29 January Is For Videos: Pink Floyd – (Echoes part I) Live At Pompeii

Today, I bring you another enduring English rock band from the ’60s and ’70s, Pink Floyd. This band delved into philosophical, political, and social discussion through their own brand of psychedelic progressive rock. They wrote album-sized themes in quirky time signatures and still managed to capture the attention of Top 40 radio.

Pink Floyd is another band that I listened to a lot in college thanks to my friend Ben. Another one of the VHS tapes he had and we watched repetitively was Live at Pompeii, which featured footage of Pink Floyd playing live in an amphitheater in the ancient volcano-buried Roman city of Pompeii, Italy.

There are so many things to like about this video. They snuck into the ruins and setup all their gear, which is as much a part of the performance as what they play. The slow tracking shots around them and their equipment give the viewer the feeling of actually being there and being able to look around. The cinematography and atmosphere of that location really frame the music in a way that seems both natural and surreal.

Enjoy this one. It’s nearly 10 minutes long, but it’s just the first song. You really need to watch the whole movie to get the full effect.