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The first Floyd album I listened to. A tragedy. A trauma for me. I remember very well, almost 16 years ago... when I listened to it for the first time!
I said, "What the hell is this stuff?" I don't remember why I didn't throw it in the trash, but I remember very well that for the next three years, that album gathered a lot of dust in the darkest corner of my room. I hated that album!
Talking and reasoning with people older than me, I noticed that they always spoke highly of this "Ummagumma," and I couldn't understand why. Inside, I kept telling myself... "the problem is either me or them."
One day I gathered my courage... I went to remove spiders, cobwebs, and dust from that album and tried to listen to it for the second time!
"I don't like it, I don't understand it... these aren't songs, what the hell is this stuff... why does everyone like it and not me?" "Are these the Pink Floyd?" "Screw the Pink Floyd" "I'm going back to Led Zeppelin."
So "my second time" was a total failure too!
I started reading, documenting myself... trying to understand what the hell that "ummagumma" was! Between one reading and another, I listened to it... and I didn't like it, I listened to it... and I didn't like it... by listening to it continuously... I began to like it... but only when I realized I had to listen to it with my eyes closed, without looking for logic, without understanding... losing myself... losing oneself is wonderful, just to quote Lynch.
Today, almost 16 years after the first listen, "Ummagumma" is one of my all-time favorite albums.
Double album, one Live, one recorded in the studio.
The Live part is, in my opinion, divine. "Astronomy Domine" already fantastic in the studio version becomes even more magical and in some ways more "dark" besides being much longer. The vocals are definitely more delicate, Wright's organ is a magic carpet that makes you fly wherever you want in the darkness of the deepest space, while Gilmour's guitar is more incisive and angry. "Careful with that axe Eugene," a classic in the band's live performances, Roger's bass rises from the shadows, we're all there waiting for the explosion, preceded by a drum roll... the inevitable scream of Waters is the peak of the piece. Incredibly, however, this version is one of the rare ones that doesn't have "the scream" anticipated by Mason's drums, so the sense of ecstasy will be abruptly interrupted by Waters. "Set the controls..." live is masterful, a serpent wrapping around you, Waters sings almost in a whisper, Wright is exceptional in recreating atmospheres that almost bring back to ancient Egypt, this version in my opinion is second only to the one you can find on the tube from 1973. We close the Live part with the historic "A Saucerful Of Secrets" which live is certainly even crazier, longer, extreme, and spatial... although even today I can't figure out whether I love the studio version or the live versions more. In any case, the version present in "Ummagumma" is extraordinary, a storm of sounds, noises, echoes, gongs stunning... driving the listener crazy... then a moment of peace combined with tension, it's the turn of "celestiality"... let's fly!
"Interstellar Overdrive" was also supposed to be among the four live tracks, but for reasons never truly known... (time, disagreements, Syd Barrett... it's not clear, some books say one thing, others say different things...) the idea was shelved.
The Studio part, in my opinion, is beautiful but doesn't reach the levels achieved by the Live part. In my opinion, the best piece of the Studio part is "Sysyphus" by Rick Wright, a marvelous piece where in my opinion the keyboardist gave free rein to his creativity and felt decidedly free to put all his fears, joys, and emotions into music, the part entrusted solely to the piano is wonderful, then there's a total change of sounds... it seems like entering a sinister swamp where somewhere a creature is ready to scare us at any moment... and this happens... if you have imagination and let yourself be carried away by Wright's notes. Meanwhile, Roger Waters immerses us in the green of nature with two almost "ambient" pieces, one with a very long title (which I still can't remember) and the other, a sweet poem played with an acoustic guitar and birdsong as background. Waters' "moment" is in my opinion also very beautiful. Now we move on to Gilmour, who naturally delights us with his guitars and here, in my opinion, we are faced with the Studio part's least successful "moment," "The Narrow Way" never really convinced me that much, although overall we still remain in those sounds that recall the psychedelic atmospheres so dear to the band. We finish with Mason, who concludes with fairly successful experimentations but in this case, too, I think we are faced with a rather "rushed" end to the album.
"Ummagumma" is, in my opinion, the album that represents and testifies to the confidence reached at that moment, the full mastery of their equipment, their instruments, their idea of sound. While in terms of composition, the band might not have been at its peak yet; this is shown by the Studio Part where there is a clear tendency to create pieces that do not follow a "normal logic of classical song" (except for the songs by Waters and Gilmour), in fact, in my opinion, the Floyd will reach the peak with the song "Echoes" a few years after this album's release. It must be said that "Ummagumma" was an extremely important album not only for Pink Floyd, but for all modern music, for all compositions that went through Kraut Rock up to the most experimental and successful works of Eno.
On the other hand, Popol Vuh (whom I adore to madness), Faust, Can, by their own admission, have loved, adored and "studied" this work. A work that, at least from what I've understood, wasn't even taken so seriously by the Pink Floyd, it always happens like this. The author or authors of a great work often do not realize that theirs is indeed a great work... while the rest of the world does.
It is probably the "most difficult" album to listen to and appreciate... at least for "Floydians" who are only used to "Dark Side" or "The Wall," while it is a real strength for those who loved those Pink Floyd who dared to always push beyond... even beyond their own limits.
Personally, I think that Pink Floyd never really loved much of their production. Just consider that in recent years, Roger Waters described "Ummagumma" as a "complete disaster," David Gilmour talks about "Atom Heart Mother" as "pure rubbish" and dismisses the album "The Wall" as a "continuous lament." Who knows if they really think that, in any case, it's indeed strange, one of the most loved bands in the world... that "can't stand" much of what they created!
"This album is just an experiment, plus I think it was recorded poorly. The studio side could have been done better!" David Gilmour
"Careful, with that axe Eugene is the least sophisticated music imaginable. Nothing happened, the chords didn't change, the title was the entire song. Then there was a scream, and everything rose..." Roger Waters
Disturbing, right? Oh well... the great Pink Floyd think so! What can we do? I and who knows how many people in the world have loved and still love this (in our opinion) great album, the "trips" made with the music contained in this album are countless... and considering the fact that music is not just technique... well... for me "Ummagumma" is perfect for certain types of "listening-slash-traveling". Then everyone draws their own conclusions!
VinnySparrow
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