Pink Floyd at Oakland Coliseum Arena 1977

Pink Floyd's 1977 tour is widely considered to be one of the band's most memorable. Following the truly massive sales of Dark Side Of The Moon and Wish You Were Here, the Animals album had not been as commercially successful, but the group's popularity was at an all-time peak. The tour sold out arenas and stadiums across North America and Europe, eclipsing all previous scale and attendance records. The tour was also the first since 1972 that the group did not use backing singers, with the only augmentation to the core band being Snowy White adding guitar and occasional bass parts and Dick Parry playing sax and occasional keyboards. The shows were structured so that the band played the Animals album, in a different sequence, during the first set and following an intermission, performed the entire Wish You Were Here album in its exact running order. The encore would usually consist of either "Money" or "Us And Them” from Dark Side Of The Moon.

With technology and audiences both at a monumental scale, the tour was not without problems. Technical issues plagued many of the shows and audience members were often disruptive by yelling and screaming during quiet passages or by setting off fireworks. However, when the band landed in California for a two-night stand at the Oakland Coliseum, these were not issues. The first night, May 9, 1977, is often considered to be one of the greatest performances of the band's career. The band members seemed to enjoy the show just as much as their rapt audience. This show turned out to be the longest of any show on the tour, with the band delivering two powerful sets, followed by both Dark Side Of The Moon songs. The audience was so enthusiastic that the group returned to the stage and performed 'Careful With That Axe, Eugene' for the first time since 1973 and for last time ever.

Were you there?

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