Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun (Ummagumma)

Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun 9:21
     (written by Roger Waters)

Lyrics:
(See Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun from Saucerful of Secrets. The lyrics are exactly the same except for verse two, line three:)
And one inch of love is one inch of shadow
(And verse three, line one:)
Witness the man who raves at the wall

Lead vocals: Roger Waters

Another piece that has gone through noticeable development since the original version was recorded. Nick's cymbal roll opens the piece, and his drumming plays a much greater role in the overall song. Nick uses muffled drumsticks, and his fills add a lot to the song. The piece reaches a much higher climax than on the original, and the guitar is much more pronounced. The extended instrumental section before the third verse also includes an 'effects' section, with Dave creating strange ascending and descending feedback-type patterns with his guitar. There are also a couple of lyric changes.

Roger Waters: "Our lyrics aren't always immediately apparent, so it becomes very easy to let your imagination go."

Nick Mason: "People often listen to the music and come up with a visualization of what it is about. And when they visualize it, they think they've discovered the secret behind it. Sometimes they even bother to write us and say, 'I've got it — I've got the answer. It's cornfields, isn't it?'"

Roger Waters: "And when they say something like that, we tell them the truth — which is, 'If that's what itmeans to you, then that's what it is."

TRACK LISTING
Disc One
Astronomy Domine
Careful with that Axe, Eugene
Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun
Saucerful of Secrets, A
Disc Two
Sysyphus
Grantchester Meadows
Several Species of Small Furry Animals Gathered Together in a Cave and Grooving with a Pict
Narrow Way (parts I-III), The
Grand Vizier's Garden Party (Parts I-III), The