Why ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ is Bill Ryder-Jones’ ultimate car record
Since I was young, I’ve always dreamed of finding myself in a movie. To be clear, I don’t mean that I wanted to be an actor—I mean feeling as though I am the character on screen. Achieving that sort of connection isn’t easy, but it’s certainly helped by a great soundtrack. Step forward, Pink Floyd. Step forward, The Dark Side of the Moon.
Released in 1973, Pink Floyd’s eighth studio album, The Dark Side of the Moon, has cemented its place as one of the best-selling records of all time. A timeless masterpiece, it transports listeners far beyond the moment they pressed play, to someplace entirely different. While the name Pink Floyd will never headline a stage again, the legacy of both the band and this iconic album endures.
As an album Pink Floyd’s finest hour is at its best when listened to on the go in a car or train, providing the backing track as the world rolls past. It is a belief held by many, including Bill Ryder-Jones, who reminisced with Far Out about the impact playing The Dark Side of the Moon on those long car journeys had on him.
“It’s one of them records that has sort of enveloped me in different times,” Ryder-Jones explained. “Like my dad, when we used to go on holiday to Scotland, he’d put his music on his music, which was very much Floyd and a lot of prog. So, I’ve got very, very lovely young memories of driving around with this”.
“We used to go to the Isle of Mull, which is quite a journey in an old Volvo, But I remember driving through that scenery listening to ‘Us and Them’, and it was really powerful stuff,” he added. “Then, when I got ill and moved down to Cambridge, I was living with my then-girlfriend’s parents, and my dad came down to visit for a week. He drove down, and one of the things that we bonded over was listening to that a lot in his car. So, there’s quite a nice little full-circle thing going on there”.
Now, in 2024. Pink Floyd is no more. David Gilmour has confirmed he will never play ‘Money’ live again, so the opportunities to experience The Dark Side of the Moon are few and far between. With limited options, then there may be no better choice than to get into a friend or family member’s car and look out the window as The Dark Side of the Moon washes over you via the speaker.
For all the explanations and attempting to understand what makes listening to The Dark Side of the Moon on a long drive so special, perhaps it is Ryder-Jones who puts it best. Telling Far Out: “There’s some records that are just really good in cars, aren’t there? You can kind of be ‘in’ the record in a car, and I like that. It’s one of the only fucking things I do like about cars.”
Perhaps it is that simple. That the opportunity to get on the aux and lose yourself in The Dark Side of the Moon is too good to pass up on. To hear ‘Money’, ‘Speak to Me’, or ‘On the Run’ and feel something that has stood the test of time as you lose yourself, if not forever, at least for 45 minutes.
