Pink Floyd: The Dark Side of the Moon (Classic Albums Series)

Hard to believe that three full decades have passed since the original release of Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon; still, the album has pretty much always been a part of the musical landscape, considering that it spent 741 (!) consecutive weeks on the Billboard charts and has long been revered as one of rock's greatest works. Of course, one's interest in this in-depth treatment will probably depend on one's love of the music, but not as much as you might think; the Classic Albums series, which has in the past spotlighted such masterpieces as Hendrix's Electric Ladyland, Steely Dan's Aja, and Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life, generally does such a good job of exploring nearly every aspect of a given recording that it makes for fascinating viewing even for the non-fanatic. The blueprint doesn't vary much, combining interviews (all four Floyds are on hand--but not together, of course, given the well-known acrimony between main man Roger Waters and the other three), detailed and often quite technical explications of every track (including engineer Alan Parsons' twiddling the knobs on the master tape, revealing individual parts of the whole), sage commentary from various experts, and plenty of bonus material (43 minutes' worth in this case), but while it may be formulaic, this Dolby Digital stereo-backed trip down memory lane is entertaining stuff. Recommended. Aud: P. (S. Graham)