One Sunday afternoon in 1971 I was bored out of my mind and started fiddling with a radio receiver my father built from a kit. Randomly scrolling up and down the dial, I came across this amazing and baffling piece of music. It was all instrumental and combined electric guitar, drums, bass, and keyboards with orchestral strings, horns, choir, and sound effects like motorcycles and who knows what. The song was already in progress when I came upon it. I listened until the end, ecstatically captivated by its creativity, diverse sound world, and melodic/compositional qualities. But the DJ never said the name of the song or the band's name. I was furious! They must have announced it before the song and didn't think to reiterate it ... Wanker. The following year, my 8th grade music teacher played us Pink Floyd's album Ummagumma as an example of "drug music." (Oddly, she referred to it as that, not in condemnation, but just sort of as a fact, as if "drug music" were a genre.) That was my first conscious introduction to Pink Floyd. I remember being confused by the experimental stuff on Ummagumma but I was intrigued. When my older brother went to college and came home to play me Dark Side in 1974, that's when Pink Floyd really hooked me. I started buying up their back catalog. Imagine my surprise and delight when I put on Atom Heart Mother for the first time (some years after I first heard Dark Side) and was reunited with that mystery song that I had heard back in '71. It's still a favorite of mine. One of the shining peaks of PF's career, IMHO. Thanks for the video!

Atom Heart Mother is easily one of my favorite Floyd albums, especially the suite. Never understood why the band disowned it like they did.

my two daughters, my late wife and myself all love this album. weve been playing it regularly since the 1990s. it also made great playing at wendys funeral. timeless transending masterpiece.

Summer '68 is an underrated epic. Fat Old Sun live is cathartic.

This era of PF has always fascinated me...a lot of people write off what Waters and co. were doing at this time. But songs like Fat Old Sun and Grantchester Meadows showcase the true spirit of the band and are criminally overlooked by the casual fan.

Atom Heart Mother is one of Pink Floyd's most underrated albums. Thanks for making this!

you do not often see documentaries and history around this album. Great stuff! Some total gems. Summer 68 is one best musical pieces on the album in my humble opinion and likely the most ambitious

Undoubtedly their most adventurous and experimental work and one of their best albums, a masterpiece. Summer ‘68 is a real gem and probably is their most overlooked song

I remember buying this album as my first ever self-bought LP in the 70ies. So many good memories. I still love it.

Summer '68 is an example of genius pop songwriting to me.

The mention to the Brazilian TV commercial of Banco Nacional was absolutely astonishing to me. Not only because I have no idea how this info reached you rael, but also due to the affective memories it resembles on me. I was 11 and the program sponsored by the bank was nothing less than the main TV news program in Brazil. Congrats for the accuracy.

Thank you! I learned a LOT. Atom Heart Mother is one of my absolute favorite Floyd albums.

My favourite time period of my favourite band! You have knocked it out of the park with this. Outstanding! Thanks so much for sharing!

Thanks so much for this! As a teenager AHM was my favourite album. While it's been eclipsed in my heart a few times since then I still adore it, and it's great to see it given such an in-depth and loving assessment, with lots of surrounding context even a Floyd obsessive like me wasn't aware of.

Outstanding video! It's amazing how people that produce videos like this are able to dig up such rare film footage to accompany the story. Well done, and thank you.

Absolutely brilliant work! I feel a kindred bond with all the cool, mellow, and respectful fans responding to your amazing efforts. After 45 years I think I've seen it all and you create something that takes me back to those early days of awe and discovery! Thank you!!!

Excellent video; I love this exploratory period of Floyd with its mix of cosmic and pastoral, you threaded various projects from this period into a very satisfying chronological narrative!

It was 1977, I was introduced to Dark Side by a friend. He then turned me onto ATM, UmmaGumma and Meddle. I fell in love with ATM ... Fat Old Sun is still on my Spotify. Many a "dreamy" listen to Alan's Breakfast ... always a favorite. Great commentary on the pastoral quality of this record.

As a lifelong Floyd aficionado, I can tell you this was the best Floyd-related documentary I have ever seen. Well done.

I love this album as it's the prototype for Meddle and DSOM - it led them towards the massive success they became. I agree that Ron's inclusion on the title track is fantastic and although it was a nightmare to put together, the imperfect coming together of the various strands towards the end is my favourite part of the album. Great video btw - always nice to hear new insights into an old classic!

To have these is miraculous. I became a fan/addict in 1979 and bought everything available then and then listened and read everything I could find from that point. As we know, they were a secretive bunch back in the day, but now we've got lots of stuff to wade through!!! Love it a lot!! Pink Floyd was my religion, philosophy and political training as a youth!

You did my favorite Pink Floyd album justice!!! Thank you, man!!!

I've played this record (record!) my dad bought in '70, the year i was born, the day before yesterday after at least 5 years. I didn't look up Pink Floyd anywhere online. Now this doc pops up..

Such an insightful, well-researched, and well-edited video, thanks for this great presentation on an often underrated and overlooked era of Floyd's history!

I saw Pink Floyd only once , at the Fillmore East. NYC , Sunday night 9/27/70 they were doing the AHM tour , no opening band, brought their own Quad PA ..did at lot of the early stuff as well. pre DSOTM..

"The Body" is a great film. I watched it as a Biology undergraduate student in London many decades ago and the music is what made it so memorable. I had the Waters/Geesin soundtrack album on vinyl but it got lost in a house move sadly.

I used to play this on repeat 24 hrs a day. Found myself in the kitchen having breakfast coincidentally making the same kitchen background noises. Love this album.

The most underrated album of all time.

I thought it was so cool towards the end when he talked about the song "If" and said that it would have worked better if it had been split up into different parts. That's what Nick Mason's Saucerful of Secrets does (which works out brilliantly) they begin playing "If" and then launch into some of the epic parts of Atom Heart Mother and end it with the rest of "If". There was just so much creativity that went into this album, and so much beauty. It's just one of those albums that you listen to, but can sort of also see inside your mind. One of my top five PF albums, and definitely one I have listened to more than most of their other albums.

Years ago I would drive through the snowy Vermont countryside and play AHM start to finish. A great soundscape. Love this album.

This is absolutely wonderful. Jam packed with information, knowledge, humour and enthusiasm, and full of things I didn't know before! Every second of this documentary was an absolute joy (and I love AHM) so massive thanks. And didn't Rick Wright's voice sound incredibly like Syd's?

I was privileged to be at the Bath Festival of Blues and Progressive Music in 1970 where they performed Atom Heart Mother for the first time with a choir. I remember it well late at night. I was only 16 and used to take the album to play at school every day. I could never understand why it's so underrated and scoffed at by the band. The album cover really consummates the concept of the album

As a Brazilian, I still vividly recall the Summer of '68 airing before the "Jornal Nacional," leaving an indelible mark on my mind. This gave rise to various urban legends. Alongside this, there was another related program on the same channel, a series of short documentaries, featuring an opening soundtrack from a movie. Many people claimed it was Floyd, but it took me a while to uncover the truth - it was actually "Freedom of Expression" from the movie Vanishing Point.

Holy cow, what a greatly done short documentary. Much better artistic quality than anything on Netflix and whatnot. Thanks for this one and also for presenting AHM in a interesting and creative way. Such a great album deserves a top notch presentation. Cheers from Sweden.

