Pink Floyd in History

Events in Music

Music Concert

1967-05-12 1st quadraphonic concert by Pink Floyd at the Games for May concert in London

  • 1967-08-04 Pink Floyd releases their first album "The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn", their only record made under the leadership of Syd Barrett.
  • 1967-10-01 Pink Floyd arrive in New York for their first US tour
  • 1967-11-04 Pink Floyd make US live debut, sharing bill with Big Brother & The Holding Company, and singer-songwriter Richie Havens, at the Winterland Auditorium, San Francisco, California

Jimi Hendrix in Ireland

1967-11-27 Jimi Hendrix headlines bill (including The Move and Pink Floyd) for 2 shows at Whitla Hall, Queens College, in Belfast - his only concerts in Ireland

Dark Side of the Moon

1973-03-01 Harvest (UK) and Capitol Records (US) release Pink Floyd's 8th studio album "Dark Side of the Moon"; it stays on Billboard Top 200 Album charts for most of the next 14 years, selling over 50 million copies worldwide

  • 1975-07-05 At Knebworth Festival in England, Pink Floyd debut their album "Wish You Were Here" with pyrotechnics and an exploding plane which flies into the stage
  • 1975-09-12 Pink Floyd releases their ninth album "Wish You Were Here"
  • 1975-09-25 Pink Floyd's concept album "Wish You Were Here" reaches No. 1 in the US, goes on to sell 13 million copies
  • 1979-11-30 Pink Floyd's "The Wall" released, sells 6 million copies in 2 weeks
  • 1980-01-18 Pink Floyd's double album "The Wall" hits #1
  • 1980-02-07 Pink Floyd premiere their live version of "The Wall" at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena in Los Angeles, California
  • 1980-05-02 Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in Wall (Part II)" is banned in South Africa
  • 1982-02-13 Pink Floyd's album "Dark Side of the Moon" marks 402 weeks on Billboard Top 200 Album charts
  • 1982-07-14 Musical film adaptation of "Pink Floyd - The Wall", directed by Alan Parker, starring Bob Geldof, and written by Roger Waters, premieres at the Empire, Leicester Square, in London,
  • 1988-10-08 Finishing 741-week stay, Pink Floyd's album "The Dark Side of the Moon" makes final appearance (of initial run) on Billboard 200 Albums chart
  • 1990-07-21 Pink Floyd's "The Wall" is performed where the Berlin Wall once stood; charity concert led by Roger Waters, with guests Cyndi Lauper, Joni Mitchell, The Scorpions,; SinĂ©ad O'Connor, Bryan Adams, The Band, Van Morrison, The Hooters, and others
  • 1994-10-29 Pink Floyd finishes their final concert tour with a show at Earls Court in London, England

11th Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

1996-01-17 11th Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees: David Bowie; Jefferson Airplane; Little Willie John; Gladys Knight and the Pips; Pink Floyd; The Shirelles; The Velvet Underground; Pete Seeger; and Tom Donahue

Live 8 Concert

2005-07-02 Live 8 concert at Hyde Park, London, England; performers include Paul McCartney, U2, Coldplay, Elton John, Sting, Madonna, The Who, Pink Floyd, and R.E.M.

  • 2006-05-29 Singer David Bowie joins guitarist David Gilmour as special guest during encore at Royal Albert Hall, London concert; they perform "Arnold Layne" and "Comfortably Numb" in what becomes Bowie's final UK appearance

Birthdays in Music

  • 1923-02-22 Norman "Hurricane" Smith, British sound engineer (The Beatles, 1962-65), producer (Pink Floyd; The Pretty Things), and musician ("Oh, Babe, What Would You Say?"; "Don't Let It Die"), born in Edmonton, London (d. 2008)
  • 1936-04-26 Doug Sax, American mastering engineer (Bob Dylan, The Doors, Pink Floyd, Ray Charles), born in Los Angeles, California (d. 2015)
  • 1936-06-01 Gerald Scarfe, British illustrator (The Sunday Times; The New Yorker: Pink Floyd's "The Wall"), born in St. John's Wood, London, England
  • 1942-02-25 Carlena Williams, American session and touring vocalist (Ike & Tina Turner Revue; Humble Pie; Pink Floyd; The Carpenters; Donna Summer), born in North Carolina (d. 2013)
  • 1942-12-22 Dick Parry, English session and touring rock saxophonist (Pink Floyd - "Money"), born in Kentford, Suffolk
  • 1943-07-28 Richard Wright, British progressive rock keyboardist, arranger, composer, and occasional vocalist (Pink Floyd - "Time"; "Echoes"; "The Art Of Conversation"), born in Hatch End, Middlesex (d. 2008)

Roger Waters (80 years old)

1943-09-06 English rock bassist and vocalist (Pink Floyd, 1964-85, 2005 - "Another Brick in the Wall"), born in Cambridge, England

