Australian Pink Floyd Show
Encyclopedia
The Australian Pink Floyd Show, more frequently referred to as the Australian Pink Floyd, are a Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...

 tribute band
Tribute band
A tribute act is a music group, singer, or musician who specifically plays the music of a well-known music act - sometimes one which has disbanded, ceased touring or is deceased. Probably the largest class of tributes acts are Elvis impersonators, individual performers who mimic the songs and style...

 formed in 1988 in Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...

, South Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

. Their live shows attempt to recreate the look, feel, and sound of Pink Floyd's later world tours, employing visual aids such as lasers, inflatables and a large display panel similar to Mr Screen. The Australian Pink Floyd Show are renowned for playing international venues worldwide, setting them apart from local or regional Pink Floyd tributes.

Early History

In 1994, David Gilmour
David Gilmour
David Jon Gilmour, CBE, D.M. is an English rock musician and multi-instrumentalist who is best known as the guitarist, one of the lead singers and main songwriters in the progressive rock band Pink Floyd. In addition to his work with Pink Floyd, Gilmour has worked as a producer for a variety of...

 attended an Australian Pink Floyd Show performance at the Fairfield Halls
Fairfield Halls
Fairfield Hall is an arts centre in Croydon, London, England and opened in 1962. It contains a concert hall, the Ashcroft Theatre , the Arnhem Gallery civic hall and an art gallery....

 in Croydon
Croydon
Croydon is a town in South London, England, located within the London Borough of Croydon to which it gives its name. It is situated south of Charing Cross...

. He subsequently invited the band to attend the end-of-tour, after-show party for The Division Bell
The Division Bell
The Division Bell is the fourteenth and last studio album by English progressive rock group Pink Floyd. It was released in the United Kingdom by EMI Records on 28 March 1994, and in the United States by Columbia Records on 4 April....

 tour at Earls Court Exhibition Centre
Earls Court Exhibition Centre
The Earls Court Exhibition Centre is an exhibition centre, conference and event venue located in west London, United Kingdom in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea . It is the largest exhibition venue in central London. It is served by two underground stations, Earl's Court and West...

 in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

.

The Australian Pink Floyd are the only Pink Floyd tribute act to play for a member of Pink Floyd; in 1996, they performed at David Gilmour's 50th birthday party.


In 1995, the band appeared on Irish national television, performing "Young Lust
Young Lust (song)
"Young Lust" is a song by Pink Floyd. It appeared on The Wall album in 1979.-Composition:"Young Lust" is approximately 3 minutes, 25 seconds in length...

" on the chat show Kenny Live
Kenny Live
Kenny Live is an Irish weekly chat show on RTÉ that was hosted by Pat Kenny. The show debuted in 1988 and aired every Saturday night, except during the summer months, directly after the main evening news...

.

In 1998, the band played Glastonbury
Glastonbury Festival
The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or even Glasto, is a performing arts festival that takes place near Pilton, Somerset, England, best known for its contemporary music, but also for dance, comedy, theatre, circus, cabaret and other arts.The...

 performing on the acoustic stage.

In 2004, the band performed The Dark Side of the Moon
The Dark Side of the Moon
The Dark Side of the Moon is the eighth studio album by English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released in March 1973. It built on ideas explored in the band's earlier recordings and live shows, but lacks the extended instrumental excursions that characterised their work following the departure...

at the King's Dock, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...

. The performance was recorded and released as a DVD the same year. This was released as a 2-DVD set with the full concert on disc one and bonuses on disc two. Also in 2004, the band commenced a major tour of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

, and Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, including a show in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

. The Liverpool Pops DVD (and more recently the 2004 Royal Albert Hall performance) has been aired on television in the United States.

In 2005, the band released a CD of their renditions of Animals and Wish You Were Here at the Liverpool Pops Festival. In the same year the band undertook a two-week tour of South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

 consisting of dates in Mexico City
Mexico City
Mexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...

, Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

, and Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

. A documentary about the group was shot at the Bell Center in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

 and broadcast in North America on the Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...

 in 2007.

