Pink Floyd The Division Bell released

The Division Bell Pink Floyd

Released: March 28, 1994 Peak: 14 US, 14 UK, 14 CN, 13 AU, 14 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): 3.30 US, 0.9 UK, 11.30 world (includes US and UK), 13.99 EAS Genre: classic rock

Tracks: Click on a song titled for more details. Cluster One [5:56] What Do You Want from Me [4:22] Poles Apart [7:03] Marooned [5:30] A Great Day for Freedom [4:16] Wearing the Inside Out [6:49] Take It Back [6:12] Coming Back to Life [6:19] Keep Talking [6:11] Lost for Words [5:15] High Hopes [8:31] Total Running Time: 66:23 The Players: David Gilmour (vocals, guitar) Nick Mason (drums, percussion) Richard Wright (keyboards)

Rating: 3.710 out of 5.00 (average of 26 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album Pink Floyd’s second album without Roger Waters “is less forced and more of a group effort than A Momentary Lapse of Reason.” AM The band were still legally wrestling over the rights to the Pink Floyd name during the making of that album. Here they were free from such hassle. Keyboardist Rick Wright was restored to full band status here and co-writes five of the 11 songs – his first writing credits on any Pink Floyd songs since 1975’s Wish You Were Here. WK Guitarist and singer David Gilmour co-wrote most of the songs on the album, many with lyrics by his fiancée, novelist Polly Samson. Producer Bob Ezrin wasn’t sold on her initially but later said “her presence had been inspirational for Gilmour” and that she pulled the album together. WK The album generally deals with the theme of communication and the premise that one can solve many problems by talking. WK Nick Mason said, “It’s about people making choices, yeas or nays.” WK The title is a reference to the division bell which is rung in the British parliament to announce a vote. WK “Musically, Gilmour, Nick Mason, and Wright have largely turned the clock back to the pre-Dark Side of the Moon Floyd, with slow tempos, sustained keyboard chords, and guitar solos with a lot of echo.” AM The music didn’t meet with everyone’s favor. Entertainment Weekly’s Tom Sinclair called it a “stomach-turning merger of progressive-rock pomposity and New Age noodling.” WK Rolling Stone’s Tom Graves criticized Gilmour’s guitar solos as “rambling, indistinct asides that are as forgettable as they used to be indelible.” WK On the flip side, Uncut’s Graeme Thomson wrote that the album “might just be the dark horse of the Floyd canon. The opening triptych of songs is a hugely impressive return to something very close to the eternal essence of Pink Floyd, and much of the rest retains a quiet power and a meditative quality that betrays a genuine sense of unity.” WK The Songs Here’s a breakdown of each of the individual songs.

Cluster One Pink Floyd

Writer(s): Richard Wright, David Gilmour Released: The Division Bell (3/28/1994) Peak: -- Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 35.39 streaming About the Song: A

What Do You Want from Me Pink Floyd

Writer(s): David Gilmour, Richard Wright, Polly Samson Released: The Division Bell (3/28/1994), Pulse (live, 5/29/1995) First Charted: 4/16/1994 Peak: 13 AR, 13 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 68.55 streaming About the Song: “There is a vindictive, accusatory tone to songs such as What Do You Want from Me and Poles Apart.” AM The former was influenced by Chicago blues. WK

Poles Apart Pink Floyd

Writer(s): David Gilmour, Polly Samson, Nick Laird-Clowes Released: The Division Bell (3/28/1994) Peak: 12 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 44.77 streaming About the Song: “There is a vindictive, accusatory tone to songs such as What Do You Want from Me and Poles Apart.” AM The latter “contains folksy overtones.” WK

Marooned Pink Floyd

Writer(s): Richard Wright, David Gilmour Released: The Division Bell (3/28/1994), Echoes (compilation, 11/6/2001) Peak: -- Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 64.97 streaming About the Song: A

