On the Run (Pink Floyd song)
Encyclopedia
"On the Run" is the third track from British
progressive rock
band Pink Floyd
's 1973
album, The Dark Side of the Moon
. It is an instrumental
piece that deals with the pressures of travel (which Richard Wright
said would often bring fear of death
), and is an EMS synthesizer
(Synthi AKS
) based piece. When the band performed this song in concert, at the end of it, a model aeroplane
would fly from one end of the arena to the other, appearing to crash in a brilliant explosion. The same effect was used in the A Momentary Lapse of Reason
tours with a flying bed, and was an inspiration for the fictional band Disaster Area
from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
, whose stage act involves a spaceship crashing into the sun. During recording sessions, as well as in live appearances, this song was sometimes referred to as "The Travel Sequence". The basketball team Chicago Bulls
play this song while introducing the visiting team's starting lineup.
and speeding it up, with an added white noise generator creating the hi-hat
sound. The band then added backwards guitar
parts, created by dragging a microphone stand
down the fretboard
, reversing the tape, and panning left to right. There are also other Synthi and VCS3
synthesizer parts, made to sound like a vehicle passing, giving a Doppler effect
. The 8 note sequence (E2, G2, A2, G2, D3, C3, D3, E3) is played at a tempo of 165 BPM, while both filter frequency and resonance are modulated. Near the end, the only guitar part is heard: a chord over the explosion of the presumed aircraft, which gradually fades, segueing into the chiming clocks introduction of the following track "Time".
When The Dark Side of the Moon was performed in 1972 (before the album was released), it went under the title "The Travel Sequence" and was, instead of a complex electronic instrumental, a more simple guitar jam, without the use of synthesizers and other electronic instruments. A short clip of this is played on the DVD
Classic Albums: Pink Floyd – The Making of The Dark Side of the Moon and can also be heard on all performances of Pink Floyd playing the album live in that year.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
band Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd
Pink Floyd were an English rock band that achieved worldwide success with their progressive and psychedelic rock music. Their work is marked by the use of philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Pink Floyd are one of the most commercially...
's 1973
1973 in music
-January–April:*January 9 – Mick Jagger's request for a Japanese visa is rejected on account of a 1969 drug conviction, putting an abrupt end to The Rolling Stones' plans to perform in Japan during their forthcoming tour.*January 14...
album, The Dark Side of the Moon
The Dark Side of the Moon
The Dark Side of the Moon is the eighth studio album by English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released in March 1973. It built on ideas explored in the band's earlier recordings and live shows, but lacks the extended instrumental excursions that characterised their work following the departure...
. It is an instrumental
Instrumental
An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....
piece that deals with the pressures of travel (which Richard Wright
Richard Wright (musician)
Richard William Wright was an English pianist, keyboardist and songwriter, best known for his career with Pink Floyd. Wright's richly textured keyboard layers were a vital ingredient and a distinctive characteristic of Pink Floyd's sound...
said would often bring fear of death
Death
Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....
), and is an EMS synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
(Synthi AKS
EMS Synthi AKS
The EMS Synthi A, first available in May 1971, and then in March 1972 a version of it with a built-in keyboard and sequencer, the EMS Synthi AKS, a portable modular analog synthesiser made by EMS of England. Most notable for its patch pin matrix, its functions and internal design are similar to the...
) based piece. When the band performed this song in concert, at the end of it, a model aeroplane
Fixed-wing aircraft
A fixed-wing aircraft is an aircraft capable of flight using wings that generate lift due to the vehicle's forward airspeed. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft in which wings rotate about a fixed mast and ornithopters in which lift is generated by flapping wings.A powered...
would fly from one end of the arena to the other, appearing to crash in a brilliant explosion. The same effect was used in the A Momentary Lapse of Reason
A Momentary Lapse of Reason
A Momentary Lapse of Reason is the thirteenth studio album by English progressive rock group Pink Floyd. It was released in the UK and US in September 1987. In 1985 guitarist David Gilmour began to assemble a group of musicians to work on his third solo album...
tours with a flying bed, and was an inspiration for the fictional band Disaster Area
Disaster area
A disaster area is a region or a locale heavily damaged by either natural hazards, such as tornadoes, hurricanes, tsunamis, floods, earthquakes, technological hazards including nuclear and radiation accidents, or sociological hazards like riots, terrorism or war. The population living there often...
from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a science fiction comedy series created by Douglas Adams. Originally a radio comedy broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 1978, it was later adapted to other formats, and over several years it gradually became an international multi-media phenomenon...
, whose stage act involves a spaceship crashing into the sun. During recording sessions, as well as in live appearances, this song was sometimes referred to as "The Travel Sequence". The basketball team Chicago Bulls
Chicago Bulls
The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...
play this song while introducing the visiting team's starting lineup.
Composition
This piece was created by entering an 8-note sequence into a Synthi AKSEMS Synthi AKS
The EMS Synthi A, first available in May 1971, and then in March 1972 a version of it with a built-in keyboard and sequencer, the EMS Synthi AKS, a portable modular analog synthesiser made by EMS of England. Most notable for its patch pin matrix, its functions and internal design are similar to the...
and speeding it up, with an added white noise generator creating the hi-hat
Hi-hat
A hi-hat, or hihat, is a type of cymbal and stand used as a typical part of a drum kit by percussionists in R&B, hip-hop, disco, jazz, rock and roll, house, reggae and other forms of contemporary popular music.- Operation :...
sound. The band then added backwards guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
parts, created by dragging a microphone stand
Microphone stand
A microphone stand is a free-standing mount for a microphone. It allows the microphone to be positioned in the studio, on stage or on location without requiring a person to hold it....
down the fretboard
Fingerboard
The fingerboard is a part of most stringed instruments. It is a thin, long strip of material, usually wood, that is laminated to the front of the neck of an instrument and above which the strings run...
, reversing the tape, and panning left to right. There are also other Synthi and VCS3
EMS VCS 3
The VCS 3 is a portable analog synthesiser with a flexible semi-modular voice architecture, by Electronic Music Studios Limited in 1969....
synthesizer parts, made to sound like a vehicle passing, giving a Doppler effect
Doppler effect
The Doppler effect , named after Austrian physicist Christian Doppler who proposed it in 1842 in Prague, is the change in frequency of a wave for an observer moving relative to the source of the wave. It is commonly heard when a vehicle sounding a siren or horn approaches, passes, and recedes from...
. The 8 note sequence (E2, G2, A2, G2, D3, C3, D3, E3) is played at a tempo of 165 BPM, while both filter frequency and resonance are modulated. Near the end, the only guitar part is heard: a chord over the explosion of the presumed aircraft, which gradually fades, segueing into the chiming clocks introduction of the following track "Time".
When The Dark Side of the Moon was performed in 1972 (before the album was released), it went under the title "The Travel Sequence" and was, instead of a complex electronic instrumental, a more simple guitar jam, without the use of synthesizers and other electronic instruments. A short clip of this is played on the DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
Classic Albums: Pink Floyd – The Making of The Dark Side of the Moon and can also be heard on all performances of Pink Floyd playing the album live in that year.
Voices
- At 27 seconds into the piece, the sound of a female voice on a loudspeaker can be heard; apparently an airport public addressPublic addressA public address system is an electronic amplification system with a mixer, amplifier and loudspeakers, used to reinforce a sound source, e.g., a person giving a speech, a DJ playing prerecorded music, and distributing the sound throughout a venue or building.Simple PA systems are often used in...
system. The announcer says 'Have your baggage and passport ready and then follow the green line to customs and immigration. BA flight 215 to Rome, Cairo and Lagos'. Engineer Alan ParsonsAlan ParsonsAlan Parsons is a British audio engineer, musician, and record producer. He was involved with the production of several significant albums, including The Beatles' Abbey Road and Let It Be, as well as Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon for which Pink Floyd credit him as an important contributor...
later reused this sample on the Sea Lions in the Departure Lounge bonus track of the 2007 Deluxe Edition of Tales of Mystery and ImaginationTales of Mystery and ImaginationTales of Mystery and Imagination is the debut album by the progressive rock group The Alan Parsons Project, released in 1976. The album's avant-garde soundscapes kept it from being a blockbuster, but the interesting lyrical and musical themes — retellings of horror stories and poetry by...
by the Alan Parsons ProjectThe Alan Parsons ProjectThe Alan Parsons Project was a British progressive rock band, active between 1975 and 1990, consisting of singer Eric Woolfson and keyboardist Alan Parsons surrounded by a varying number of session musicians....
.
- At 1:54, Roger "The Hat" Manifold, Pink Floyd road manager says: "Live for today, gone tomorrow. That's me", then laughs.
Alternative and live versions
- A live version of the song can be heard on the Delicate Sound of ThunderDelicate Sound of Thunder-LP / Cassette:Side 1# "Shine On You Crazy Diamond"# "Learning to Fly# "Yet Another Movie"# "Round and Around"Side 2# "Sorrow"# "The Dogs of War"# "On the Turning Away"Side 3# "One of These Days"# "Time"...
concert video. This version did not appear on the CD release. Another live version appears on P*U*L*S*E. - The SeatbeltsThe Seatbeltswas a Japanese blues/jazz band led by composer and instrumentalist Yoko Kanno.-Band history:The name of the band, according to the fictional description given in the anime series Cowboy Bebop, derives from how the performers wear seatbelts to be safe while they play hardcore jam sessions.The band...
cover the song on the Cowboy Bebop soundtrack. - The music for the video game Delta for Commodore 64Commodore 64The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer introduced by Commodore International in January 1982.Volume production started in the spring of 1982, with machines being released on to the market in August at a price of US$595...
is heavily inspired by this song.