In 2007, the band performed at several major European Music Festivals, including the Sweden Rock Festival
Sweden Rock Festival
Sweden Rock Festival is an annual rock/metal festival held in Sweden since 6 June 1992. While having a clear rock/metal focus, the festival is noted for its diversity across these genres, having featured southern rock bands such as Molly Hatchet to death metal legends like Obituary.The first...

, the Malta Jazz Festival
Malta Jazz Festival
The Malta Jazz Festival is a three day musical event held every July on the Mediterranean island of Malta. The festival, held annually since 1990 at Ta` Liesse on the Valletta waterfront...

, the Arrow Rock Festival
Arrow Rock Festival
Arrow Rock Festival is a rock festival that takes place on a yearly basis since 2003 in the Netherlands. This festival presents mostly classic rock bands. The original location for the festival was Lichtenvoorde; until 2007 when the venue changed to Biddinghuizen. 2008 saw another location change,...

, Rock Werchter
Rock Werchter
Rock Werchter is a Belgian annual music festival held in the village of Werchter, near Leuven, since 1974. It is one of the five biggest annual rock music festivals in Europe...

, and Festival do Sudoeste
Festival do Sudoeste
Festival Sudoeste is a large, four-day music festival that began in 1997 and takes place every August near Zambujeira do Mar, in southern Portugal...

. A DVD of the band performing at the Royal Albert Hall in London in 2007 was released later that year.

In September 2007, the group commenced its longest ever continuous tour of the Americas
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...

, performing for the first time in Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...

, Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...

, and Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

. In the same month a performance of the show in Buenos Aires was aired on Argentine
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

 national television as part of the Pepsi music festival
Pepsi music festival
Pepsi music festival is a major Argentine music festival, held annually since 2003. Since 2005 it is named after its main sponsor, Pepsi, before it was named after its previous sponsor Quilmes, and it was known as "Quilmes Rock". It was held in several places including the Ferro Stadium and River...



February 2008 saw the group commence their "Best of The Wall" tour in a 5 week tour of Europe, performing in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...

, Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...

, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

, and (for the first time) the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

. The band performed in Raanana and Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

 in May of the same year.

The group performed at the Isle of Wight Festival
Isle of Wight Festival
The Isle of Wight Festival is a music festival which takes place every year on the Isle of Wight in England. It was originally held from 1968 to 1970. These original events were promoted and organised by the Foulk brothers under the banner of their company Fiery Creations Limited...

 for the first time in June 2008, were the headline act of the last night of Guilfest
GuilFest
GuilFest, formerly the Guildford Festival of Folk and Blues is a music festival held in Stoke Park, Guildford, England each July. The festival, like the larger Glastonbury Festival, features a range of genres including rock, folk, blues, and in recent years pop...

 2008, and in August of the same year made their first appearance at the Lokerse Feesten in Lokeren, Belgium.

The band played their first shows in the Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

 and Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...

 in September 2008.

A complete production of The Wall, incorporating new animation based on the original Gerald Scarfe imagery, was performed for the first time by the band during their 2008 North American tours. The production continued throughout the 2009 European tour, which included dates in the United Kingdom, Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Italy, Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, France, Spain, Portugal and, for the first time, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...

.

The summer of 2009 saw the group perform for the first time in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

 at the Lovely Days Festival in Wiesen
Wiesen, Austria
Wiesen is a village in the district of Mattersburg in Burgenland in Austria.-References:...

, and the Castle Clam Classic Rock Festival in Klam
Klam
Klam is a municipality in the district Perg in Upper Austria, Austria....

. In the same month they were the closing act of the Bospop
Bospop
- 7 July :Mainstage:*Fiction Plane*The Charlatans*Sting- 8 July :Tent:*The Mad Trist*Daize Shayne*Popa Chubby*Stream of Passion*Glenn Hughes *The Alan Parsons ProjectMainstage:*Nada Surf*Living Colour*Gabriel Ríos...

 festival in the Netherlands.

Early 2010 saw the band commence its longest ever tour of Europe, playing in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...

 for the first time.

Recent history

Following a dispute with former management, new management was appointed. David Domminney Fowler and Alex McNamara were brought in to replace then-guitarist Damian Darlington and then-singer Ian Cattell.

