The Dark Side of the Moon Redux

Waters co-founded the rock band Pink Floyd in 1965. Their 1973 album The Dark Side of the Moon, with lyrics by Waters, spent 736 consecutive weeks on the Billboard 200 chart and sold more than 40 million copies worldwide.{{cite magazine |last1=Titus |first1=Christa |last2=Waddell |first2=Ray |year=2005 |title=Floyd's Dark Side Celebrates Chart Milestone |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/58524/floyds-dark-side-celebrates-chart-milestone |url-status=live |magazine=Billboard |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130330033818/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/58524/floyds-dark-side-celebrates-chart-milestone |archive-date=30 March 2013 |access-date=24 October 2011}} In 1985, Waters left Pink Floyd and began a solo career.{{Cite web |date=2019-04-10 |title=Roger Waters – The Solo Years. |url=https://dereksmusicblog.com/2019/04/10/roger-waters-the-solo-years/ |access-date=2023-08-27 |website=dereksmusicblog |language=en}}

In 2022, Waters released The Lockdown Sessions, comprising stripped-back rerecordings of several of his solo tracks and tracks with Pink Floyd. During the recording, it occurred to him that he could make a similar rerecording of The Dark Side of the Moon for its 50th anniversary.{{Cite web |title=The Dark Side of the Moon Redux |url=https://rogerwaters.com/ |access-date=2023-08-27 |website=Roger Waters |language=en-US}} In a press release, Waters wrote: "[We] were so young when we made [the original], and when you look at the world around us, clearly the message hasn't stuck. That's why I started to consider what the wisdom of an 80-year-old could bring to a reimagined version."{{Cite web |last=Duran |first=Anagricel |date=2023-07-21 |title=Roger Waters announces release of 'The Dark Side of the Moon Redux' as solo album |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/roger-waters-announces-release-of-the-dark-side-of-the-moon-redux-as-solo-album-3471637 |access-date=2023-08-08 |website=NME |language=en-GB}}

The Dark Side of the Moon Redux features no other members of Pink Floyd, and was recorded with musicians including Gus Seyffert, Joey Waronker, Jonathan Wilson, Jon Carin, Johnny Shepherd, Azniv Korkejian (Bedouine), Via Mardot, Gabe Noel, and Robert Walter.{{cite web | url=https://bestclassicbands.com/roger-waters-dark-side-of-the-moon-redux-7-23-23/ | title=Roger Waters to Release 'The Dark Side of the Moon Redux' | date=23 July 2023 }}{{cite magazine |last=Zemler |first=Emily |date=21 July 2023 |title=Roger Waters to Release 'The Dark Side of the Moon Redux' as a Solo LP in October |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/roger-waters-dark-side-of-the-moon-redux-solo-album-1234793036/ |accessdate=21 July 2023 |magazine=Rolling Stone |publisher= |quote=ROGER WATERS HAS re-recorded Pink Floyd's seminal album, The Dark Side of the Moon, and will release it as a solo LP, The Dark Side of the Moon Redux, on Oct. 6 via SGB Music.}} It features spoken-word sections and no guitar solos, to "bring out the heart and soul of the album musically and spiritually".{{Cite web |date=4 February 2023 |title=Roger Waters Questioned in Depth About Ukraine, Russia, Israel, U.S. |url=https://www.pressenza.com/2023/02/roger-waters-questioned-in-depth-about-ukraine-russia-israel-u-s/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230206054318/https://www.pressenza.com/2023/02/roger-waters-questioned-in-depth-about-ukraine-russia-israel-u-s/ |archive-date=6 February 2023 |access-date=6 February 2023 |website=Pressenza |language=en-US}}{{Cite news |last=Saunders |first=Tristram Fane |date=8 February 2023 |title=Roger Waters: I wrote The Dark Side of the Moon – let's get rid of all this 'we' crap |language=en-GB |work=The Daily Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/artists/roger-waters-pink-floyd-dark-side-moon-gilmour-putin-ukraine/ |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |access-date=9 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208232625/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/artists/roger-waters-pink-floyd-dark-side-moon-gilmour-putin-ukraine/ |archive-date=8 February 2023 |issn=0307-1235}} The new version of "Speak to Me" includes Waters' recitation of his lyrics from the 1972 Pink Floyd track "Free Four".{{Cite web |title=THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON REDUX |url=https://rogerwaters.com/ |access-date=2023-08-27 |website=Roger Waters |language=en-US}}