A Great Day for Freedom Pink Floyd

Writer(s): David Gilmour, Polly Samson Released: The Division Bell (3/28/1994), Pulse (live, 5/29/1995) Peak: 17 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 28.66 streaming About the Song: “A Great Day for Freedom” has references to the wall coming down, which could be taken as a reference to the Waters-driven Pink Floyd album The Wall, but it was really more about the fall of Communism and the Berlin Wall. AM It “juxtaposes the general euphoria of the fall of the Berlin Wall with the subsequent wars and ethnic cleansing, particularly in Yugoslavia.” WK

Wearing the Inside Out Pink Floyd

Writer(s): Richard Wright, Anthony Moore Released: The Division Bell (3/28/1994) Peak: 11 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 30.97 streaming About the Song: This is one of five songs on The Division Bell credited to keyboardist Richard Wright, his first writing credits on any Pink Floyd songs since 1975’s Wish You Were Here. WK He even took the lead vocals on Wearing the Inside Out. AM

Take It Back Pink Floyd

Writer(s): David Gilmour, Polly Samson, Nick Laird-Clowes, Bob Ezrin Released: single (5/16/1994), The Division Bell (3/28/1994) B-side: “Astronomy Domine” (live) First Charted: 4/16/1994 Peak: 73 BB, 4 AR, 23 UK, 3 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 43.63 streaming About the Song: A

Coming Back to Life Pink Floyd

Writer(s): David Gilmour Released: The Division Bell (3/28/1994), Pulse (live, 5/29/1995) Peak: 4 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 73.55 streaming About the Song: A

Keep Talking Pink Floyd

Writer(s): David Gilmour, Richard Wright, Polly Samson Released: promo single (3/12/1994), double-A-side single with “High Hopes” (10/10/1994), The Division Bell (3/28/1994), Pulse (live, 5/29/1995), Echoes (compilation, 11/6/2001) First Charted: 4/2/1994 Peak: 16 AR, 26 UK, 3 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 33.11 streaming

Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Song: This song was the most obvious reference to the album’s loose theme of working things out through communication. It uses audio samples of Stephen Hawking which were initially recorded for a television ad. Gilmour got permission to use the recordings because he was “so moved by Hawking’s sentiment.” WK Mason thought it seemed “politically incorrect to take ideas from advertising, but it seemed a very relevant piece.” WK

Lost for Words Pink Floyd

Writer(s): David Gilmour, Polly Samson Released: The Division Bell (3/28/1994) First Charted: 12/3/1994 Peak: 21 AR, 5 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 54.16 streaming About the Song: There is an assumption that some songs, including “Poles Apart,” Lost for Words and A Great Day for Freedom, AM were jabs at Waters. However, Gilmour denied this, saying, “it’s a little late at this point for us to be conjuring Roger up.” WK

High Hopes Pink Floyd

Writer(s): David Gilmour, Polly Samson Released: double-A-side single with “Keep Talking” (10/7/1994), The Division Bell (3/28/1994), Pulse (live, 5/29/1995), Echoes (compilation, 11/6/2001), A Foot in the Door (compilation, 11/7/2011) First Charted: 8/27/1994 Peak: 7 AR, 26 UK, 2 DF Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): -- Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, -- video, 103.11 streaming About the Song: A

Resources/References: AM AllMusic.com review by William Ruhlmann WK Wikipedia Related DMDB Pages: First posted 3/22/2008; last updated 8/26/2025.

Yes Talk released

Talk Yes

Released: March 22, 1994 Peak: 33 US, 20 UK, 47 CN, -- AU Sales (in millions): -- Genre: progressive rock

Tracks: Song Title (Writers) [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. The Calling (Rabin, Anderson, Squire) [6:52] (3/12/94, 3 AR) I Am Waiting (Rabin, Anderson) [7:22] Real Love (Rabin, Squire, Anderson) [8:42] State of Play (Rabin, Anderson) [4:56] (1994, --) Walls (Rabin, Anderson, Roger Hodgson) [4:47] (6/11/94, 24 AR) Where Will You Be (Rabin, Anderson) [6:12] Endless Dream: a. Silent Spring [instrumental] (Rabin) [1:55] Endless Dream: b. Talk (Rabin, Anderson) [11:54] Endless Dream: c. Endless Dream (Rabin, Anderson) [1:50] Total Running Time: 55:02 The Players: Jon Anderson (vocals) Trevor Rabin (guitar, keyboards, vocals) Chris Squire (bass, backing vocals) Alan White (drums, percussion) Tony Kaye (keyboards)

Rating: 2.946 out of 5.00 (average of 8 ratings)

About the Album: Talk marked the third full-length album featuring the Cinema lineup. That lineup launched in 1981 when Yes’ members Chris Squire (bass) and Alan White (drums) were looking to form a new band (initially called Cinema) in the wake of the official demise of Yes. They brought South African guitarist Trevor Rabin on board and then ex-Yes members Jon Anderson (vocals) and Tony Kaye (keyboards) came into the fold, effectively creating a new incarnation of Yes. That collective recorded the biggest album of the group’s career with 1983’s 90125, followed it up with 1987’s Big Generator, and then contributed four cuts to Union, which merged the two versions of Yes that existed at the time. This is officially the fifteenth studio album for Yes. WK “Talk makes some effort to get away from the group's indulgent art rock pretensions, at least to the extent of using a spare, spacious production full of closely miked drums and sharp guitars. No wonder, since guitarist Trevor Rabin produced the record.” WK “With Rabin taking the lead…he attempted to re-introduce Yes to the 1990s with a lean, guitar-oriented sound. In taking such a strong role, he ensured he had a hand in writing every song, even overdubbing some of Chris Squire’s bass parts (to Squire’s minor annoyance).” WK “Roger Hodgson, formerly of fellow progressive rock band Supertramp, wrote Walls with Anderson and Rabin. A demo of this song was recorded in 1990 and included on the Trevor Rabin demo album 90124.” WK Guitarist Billy Sherwood toured with the band following the album’s release. Rabin and Kaye left in 1995, 12 years after first teaming up with Anderson, Squire, and White. Sherwood became an official member in 1997 after Rick Wakeman re-joined and left again. WK Notes: On the 2002 Spitfire Records reissue, “Endless Dream” was released as a single track and a special version of “The Calling” was added.

Resources and Related Links: WR William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide WK Wikipedia First posted 6/7/2011; updated 7/25/2021.

 

Nine Inch Nails The Downward Spiral released

The Downward Spiral Nine Inch Nails

Released: March 8, 1994 Peak: 2 US, 9 UK, 13 CN, 12 AU Click for codes to charts. Sales (in millions): 4.0 US, 0.10 UK, 4.44 world (includes US and UK) Genre: industrial rock

Tracks: Song Title [time] (date of single release, chart peaks) Mr. Self Destruct [4:31] Piggy (Nothing Can Stop Me Now) [4:24] (12/24/94, 20 MR, 23 DF) Heresy [3:54] (27 DF) March of the Pigs [2:5] (2/25/94, 59 BB, 45 UK, 21 DF) Closer [6:14] (5/7/94, 41 BB, 35 AR, 11 MR, 25 UK, 2 DF) Ruiner [4:58] The Becoming [5:31] I Do Not Want This [5:41] Big Man with a Gun [1:36] A Warm Place [3:22] Eraser [4:53] Reptile [6:52] The Downward Spiral [3:58] Hurt [6:16] (4/22/95, 54 BA, 8 MR, 1 DF) All songs written by Trent Reznor. Total Running Time: 65:02

Rating: 4.169 out of 5.00 (average of 22 ratings) Quotable: “An industrial-rock gem” – Blender magazine Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