Commencing their 2011 European tour in Poland, the band employed 3D
3D
3D or 3-D may refer to:*Three-dimensional space, the physical universe*Stereoscopy, any technique capable of recording three-dimensional visual information or creating the illusion of depth in an image-Music:*3D...

 stereoscopic projection and quadraphonic sound for the first time. A documentary describing the early history of the band and preparations for their 2011 tour, entitled Welcome to the Machine, was released on their website shortly after the tour had reached its end.

Performing in June 2011 at the Hampton Court Palace Festival
Hampton Court Palace Festival
The Hampton Court Palace Festival is an annual musical event held in June which was established in 1993. The Festival is known for presenting artists across the music genres such as Sir Elton John, Eric Clapton, Tom Jones, Andrea Bocelli, Van Morrison, Jools Holland, the Buena Vista Social Club,...

 in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, the band were joined by Guy Pratt
Guy Pratt
Guy Pratt is a session bassist and also a songwriter, actor and comedian. He is the son of actor Mike Pratt. In Kensington and Chelsea, London, in 1996, Pratt married Gala Wright, the daughter of Pink Floyd keyboardist Richard Wright...

, long-time session bass player for Pink Floyd, for a rendition of Run Like Hell
Run Like Hell
"Run Like Hell" is a song from the 1979 Pink Floyd album The Wall.-Overview:The song is written from the point of view of anti-hero Pink during a hallucination in which he becomes a fascist dictator and turns a concert audience into an angry mob...

.

For the North American segment of their 2011 tour, the band added Lorelei McBroom as a backing vocalist in place of Bianca Glynn. Lorelei had previously performed live with Pink Floyd on the Momentary Lapse of Reason tour, between 1988 and 1989. At a show in Anaheim, Lorelei was joined by her sister Durga McBroom
Durga McBroom
Durga McBroom is a singer and actress, born October 16, 1962 in California, who has performed backing vocals for Pink Floyd and was a member of Blue Pearl.-Biography:...

 - who also sang for Pink Floyd on the Momentary Lapse and Division Bell
The Division Bell tour
The Division Bell Tour was a concert tour by British rock band Pink Floyd in 1994 to support their album The Division Bell. In 1995 the band released the live album Pulse to commemorate the tour, which would turn out to be the final Pink Floyd tour, although members of the band have continued to...

 tours - to sing The Great Gig in the Sky
The Great Gig in the Sky
"The Great Gig in the Sky" is the fifth track from English progressive rock band Pink Floyd's 1973 album The Dark Side of the Moon. It features voice instrumental music by Clare Torry.-Composition:...

.

In 2012, the band embark on their latest tour, Exposed in the Light. The band have confirmed that Lorelei McBroom will be joining them again, this time for the European tour as well as in North America.

Live performances

Since their 2007 tour, the band's shows has incorporated a psychedelic
Psychedelic
The term psychedelic is derived from the Greek words ψυχή and δηλοῦν , translating to "soul-manifesting". A psychedelic experience is characterized by the striking perception of aspects of one's mind previously unknown, or by the creative exuberance of the mind liberated from its ostensibly...

 light show modelled after the light shows used by Pink Floyd during their 1987 and 1994 world tours
Pink Floyd live performances
Pink Floyd were pioneers in the live music experience, renowned for their lavish stage shows that combine intense visual experiences with music to create a show in which the performers themselves are almost secondary. Pink Floyd's combination of music and visuals set the standard for rock musicians...

. The show includes a round screen with intelligent lights
Intelligent lighting
Intelligent lighting refers to stage lighting that has automated or mechanical abilities beyond those of traditional, stationary illumination. Although the most advanced intelligent lights can produce extraordinarily complex effects, the intelligence lies with the programmer of the show rather...

 arranged around its perimeter. During a concert, movies and animations are displayed on-screen, complementing the band's light show. Inflatables (such as the pig used by Pink Floyd during the Division Bell Tour, and Skippy - the band's own giant pink kangaroo) are frequently employed in the band's shows.

The band are noted for meticulously (and often obsessively) replicating the nuances of Pink Floyd's work. The guitar rig of Steve Mac closely resembles David Gilmour's set-up, and includes elements custom-produced by Pete Cornish
Pete Cornish
Pete Cornish is a British designer of electric guitar effects and other electronic musical instruments. He is mainly noted for his elaborate fully custom guitar pedalboard systems...

