Delicate Sound of Thunder

Delicate Sound of Thunder is the first entirely live album by English progressive rock band Pink Floyd. It was recorded over five nights at the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, New York, in August 1988 and mixed at Abbey Road Studios in September 1988. It was released on 22 November 1988, through EMI Records in the United Kingdom and Columbia Records in the United States.

Delicate Sound of Thunder
Live album by Pink Floyd
Released	22 November 1988
Recorded	19–23 August 1988
Venue	Nassau Coliseum, Long Island, New York
Genre	Progressive rock
Length	104:08
Label	EMI
Producer	David Gilmour
Pink Floyd chronology
A Momentary Lapse of Reason (1987) Delicate Sound of Thunder (1988) Shine On (1992)
2020 CD/LP cover

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Blender	[2]
Robert Christgau	C[3]
Rolling Stone	[4]

Release and reissue

The album was released in 1988 as a double LP, double cassette, and a double CD, each format containing a slightly different track listing. The album includes many works from A Momentary Lapse of Reason as well as tracks from older Pink Floyd albums. The double LP release did not have "Us and Them" on the track listing. Both the double LP and the double cassette had "Wish You Were Here" between "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" and "Comfortably Numb".

Although David Gilmour stated around the time of its release and on a radio interview in 1992 that the album contained no studio overdubbing whatsoever, he embellished the tracks during mixing with some extra acoustic guitar on "Comfortably Numb", according to engineer Buford Jones. In addition, some harmonies were replaced by studio re-takes: Richard Wright re-did his vocal on "Time" and Sam Brown replaced Rachel Fury's part in "Comfortably Numb"[5] but the rest of the album is as performed at the shows.

Along with A Collection of Great Dance Songs, Delicate Sound of Thunder was reissued on 180g heavyweight vinyl LP in November 2017.[6] Its artwork replicates that of the original 1988 LP release.

An expanded version of the live album was included in The Later Years 1987–2019 box set in 2019, including performances omitted from the original release due to the limitations of vinyl records. Previously unreleased tracks include "Signs of Life," "One Slip," "A New Machine (Part 1)", "Terminal Frost", "A New Machine (Part 2)", and "Welcome to the Machine". This reissue marks the first official release of Pink Floyd playing a live version of "Welcome to the Machine." All tracks were remixed for the 2019 reissue.

Commercial performance

Delicate Sound of Thunder reached #11 on the Billboard 200 and is currently listed as Triple Platinum in U.S. sales — it was certified Gold and Platinum on 23 January 1989 and Triple Platinum in April 1997. In Canada, it was #57 in the 1989 year-end chart. In December, 2020, the album re-entered the Billboard album chart at #76 thanks to the sales of the deluxe reissue of the album.

First in space

Delicate Sound of Thunder became the first album to be played in space, as Soviet cosmonauts took it aboard Soyuz TM-7. David Gilmour and Nick Mason attended the mission's launch.[7]

Track listing

CD

Disc one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Shine On You Crazy Diamond"	Roger Waters/David Gilmour/Richard Wright	11:53
2.	"Learning to Fly"	Gilmour/Bob Ezrin/Jon Carin/Anthony Moore	5:27
3.	"Yet Another Movie"	Gilmour/Pat Leonard	6:21
4.	"Round and Around"	Gilmour	0:33
5.	"Sorrow"	Gilmour	9:28
6.	"The Dogs of War"	Gilmour/Moore	7:18
7.	"On the Turning Away"	Gilmour/Moore	7:58

Disc two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"One of These Days"	Waters/Gilmour/Wright/Nick Mason	6:15
2.	"Time"	Gilmour/Mason/Wright/Waters	5:16
3.	"Wish You Were Here"	Waters/Gilmour	4:49
4.	"Us and Them"	Waters/Wright	7:22
5.	"Money"	Waters	9:52
6.	"Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)"	Waters	5:28
7.	"Comfortably Numb"	Gilmour/Waters	8:56
8.	"Run Like Hell"	Gilmour/Waters	7:12

LP edition

Side one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Shine On You Crazy Diamond"	Waters/Gilmour/Wright	11:53
2.	"Learning to Fly"	Gilmour/Ezrin/Carin/Moore	5:27
3.	"Yet Another Movie"	Gilmour/Leonard	6:21
4.	"Round and Around"	Gilmour	1:00

Side two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
5.	"Sorrow"	Gilmour	9:28
6.	"The Dogs of War"	Gilmour/Moore	7:18
7.	"On the Turning Away"	Gilmour/Moore	7:58

Side three

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"One of These Days"	Waters/Gilmour/Wright/Mason	6:15
2.	"Time"	Gilmour/Waters/Mason/Wright	5:16
3.	"Money"	Waters	9:52
4.	"Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)"	Waters	5:28

