Delicate Sound of Thunder

Delicate Sound of Thunder is a live album by English band Pink Floyd. It was recorded over five nights at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York, in August 1988 and mixed at Abbey Road Studios in September 1988. It was released on 21 November 1988,[6] through EMI Records in the UK and Columbia Records in the US.

For the concert video, see Delicate Sound of Thunder (film).

Delicate Sound of Thunder
Cover design by Hipgnosis
Live album by
Pink Floyd
Released21 November 1988 (1988-11-21)
Recorded19–23 August 1988
VenueNassau Coliseum, Uniondale, New York
GenreProgressive rock
Length104:08 (original release)
140:18 (2019 remixed and expanded edition)
LabelEMI
ProducerDavid Gilmour
Pink Floyd chronology
A Momentary Lapse of Reason
(1987)		 Delicate Sound of Thunder
(1988)		 Shine On
(1992)
2019 Remix cover
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Blender[2]
Robert ChristgauC[3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
Rolling Stone[5]

The album was remixed, restored and reissued in December 2019 for The Later Years 1987–2019 box set. This version included songs that were not present on the original release. In November 2020, it was given a standalone release.

Release and reissue

The album was released in 1988 as a double LP, double cassette, and a double CD, each format containing a slightly different track listing.[7] The album includes many works from A Momentary Lapse of Reason as well as tracks from older Pink Floyd albums.[7] The double LP release did not have "Us and Them" on the track listing. Both the double LP and the double cassette had "Wish You Were Here" between "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" and "Comfortably Numb".[7]

Although David Gilmour stated around the time of its release and on a radio interview in 1992 that the album contained no studio overdubbing whatsoever, he embellished the tracks during mixing with some extra acoustic guitar on "Comfortably Numb", according to engineer Buford Jones. In addition, some harmonies were replaced by studio re-takes: Richard Wright re-did his vocal on "Time" and Sam Brown replaced Rachel Fury's part in "Comfortably Numb"[8] but the rest of the album is as performed at the shows.

Along with A Collection of Great Dance Songs, Delicate Sound of Thunder was reissued on 180g heavyweight vinyl LP in November 2017.[9] Its artwork replicates that of the original 1988 LP release.

An expanded version of the live album was included in The Later Years 1987–2019 box set in 2019. Previously unreleased tracks include "Signs of Life," "A New Machine (Part 1)", "Terminal Frost", "A New Machine (Part 2)", "Welcome to the Machine", and "One Slip". All tracks were remixed for the 2019 reissue.

Commercial performance and reception

Delicate Sound of Thunder reached #11 on the Billboard 200. It was certified gold and platinum on 23 January 1989 and triple platinum in April 1997. In Canada, it was #57 in the 1989 year-end chart.

In December 2020, the album reentered the Billboard album chart at #76, thanks to sales of the deluxe reissue.

Musician reviewer J. D. Considine wrote simply: "Further proof that you can't listen to a light show."[10]

Delicate Sound of Thunder became the first album to be played in space, when Soviet cosmonauts took it aboard Soyuz TM-7. David Gilmour and Nick Mason attended the mission's launch.[7]

Track listing

CD
Disc one
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Shine On You Crazy Diamond"Roger Waters/David Gilmour/Richard Wright11:53
2."Learning to Fly"Gilmour/Bob Ezrin/Jon Carin/Anthony Moore5:27
3."Yet Another Movie"Gilmour/Pat Leonard6:21
4."Round and Around"Gilmour0:33
5."Sorrow"Gilmour9:28
6."The Dogs of War"Gilmour/Moore7:18
7."On the Turning Away"Gilmour/Moore7:58
Disc two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."One of These Days"Waters/Gilmour/Wright/Nick Mason6:15
2."Time"Gilmour/Mason/Wright/Waters5:16
3."Wish You Were Here"Gilmour/Waters4:49
4."Us and Them"Waters/Wright7:22
5."Money"Waters9:52
6."Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)"Waters5:28
7."Comfortably Numb"Gilmour/Waters8:56
8."Run Like Hell"Gilmour/Waters7:12

2019 reissue
Main article: The Later Years 1987–2019

Delicate Sound of Thunder was reissued on CD on 13 December 2019 as part of the box set The Later Years 1987–2019 along with the film of the same name. The album has been remixed and remastered and includes tracks omitted from the original 1988 release. A standalone release was released on 20 November 2020 on 2 CD, triple LP, and CD/DVD/BD box set which includes the 2019 cut of the film.

In the 2019 remix, the songs "Sorrow", "On the Turning Away" and "Comfortably Numb" have longer guitar solos by Gilmour than in the 1988 original; "The Dogs of War" has a longer intro; "Money" has been condensed, removing Guy Pratt's bass solo and the female a cappella section; "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" has extra elements (lifted from 1989 tour recordings) added in - most notably an extra "hey teacher!" between Gilmour's and Renwick's guitar solos; "Us and Them" has a piano added to the intro; much of the echo has been removed from Wallis' electronic drums during "Learning to Fly"; "Run Like Hell" has an extended intro and now includes Gilmour thanking the audience; and "Time" guitar's intro starts sooner within the "tic-tac" (as performed on Pulse) than the 1988 original.

"Learning to Fly", "Us and Them", and "Run Like Hell" from the 2019 remix are also included in the 2019 compilation album The Later Years 1987–2019 Highlights, released on 29 November 2019.

Track listing

Personnel

Pink Floyd

Additional musicians

Production

Charts

Certifications and sales
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Argentina (CAPIF)[35] Gold 30,000^
Argentina (CAPIF)[35]
Delicado Sonido Del True 		Gold 30,000^
Australia (ARIA)[36] 3× Platinum 210,000‡
Austria (IFPI Austria)[37] Gold 25,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[38] 2× Platinum 200,000^
France (SNEP)[39] 2× Gold 200,000*
Germany (BVMI)[40] Gold 250,000^
Italy
sales in 1989 		— 300,000[41]
Italy (FIMI)[42]
sales since 2009 		Gold 25,000‡
Netherlands (NVPI)[43] Gold 50,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[44] Platinum 15,000^
Poland (ZPAV)[45] Gold 10,000‡
Portugal (AFP)[46] 3× Platinum 120,000^
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[47] Gold 50,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[48] Platinum 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[49] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[50] 3× Platinum 1,500,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Album review at AllMusic. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
  2. Blender Review
  3. "Album review". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
  4. Larkin, Colin (2007). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.
  5. Azerrad, Michael. "Album review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 22 November 2017. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
  6. "BPI certifications".
  7. Mabbett, Andy (2010). Pink Floyd: The Music and the Mystery. London: Omnibus. ISBN 978-1-84938-370-7.
  8. The Live Albums
  9. "Pink Floyd's Delicate Sound Of Thunder set for vinyl reissue". 10 October 2017. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
  10. Considine, J.D. (February 1989). "Delicate Sound of Thunder". Musician.
  11. "David Hewitt Road Diaries". Audio-Technica. 15 May 2018. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
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  31. "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1989". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
  32. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 16 February 2022.
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  35. "Discos de oro y platino" (in Spanish). Cámara Argentina de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
  36. "ARIA Australian Top 50 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. 7 December 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
  37. "Austrian album certifications – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
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  43. "Dutch album certifications – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved 13 September 2018. Enter Delicate Sound of Thunder in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 1989 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
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