The Recording of the Album Trent Reznor “wrote and played the entirety of” TB Nine Inch Nails’ first two releases – the debut album Pretty Hate Machine in 1989 and the Broken EP in 1992. For his third release, The Downward Spiral, Reznor recruited a number of session musicians – including guitarist Adrian Belew, who’d worked with David Bowie, King Crimson, Talking Heads, and Frank Zappa. The album was recorded in the Los Angeles house on Cielo Dive where Sharon Tate was murdered by the Manson family. Reznor claimed that “When I rented the place, I didn’t realize it was that house.” 500 “Visitor Tori Amos concluded the house was cursed.” RD Themes of Gloom and Doom Regardless of what he knew or didn’t, Reznor crafted a record in which “horror soaks through the songs,” RD creating a “cauldron of one’s deepest fears.” TM It was “nastily, noisily, suicidally glum.” RD “Its narratives follow disturbed characters as they attempt to extract themselves from the grip of various psychosis.” TM Reznor described it as being about “somebody who throws away aspect of his life – from relationships to religion. [It] also looks at vices as ways of trying to dull the pain. I’m talking about myself…Not that that’s any great leap for me.” RD “Reznor’s raw intensity and sonic experimentation dive deep into themes of self-destruction and despair.” OH His “preening self-absorption and serpentine sexuality seemed directly descended from Jim Morrison” SH while his “nihilism often seemed like a reaction against some repressively extreme standard of purity.” SH It all led to a “pounding soundtrack to the drug-fueled psychosexual persecution drama that played out in his head.” EW’12 “Reznor spat out a suicidal concept record with industrial metal roots.” CQ An Industrial-Rock Gem The “musically complex, lyrically bleak” BL album “has its share of Reznor’s trademark industrial corrosiveness” 500 but connects “the cudgel-like bluntness of industrial rock…to more ornate – and sometimes surprisingly beautiful – orchestrations.” TM The album is “an industrial-rock gem” BL that established Reznor as “industrial’s own Phil Spector” SH and “a synth antihero.” BL It “remains Reznor’s greatest artistic success and also the biggest selling Nine Inch Nails album.” TB The album “is full of striking sonic juxtapositions and sudden about-faces in tone, which make for a fascinating listen.” SH It finds Reznor “painting detailed, layered soundscapes from a wide tonal palette,” SH “taking some pop aesthetic from…[the] dance-oriented Pretty Hate Machine and grinding it up” CQ with “the crashing metal guitars of Broken.” SH He also “integrated…several newfound elements – expanded song structures, odd time signatures, shifting arrangements filled with novel sounds, tremendous textural variety [which] can be traced to the influence of progressive rock.” SH A Wide Range of Genre Influences Reznor “spearheaded a wave of industrial pop, nu-metal, mid-’90s alternative, and the like, all alongside a leviathan called grunge rock.” CQ The album “distills wide-ranging styles and mesmerizing sound effects into his singular brand of brooding computerized art-rock.” UT The album combines “soundscapes inspired by David Bowie’s Low” 500 with “a series of tense and often troubling scenes pumped up to Pink Floyd-esque grandeur.” TM Reznor is also “fluent in King Crimson, knows death metal of the late ‘80s, can do a wicked power-ballad guitar solo when necessary (see Ruiner), and, surprisingly, has a healthy admiration for the droning synths of ‘80s mope-rock.” TM Song Highlights “More important than craft in turning Reznor into a full-fledged rock star, however, was his brooding persona. Grunge had the mainstream salivating over melodramatic angst, which had always been Reznor’s stock in trade.” SH “During the harrowing opening moments of March of the Pigs, he throws you in headfirst. The overdriven, serrated-edge guitars and equally distorted vocal shouts bring you to a place where the order of things means nothing.” TM “On I Do Not Want This, a sociopath expresses the desire to ‘do something that matters.’ He could be referring to anything from rape to a random act of heroism.” TM “The aggressive Closer,” OH which samples drums from Iggy Pop’s “Nightclubbing,” RD ended up being a “left-field hit.” SH It made Reznor “a postmodern shaman for the ‘90s, obsessed with exposing the dark side he saw behind even the most innocuous façades.” SH The “album ends on an affecting emotional peak” SH with “the tentatively hopeful (and intensely personal)” 500 as well as “haunting Hurt. ” OH It “mingles drama and introspection in a way Reznor had never quite managed before. It’s evidence of depth behind the charisma that deservedly made him a star.” SH Johnny Cash covered the song a few years later, calling it “the best anti-drug song I ever heard.” RD “You know you’re awesome when Johnny Cash makes one of your songs his own personal, unplanned eulogy.” CQ Notes: The 2004 deluxe edition adds a second disc of bonus tracks – “‘Burn’ comes from the soundtrack to Natural Born Killers; ‘Closer (Precursor),’ ‘Closer to God,’ and ‘Memorabilia’ from the Closer to God maxi-single; ‘Piggy (Nothing Can Stop Me Now),’ ‘Hurt (Quiet),’ and ‘The Downward Spiral (The Bottom)’ from the Further Down the Spiral remix EP; the covers of Joy Division’s ‘A Violet Fluid’ and Soft Cell’s ‘All the Pigs, All Lined Up’ from the March of the Pigs maxi-single; and ‘Dead Souls’ from the soundtrack to The Crow. The final three tracks are previously unreleased demos of the album tracks ‘Ruiner,’ ‘Reptile,’ and ‘Heresy.’” WR