  • 1944-01-27 Nick Mason, British progressive rock drummer (Pink Floyd), born in Birmingham, England
  • 1944-02-28 Storm Thorgerson, British graphic designer for album art, and music video director (Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Genesis, The Cranberries), born in Potters Bar, Middlesex (d. 2013)
  • 1945-03-30 Richard Evans, British graphic designer, album cover designer (The Who; The Doors; Pink Floyd; Louis Armstrong), born in Wilmslow, Cheshire

Syd Barrett (1946-2006)

1946-01-06 British guitarist and singer-songwriter (Pink Floyd, 1964-68 - "See Emily Play"; solo -"The Madcap Laughs"), born in Cambridge, England

David Gilmour (78 years old)

1946-03-06 British rock guitarist, and vocalist (Pink Floyd, 1968-2014 - "Comfortably Numb"), born in Cambridge, England

  • 1946-09-23 Aubrey "Po" Powell, British co-founder of album cover design company "Hipgnosis" (Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Paul McCartney, Yes), born in Sussex, England
  • 1947-01-13 Chris Thomas, British sound engineer and record producer (Beatles; Pink Floyd; Procol Harem; Elton John; The Pretenders), born in Brentford, Middlesex, England
  • 1947-04-20 Ken Scott, British record producer and engineer (The Beatles, Elton John, Pink Floyd), born in London, England
  • 1947-11-29 Clare H. Torry, British session singer (Pink Floyd - "The Great Gig in the Sky"), born in Marylebone, London
  • 1948-04-15 Michael Kamen, American composer and arranger (film scores to Brazil and Mr. Holland's Opus; Pink Floyd), born in New York City (d. 2003)
  • 1949-03-25 Bob Ezrin, Canadian keyboardist and music producer (Alice Cooper; Peter Gabriel; Kiss; Pink Floyd), born in Toronto, Canada
  • 1950-04-08 Carmen Twillie, American session singer (The Lion King - "Circle of Life"; Celene Dion; Pink Floyd), born in Playa del Rey, California
  • 1950-10-09 Darlene Koldenhoven, American session, new age, and Latin jazz soprano vocalist (Pink Floyd; Sister Act; 2+2), and pianist, born in Chicago, Illinois
  • 1953-11-14 James Guthrie, English music producer and sound engineer (Pink Floyd), born in Edmonton, England
  • 1962-01-03 Guy Pratt, English session and touring rock bassist (Icehouse; Pink Floyd, 1987-94), and soundtrack composer, born in London, England
  • 1962-10-16 Durga McBroom, American singer-songwriter (Blue Pearl -"Naked In The Rain"), and touring musician (Pink Floyd; Steve Hackett), born in Los Angeles, California
  • 1964-06-10 Gary Wallis, British session and touring drummer, percussionist, and musical director (Pink Floyd; 10cc; Il Divo; Mike + The Mechanics; Tom Jones; Jean-Michel Jarre; and Schiller), born in Westminster, London, England
  • 1964-10-21 Jon Carin, American session and touring keyboardist and guitar player (Pink Floyd; The Who), and producer, born in New York, New York

Weddings in Music

David Gilmour

1975-07-07 Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour (29) weds American model and artist Virginia "Ginger" Hasenbein (26); divorce in 1990

Roger Waters

1993-07-28 Pink Floyd musician Roger Waters (49) weds (his third time) Priscilla Phillips; divorce in 2001

Deaths in Music

  • 2003-11-18 Michael Kamen, American composer and arranger (film scores to Brazil and Mr. Holland's Opus; Pink Floyd), dies from a heart attack at 55

Syd Barrett (1946-2006)

2006-07-07 British guitarist and singer-songwriter (Pink Floyd, 1964-68 - "See Emily Play"; solo -"The Madcap Laughs"), dies of pancreatic cancer at 60

  • 2008-03-03 Norman "Hurricane" Smith, British sound engineer (The Beatles, 1962-65), producer (Pink Floyd; The Pretty Things), and musician ("Oh, Babe, What Would You Say?"; "Don't Let It Die"), dies at 85
  • 2008-09-15 Richard Wright, British progressive rock keyboardist, arranger, composer, and occasional vocalist (Pink Floyd - "Time"; "Echoes"; "The Art Of Conversation"), dies of cancer at 65
  • 2013-04-18 Storm Thorgerson, British graphic designer and music video director (Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Genesis, The Cranberries), dies of cancer at 69
  • 2013-11-13 Carlena Williams, American session and touring vocalist (Ike & Tina Turner Revue; Humble Pie; Pink Floyd; The Carpenters; Donna Summer), dies at 71
  • 2015-04-02 Doug Sax, American mastering engineer (Bob Dylan, The Doors, Pink Floyd, Ray Charles), dies of cancer at 78