Waters did not intend Redux to replace The Dark Side of the Moon, and instead intended it as a tribute and a way to readdress its political statements.{{Cite web |date=2023-07-21 |title=Roger Waters / The Dark Side of the Moon Redux – SuperDeluxeEdition |url=https://superdeluxeedition.com/news/roger-waters-the-dark-side-of-the-moon-redux/ |access-date=2023-08-01 |language=en-US}} He said: "The new recording is more reflective I think, and it's more indicative of what the concept of the record was."{{Cite web |author1=Rob Laing |date=2023-07-28 |title=Roger Waters on his dramatic Dark Side Of The Moon Redux: "It's been part of our lives for 50 years and yet we are still not yet breathing in the air" |url=https://www.musicradar.com/news/roger-waters-on-his-dramatic-dark-side-of-the-moon-redux-its-been-part-of-our-lives-for-50-years-and-yet-we-are-still-not-yet-breathing-in-the-air |access-date=2023-08-01 |website=MusicRadar |language=en}} The Pink Floyd drummer, Nick Mason, said Redux was "absolutely brilliant ... It's not anything that would be a spoiler for the original at all, it's an interesting add-on to the thing."{{Cite web |last=Dunworth |first=Liberty |date=2023-03-27 |title=Pink Floyd's Nick Mason shares opinion on Roger Waters' 'Dark Side Of The Moon' re-recording |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/pink-floyds-nick-mason-shares-opinion-on-roger-waters-dark-side-of-the-moon-re-recording-3421058 |access-date=2023-08-14 |website=NME |language=en-GB}} He supported the concept of revisiting and developing existing work.

Waters announced The Dark Side of the Moon Redux on 21 July 2023, alongside a digital single, "Money". On 24 August, he released the second single, "Time", followed by the double A-side single "Speak to Me" / "Breathe" on 21 September.{{Cite web |date=2023-08-24 |title=Roger Waters Unveils New Version of Pink Floyd's "Time" |url=https://consequence.net/2023/08/roger-waters-pink-floyd-time/ |website=Consequence |access-date=2023-08-25 |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |last=Mendelsohn |first=Jon |date=2023-09-21 |title=Roger Waters Updates "Speak to Me/Breathe" With Chilling Spoken Word Intro |url=https://americansongwriter.com/roger-waters-drops-new-version-of-speak-to-me-breathe/ |access-date=2023-10-01 |website=American Songwriter |language=en-US}} In October, Waters held two concerts at the London Palladium, where he performed The Dark Side of the Moon Redux, spoke on topics such as Julian Assange and read from his unpublished memoir.{{Cite web |date=2023-10-09 |title=Music critics call out 'awkward' Roger Waters show at London Palladium |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/news/roger-waters-london-palladium-setlist-length-b2426641.html |access-date=2023-10-11 |website=The Independent |language=en}}

On 30 January 2025, a super deluxe edition box set of the record was announced, released on 14 March 2025.{{Cite web |date=2025-01-30 |title=Roger Waters / The Dark Side Of The Moon Redux super deluxe edition – SuperDeluxeEdition |url=https://superdeluxeedition.com/news/roger-waters-the-dark-side-of-the-moon-redux-super-deluxe-edition/ |access-date=2025-03-15 |language=en-US}} It contains the original album, vinyls for the three singles that were released in promotion of the record, as well as a new single (Us and Them), and a live performance of the entire album on vinyl and CD.{{Cite web |last=admin |date=2025-01-30 |title=The Dark Side Of The Moon Redux Super Deluxe Boxset |url=https://rogerwaters.com/the-dark-side-of-the-moon-redux-deluxe-boxset/ |access-date=2025-03-15 |website=Roger Waters |language=en-US}}{{Cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7HD29X2uWE |title=Roger Waters - THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON REDUX SUPER DELUXE BOXSET |date=2025-01-30 |last=Roger Waters |access-date=2025-03-15 |via=YouTube}}

{{Music ratings

| MC = 59/100{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/the-dark-side-of-the-moon-redux/roger-waters|title=The Dark Side of the Moon Redux by Roger Waters|website=Metacritic|access-date=26 November 2023}}

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1score = {{Rating|3|5}}{{Cite web |last=Erlewine |first=Stephen Thomas |title=Roger Waters - The Dark Side of the Moon Redux Album Reviews, Songs & More |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/the-dark-side-of-the-moon-redux-mw0004051217 |access-date=15 November 2023 |publisher=AllMusic}}

| rev2 = Classic Rock

| rev2score = {{Rating|4|5}}

| rev3 = Mojo

| rev3score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite magazine|title=Roger Waters – The Dark Side of the Moon Redux|magazine=Mojo|page=87|date=November 2023}}

| rev4 = Paste

| rev4score = 4.6/10{{Cite web |title=Roger Waters Fronts a Colorless Remake of a Classic Album With The Dark Side of the Moon Redux |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/music/pink-floyd/roger-waters-dark-side-of-the-moon-redux-review |access-date=2023-10-09 |website=Paste Magazine |language=en-US}}

| rev5 = Sputnikmusic

| rev5score = 0.5/5{{Cite web |title=Roger Waters Fronts a Colorless Remake of a Classic Album With The Dark Side of the Moon Redux |url=https://www.sputnikmusic.com/review/88024/Roger-Waters-The-Dark-Side-of-the-Moon-Redux/ |access-date=2024-01-01 |website=Sputnikmusic |language=en-US}}

| rev6 = The Telegraph

| rev6score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{Cite web |last=McCormick |first=Neil |date=5 October 2023 |title=Roger Waters, Dark Side of the Moon, review: this re-recording is extraordinary |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/what-to-listen-to/roger-waters-dark-side-of-the-moon-review/ |access-date=15 November 2023 |website=The Telegraph}}

| rev7 = Uncut

| rev7score = 6/10{{cite magazine|title=Roger Waters – The Dark Side of the Moon Redux|magazine=Uncut|page=33|date=November 2023}}

}}

On the review aggregator Metacritic, The Dark Side of the Moon Redux has a score of 59 out of 100, indicating a "mixed or average" reception based on nine reviews.