Side four

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
5.	"Wish You Were Here"	Waters/Gilmour	4:49
6.	"Comfortably Numb"	Gilmour/Waters	8:56
7.	"Run Like Hell"	Gilmour/Waters	7:12

Cassette

Cassette one
Side one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Shine On You Crazy Diamond"	Waters/Gilmour/Wright	11:53
2.	"Learning to Fly"	Gilmour/Ezrin/Carin/Moore	5:27
3.	"Yet Another Movie"	Gilmour/Leonard	6:21
4.	"Round and Around"	Gilmour	1:03

Side two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
5.	"Sorrow"	Gilmour	9:44
6.	"The Dogs of War"	Gilmour/Moore	7:18
7.	"On the Turning Away"	Gilmour/Moore	7:58

Cassette two
Side three

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"One of These Days"	Waters/Gilmour/Wright/Mason	6:15
2.	"Time"	Gilmour/Wright/Mason/Waters	5:16
3.	"Us and Them"	Waters/Wright	7:22
4.	"Money"	Waters	9:52
5.	"Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)"	Waters	5:28

Side four

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
6.	"Wish You Were Here"	Waters/Gilmour	4:49
7.	"Comfortably Numb"	Gilmour/Waters	8:56
8.	"Run Like Hell"	Gilmour/Waters	7:12

Songs omitted from the album

The concerts also featured the following songs which were not included on the album:

• "Signs of Life" *
• "A New Machine"
• "Terminal Frost"
• "On the Run" *
• "The Great Gig in the Sky" *
• "Welcome to the Machine"
• "One Slip" *

Songs with asterisk (*) are included in the video version.

2019 reissue

Delicate Sound of Thunder was reissued on CD on 13 December 2019 as part of the box set The Later Years 1987–2019 along with the film of the same name. The album has been remixed and remastered and includes tracks omitted from the original 1988 release. A standalone release was released on 20 November 2020 on CD, triple LP, and CD/DVD/BD box set which includes the 2019 cut of the film.

In the 2019 remix, the songs "Sorrow", "On the Turning Away" and "Comfortably Numb" have longer guitar solos by Gilmour than in the 1988 original; "The Dogs of War" has a longer intro; "Money" has been condensed, removing Guy Pratt's bass solo and the female a cappella section; "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" has extra elements, taken from 1989 shows, added in - most notably an extra "hey teacher!" between Gilmour's and Renwick's guitar solos; "Us and Them" has a piano added to the intro; much of the echo has been removed from Wallis' electronic drums during "Learning to Fly"; and "Run Like Hell" has an extended intro and now includes Gilmour thanking the audience; "Time" guitar's intro starts sooner within the "tic-tac" (as performed on Pulse) than the 1988 original.

"Learning to Fly", "Us and Them", and "Run Like Hell" from the 2019 remix are also included in the 2019 compilation album The Later Years 1987–2019 Highlights, released on 29 November 2019.

Track listing

Disc 1 "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" "Signs of Life" (previously unreleased) "Learning to Fly" "Yet Another Movie" "Round and Around" "A New Machine (Part 1)" (previously unreleased) "Terminal Frost" (previously unreleased) "A New Machine (Part 2)" (previously unreleased) "Sorrow" "The Dogs of War" "On The Turning Away"

Disc 2 "One of These Days" "Time" "On the Run" (previously unreleased) "The Great Gig in the Sky" (previously unreleased) "Wish You Were Here" "Welcome to the Machine" (previously unreleased) "Us and Them" "Money" "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" "Comfortably Numb" "One Slip" (previously unreleased) "Run Like Hell"

Personnel

Pink Floyd

• David Gilmour – guitars, console steel guitar, lead vocals
• Nick Mason – drums, percussion
• Richard Wright – keyboards, backing vocals, lead vocals on "Time" and "Comfortably Numb"

Additional musicians

• Jon Carin – keyboards, programming, backing vocals
• Rachel Fury – backing vocals
• Durga McBroom – backing vocals
• Scott Page – saxophones, guitar
• Guy Pratt – bass guitar, backing vocals, co-lead vocals on "Another Brick in the Wall (Part 2)" and "Run Like Hell"
• Tim Renwick – guitars, backing vocals
• Margaret Taylor – backing vocals
• Gary Wallis – percussion, additional keyboards on "Comfortably Numb"

Production

• David Gilmour  - production and 2019/2020 remixing
• Doug Sax – mastering (on original 1988 release)
• David Gleeson – assistant engineering
• Buford Jones – engineering, mixing on original 1988 release
• Dimo Safari – band photography
• Storm Thorgerson and Nick Marchant – cover design and graphics (on original 1988 release)
• David Hewett – recording[8]
• Andy Jackson  - Remastering and remixing on 2019/2020 re-release
• Damon Iddins  - assistant remixing on 2019/2020 re-release
• Steve Knee  - Cover photography on 2020 remixed/expanded reissue
• Aubrey Powell of Hipgnosis  - supervising artwork on 2019/2020 re-release

