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Pink Floyd — Wish You Were Here

What the critics heard when these records were new. Original reviews, release anniversaries and chart histories.

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First release · United Kingdom
Album cover: Pink Floyd — Wish You Were Here (Original 1975 UK Harvest Records / US Columbia Records release)
Cover source ↗Hipgnosis / Pink Floyd / Wikimedia Commons
1975

Pink Floyd

Wish You Were Here

progressive rockpsychedelic rockart rock
Hostile review

The Syd Barrett tribute Melody Maker called ponderous and unimaginative

Released in the UK on 12 September 1975, Wish You Were Here became Pink Floyd's second consecutive number-one album. A contemporary hostile review, alongside chart results with their dates.

The verdict at the time

Melody Maker dismissed the album as "unconvincing in its ponderous sincerity and displays a critical lack of imagination in all departments."

Melody Maker staff reviewer · Melody Maker ·

Read the contemporary review

Chart peaks

USA#1Billboard 2001975-10-04 · Original release periodChart source
UK#1Official Albums Chart1975-09-20 · Original release periodChart source
Europe · Germany#6Offizielle Deutsche Charts (GfK Entertainment)1975 · Original release periodChart source

European positions are listed by country. Later chart entries are labelled separately.

Sources & context

One critic's opinion, summarised from Melody Maker's September 1975 review. The album is now recognised as one of Pink Floyd's finest works and appears on Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

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