The Meaning of Dark Side, finally!!!!

[b17]

Hi

now i am a fan of dark side of the moon, its probably my fav album of all time, but i am still having difficulty figuring out wat most of the songs mean.

I know the whole album is about the pressures of modern day life and how they lead to insanity, so dont reply if your only going to say that.

So far i figured out the Following:
On the Run is about travel etc, which is very obvious.
Time is about growing old.
The Great Gig in the Sky is about the fear of death, and i my fav song on the album. Money is obvious.
Us and Them, now i think this is either about war or, as i read somewere once, its a comparison between Britain (or the whole world) and the USA, and how screwed up it all is, or maybe both.
Brain Damage is sort of about Syd Barret and his state of mind and also about turning into a lunatic, and Eclipse is diffenitly about this, counting down all the things that can also make u go nuts.

As for Speak to Me, Breathe in the Air and Any Colour you like i have no real idea at all, well i do its just they are not real ideas and would prefer other peoples opinions before i make my own judgement.

these are all my ideas so far on the albums individual songs, so please tell me want you think about mine and what yours are as well.

Thank you, from the Silk Shirted Hobo

[typhoon]

Breathe is about working yourself to death just to get by, Speak To Me is simply an introduction to the album that establishes the lunacy theme (and the heartbeat, for whatever that's worth), and Any Colour You Like just bridges Us and Them and Brain Damage/Eclipse.

[b17]

i thought that was what Breath in the air was about, but i wasnt to sure so i didnt include it, but oh well, at least i still have my looks

[ViciousChickenOfBristol]

Time is about sitting around and waiting for something to happen instead of actually going out and doing it, making it happen.
To support my thesis:
"And then one day you find, ten years have got behind you, noone told you when to run, YOU'VE MISSED THE STARTING GUN!"

[Radiochair]

I think Dark Side is about the pressures of modern day life and how they lead to insanity.

[Charade I Am]

(The below is IMHO)

I believe your very correct Radiochair.

Dark Side - though we can nit pick it - is acutally what WYWH was not. WYWH was a tribute for Syd - Dark Side uses Syd as an example.

Ok this is what the title signifies (i know, most of you prob. know this, but for those who don't...)

The Moon - obviously dealing with 'lunar' - lunatic - termed this because these people were seen to be worshippers of the moon.

So we have a lunatic - a 'moon'

but we see the Dark Side of this lunatic - we see the side of Syd that no one saw, that is only revealed in his darkest moments.

I mean "money" is almost the prequel to "Have A Cigar"!

It's all relative, it's not only about going mad - it actually takes you throught a journey - from the initial stages - (come on folks he's not just "BREATHING" in air!) to the affects of drugs (The great gig in the sky probably describes either A. Heaven waiting for Syd's arrival or B. What HIGH feels like) and a 'careless' attitude. (The lunatic, he's on the grass)

Whose Us? and Whose THem? - well if you look at it from Syd's stand point US would be other lunatics and "them" would be 'normal people'.

But they're commentary is secular - it can be applied to other people as well! WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? IT MEANS THAT IN SOME WAY SHAPE OR FORM WE ARE ALSO LUNATICS, WE ALSO HAVE A DARK SIDE OF OUR CRAZINESS - almost a double negative, but not so.

So whose us and whose them? - well you never really can tell until you see the dark side, and can differentiate.

What's Eclipse? It's a slap in the face. They're shouting to Syd: You idiot! Look at this beautiful music, world, society, culture, life you could have been part of!

It also describes that EVERYTHING relates to the above described.

And What's with the Heartbeats? Well, ever hear the Wall? - Yea they start off with the end of the story basically, and then repeat it at the end - sure he's still alive - but besides the heartbeat - besides being alive what is there? A lady screaming and some guys talking about being mad for fucking years - well i guess when your in Syd's shoes there's not much more to living than the above.


And lastly - if there is no "Dark Side of the Moon" really, is all i've said a waste of time? No - because if it's all dark then, therefore the above stated doesn't just deal with a few people and different times - it applies to everyone at all times.

It also says that Syd's reached a state where there is no 'light side of the moon' - that's it - he's all in the dark.


One soul lost.
and four to learn a lesson.
The world can do more than acknowledge.


~Charade I Am
Patrick

[Roger Waters]

"There is no dark side of the moon really. As a matter of fact, it's all dark". Charade I Am...I salute thee, comrade! And what a bridge (if at all it is a bridge between Us n Them and Brain Damage, WHICH I don't think it is) is Any Colour You Like.

[fixxlevy]

Us and Them is more concerend with the perils of old age, and how obsolete even the bravest young man become in his latter years. Roger juxtaposes the heroism of the Young Man (fighting in the war) with relience of the Old Man on the charity of society in general. That really only becomes clear in the last verse, but it's a pretty masterful piece of writing, I'm sure you'll all agree.

[A Talking Head]

Here's my analyses of DSOTM:
"Breathe" The man (example of anybody) works himself too hard.
"On the Run" Paranoia sets in.
"Time" The man can't accept the concept of time, and he always seems to be short of it or have too much of it.
"Great Gig in the Sky" Fear of death.
"Breathe Reprise" The man isolates himself.
"Money" Either he excesses himself, or he sets his sights on money.
"Us and Them" War is a perfect metaphor for his paranoia.
"Any Color You Like" ..........I don't know.
"Brain Damage" Hospitalization and, sadly, lobotomy.
"Eclipse" Self-explanatory

[Madcap Diamond]

I once heard that good poetry means something different to everyone.

Nobody is right or wrong.

DSotM is an album that inspires and motivates people with its great poetry.