Twenty-five years ago, on April 4, Pink Floyd released one of the most iconic albums in the history of rock music. On this very day, “The Division Bell,” Pink Floyd's fourteenth studio album was released in the US by Columbia Records.
In the UK, it was released on March 28, 1994 by EMI Records. The English progressive art rock and psychedelic band's album dominated most of the charts worldwide and was certified double platinum and triple platinum in the US in 1999.
Despite decent sales, the album received mixed reviews, notably from Rolling Stone magazine, that reviewed the album with prejudice. Their review was published on June 16, 1994.
All of this is statistical information. Regardless of the mixed reception and experts’ comments, there is no denying the fact that the album went on to be one of the greatest rock albums of all time. Psychedelic rock music got some of timeless songs from this album.
This was not just a rock album; it was a beautiful documentation of human communication, cybernetics, and jealousy through music.
Album concept and lyrics
The album contains a total of 11 songs including two instrumen
tal numbers. No Pink Floyd album is concept-less, and, “The Division Bell” is no exception. The main concept of this album is a failure of human communication.
What is a division bell? According to the dictionary, it is a bell that has rung in parliament, in the UK, to announce an imminent division. The name of the album, itself, reflects the lack of communication between general people and policy makers.
Each and every song of this album communicates to the listeners. The lyrics of each song have a profound meaning associated with great instrumentals.
The "Division Bell” was written mostly by guitarist and singer David Gilmour and keyboardist Richard Wright. The songs quest on the future of human communication system and morality.
In “The Division Bell” we find a more thoughtful Pink Floyd. Perhaps, David Gilmour tried to explore his own bittersweet relationship with Roger Waters. For instance, some of the lines from “Lost for Words” are: “So I open my door to my enemies/And I ask could we wipe the slate clean/But they tell me to please go f*** myself/You know you just can’t win.”
The album opens with the instrumental track, “Cluster One,” followed by “What do You Want from Me?”
The song, that was inspired by Chicago Blues, feels like it was written from personal pain, perhaps it reflects Gilmour’s own suffering.
“Keep Talking” takes us a on a journey into space. This is one of my most favourite songs of all time.
“I feel like I'm drowning/ What are you feeling/I'm feeling weak now/ You never talk to me/But I can't show my weakness.”
These lyrics articulate loneliness and failure of communication. “Coming Back To Life” is another well-known song from the album.
Album cover
Storm Thorgerson, who was a long-time Pink Floyd collaborator, designed the album cover. Till today the meaning of the cover art remains a mystery. It can be interpreted as the division of human race that causes war and destruction.
A couple of steel head sculptures were used for the album cover art. In 2017, the sculptures were on display at the Victoria and Albert Museumin London.
Awards and recognitions
“The Division Bell” was nominated for the 1995 Brit Awards for "Best Album by a British Artist." The band was awarded with a Grammy for "Best Rock Instrumental Performance" for “Marooned.”
The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 during the week of April 23, 1994. It sold more than more than 460,000 units in the opening week.
Pink Floyd’s extraordinary journey creating rock music ended with this album. Many years later, “The Endless River,” the fifteenth and final studio album of the band came out in 2014.
