Syd Barrett's leadership. The album, named after the title of chapter seven of Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows and featuring a kaleidoscopic cover photo of the band taken by Vic Singh, was recorded from February to May 1967 and released on 4 August 1967. It was produced by Beatles engineer Norman Smith and released in 1967 by EMI Columbia in the United Kingdom and Tower in the United States, in August and October respectively. -Wikipedia
Critic Reviews
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Soundblab
What is beyond dispute is that an endearingly quirky and very English sense of humour is one important component in helping to make ‘The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn’ a classic album.
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Pitchfork
Few would criticize the merits of The Piper at the Gates of Dawn itself (as reflected in the rating above)-- it's an essential album.
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All Music
The Piper at the Gates of Dawn successfully captures both sides of psychedelic experimentation -- the pleasures of expanding one's mind and perception, and an underlying threat of mental disorder and even lunacy.
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BBC Music
Syd Barrett's crowning achievement. THE psychedelic classic of 1967.
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NME
Classic '60s British spook-rock.
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Sputnik Music
It is possibly the best psychedelic album out there.
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Classic Rock Review
Aside from a few more single tracks and one song on the next album, Barrett would not perform with the band again, making The Piper At the Gates of Dawn, a truly unique work.
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Rockhaq
Pink Floyd’s 1967 debut album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn may be a far cry from the bombastic progressive rock that will define their most successful albums, but it definitively embodies the inventive spirit of ’60s psychedelia in ways just as inspiring 50 years later.
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Ultimate Classic Rock
One of the most incredible debut albums was released by one of the most incredible bands in the history of rock 'n' roll was released on Aug. 4, 1967. The band? Pink Floyd. The album? The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, a psychedelic masterpiece.
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Louder Sound
It includes some of Pink Floyd’s best-known songs, including Astronomy Domine and Interstellar Overdrive, and every song is fantastic.
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Medium
It will probably take a few listens to get into this because the last term I would use to describe this album (outside “The Gnome” or “The Scarecrow”) is easy listening. Once you get into it though, you will find it a shame that Pink Floyd never did anything this innovative ever again.
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HHHHappy
An immaculate pop record rampant with quirk and possibility, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn hit with an energy and fresh enthusiasm Pink Floyd would never recapture.
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Paste Magazine
As the line-up shifted and Barrett succumbed to an actual mental breakdown, Pink Floyd would rarely flirt so promiscuously with real chaos as they did on this auspicious debut.
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50third and 3rd
Piper at the Gates of Dawn gets a little too trippy from time to time, but it captures the sound and ethos of a strange and wondrous era, and makes for a more-than-satisfying listening experience.
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Record Collector Mag
What is there left to be said about one of UK psych’s most essential albums? RC isn’t alone in pretty much having nothing else to add to one of the most written-about records of all time.
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ProgSphere
Both Floyd and Barrett would never make an album like this again.
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The Young Folks
Piper was merely a taste of his brilliance, and yet it took the rest of the band 30 years and another 15 albums to catch up.
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The Student Playlist
The debut album by one of rock's greatest bands is the masterpiece of its tragic founder Syd Barrett.
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Bloomsbury
(2003) The Piper at the Gates of Dawn is a wondrous creation often seen through the distorted view of later events.
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Treble Zine
Say what you will about Wish You Were Here, my friend. It probably sounds great after a lot of hash, but Piper is one hell of trip on its own and a hell of a lot more fun.
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Echoes
Although some of the songs are just wacky, some of the technology and tape edits rough hewn, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn is one of those albums that actually appears more radical in retrospect.
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Blogger's Gamut
Comparisons of the debut to the later work are somewhat purposeless, as it is undeniable that ‘The Piper…’ has been an important start to one of the biggest bands in history. Without it, The Pink Floyd Sound (their previous band name), we know today, would surely never exist.
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Adrian's Album Reviews
What makes this one of the finest Psychedelic albums of all of time is that Syd had different thought patterns, he did things differently. The way he played guitar was different, the way he sang was different ( resolutely english ) and his lyrics were certainly not something heard before.
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My Personal Reviews of Pink Floyd Albums
What can I say about this album that hasn't already been said. It is a classic and gives us our only true look into the mind of Syd Barrett, showing glimpses of what was to come as he dove deeper into insanity.
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John McFerrin Music Reviews
Pink Floyd never again made an album which even approached being this trippy.
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Alan's Album Archives
Pioneering songwriting, groundbreaking playing, an excellent production that manages to be both 'busy' and 'clear (good job Norman Smith!) and a sound like no other - makes 'Piper At The Gates Of Dawn' one of my personal favourite AAA albums.
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