Wish You Were Here (5:24)

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“Wish You Were Here” is the title track on Pink Floyd’s 1975 album Wish You Were Here. The song’s lyrics encompass writer Roger Waters’ feelings of alienation from other people. Like most of the album, it refers to former Pink Floyd member Syd Barrett and his breakdown. The main riff came to David Gilmour while playing his acoustic guitar in Abbey Road Studios. Gilmour then demonstrated the riff to Waters, who was impressed. They collaborated to complete the song, as Waters had already written some lyrics. In 2004, the song was ranked #316 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

In the original album version, the song segues from “Have a Cigar” as if a radio had been tuned away from one station, through several others (including a radio play and one playing Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony), and finally to a new station where “Wish You Were Here” is beginning. Gilmour performed the intro on a twelve-string guitar, processed to sound like it was playing through an old transistor radio, and then overdubbed a fuller-sounding acoustic guitar solo. This passage was mixed to sound as though the guitarist was sitting in a room, playing along with the radio; it also contains a whine that slowly changes pitch—emulating the heterodyne between two drifting AM radio signals.

The intro riff is repeated several times and reprised when Gilmour plays further solos with scat singing accompaniment. At the end of the recorded song, the final solo crossfades with wind sound effects (reminiscent of “One of These Days” from the 1971 album Meddle), and finally segues into the second section of the multi-part suite “Shine On You Crazy Diamond”.

Tagged as:

classic rock, progressive rock, rock, pink floyd, psychedelic rock
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Video

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A series of pictures which accompany Pink Floyd's masterpiece 'Wish You Were Here'. RIP Syd Barrett.

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Lyrics

So, so you think you can tell
Heaven from Hell,
Blue skys from pain.
Can you tell a green field
From a cold steel rail?
Read full lyrics…

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Albums featuring this track

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yesmynameisjack wrote:
36 minutes ago

This song is the most amazing song -ever-

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Vitakinesis wrote:
Tuesday afternoon

i think Pink Floyd was the band who make Rock.. not the beatles.

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Andre91195 wrote:
last week

As much as i think Pink Floyd is pretty overrated, there's no denying how amazing this song is.

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mrstupid70 wrote:
last week

who cares what genre it has been labled? mind blowing loveliness on a stratospheric level! seen it live so im an expert! lol

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Floydies wrote:
last week

Rolling Stone’s list is shit!!! The best song of all time!!

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scottishlass67 wrote:
last week

REST IN PEACE SYD ...... WE LOVED YOU SO YOU NEVER KNEW... OR DID YOU?

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SafeInADream wrote:
last week

'We're just two lost souls, swimming in a fish bowl ,year after year'

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PrinceReyson wrote:
last month

This is the most beautiful song I've ever listened to.

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OFF_THE_LIP wrote:
last month

finally, today it is become my first song in my chart.

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glasgowislander wrote:
last month

brill great fantastic floyd rule

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Deardeadfriend wrote:
last month

Surely one of the best songs (and lyrics!) ever. <3

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InNeedOfTherapy wrote:
last month

So, so you think you can tell Heaven from Hell,

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Verdois wrote:
last month

So sad and beautiful.

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raisipaisi wrote:
last month

It's a beautiful song, without hesitation. I just have one doubt: is it really about Syd's addiction? I mean, did any member of the band specified that?

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yourhero34 wrote:
last month

Wonderful, so wonderful.

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Coldplayforever wrote:
last month

Good song but it would have been good if they had called it Wish You Were Dead

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Zodiac_Killer wrote:
last month

A very strong contender for the "Best Song Ever" title...

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Mobilicorpus wrote:
October 2008

David Gilmour's vocals on this one = awesomeness

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stop_jackin_it wrote:
October 2008

ain't progressive rock ... [2]

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johngebreadman wrote:
October 2008

excellent

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