Very sad news broke last night - the acclaimed, legendary guitarist Jeff Beck died at the age of 78. His family posted the following on his Twitter page: "On behalf of his family, it is with deep and profound sadness that we share the news of Jeff Beck's passing. After suddenly contracting bacterial meningitis, he peacefully passed away yesterday. His family ask for privacy while they process this tremendous loss."
David Gilmour posted the following on his and Pink Floyd's socials: "I am devastated to hear the news of the death of my friend and hero Jeff Beck, whose music has thrilled and inspired me and countless others for so many years. Polly‘s and my thoughts go out to his lovely wife Sandra. He will be forever in our hearts."
Jeff's career started when he left Wimbledon Art College to join Screaming Lord Sutch and the Tridents, subsequently joining the Yardbirds in 1965 when Eric Clapton left. A couple of years later he formed his own Jeff Beck Group (with Rod Stewart and Ronnie Wood in the band). In later years, he concentrated on his successful solo career.
The quality and style of his guitar playing led to many guest appearances. His work on Roger Waters' 1992 album Amused To Death was a musical highlight of that work, and during Jeff's gigs at the Royal Festival Hall in London, September 2002, he was joined onstage by Roger for them to play What God Wants parts 1 and 3.
Two years later, Jeff shared the bill with David Gilmour for the 2004 Teenage Cancer Trust concert at the Royal Albert Hall, and in July 2009, again at the Royal Albert Hall, David and Jeff performed an extended version of Jerusalem, William Blake's poem that became a hymn (seen to the left), followed by Hi Ho Silver Lining (one of Jeff's biggest hits) with David on vocals and lead guitar.
In May 2018, Still On The Run: The Jeff Beck Story was released on DVD and Blu-ray, which includes contributions from David Gilmour as well as Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton, Rod Stewart and many more.
Well, it's that time of year when would like to take this opportunity to thank you all so much for your support and kindness - the site is done purely for you, and as the current version of the site alone approaches 100 million visitors (with the previous version of the site reaching 21 million), we look forward to continuing to bring you news and information from the Floydian world!
Whatever your plans for Christmas, the Holidays, and the New Year we hope you have a peaceful, happy and healthy time, and here's to 2023! Roger Waters will be touring again with his striking This Is Not A Drill, this time in Europe, and fingers are crossed that Nick Mason's Saucerful Of Secrets head out on the road again after such a superb 2022 tour. There's also the small matter of the 50th anniversary of The Dark Side Of The Moon, of which there's already been a couple of books (one of which is billed as an official publication) announced.
In the meantime, there's a couple of bits of interest which should help you tick away the moments that make up what would otherwise be a dull day! First, for those with access to the Disney+ streaming service, there's a new documentary by Mary McCartney called If These Walls Could Sing. This is an absolutely fascinating look at London's EMI Studios (as they used to be known) in Abbey Road. As befitting a place which has had so many top musicians through its hallowed doors, the documentary features new interviews with many of them, and from a Pink Floyd perspective, David Gilmour, Nick Mason and Roger Waters all talk about their experiences there. A solid and absorbing look at the building and the work undertaken there.
The second thing, which will probably take up a lot more of your time, is this. As could be almost seen as a bit of a Christmas present to the fans, the band have quietly released a number of 1972 recordings on the various streaming services, and also the band's official YouTube channel. The quality is rather variable - and some of the dates/venues aren't necessarily 100% correct - but the shows give a fascinating insight into the development of The Dark Side Of The Moon. The earliest recordings are amongst the first full public performances of the initial version of the album, which underwent many dramatic changes as they refined aspects on the road before heading into the recording studio where songs changed heavily again, to what we all now know and love.
The 1972 recordings released are listed with dates and venues as per the original bootlegs, and show as:
Southampton Guildhall, UK, 23 January; Carnegie Hall, New York, 5 February (actually 2 May); Rainbow Theatre, London 17, 18, 19, 20 February; Taiikukan, Tokyo, Japan, 3 March (probably 6 March); Osaka Festival Hall, Japan, 8 March; Nakajima Sports Centre, Sapporo, Japan, 13 March; Chicago Auditorium Theatre, USA, 28 April; Deutschlandhalle, Berlin, Germany, 18 May; Hollywood Bowl, Los Angeles, 22 September; Empire Pool, Wembley, London, 21 October; Ernst-Merck Halle, Hamburg, Germany, 12 November; Palais des Sports, Poitiers, France 29 November; Palais des Sports de L’Ile de la Jatte, Saint Ouen, France, 1 December; Vorst Nationaal, Brussels, Belgium, 5 December; Hallenstadion, Zurich, Switzerland 9 December; "Alternative Tracks 1972".
As with the batch released last year focused on 1971, these are not expected to be around for long, so make the most of them over the holiday and new year period before they disappear! Our thanks to those who emailed to let us know about these.
Nick Mason, along with Ozzy Osbourne (who narrates a moving introduction), Andy Taylor of Duran Duran (who recently revealed his own battle with cancer) and Noddy Holder, lead a group of renowned artists on the song. It's Nick's second collaboration with the charitable endeavour founded by Professor Sir Chris Evans - the first being 2018's One More Yard.
On the new project, Nick said: "It's an honour and a delight to be asked to play on this record...I mean, what's not to like? My favourite recording studio, the opportunity to work with great artists on a wonderful track - and for the most worthy cause... Oh, and complimentary lunch in the Abbey Road canteen!"
This Christmas Time, written by Prof. Sir Chris Evans (who also played guitar), is inspired by the heroism and letters home from World War 1 British soldiers at Christmas.
The magazine invites you to 'join writers and musicians on a voyage inside its songs and stories: "It's stood the test of time because of the spirit and emotion which went into it". They hint at 'New revelations! Myths explained! Kraftwerk implications!'
Articles within include PP Arnold talking about Clare Torry's vocal performance on Great Gig In The Sky, Alan Parsons looking at his work on the album, former Kraftwerk member Kart Bartos giving a particularly interesting analysis of On The Run (with reference to their own Autobahn), and much more. There's also an exclusive extract, looking at the story of the iconic sleeve design and the band during that era, from Mark Blake's superb new book, Us And Them: The Authorised Story of Hipgnosis which is published at the start of February. It should give you a taste of Blake's book which we're reading an early version of - it really will be an essential for your bookshelves!
If you're in the UK, a subscriber or ordering direct from them, there's a suitably designed and wide-ranging Pink Floyd companion CD, featuring artists as diverse as Ron Geesin, Miles Davis, Love, The Butterfield Blues Band, Chuck Berry, Doris Troy (one of the vocalists on the album) and much more.
Elsewhere in the magazine are features on Iggy Pop, Blur, some unseen pictures of Rolling Stones, a look at the 50 best buried treasures of 1972, and 2023 comprehensively previewed, amongst many other things.
Always a great read, the magazine is due to arrive in UK stores around now, and will be available in selected locations worldwide as an import, in due course. Alternatively, you can order (worldwide) online through the Great Magazines website which is owned and run by the publishers of Mojo (and will secure you the cover-mounted CD as well!).
Due to popular demand, The Pink Floyd Exhibition: Their Mortal Remains, the magnificent and critically acclaimed major retrospective of Pink Floyd, their music and the impact the band had on art and culture is remaining in Montreal, Canada, for a little longer.
Following its hugely successful debut at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum in 2017, which saw over 400,000 people attend, the exhibition has subsequently traveled to Italy, Germany, Spain and the United States attracting over 500,000 people and is now running in the cultural hub of Montreal.
The Exhibition opened on November 4 at Arsenal Contemporary Art Montreal, which is proving to be a great venue for the immersive experiential journey through Pink Floyd's world. The band played in Montreal a number of times, including the concert which concluded the 1977 tour, and inspired The Wall. The exhibition is now due to run until February 5th, 2023, giving more people the opportunity to visit - and if you can get along to it, you really won't regret it!
Tickets for the exhibition are now on sale via PinkFloydExhibition.com and as before, advance booking is highly recommended as popular times and dates are unsurprisingly selling quickly. Opening hours over the Christmas and New Year period vary (full details on their website), and normal opening hours each week for the exhibition are as follows:
Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays: 10:00am to 6:00pm (time of last entry)
Fridays, Saturdays: 10:00am to 7:00pm (time of last entry)
Sundays: 10:00am to 5:00pm (time of last entry)
Ticket prices include the excellent audioguide which attendees to previous stagings of the exhibition will know is an extremely well designed facility which will really enhance your visit.
For more information about the exhibition, either check out the various articles here on Brain Damage, or visit www.pinkfloydexhibition.com.
Older News Archive 
Very sad news broke last night - the acclaimed, legendary guitarist Jeff Beck died at the age of 78. His family posted the following on his Twitter page: "On behalf of his family, it is with deep and profound sadness that we share the news of Jeff Beck's passing. After suddenly contracting bacterial meningitis, he peacefully passed away yesterday. His family ask for privacy while they process this tremendous loss."
Well, it's that time of year when would like to take this opportunity to thank you all so much for your support and kindness - the site is done purely for you, and as the current version of the site alone approaches 100 million visitors (with the previous version of the site reaching 21 million), we look forward to continuing to bring you news and information from the Floydian world!
Due to popular demand, The Pink Floyd Exhibition: Their Mortal Remains, the magnificent and critically acclaimed major retrospective of Pink Floyd, their music and the impact the band had on art and culture is remaining in Montreal, Canada, for a little longer.