Brilliant job! I thoroughly enjoyed this in-depth look at one of my favorite records of all time. "Atom Heart Mother" holds a special place in my heart, and I feel a sort of kinship with it. I, too, grew from an embryo, ultimately to be released in 1970. And though I have undoubtedly been viewed at times by my creators as a failed experiment, I have also managed to withstand the test of time. 😂☮

Just received my Atom Heart Mother throw blanket, along with a throw blanket of DSOTM. I always loved the covers of both albums and obviously the music. Great mini documentary of a great Pink Floyd album 👍🐄

Atom Heart Mother is a masterwork. The fact that the second side songs never got radio airplay in the US is a travesty, and, tragically, most of them grew up with 'Dark Side', as their initiation into 'Floyd. I like heavy metal, but the horns, chello, and chorus in this amazing piece of triumphal musicianship, are absolutely unique. Thank you for this documentary.

I had a cassette back in 1990 that I borrowed off a friend and it had the live tracks from Ummagumma on one but the other side it had the Embryo track also. I really liked that track, so glad you mentioned it here and gave it a back story. A forgotten Floyd gem.

This is the toughest period of Floyd for me to get into (post psyche but pre Meddle) it always felt like a lot of nonsense to me. With age im coming around. Thanks RaelNYC you're an incredible creative talent, thank you and God bless you 🙏

Watch Zabriskie Point yourself and make up your own mind. One of the best and most original endings (both visual and musical) of any film I have ever seen.

Man, thank you so much. Started following you after seeing some of the Gabriel-era Genesis docs you made which are incredible. However, I feel like I have been waiting my whole life for this one. An absolute treat.

What a fantastic documentary! Really well researched. Atom Heart Mother is my favourite Floyd album since first hearing it in 1990.

My worn copy of Atom Heart Mother (I still have it) was played on my distinctly lo-fi Collaro record deck connected to the pick-up input of an old Murphy valve radio during my youth. At the exact point where the train thunders past, the stylus stuck and the train seemed to pass endlessly. It was only after a few minutes later I realised it wasn't intentional. And that was without smoking anything!

I have a triple CD of the Zabriskie sessions. Love all the music. Crumbling land, rain in the country etc

AHM takes me back to a strange time in my life. Saw their 71 tour in support of that album. Wonderful album!

Thanks for sharing, a great vide, this episode has some rare footage and still photos, not to mention the nod to the 'Summer Of '68' brass section that was used for the Brazilian 'Banco Nacional' ad in the early 1970s. Being Brazilian myself and the fact that in my late teens and early 20s the Floyd were my favorite band means this was an especially pleasant surprise.

Omg, as a huge pink floyd fan who's really enjoyed your documentaries about genesis I was so excited to see this!!!! Well done again! This was just about absolute treat to watch, seriously

Excellent job on an album that's very special to me too. I've read all the books and everything I've ever been able to get my hands on, and I still learned things! Very high-quality work!

Wow… just wow. Beautifully done. Better than a book. If I was a good man, I’d understand the spaces between Floyd albums. You Sir, are a Good’ne.

A tremendous documentary, very informative and entertaining. Always loved Funky Dung and Summer Of 68. Thank you for this, Rael.

I’m stunned it took me so long to stumbled into this one. Loved your Genesis series and had been eagerly hoping AHM would get a similar treatment. I shall watch this one again and again! Loved it!!

Still my #1 Floyd album for 5 decades. Not sure what drew me into this album when i was 5 or 6 years old. Knowing me, it was just another Pink Floyd album I never heard, and my dad brought it home one day. Was maybe my 3rd or 4th album I heard by them, but holy crap. I remember back then how I would not play side 2. Around this same time, I could also never get into side 3 of The Wall. I can almost guarantee that some point. My mom would have came home from work, and there i was with the only 30 minutes in the house alone after school. And just blasting the hell out of AHM on the stereo. Of course she was upset about it. Probably heard it outside when she got out of the car.

The opening with Lulubelle manifesting in the feild goes really hard

Thanks. I really enjoyed this documentary. You covered a very unreported period for Pink Floyd and still managed to maintain the band's mystique.

I think one of the more interesting things you can see in the videos is the camaraderie of the band, particularly as opposed to later developments.

Another masterpiece! Well, two, actually: AHM and your video!