Reviews: SH AllMusic.com review by Steve Huey WR AllMusic.com review of deluxe edition by William Ruhlmann BL Blender (10/08). “100 Greatest American Albums” CQ Consequence.net (9/12/2022). “The 100 Greatest Albums of All Time” RD Robert Dimery (2006). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. Quintet Publishing Limited: New York, NY. Page 748. EW’12 Entertainment Weekly (9/27/2012). “Top 100 Albums” TM Tom Moon (2008). 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die. Workman Publishing Company, Inc.: New York, NY. Page 552. OH One Hit Thunder (2/10/2026). “The Thundred: The Top 100 Albums of All Time” 500 Rolling Stone (2020). 500 Greatest Albums of All Time TB Thunder Bay (2005). Albums: The Stories Behind 50 Years of Great Recordings. Thunder Bay Press; San Diego, CA. Page 274. UT USA Today (12/5/2003). “Top 40 Albums – the USA Today Way” Related DMDB Links: First posted 3/28/2011; last updated 10/7/2026.

Blur “Girls and Boys” released

Girls and Boys Blur

Writer(s): Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon, Alex James, Dave Rowntree (see lyrics here) Released: March 7, 1994 First Charted: March 19, 1994 Peak: 59 US, 59 CB, 38 RR, 4 MR, 5 UK, 19 AU 12 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): -- US, 0.6 UK Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 49.8 video, 168.91 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: The rock band Blur formed in London in 1988 with singer Damon Albarn, guitarist Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James, and drummer Dave Rowntree. Their debut album, 1991’s Leisure connected to the Madchester and shoegazing scenes of the late ‘80s and early ‘90s while their second album, 1993’s Modern Life Is Rubbish, showcased them more as a guitar pop group. With their third album, 1994’s Parklife, Blur established themselves as one of the pillars of the Britpop movement of the 1990s. It became their best-selling album in the UK with more than a million sold. It was their first of seven consecutive albums to top the UK charts. The album produced four top-20 singles in the UK, with the lead single, “Girls and Boys,” being the most successful. Blur didn’t generate as much of an audience in the United States, although this song was one of a handful to reach the alternative rock chart, becoming their biggest hit. Damon Albarn was inspired to write the song while on vacation in Spain where he saw what he called “a rampant sexual scene among visitors.” WK Songfacts.com called it “a send-up of the hedonistic club culture of the ‘90s” SF which “deals with sexual roles, and freedom of sexual preference.” SF Radiohead’s Thom Yorke said it is one of the songs he wished he’d written. SF Graham Coxon said audiences responded to “Girls and Boys” because “there’s nothing too complicated about it and it’s got a chanty sort of chorus.” SF Alex James described itas “disco drums, nasty gutiars and Duran Duran bass.” WK Billboard’s Larry Flick said it was “a detour into clubland with an amusing, word-twisting ditty fleshed out with a trance-like synth energy and a hard, syncopated beat, courtesy of the Pet Shop Boys.” WK Vibe’s James Hunter called it “a brilliant turn on new wave disco that boasts the year’s best bent guitars.” WK British music magazines NME and Melody Maker both named “Girls and Boys” the single of the year. It was nominated for best song at the MTV Europe Music Awards. AllMusic.com’s Stephen Thomas Erlewine said the song was “undeniably catchy” and “one of the best Blur ever recorded.” WK Resources: SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 8/24/2023.