Charts

Chart performance for Delicate Sound of Thunder

Chart (1988–2020)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[9]	4
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[10]	15
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[11]	36
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[12]	17
Czech Albums (ČNS IFPI)[13]	23
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[14]	20
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[15]	16
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[16]	5
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[17]	7
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[18]	4
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[19]	2
Polish Albums (ZPAV)[20]	12
Scottish Albums (OCC)[21]	9
Spanish Albums (AFYVE)[22]	15
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[23]	14
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[24]	4
UK Albums (OCC)[25]	11
US Billboard 200[26]	11

Certifications and sales

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Argentina (CAPIF)[27]	Gold	30,000^^
Argentina (CAPIF)[27] Delicado Sonido Del True	Gold	30,000^^
Australia (ARIA)[28]	3× Platinum	210,000
Austria (IFPI Austria)[29]	Gold	25,000^*
Canada (Music Canada)[30]	2× Platinum	200,000^^
France (SNEP)[31]	2× Gold	200,000^*
Germany (BVMI)[32]	Gold	250,000^^
Italy sales in 1989	—	300,000[33]
Italy (FIMI)[34] sales since 2009	Gold	25,000^*
Netherlands (NVPI)[35]	Gold	50,000^^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[36]	Platinum	15,000^^
Portugal (AFP)[37]	3× Platinum	120,000^^
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[38]	Gold	50,000^^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[39]	Platinum	50,000^^
United Kingdom (BPI)[40]	Gold	100,000^^
United States (RIAA)[41]	3× Platinum	1,500,000^^
^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone sales+streaming figures based on certification alone

References

1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Album review at AllMusic. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
2. Blender Review
3. "Album review". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
4. Azerrad, Michael. "Album review". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
5. The Live Albums
6. "Pink Floyd's Delicate Sound Of Thunder set for vinyl reissue". 10 October 2017. Retrieved 12 October 2017.
7. Mabbett, Andy (2010). Pink Floyd - The Music and the Mystery. London: Omnibus. ISBN 978-1-84938-370-7.
8. "David Hewitt Road Diaries". Audio-Technica. 15 May 2018. Retrieved 18 May 2020.
9. "Australiancharts.com – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
10. "Austriancharts.at – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
11. "Ultratop.be – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
12. "Ultratop.be – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
13. "Czech Albums – Top 100". ČNS IFPI. Note: On the chart page, select 202048 on the field besides the word "Zobrazit", and then click over the word to retrieve the correct chart data. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
14. "Dutchcharts.nl – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
15. "Pink Floyd: Delicate Sound of Thunder" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
16. "Offiziellecharts.de – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
17. "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2020. 49. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
18. "Charts.nz – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
19. "Norwegiancharts.com – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
20. "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
21. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
22. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959-2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
23. "Swedishcharts.com – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
24. "Swisscharts.com – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
25. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 November 2020.
26. "Pink Floyd Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
27. "Discos de oro y platino" (in Spanish). Cámara Argentina de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
28. "ARIA Australian Top 50 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. 7 December 2020. Retrieved 5 December 2020.
29. "Austrian album certifications – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder" (in German). IFPI Austria. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
30. "Canadian album certifications – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder". Music Canada. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
31. "Les Certifications depuis 1973: Albums". Infodisc.fr. Retrieved 26 July 2020. (select "Pink Floyd" from drop-down list)
32. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Pink Floyd; 'Delicate Sound of Thunder')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
33. Caroli, Daniele (9 December 1989). "Italy > Talent Challenges" (PDF). Billboard Magazine. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 101 (49): I-8. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 25 July 2020 – via World Radio History.
34. "Italian album certifications – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 31 May 2018. Select "2018" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Delicate Sound of Thunder" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Album e Compilation" under "Sezione".
35. "Dutch album certifications – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved 13 September 2018. Enter Delicate Sound of Thunder in the "Artiest of titel" box.
36. "New Zealand album certifications – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
37. Tenente, Fernando (14 April 1990). "INTERNATIONAL: Floyd, Kaoma Top Sellers In Portugal Certs" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 102 no. 15. p. 69. Retrieved 28 November 2020 – via World Radio History.
38. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (PDF) (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. p. 925. ISBN 84-8048-639-2. Retrieved 27 June 2019.
39. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Pink Floyd; 'Delicate Sound of Thunder')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
40. "British album certifications – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 9 June 2016. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Delicate Sound of Thunder in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
41. "American album certifications – Pink Floyd – Delicate Sound of Thunder". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 9 June 2016. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH.