5 Interesting Facts About PINK FLOYD’s “A Momentary Lapse of Reason”

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Pink Floyd‘s 1987 studio album A Momentary Lapse of Reason was recently reissued on vinyl for the first time in nearly 20 years. The album, which originally started as David Gilmour‘s solo effort, was conceived in the midst of a law suit between Gilmour and Roger Waters over the band’s name. Waters left Pink Floyd in 1985 due to creative differences within the group.

A Momentary Lapse of Reason, Pink Floyd‘s first album without Roger Waters, was released on September 7th, 1987. In December of the same year, an agreement between Waters and the rest of the band was settled.

Further in the post, we give you 5 interesting facts about the 1987 record.

1. Most of A Momentary Lapse of Reason was recorded on Gilmour’s houseboat “Astoria”

Astoria is a house-turned-studio boat built in 1911 and owned by David Gimour who recorded last three Pink Floyd albums there; A Momentary Lapse of Reason being the first one of them.

Producer Bob Ezrin, who was at the helm during the recording sessions of A Momentary Lapse of Reason, stated that “working there was just magical, so inspirational; kids sculling down the river, geese flying by…“

2. Keyboardist Richard Wright had to be hired and paid as a guest musician during the recording sessions

Richard Wright had left the band in 1979 due to creative differences with Waters. As Waters was out of the band, and having heard that Pink Floyd is planning a new album, Wright‘s wife approached Gilmour about having Wright involved once again in the creative process. But there were legal issues that were blocking the “reunion.”

He had to be hired as a paid, guest musician on a weekly wage of $11,000. Even though they reunited, Wright‘s contribution on A Momentary Lapse of Reason was minor, due to most of keyboard parts being already written.

3. A Momentary Lapse of Reason is the first Pink Floyd album without Roger Waters

David Gilmour originally planned to release A Momentary Lapse of Reason as a solo album, but as the things with Roger Waters were settled down, it was decided to put the album as a Pink Floyd record. “Learning to Fly” and “On the Turning Away” were co-written by Anthony Moore, who also collaborated with Pink Floyd on 1994 and 2014 albums: The Division Bell and The Endless River.

In Comfortably Numb – The Inside Story of Pink Floyd by Mark Blake, Gilmour admitted that it was difficult to work on A Momentary Lapse of Reason without Waters.

4. The album artwork brought back the band photo for the first time since Meddle

Storm Thorgerson, who previously design the album art for Animals, was brought back to design the artwork for A Mometary Lapse of Reason. The album cover includes hospital beds set up in the Saunton Sands in Devon. Some of the Wall film scenes were shot at the same location.

The artwork also includes a photo of the band, something that Pink Floyd didn’t do since 1971′s Meddle.

5. The tour in support of A Momentary Lapse of Reason was very succesfull

Although the reception of A Momentary Lapse of Reason was very mixed, the album debuted at No. 3 in UK and US. The tour that was accompanying the release was definitely a success. The band toured Europe, Australia, and Japan, playing North America two times, having over 200 shows performed with earnings over $75 million.

A live album Delicate Sound of Thunder was recorded over five nights at the Nassau Coliseum on Long Island, New York in August 1988 serves as a live document of the Momentary Lapse tour.

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