Shine On You Crazy Diamond

Viktor Krauss

Viktor Krauss, the brother of singer Alison Krauss, has long been one of the most solid supporting artists on the Americana music scene, playing standup bass for Dolly Parton, Chet Atkins, Lyle Lovett, and Emmylou Harris, among others. But he's also a talented composer and bandleader in his own right. Many of his compositions are evocative instrumentals, inspired by the movie soundtracks Krauss remembers listening to as a child.

I first heard Krauss play bass when I attended a concert by Lyle Lovett's acoustic band back in 1996. Aside from some stellar live audio, which is one thing you can depend on at Lovett's concerts, no matter the venue, I wasn't prepared for the virtuosity of the entire band. Being a bassist myself, I was taken with Krauss's skill on the upright bass; a difficult instrument to master, even by experienced practitioners. A good bassist, like Krauss proved he is, can demonstrate a good ear for the song; listening to the rest of band as much or more than he is playing, ever searching for just the right space to fit into.

Released in 2007, his second solo CD, simply called "Viktor Krauss II", also features some vocals, including a turn by Lyle Lovett and a magical version of Pink Floyd's "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" sung by Shawn Colvin, which we are featuring today. "Shine On.." fits well into the rest of the album, as Krauss's music has a rather Floydian orchestral flavor, as we hinted earlier. Put on the headphones and enjoy this very cool interpretation of "Shine On You Crazy Diamond".

Pink Floyd '67: Waters, Mason, Barrett, Wright

"Shine On..." was written by Roger Waters, Richard Wright, and David Gilmour, in tribute to their former Pink Floyd bandmate, Syd Barrett, who was the lead vocalist, guitarist, and primary songwriter during the band's psychedelic years; providing major musical and stylistic direction in their early work. Barrett is also credited with naming the band.

By early 1968, his behavior had become rather erratic; to the point that the band decided to add a second guitarist for live performances. They hoped to employ Syd's songwriting abilities for studio work, similar to Brian Wilson's role in The Beach Boys, while David Gilmour would bolster the band in live shows. The experiment didn't work and after a handful of shows as a 5 piece, the band elected to continue on without him. Barrett left the group in April 1968 amid speculations of mental illness, exacerbated by copious use of psychedelic drugs, and was briefly hospitalized.

The song/suite, "Shine On You Crazy Diamond", is the centerpiece of the 1975 Pink Floyd album, "Wish You Were Here", an album that began life with the unenviable task of being the follow-up release to the epic and timeless "The Dark Side Of The Moon". The song was intended to be a side-long composition like "Atom Heart Mother" or "Echoes", but was eventually split into two parts and used to bookend the album; augmented by other new material that was more relevant to the situation in which the band found themselves. Roger Waters commented, as the sessions were underway, that "at times, the group was there only physically. Our bodies were there, but our minds and feelings were somewhere else."

Syd Barrett at Abbey Road, 1975

In an odd twist, Syd Barrett himself, (heavyset, with a completely shaved head and eyebrows) wandered into the EMI studio at Abbey Road while the band was recording "Wish You Were Here". Because of his drastically changed appearance, the band did not recognize him for some 45 minutes. When they eventually did recognize Barrett, Roger Waters was reportedly so distressed that he was reduced to tears. Apparently, when the song "Wish You Were Here" was played, "He (Barrett) stood up and said, 'Right, when do I put my guitar on?'" Richard Wright recalled. "And of course, he didn't have a guitar with him and we said, 'Sorry, Syd, the guitar's all done.'" When asked what he thought of the music, Barrett said it sounded a "bit old". Wright later said of Barrett's visit, "For some incredible reason, he picked the very day that we were doing a song which was about him. And we hadn't seen him, I don't think, since two years before. That's what's so incredibly weird about this guy. And a bit disturbing as well, I mean, particularly when you see a guy, that you don't... you couldn't recognize him. And then, for him to pick the very day we want to start putting vocals on a song which is about him. Very strange."

On the 2 disc edition of "Wish You Were Here", there is a 21 minute live recording, done at Wembley in '74, that gives possibly the best picture of the song as an album side-length suite. For the sake of comparison to Krauss's cover, and in the interest of time, here's an edited version of "Shine On..." that was presented on the 2011 'best of' sampler, "A Foot In The Door". Keep those headphones on!

As a bonus, here's 5 minute video on the making of the "Wish You Were Here" album. You're welcome.

By now, the entire Pink Floyd catalog has been nicely remastered and key albums are available in several different editions, depending on your level of devotion to each particular work. For albums like "Dark Side..", "Wish You Were Here" or "The Wall", you'll find there is the standard single disc, a double disc "Experience Edition" that typically features live recordings and outtakes, or if you're feeling indulgent, the "Immersion Edition", which contains all of the above plus a deluxe vinyl pressing and/or a DVD and other assorted gimcrackery for the obsessed Floyd fan.

Both solo albums from Viktor Krauss are available at Amazon. They're out of print, but available used for a most agreeable price. Well worth the modest investment, I'd say. If Lyle Lovett does a show in your town, chances are that Viktor will be playing bass with him. By all means, attend.