Maps of Music

A Momentary Lapse of Reason (1987)

Where the lyrics of A Momentary Lapse of Reason take you, and where it was really made.

This was the first Pink Floyd album made without Roger Waters, and much of it was recorded on a houseboat moored on the Thames.

Key places

Recorded on the houseboat Astoria (1987)

Recording site Astoria (Gilmour's houseboat studio) — Most of the album was recorded on the converted houseboat Astoria, owned by guitarist David Gilmour. The boat was moored on the Thames. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Sessions moved to Mayfair Studios (1987)

Recording site Mayfair Studios — Recording moved to Mayfair Studios in February 1987, during the sessions that ran until the album was finished. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Britannia Row in London (1987)

Recording site Britannia Row Studios — Britannia Row is listed among the London studios used for the album's recording, alongside Astoria, Mayfair and Audio International. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Sessions at A&M Studios in Los Angeles (1987)

Recording site A&M Recording Studios — From February to March 1987 the sessions moved to A&M Studios in Los Angeles, close to Ezrin's home. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Village Recorders in Los Angeles (1987)

Recording site Village Recorders — Village Recorders is listed among the Los Angeles studios used for the album, alongside A&M Studios and Can Am. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Can Am in Los Angeles (1987)

Recording site Can-Am Studios — Can Am is listed among the Los Angeles studios used for the album, alongside A&M Studios and Village Recorders. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Guitar solo for 'Sorrow' at the Memorial Sports Arena (1987)

Recording site Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena — The opening guitar solo of 'Sorrow' was recorded at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, not in a studio. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Hospital beds on Saunton Sands (1987)

Album cover Saunton Sands — The cover photo of hundreds of hospital beds was assembled on Saunton Sands in North Devon, a beach where some scenes for Pink Floyd - The Wall were also filmed. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• A Momentary Lapse of Reason: thirteenth studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd
• Released in the UK on 7 September 1987 by EMI, and in the US the following day by Columbia Records
• First Pink Floyd album recorded without founding member Roger Waters, who left in 1985
• Not a concept album, unlike most Pink Floyd studio records of the preceding decade
• Includes writing contributions from outside songwriters
• Promoted with three singles: 'Learning to Fly' / 'Terminal Frost', 'On the Turning Away', and 'One Slip'

Background

• Gilmour chose to include material once intended for his third solo album
• After The Final Cut (1983), the band members worked on solo projects
• Gilmour's second solo album About Face (1984) was followed by a tour with poor ticket sales
• Waters announced in December 1985 that he had left Pink Floyd, calling it a spent force creatively
• Gilmour, Mason and CBS Records threatened a lawsuit to compel Waters to make another Pink Floyd album
• Production was marred by legal fights with Waters over the Pink Floyd name, unresolved until months after release
• Richard Wright returned as a paid session player, after Waters had fired him during The Wall (1979)

Recording

• Recorded mainly at Gilmour's houseboat studio Astoria, moored on the Thames
• Sessions held between November 1986 and February 1987 at several studios
• Recording moved to Mayfair Studios in February 1987, then to A&M Studios in Los Angeles from February to March
• Anthony Moore credited as co-writer of 'Learning to Fly' and 'On the Turning Away'

Cover

• Designed by Storm Thorgerson, the first Pink Floyd studio album cover by him since Animals (1977)
• Shows hundreds of hospital beds on Saunton Sands in North Devon, assembled in July 1987
• Inner gatefold shows only Gilmour and Mason, to emphasise that Waters had left the band

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Formed in London in 1965 by Syd Barrett, Nick Mason, Roger Waters and Richard Wright; David Gilmour joined in 1967.
• Among the first British psychedelic groups, gaining an early underground following at the UFO Club.
• Known for extended compositions, sonic experiments, philosophical lyrics and elaborate live shows.

Members

• Nick Mason on drums (1965–present).
• Roger Waters on bass and vocals (1965–1985), becoming the primary lyricist after Barrett's departure in 1968.
• Richard Wright on keyboards (1965–1981, 1987–2008), who died in 2008.
• Syd Barrett on vocals and guitar (1965–1968), who died in 2006.
• David Gilmour on guitar and vocals (1967–present).

Career

• Concept albums The Dark Side of the Moon (1973), Wish You Were Here (1975), Animals (1977) and The Wall (1979) made them one of the best-selling acts of all time.
• Pink Floyd – The Wall (1982) won two BAFTAs.
• Reunited with Waters for Live 8 in 2005; the last studio album The Endless River came out in 2014.
• Released 'Hey, Hey, Rise Up!' in 2022 in protest of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
• Sold over 250 million records; inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996 and awarded the Polar Music Prize in 2008.

Reception

At release

• Mixed reviews: critics praised the production and instrumentation but criticised the songwriting, especially the lyrics
• Waters derided the album
• Q's Phil Sutcliffe wrote that it sounds like a Pink Floyd album and praised the two-part 'A New Machine'
• Toronto Star's Greg Quill called it mundane and predictable, saying something was missing
• Village Voice's Robert Christgau wrote that the band's concept master's absence was barely felt, except for noticeably fewer ideas

Reappraisal

• In 2016, AllMusic critic William Ruhlmann described it as a Gilmour solo album in all but name
• In 2016, Prog's Nick Shilton included it in the Top 10 Essential 80s Prog Albums list
• Rolling Stone described the 2019 remixed version as more tasteful, not drowning in eighties reverb

Records

• Number three in the UK and US; in the US it was kept from the top spot by Michael Jackson's Bad and Whitesnake's self-titled album
• Spent 34 weeks on the UK Albums Chart
• Certified silver and gold in the UK on 1 October 1987
• Certified gold and platinum in the US on 9 November 1987
• Double platinum in the US on 18 January 1988, triple platinum on 10 March 1992, quadruple platinum on 16 August 2001
• Greatly outsold The Final Cut

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The tour included a free performance on a barge floating on the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy.
• Waters contacted US promoters and threatened to sue if they used the Pink Floyd name; some promoters were offended, and 60,000 tickets for a Toronto date sold out within hours.
• Gilmour's flying lessons inspired 'Learning to Fly', and the track contains a recording of Mason's voice during takeoff.
• Initial title contenders were Signs of Life, Of Promises Broken and Delusions of Maturity; the final title appears as a line in the chorus of 'One Slip'.
• Wright's leaving agreement contained a clause preventing him from rejoining, so the band had to be careful about what counted as being a member.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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