Pink Floyd: Hey You

From The Wall

Pink Floyd released their 11th Album in 1979, making a mark on history which will never again be removed. Their 11th album, The Wall, is the touching story of a man, Pink, who, abandoned by his friends, family, and wife, turns to drugs. He builds a metaphorical wall around himself, blocking himself from human contact, and the 26 song, rock saga covers this journey of his. By the time Hey You is played on the album, Pink is beginning to realize that cutting himself off from human contact is something that he cannot handle. Hey You is the 14th song on the Album, and is the dawn of Pinks realization that to survive, he needs human contact. -Hey you, dont let them bury the light. Dont Give in, Without a fight These eternal words will forever carry forward the memory of one of the worlds greatest ever rock bands, Pink Floyd. But in honesty, what makes a great classic? Every song is unique, every album original, every track, every word a new take on humanity, and on human emotions. Pink Floyd, with their album, The Wall, took a brave new step in progressive rock, telling a story. But not just any story, an opera, a massive, long, painful story or survival, of greed, hate, love, and oppression. Pink Floyd managed to capture all those facets of human emotion so rarely found in todays music. Let us now contrast some of the words of Hey You with other songs famous today: Hey You: Pink Floyd Hey you ! with your ear against the wall Waiting for someone to call out would you touch me Hey you ! would you help me to carry the stone Open your heart, I'm coming home Wild Ones: Flo Rida I like crazy, foolish, stupid Party going wild, fist pumping Music, I might lose it Blast to the roof, that's how we do'z it I don't care the night, she don't care we like Rude Boy: Rihanna I like the way you touch me there I like the way you pull my hair Babe, if I don't feel it I ain't faking, no, no I like when you tell me 'kiss you there' I like when you tell me 'move it there'

As we can see, there is a marked difference in the style of the music. We have one rock number, Hey You, one Rap song, Wild Ones, and one pop single, Rude Boy. Hey You talks of love, hope, and help for a tortured soul, for an artist pining away for his love, for his soul, for someone to help him out. The single line No matter how hard he tried he could not break free has become iconic. Protesters against censorship in China adopted the same line for their movement. How did Pink Floyd react to this album which was to define the way music was played for years afterwards? They went on tour in England, and worked tirelessly, trying to ensure that music which they thought was a damn good piece of work reached their audience.

Pink Floyd: Hey You

From The Wall

Hey You is iconic because of a variety of factors. It is a classic because of these same factors. The album, The Wall, sold over 19 million copies worldwide, in a span of 11 years, between 1979 and 1990. It went triple platinum in 3 months, a record at that time. Hey You has received favorable reviews from audiences around the world. The Rolling Stone labeled it one of the most iconic, least stereotypical pieces in the history of rock, Hey You challenges perceptions and attitudes through the ages. The Wall, including Hey You, achieved the following statistics: Album Year Chart Peak Source position 3 1 9 1 29 1 19 1 13 21 1
[85]

UK Albums Chart Norwegian Albums Chart Spanish Albums Chart Swedish Albums Chart Swiss Albums Chart 1979 German Albums Chart Danish Albums Chart New Zealand Albums Chart Italian Albums Chart Finnish Albums Chart Austrian Albums Chart

[86]

[86]

[86]

[86]

[86]

[86]

[86]

[86]

[86]

[86]

U.S. Billboard Top LPs & Tapes 1 1980 French Albums Charts 2012 Polish Albums Charts 1 11

[87]

[88]

[89]

Pink Floyd: Hey You

From The Wall

Selected album sales Country Argentina Certification Sales Platinum 11 Platinum 200,000 Last certification date 23 August 1999 Comment Source(s)
[92]

Australia

770,000

[93]

Canada France Germany Greece Poland

2 Diamond 2,000,000 31 August 1995 Diamond 1,340,100 1991

[94]

[95]

4 Platinum 1,750,000 1994 Gold Platinum 23 Platinum 100,000 29 October 2003 8 Platinum on 28 May 1991 Since 1991 February 2007

[96]

[97]

[98]

United States RIAA

11,500,000 29 January 1999

[99]

United States Soundscan

5,381,000 16 February 2008

[100][101]

Sales for Hey You are still going strong, with over 900,000 downloads monthly, according to itunes official statistics. The Music: Hey You is also iconic chiefly because of its music. The song starts off with a solo acoustic guitar playing a melody resembling the middle section of "A Pillow of Winds" over broken chords, with the fretless bass (similar to it's use in "A Pillow of Winds") joining in shortly after. Next to join in is the Fender Rhodes electric piano, David Gilmour's vocals, and overdubbed acoustic guitar and drums at the start of the second verse. In the middle is a guitar solo which is played over the main riff of the song "Another Brick in the Wall". After the solo, Roger Waters takes over on lead vocals for the rest of the song. The bridge contains the chord sequence from "Bring the Boys Back Home", ending on an E minor chord as well. A reprise of the instrumental introduction follows, augmented by prominent ARP Quadra riffs and

Pink Floyd: Hey You

From The Wall

a faintly audible sound of a drill. At this point, there is a piece of indecipherable whispering from the left channel. Drums and vocals then join in. At about 3:23 into the song, a common Floydian technique of recycling sounds occurs when a sonar-like sound, similar to the ping in "Echoes", is introduced, adding to the atmosphere of isolation and emptiness. The song itself is inspired by the very concept The Wall was made for: the feeling of despair and isolation from one's peers. "Hey You" has a very desperate tone which steadily grows as the song progresses