A Pillow of Winds
| "A Pillow of Winds" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Pink Floyd from the album Meddle | |
| Published | Pink Floyd Music Publ |
| Released |
30 October 1971 (US) 5 November 1971 (UK) |
| Recorded |
July 1971 Morgan Studios, London August 1971 AIR Studios, London |
| Genre | Psychedelic folk, progressive folk |
| Length | 5:13 |
| Label | Harvest |
| Writer(s) | David Gilmour, Roger Waters |
| Producer(s) | Pink Floyd |
"A Pillow of Winds" is the second track from Pink Floyd's 1971 album Meddle.[1][2]
Music and lyrics
This soft acoustic love song[3] may be quite uncharacteristic of the band's previous and future material. Guitarist David Gilmour composed the chord sequence using an Open E tuning ( EBEG#BE ), played in a series of arpeggios, and Roger Waters wrote the melody and lyrics.[3] This song also features slide guitar work by Gilmour, as well as a fretless bass,[3] played by Waters. The song begins and ends in the key of E major, with a darker middle section (following the lyric, "and the candle dies") in the parallel minor, E minor. Both the E major and E minor chords feature the ninth, making this song one of many Pink Floyd songs to feature a prominent E minor added ninth chord, "Em(add9)". Throughout most of the song, the bass line remains on E as a pedal point, creating a drone. A chord named "G#m/E" is more accurately called an E major seventh chord, "Emaj7", and a "Bm/E" is just as equally named an "E7sus2". In the instrumental interlude, however, the chords change completely to A minor and B minor chords, leaving the E bass drone for a time before returning to E major.[4]
According to Nick Mason, the song's title originates from a possible hand in the game of mahjong, with which the band had become enamoured while touring.[5]
The song's lyrics refer to an eiderdown, better known in the U.S. as a comforter. Two other known Pink Floyd songs make reference to an eiderdown, Syd Barrett's "Flaming" and Waters's "Julia Dream".
Personnel
- David Gilmour – lead vocals, acoustic & electric guitars, electric & acoustic slide guitars, pedal steel guitar
- Richard Wright – Hammond organ, piano
- Nick Mason – hi-hats
- Roger Waters – fretless bass, backing vocals
References
- ↑ Strong, Martin C. (2004). The Great Rock Discography (7th ed.). Edinburgh: Canongate Books. p. 1177. ISBN 1-84195-551-5.
- ↑ Mabbett, Andy (1995). The Complete Guide to the Music of Pink Floyd. London: Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-4301-X.
- 1 2 3 Manning, Toby (2006). "The Albums". The Rough Guide to Pink Floyd (1st ed.). London: Rough Guides. p. 163. ISBN 1-84353-575-0.
- ↑ Pink Floyd: Anthology (1980 Warner Bros. Publications, Inc., Secaucus N.J.)
- ↑ Nick Mason, Inside out – A Personal History of Pink Floyd, Ed. Weidenfeld & Nicolson Illustrated, London, 2005
External links
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Wikiquote has quotations related to: Meddle (album) |
