Fat Old Sun

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Fat Old Sun"

Song by Pink Floyd
from the album Atom Heart Mother
Released	October 10, 1970
Recorded	August 1970 Abbey Road, London
Genre	Progressive rock
Length	5:24
Writer(s)	David Gilmour
Atom Heart Mother track listing
Summer '68 (3)	"Fat Old Sun" (4)	Alan's Psychedelic Breakfast (5)

Fat Old Sun is a Pink Floyd song written and sung by David Gilmour. Also, Gilmour plays every instrument in the track, with the exception of keyboards, played by Richard Wright. It appeared on the album Atom Heart Mother, and was performed live in a greatly expanded form (often exceeding fourteen minutes), both before and after the album was released. Atom Heart Mother was released on October 10th, 1970; live performances of this song date back to July 16th, 1970.

More recently, it has been performed in the 2001/2002 David Gilmour in Concert tour, minus the guitar solo. Early during the tour in support of the On An Island album in 2006, the song returned to the setlist. This incarnation was composed of the lyrics followed by backup singers repeating the "sing to me" chorus, then a bluesy version of the guitar solo closer to the size of the album version (the 2006 incarnation clocked in around seven minutes).

Gilmour revealed on Johnnie Walker's Radio 2 drivetime show in 2004 that he had argued for this song to be on the Echoes: The Best of Pink Floyd (2001) compilation, however he was outvoted.

It is perhaps best described as a pastoral, a hymn of praise to the countryside (as several early Pink Floyd songs were, such as "Grantchester Meadows"), with a gentle, yet incisive, melody and lyric.