Thank you so much for uploading this documentary. As a great fan of PF I have learned a lot about one of my favourite band. Great stuff!

The cow was the perfect simile/metaphor for the concept of reciprocation and regeneration. Sweet

This album, plus Meddle, were the same, in the sense that very, very late at night we used to trip out on the first side and then, the next morning, side 2 would gently provide a smooth landing for our chemically-induced voyages. I've always felt that Floyd had this in mind when they made these albums. I wouldn't change a thing on either album.

Man, this is an absolute genious documentary. Congrats on that, really, really awesome 👏

I love this album and was obsessed with it in my early twenties. Can’t wait to see the other vids as I love Genesis as well. Great job!

Your documentaries are amazing. Keep up the great work!!

Wow, what a wonderful and awesome review of this underrated Floyd album. TIme for some breakfast now before milking the cows! OOh AAAh!

A brilliant dive into the story of this project. The input of talented creators from outside Floyd elevated what could have been a mess. The "pict" provided some fantastic auralscapes. If Alldis improved the choir parts as said he a real unsung hero. The initial theme by Gilmour was beautiful, but not enough to carry 20+ minutes. In a time with lousy lo-fi equipment everywhere, I don't think this was heard by the public as intended. Only a bit later, when better equipment was available, is that the world rediscovered this important piece. And for me that album was the precursor of my taste for Oldfield's Ommadawn.

A charming video! I especially like your personal takes on the songs

Thank you so much for posting this. So many memories. This was the first serious piece of music I can recall being able to identify with. I was about ten years old at the time of its release and my hearing it for the first time. A time in my life of many new discoveries some good some not so.. The music brought much comfort to me and was something I'd treasure throughout life.... Thanks.

Fabulous album ❤

Atom Heart Mother was my first Pink Floyd album, my introduction to Pink Floyd And I loved it!

Oohh Floyd! We must have the same (very good) taste in music, following your Genesis docu's. 👏👏👍👍👏👏

I'm glad I'm not the only one who still loves and appreciates this wonderful album and indeed most, if not all, Pink Floyd music from this, their now largely forgotten 'pastoral' era. This documentary is brilliant, knowledgeable, insightful and packed with rare or previously unseen images of the band members from the period. But why the greyed out images at 26:00 minutes? Thanks so much for this great work.

It's still home for me. It's an incredible and timeless album. Thank you.

Thank you for uploading really interesting and entertaining.

Excellent presentation of a very interesting and underdocumented period in the band's history. Great work succinctly making connections from Ummagumma to Zabriskie, The Body, and Embryo, and then on to Atom Heart Mother.

Think Atom Heart Mother is an understated masterpiece and features some beautiful playing. In fact more often than not it's my favourite record of theirs.

Brilliantly summarised and yes, Embryo is their best unreleased track.

Free form radio station KZAP out of Sacramento played Atom Heart Mother the year it came out. I was 12. It changed me.

I've already watched the original upload, but now that it's reuploaded, I'm gonna watch it again. Why not, eh? It *is* my favourite album of all time after all. You did an incredibly good job with this documentary, and that's coming from someone who has tried doing the same two years ago and gave up due to exhaustion due to all the information I was finding.

I really like the structure and sound of Atom Heart Mother: the instrumental parts, the solo-songs, R.Wright's piano playing and Gilmours guitar sound are lovely. In some way, maybe not the concept, but the structure of AHM anticipates Wish You Were Here, my favorite PF album.

That Embryo gets me every time I listen to it. Davids guitar on this is some of the nicest strat sound I've ever heard.

Fascinating, many thanks for your hard work bringing enlightenment to this period of Floyds work.

Crystal transparent album. Thank you for this brilliant documentary. Precious.

I just love David's voice and guitar. PERIOD.

probably my favourite - genius album, adventurous and imaginative! PF at their prime (and yeah I love everything they did up to and including Animals - a different kind of love for Wall and Final Cut, but I do like them, especially the latter).

