EMI is celebrating the reissue of Pink Floyd's 14 albums with flying the Pig again.
LONDON — A large inflatable pig flew above London's Battersea Power Station on Monday in a stunt designed to mark the reissue of British band Pink Floyd's 14 studio albums by record label EMI Music.
The animal, measuring 30 feet long and 15 feet high, was inflated with helium at dawn for the event, held 35 years after the making of the album cover for "Animals" featuring a similar flying pig.
EMI had planned to use the same inflatable pig, which had been kept at a workshop since the original shoot, but two weeks ago it was deemed not to be airworthy and a replica was made.
The artwork on the "Animals" album was a combination of a photograph of the background of Battersea Power Station taken on Dec. 2, 1976, and the pig photographed on Dec. 4.
On Dec. 3 that year, the pig slipped its moorings and floated into the Heathrow airport flight path before being recovered by a farmer in Kent, southeast England.
Howard Bartrop, a photographer who worked on the 1976 shoot, recalled the difficulties involved.
Slideshow: Bands of the ‘70s that just won’t quit (on this page)
"It was quite tricky that day and very cold and of course famously after a day or so we had the problem where he (the pig) floated up away from the building and was spotted by commercial pilots landing into Heathrow," he told Reuters.
"He then floated off towards Kent, followed by a police helicopter, landed in a farm I believe and frightened all the cattle.
"Basically he was retrieved, patched up and put back in the air the next day so we could try and photograph him again."
Under the banner "Why Pink Floyd ... ?," EMI Music is releasing all 14 Pink Floyd studio albums remastered and available digitally. They are also available as one Discovery Box Set.
Also on sale from Monday are special editions of one of the band's most acclaimed albums, "The Dark Side of The Moon," extended to feature unreleased music from Pink Floyd archives.
Pink Floyd, behind seminal albums The Dark Side of the Moon, "Wish You Were Here" and "The Wall," is one of the most successful rock bands of all time, having sold an estimated 200 million albums worldwide.
The group, also famous for its acrimonious split and one-off reunion at charity concert Live 8 in 2005, re-signed to long time record label EMI in January in a five-year deal.
The agreement also brought to an end a legal dispute between the sides over EMI's right to "unbundle" their records and sell individual tracks online.
The Dark Side Of The Moon - Immersion Box SetProduct description:
Originally released in 1973, The Dark Side of The Moon became Pink Floyd’s first number 1 album in the US, remaining on the chart for 741 weeks between 1973 and 1988. One of the best-selling and most critically acclaimed albums of all time The Dark Side of The Moon also introduced The iconic album cover artwork by Hipgnosis featuring a prism representing the band’s stage lighting, the record’s lyrics, and the request for a ‘simple and bold’ design. The Immersion version features the classic Studio album digitally remastered and presented as a limited edition high quality boxset featuring 6 discs of rare and unreleased audio and video material, plus a new 40 page oversized perfect-bound booklet, a book of original photographs edited by Jill Furmanovsky, exclusive merchandise and facsimile collectables.
DISC 1 – CD 1:
The Dark Side Of The Moon digitally remastered by James Guthrie 2011
DISC 2 – CD 2:
The Dark Side Of The Moon performed live at Wembley in 1974 (2011 Mix and previously unreleased)
DISC 3 – DVD 1, ALL AUDIO:
- The Dark Side Of The Moon, James Guthrie 2003 5.1 Surround Mix (previously released only on SACD) in standard resolution audio at 448 kbps
- The Dark Side Of The Moon, James Guthrie 2003 5.1 Surround Mix (previously released only on SACD) in high resolution audio at 640 kbps
- The Dark Side Of The Moon, LPCM Stereo mix (as disc 1)
- The Dark Side Of The Moon, Alan Parsons Quad Mix (previously released only on vinyl LP/8 track tape in 1973) in standard resolution audio at 448 kbps
- The Dark Side Of The Moon, Alan Parsons Quad Mix (previously released only on vinyl LP/8 track tape in 1973) in high resolution audio at 640 kbps
DISC 4 - DVD 2, ALL AUDIO VISUAL:
-Live In Brighton 1972:
Careful With That Axe, Eugene (previously unreleased on DVD)
Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun (previously unreleased on DVD)
-The Dark Side Of The Moon, 2003 documentary (25 min EPK)
-Concert Screen Films (60 min total):
British Tour 1974
French Tour 1974
North American Tour 1975
Screen films play in stereo and 5.1 Surround Sound
DISC 5 – BLURAY, AUDIO+AUDIO VISUAL
-AUDIO: The Dark Side Of The Moon, James Guthrie 2003 5.1 Surround Mix (previously released only on SACD) in high resolution audio at 96 kHz/24-bit
-AUDIO: The Dark Side Of The Moon, Original stereo mix (1973) mastered in high resolution audio at 96 kHz/24-bit
-AUDIO VISUAL: Live In Brighton 1972:
Careful With That Axe, Eugene (previously unreleased on DVD/BluRay)
Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun (previously unreleased on DVD/BluRay)
-AUDIO VISUAL: The Dark Side Of The Moon, 2003 documentary (EPK)
-AUDIO VISUAL: Concert Screen Films (5.1 Surround Mix):
British Tour 1974
French Tour 1974
North American Tour 1975
-AUDIO VISUAL: Concert Screen Films (High Resolution Stereo Mix):
British Tour 1974
French Tour 1974
North American Tour 1975
DISC 6 - CD3:
-The Dark Side Of The Moon 1972 Early Album Mix engineered by Alan Parsons (previously unreleased)
- The Hard Way (from ‘Household Objects’ project)
- Us And Them, Richard Wright Demo (previously unreleased)
- The Travel Sequence, live from Brighton June 1972 (previously unreleased)
- The Mortality Sequence, live from Brighton June 1972 (previously unreleased)
- Any Colour You Like, live from Brighton June 1972 (previously unreleased)
- The Travel Sequence, studio recording 1972 (previously unreleased)
- Money, Roger Waters’ demo (previously unreleased)
40 page 27cm x 27cm booklet designed by Storm Thorgerson
Exclusive photo book edited by Jill Furmanovsky
27cm x 27cm Exclusive Storm Thorgerson Art Print
5 x Collectors’ Cards featuring art and comments by Storm Thorgerson
Replica of The Dark Side Of The Moon Tour Ticket
Replica of The Dark Side Of The Moon Backstage Pass
Scarf
3 x Black marbles
9 x Coasters (unique to this box) featuring early Storm Thorgerson design sketches
12 page credits booklet