, who has worked extensively with Gilmour.

The group often employ imagery based on Floydian designs, but altered to include humorous Australianisms. The band often use an altered version of the Dark Side of the Moon prism for logo purposes, with a glass silhouette of Australia (as opposed to a triangular prism) refracting white light. Additionally, when the band perform music from The Wall, Pink Floyd's marching hammers have their heads replaced with kangaroo heads.

Performances typically follow the format of an hour of music, followed by a 20-minute intermission, followed by a further hour of music, and an encore of Comfortably Numb
Comfortably Numb
"Comfortably Numb" is a song by the English rock band Pink Floyd, which first appears on the 1979 double album, The Wall. It was also released as a single in the same year with "Hey You" as the B-side. It is one of only three songs on the album for which writing credits are shared between Roger...

 and Run Like Hell
Run Like Hell
"Run Like Hell" is a song from the 1979 Pink Floyd album The Wall.-Overview:The song is written from the point of view of anti-hero Pink during a hallucination in which he becomes a fascist dictator and turns a concert audience into an angry mob...

. Sometimes the band will perform a specific album in its entirety during a show, usually as a first-half set. To date the band have performed The Dark Side of the Moon
The Dark Side of the Moon
The Dark Side of the Moon is the eighth studio album by English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released in March 1973. It built on ideas explored in the band's earlier recordings and live shows, but lacks the extended instrumental excursions that characterised their work following the departure...

, Animals, Wish You Were Here, and The Wall
The Wall
The Wall is the eleventh studio album by English progressive rock group Pink Floyd. Released as a double album on 30 November 1979, it was subsequently performed live with elaborate theatrical effects, and adapted into a feature film, Pink Floyd—The Wall.As with the band's previous three...

as complete pieces. When not performing a specific album, the band will perform material spanning a large part of Pink Floyd's creative history, including early material written by Syd Barrett
Syd Barrett
Syd Barrett , born Roger Keith Barrett, was an English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and painter, best remembered as a founding member of the band Pink Floyd. He was the lead vocalist, guitarist and primary songwriter during the band's psychedelic years, providing major musical and stylistic...

, extended pieces such as Dogs and Echoes
Echoes (Pink Floyd song)
"Echoes" is a song by Pink Floyd including lengthy instrumental passages, sound effects, and musical improvisation. Written in 1970 by all four members of the group , "Echoes" provides the extended finale to Pink Floyd's album Meddle...

, and later material from post-Waters Pink Floyd.

The band associates itself with individuals who have worked with Pink Floyd over the years, including Colin Norfield (who has worked as a sound engineer for David Gilmour in his solo career and for Pink Floyd during their 1994 Division Bell tour) and Clive Brooks
Clive Brooks
Clive Colin Brooks is a drummer, best known for his work in the English progressive rock band Egg.-Uriel/Egg:...

 - Nick Mason
Nick Mason
Nicholas Berkeley "Nick" Mason is an English drummer and songwriter, best known for his work with Pink Floyd. He was the only constant member of the band since its formation in 1965...

's long-time drum technician.

2011 has seen the introduction of 3D stereoscopic projection and quadrophonic sound into the band's performances. The Australian Pink Floyd are the first ever band to implement stereographic 3D into a tour.

Band members

Though various musicians have come and gone over the years, the Australian Pink Floyd Show continues to base itself around its three 'longest-serving' members : Steve Mac, Colin Wilson and Jason Sawford. The band are managed by Kevin Brown of Zoo Management. The current line up consists of:
  • Steve Mac - guitar, vocals (1988–present)
  • Paul Bonney - drums (1998–present)
  • Colin Wilson - bass guitar, vocals (1993–present)
  • Jason Sawford - keyboards (1988–present)

  • David Domminney Fowler - guitar, vocals (2010–present)
  • Alex McNamara - vocals (2010 – present)
  • Mike Kidson - saxophones (2003–2008, present)
  • Bianca Glynn - backing vocals (2004–2005 North America, 2010–present)
  • Emily Lynn - backing vocals (2010–present)
  • Lara Smiles - backing vocals (2010–present)
  • Lorelei McBroom - backing vocals (2011-present)

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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