“Time” almost defines the psychedelic rock sensations, Pink Floyd. But one of their most viewed live performances of this generation-crossing hit isn’t even real! Pink Floyd fan and YouTuber João Solimeo crafted a composite video so good it almost passes as being an authentic gig – bringing the band’s original members together for the first time since 2005.
Racking up over 38M YouTube views to date, João’s faux Floyd “reunion” patchworks footage from 1994’s “Pink Floyd Pulse,” 2006’s “David Gilmour Live in Gdansk,” and 2016’s “Roger Waters Live in Mexico” into one seamless live experience. With the cross-cut footage perfectly synced to each flowery run of Gilmour’s guitar solo and each word of the timeless lyrics, it’s no wonder some fans mistake this performance for a real-time show!
As “Time”’s atmospheric opening notes ring out, padded by sound effects and suspense, the crowd roars in anticipation before falling silent to immerse in the experience. And João clearly chose the perfect clips to back the immensity of this track. Original Pink Floyd bandmate, Richard Wright, who passed away in 2008, is even brought back from the dead, interspersing modern footage of his surviving bandmates with clips of Wright for a 100% wholesome recreation.
“Time,” one of Pink Floyd’s career-defining singles, first featured on the band’s magnum opus LP “Dark Side of the Moon” of 1973. Over 50 years later, the classic is still collecting millions of views with every uploaded original, remaster, and live edition, proving the power of Pink Floyd is still trickling down through the generations.
Music Man readers who are true Floyd fans will find it no surprise that this clip is a composite. Since the band’s founding bassist and vocalist, Roger Waters’ dramatic departure from Pink Floyd in 1987, hopes for a true Floyd reunion have been incinerated time and again by tensions between Roger and his ex-bandmates.
But in 2005, the band shocked the rock scene, coalescing Waters (then aged 61), drummer Nick Mason (64), keyboardist Richard Wright (61), and guitarist David Gilmour (59) for the historic Live 8 charity fest, reuniting (for real) for the first time since their heyday.
That Live 8 reunion was just a one-off, however. Alongside Sir Paul McCartney, the long-awaited Pink Floyd reunion headlined the charity fest, following Bob Geldof’s amalgamation of noughties’ pop heroes including U2, Coldplay, Razorlight, Madonna, Scissor Sisters, Robbie Williams, and even a tone-deaf cover of Marc Bolan’s “Children of the Revolution” performed by the unlikely duo, Elton John and Pete Doherty.
Thankfully, the bucketloads of live clips filmed across each of the Pink Floyd members’ solo projects offer all the ingredients to create this masterpiece in illusion.