Richard Wright : July 28, 1943 - September 15, 2008

Richard Wright : July 28, 1943 - September 15, 2008

Richard Wright, The keyboardist and one of the founders of Pink Floyd, lost his battle with Cancer today. He will be missed, But his great music will live on. Here is a little on Wright's influence,

In the early days of Pink Floyd, Wright was seen as a dominant musical force in the group (though not as much of one as Syd Barrett, the band’s chief songwriter and front man at the time) and he wrote and sang several songs of his own during 1967–68. While not credited as a singer on The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, he sung lead on Barrett-penned songs like "Astronomy Domine" and "Matilda Mother," as well as notable harmonies on "Scarecrow" and "Chapter 24." Examples of his early compositions include "Remember a Day", "Paintbox" and "It Would Be So Nice". As the sound and the goals of the band evolved, Wright became less interested in songwriting and focused primarily on contributing his distinctive style to extended instrumental compositions such as "Interstellar Overdrive", "A Saucerful of Secrets", "Careful with That Axe, Eugene", "One Of These Days" and to musical themes for film scores (More, Zabriskie Point and Obscured by Clouds). He also made essential contributions to Pink Floyd's long, epic compositions such as "Atom Heart Mother", "Echoes" and "Shine On You Crazy Diamond". His most commercially popular compositions are "The Great Gig in the Sky" and "Us and Them" from 1973's The Dark Side of the Moon. He also contributed significantly to other mid-period Floyd classics like "Breathe" and "Time".

Time to roll a fatty and listen to some Shine On You Crazy Diamond to pay our respects.

RIP