In a positive review, David Quantick of Classic Rock called Redux "neither a massive gutting of the original nor a slavish copy". He wrote that "Time" sounded like a "boulder rolled up a hill, weary and aged", and described it and "Brain Damage" as "half-crooned" and effective.{{Cite magazine |last=Quantick |first=David |author-link=David Quantick |date=2023-10-05 |title=News just in: Roger Waters' reworking of The Dark Side of the Moon actually works |url=https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/roger-waters-the-dark-side-of-the-moon-redux-album-review |access-date=2023-10-06 |magazine=Classic Rock |language=en-GB |via=Loudersound}} Uncut called Redux "interesting enough" for "an artistic exercise", while Mojo felt that "the new focus on these songs' lyrics proves deeply powerful, a different and profound kind of high", which makes the album "wholly valid, the unnerving, stirring adjunct Waters was aiming for".

In Ultimate Classic Rock, Nick DeRiso gave Redux a negative review, criticising the replacement of the other Pink Floyd members with "more words". He found much of the emotion of the original record was missing, and described Waters' additional lyrics as "Waters talking again, yet somehow not saying much".{{Cite web |last=DeRiso |first=Nick |date=2023-10-03 |title=Roger Waters, 'The Dark Side of the Moon Redux': Album Review |url=https://ultimateclassicrock.com/roger-waters-the-dark-side-of-the-moon-redux-album-review/ |access-date=2023-10-06 |website=Ultimate Classic Rock |language=en}} Jonah Krueger of Consequence argued that Redux existed only so Waters could "take the opportunity to re-write history, framing himself as the sole creative force behind The Dark Side of the Moon and using the Redux as some form of indulgent fodder to do so". He felt that many of Waters' changes make the album worse, though he complimented the overall production quality.{{Cite web |date=2023-10-06 |title=Roger Waters' Dark Side of the Moon (Redux): Review |url=https://consequence.net/2023/10/dark-side-of-the-moon-redux-roger-waters-review/2/ |access-date=2023-10-09 |language=en-US}} Christian Kriticos of Paste had similar views, criticising its slow pace and spoken-word passages.

{{Track listing

| all_lyrics = Roger Waters.

| headline = The Dark Side of the Moon Redux track listing

| title1 = Speak to Me

| length1 = 1:54

| music1 = Nick Mason

| title2 = Breathe

| length2 = 3:22

| music2 = {{Hlist|Waters|Richard Wright|David Gilmour|}}

| title3 = On the Run

| length3 = 3:47

| music3 = {{Hlist|Waters|Gilmour|}}

| title4 = Time

| length4 = 7:19

| music4 = {{Hlist|Waters|Gilmour|Wright|Mason|}}

| title5 = The Great Gig in the Sky

| length5 = 5:47

| music5 = {{Hlist|Wright|Clare Torry}}

| title6 = Money

| length6 = 7:33

| music6 = Waters

| title7 = Us and Them

| length7 = 7:36

| music7 = {{Hlist|Waters|Wright|}}

| title8 = {{nowrap|Any Colour You Like}}

| length8 = 3:18

| music8 = {{Hlist|Gilmour|Mason|Wright|}}

| title9 = Brain Damage

| length9 = 4:55

| music9 = Waters

| title10 = Eclipse

| length10 = 2:20

| music10 = Waters

| total_length = 47:51

}}

;Additional track on vinyl issues

{{Track listing

| headline =

| title11 = (untitled)

| writer11 =

| length11 = 13:15

| all_writing =

| total_length =

}}Note

• On the 2LP Vinyl releases, Side One spans "Speak to Me" through "Time", Side Two spans "The Great Gig in the Sky" and "Money", and Side Three spans "Us and Them" through "Eclipse". Side Four contains an untitled original composition.
• The cassette release splits the album the traditional way, between "The Great Gig in the Sky" and "Money".

• Roger Waters – vocals, bass on "Any Colour You Like", VCS3
• Gus Seyffert – bass, guitar, percussion, keys, synthesiser, backing vocals
• Joey Waronker – drums, percussion
• Jonathan Wilson – guitars, synthesiser, organ
• Johnny Shepherd – organ, piano
• Via Mardot – theremin
• Azniv Korkejian – vocals
• Gabe Noel – string arrangements, strings, sarangi
• Jon Carin – keyboards, lap steel guitar, synthesiser, organ
• Robert Walter – piano on "The Great Gig in the Sky"

{{reflist}}

{{Roger Waters}}

{{The Dark Side of the Moon}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dark Side of the Moon Redux, The}}

Category:2023 albums

Category:Roger Waters albums

Category:Cooking Vinyl albums

Category:Albums produced by Gus Seyffert

Category:Re-recorded albums