Great work, as usual. Thank you. Trivia: In Bernardo Bertolucci's 1981 film, "La Tragedia di un Uomo Ridicolo" ("Tragedy of a Ridiculous Man"), you'll find painted reproductions of the cover photo (cow looking over her shoulder) in a dairy farm. A small one (~1,5x1,5 m) hangs in the meeting room, while a huge one (~4x4 m) is out in the courtyard of the facility. Whether they were an actual accessory of the cooperative dairy in Piadena or specially reproduced for the film, it is unknown. Obviously, Italians were especially fond of British bands labeled under progressive rock. As regards Italian composers: In Ennio Morricone's film and non-film work, there's music not far from Geesin's and Pink Floyd's territory, rather lost in his vast cinematic discography and overshadowed by Spaghetti Westerns. On the same line, I'd also recommend Egisto Macchi's records of library music, overall quite interesting and worth researching. _(Same comment, copied from the original upload.)_

Another informative and high quality video. Like you said, anyone who hasn’t listened to The Body’s soundtrack should certainly do so.

This is a fantastic documentary.

Outstanding, the documentary AHM deserves 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 brilliant, thank you 👍🏻

AHM was My first Forage into Floyd beyond DSOTM & the WALL, love this period of the band. "More" Soundtrack (Fav) and Obscured by Clouds r not mentioned here surprisingly.. Great Doc!

Many years ago I heard a Floyd documentary - perhaps Nicky Horne’s show on Capital Radio in the 70s - when Storm, I think it was, was on the way to do a photo shoot for the cover and drove past the famous cow standing in a field and they just shot that instead. It was pure serendipity. Whether this story is true I have no idea. I’m a Floyd fan but I don’t possess Rael’s level of mastery.

Sunny side up is a beautiful piece like pillow of winds

I recall getting the vinyl version of AHM in my late teen years, then on CD a few years later. I liked the early years of the band, which gets no radio play except on obscure radio stations at night. A true fan would appreciate that music. I wish that the Alan Aldridge work was available. He was a great graphic illustrator, and Gilmore was at his gallery show a dozen years ago.

Had a vinyl copy of 'The Body' loved it - long lost in an old house's attic somewhere after divorce along with 'wonderwall music " by george harrison 😢 - where you from Liverpool area - love all your documentaries thanks for taking the time to produce them

The final track on at the end of side b doesn’t get enough credit. David Gilmour’s guitar melodies over Rick wrights progression. The emotional build up as the track develops is astounding.

This documentary is great. I learnt a lot. A lot of history I didn’t hear about. I love this album. One of the first I listened to.(the first one was DSOTM, and then a saucerful of secrets) Loved it, thanks a ton for this share.

Wow, this is an amazingly revealing documentary. Nice work!

AHM was my very first exposure to Pink Floyd. It was a live version on a PBS broadcast of Floyd playing in the KQED TV studios on April 29, 1970. I had never heard anything like it and immediately started my Floyd collection with Ummagumma. The studio sides still leave me cold but the live sides blew me away. I would play Careful With That Axe, Eugene for my friends and crank the volume right before Roger’s bloodcurdling scream. I’m definitely a mid-career Floyd aficionado and seldom listen to anything post-DSOM. I recommend the KQED broadcast if you can find it on KZfaq. Great live versions of AHM, Cymbaline, Grantchester, Green is the Color, Careful with that Axe and Set the Controls. Thanks tons for documenting a period of the band’s history that is criminally overlooked.

This was great a ton of photos I have never seen before

Great analysis. I love this composition and think that it is greatly underrated.

In a lot of ways this is my favorite era of Floyd. It's where I came in. Umma, AHM, More. I then went back to Saucer and Pipers before venturing into Meddle and Obscured. Great video.. appreciate your efforts!

Outstanding work! I've been a Floyd fanatic for years, but I learned things from this video that I'd been clueless about. Who would have thought "Summer '68" was used in a bank commercial? Awesome documentary.