The Division Bell

The Division Bell

I don’t care what’s included, there’s absolutely no possible configuration of Pink Floyd’s The Division Bell that could justify charging $135 for a deluxe box. I’m admittedly not a huge Floyd fan, and my objections stem more from the album’s overall dullness than any “Pink Fraud” Roger Waters loyalty argument, but still — I’m having a hard time imagining ever paying that kind of money for “immersion” into any album. I mean, mayyyybe if it included a feature-length documentary, directed by someone who actually knows what they’re doing and without any real ties to the band. And a few discs that collated backing tracks and isolated vocals, plus demos. And all the usual re-re-remastered audio on durable plastic/180-gram vinyl. Then mayyyybe. But I’d have to love that album with an unqualified and ardent love, and I suspect not even David Gilmour really feels one way or the other about The Division Bell.

On the other hand, it does contain one of my favorite Floyd songs in “Take It Back,” which we can all listen to right here for a full $135 less than this idiot box: