Maps of Music

The Division Bell (1994)

Where the lyrics of The Division Bell take you, and where it was really made.

Two metal heads photographed in a Cambridgeshire field for this album's cover later went to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and, in 2017, to the London Victoria and Albert Museum.

Key places

Where the sessions began (1994)

Recording site Britannia Row Studios — Gilmour, Mason and Wright began improvising new material here in January 1993. The studio had been remodelled before these sessions. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Gilmour's houseboat studio (1994)

Recording site Astoria (Gilmour's houseboat studio) — After about two weeks, production moved from the earlier studio to Gilmour's houseboat and recording studio, Astoria, where the band voted on tracks and narrowed the material. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

A week of main recording (1994)

Recording site Olympic Studios — The band moved to Olympic Studios and recorded most of the album's tracks over the space of about one week. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

String arrangements at Studio Two (1994)

Recording site Abbey Road Studios — The string arrangements provided by Michael Kamen were recorded at Abbey Road Studio Two, engineered by Steve McLaughlin. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: Jubilee line to St John's Wood station, then about a 5-minute walk.

Autumn sessions in Chiswick (1994)

Recording site Metropolis Studios — Recording and mixing sessions ran from September to December at Metropolis Studios in Chiswick, London. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Cover sculptures in a field (1994)

Album cover Stuntney, Cambridgeshire — The two metal head sculptures used for the cover were erected in a field near Stuntney, Cambridgeshire, and photographed in profile. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• The Division Bell: fourteenth studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd
• Released 28 March 1994 by EMI Records in the UK; Columbia Records in the US on 5 April
• Second Pink Floyd album recorded without founder member Roger Waters
• Mostly written by David Gilmour and Richard Wright; Polly Samson co-wrote many lyrics
• Themes of communication; the title refers to the division bell rung in British parliament to announce a vote
• Last Pink Floyd studio album made entirely of new material

Background

• Wright's first lead vocal on a Pink Floyd album since The Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
• Wright received his first songwriting credits on a Pink Floyd album since Wish You Were Here (1975)
• Wright was not contractually a full member after resigning in 1979, which upset him
• Wright, who died in 2008, is the last member recorded with the band on this album
• Sessions began in January 1993 at the remodelled Britannia Row Studios
• Guitarist and bassist Guy Pratt had joined on the Momentary Lapse of Reason Tour
• The band set an April 1994 deadline to avoid competing with other album releases, as had happened with A Momentary Lapse of Reason

Recording

• Production moved to Gilmour's houseboat and recording studio, Astoria, after about two weeks of sessions
• Most tracks recorded at Olympic Studios over the space of a week
• String arrangements recorded at Abbey Road Studio Two
• Recording and mixing held at Metropolis Studios in Chiswick, September to December
• Album mastered at the Mastering Lab in Los Angeles by Doug Sax and James Guthrie
• Unused ambient material was edited into The Big Spliff, and some of it was used on The Endless River (2014)

Cover

• Two large metal heads, each the height of a double-decker bus, were erected in a field
• The sculptures were photographed in profile, and designed by Storm Thorgerson
• Ely Cathedral is visible on the horizon

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 from critics, though long-time fans saw it as a return to form
• Entertainment Weekly's Tom Sinclair called the album glib and vacuous, and criticised its mix of prog-rock pomposity and New Age noodling
• Rolling Stone's Tom Graves criticised Gilmour's guitar solos as rambling and forgettable
• The Village Voice's Robert Christgau dismissed the album as a dud
• Melody Maker's David Bennun praised the opening instrumental "Cluster One" but found the rest of the album dreary
• NME's Tommy Udo praised "Cluster One" as effortless, but criticised the lyrics as sixth-form and the record as anonymous

Reappraisal

• Q readers' poll in 2011 ranked the album 93rd in its 250 Best Albums of the Last 25 Years list
• Uncut's Graeme Thomson wrote in 2011 that the album might be the dark horse of the Floyd canon
• Uncut's 2014 review of the 20th-anniversary reissue praised the production as more like a classic Pink Floyd album than The Final Cut
• Waters, who left in 1985, dismissed the album as rubbish

Records

• Reached number one in more than 10 countries, including the UK and the US
• Debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 in the week of 23 April 1994, selling more than 460,000 units
• Certified triple platinum by the RIAA on 29 January 1999 for shipments of three million units
• Won the Grammy for Best Rock Instrumental Performance on "Marooned"
• Nominated for the 1995 Brit Award for Best Album by a British Artist, but lost to Blur's Parklife
• Division Bell Tour sold over 5.3 million tickets, with gross income of about $100 million

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Douglas Adams suggested the title at a dinner, spurred by the promise of a payment to his favourite charity.
• Storm Thorgerson said the "third absent face" in the cover photo was a reference to Syd Barrett.
• An anonymous poster calling himself Publius posted a riddle on an internet newsgroup, and the riddle has never been solved.
• A purpose-built Skyship 600 airship toured the US until a thunderstorm destroyed it on 27 June, and pieces were sold as souvenirs.
• At the end of the album, Gilmour's stepson Charlie is heard hanging up the telephone on manager Steve O'Rourke.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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