Musicians
David Gilmour: acoustic guitar, electric rhythm and lead guitar, backing vocals (?)
Rick Wright: vocals, backing vocals, keyboards, recorder (?), vibraphone (?)
Roger Waters: bass, backing vocals
Nick Mason: drums, percussion
Recorded
Abbey Road Studios, London: February 13, March 5, 13, 21, April 1–3, 1968 (Studios Two and Three, Room 25)
Technical Team
Producer: Norman Smith
Sound Engineers: Peter Bown (?), Ken Scott, Phil McDonald
Assistant Sound Engineers: John Smith, Michael Sheady, Richard Langham, John Barrett
This composition by Rick Wright (originally called “It Should Be So Nice”) could almost be a celebration of everyday English life: starting the morning with breakfast and the newspaper, followed by some very British anxiety over the weather. But this would be far too pragmatic for Pink Floyd, who, with their first album in particular, took us by the hand and led us into the realm of fairies and gnomes. And true to form, at the end of the song Wright talks of a dream that sends them reeling to a distant place. He also mentions a meeting. To whom is he referring? We are forced to use our imagination because the songwriter provides no leads…
“It Would Be So Nice” comes as quite a surprise from Pink Floyd. Despite the fact that Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Rick Wright, and Nick Mason were in the process of recording their cosmic, progressive album A Saucerful of Secrets, this song sounds thoroughly pop, somewhat in the manner of the Beach Boys in the United States or beat groups such as the Hollies, the Searchers, and Herman’s Hermits in the United Kingdom. In his book The Dark Side of the Moon: The Making of the Pink Floyd Masterpiece, author John Harris harks back to this song: “The first recorded work they released in the wake of his [Syd Barrett’s] exit was Rick Wright’s almost unbearably whimsical ‘It Would Be So Nice,’ a single whose lightweight strain of pop-psychedelia […] rendered it a non-event that failed to trouble the British charts.”4 Again in Harris’s book, Roger Waters admits that he does not like the way “It Would Be So Nice” is sung. “A lousy record,”3 he adds, while Nick Mason goes even further, calling it a “fucking awful”44 single.
Released as a single on April 13, 1968, “It Would Be So Nice” disappeared. Since then it has been included on The Best of Pink Floyd (1970), Masters of Rock (1974), and the Early Singles bonus disc in the box set Shine On (1992).
Listening to “It Would Be So Nice,” one cannot help wondering whether this really is Pink Floyd. The extent to which the group does not sound like itself is disconcerting. The single is no more and no less than a pop song, one devoid of the precious, unique craziness of Syd Barrett. It has to be said that Syd, who until this point had been the only member of the group to provide his bandmates with brilliant and original singles, is sorely missed. Rick Wright takes on the task of replacing him, and tries to re-create his universe complete with its sugary pop side. He accomplishes his task without question on the pop score, but not on the level of Syd Barrett… Where Barrett succeeded in making his tunes simple and vital, Wright settles for flat imitation. The track is not completely without merit, but whereas it would have benefited from being performed by a pop group, played by the Floyd—it is beyond comprehension.
The first session was held on February 13 in EMI’s Studio Two. The group cut two takes before redoing everything on March 5, this time in Studio Three, when they settled for the eleventh take. March 13 and 21 were reserved for the various overdubs, in particular of the vocals.
“It Would Be So Nice” begins with the refrain. The sound is pop and rock with a hint of Tamla Motown. Rick Wright’s singing is supported by backing vocals from David Gilmour and Roger Waters, while Nick Mason relaxes with some nicely felt rolls on his toms. The verse brings a surprise: Waters’s Rickenbacker pumps out a rhythm that is reminiscent, in a generic way, of children’s television shows (an impression reinforced by a vocal sound effect at 0:55). Wright plays a variety of keyboards including an acoustic piano, his Farfisa organ, and not particularly tasteful counterpoint on the Mellotron. (Listen at 0:37.) It also seems to be the songwriter playing the recorder (2:01) as he had on “Jugband Blues,” and also on the vibes. Gilmour, who had been recording with the Floyd for only a short while, gives the impression of having little idea how to tackle his part. He can be heard playing acoustic in the verses and arpeggios on electric in the bridges, delivering tremolo (1:18) or wah-wah (2:10) effects as the piece demands. Moreover, he is playing his Telecaster and distorting it with his Fuzz Face, particularly in the coda, where he takes a solo once more influenced by Hendrix (right at the end of the song, from 3:41). Nick Mason, for his part, delivers some very good drums, alternating the different moods through his judicious and efficient playing. He also accompanies the verses with a percussion instrument that sounds like a glass bottle struck with a drumstick.
The group had to return to the studio on April 1 because of a problem with the words. The original lyrics referenced the daily newspaper the Evening Standard. As British radio stations were not allowed to provide free advertising, they could not broadcast this title. Wright was required to alter his words and the group to rerecord. The Evening Standard was therefore changed to the Daily Standard. Phil McDonald was given the job of doing the definitive edit on April 2 and 3.
“It Would Be So Nice” is the story of Pink Floyd’s desire for a record release to help them get over Syd’s departure. The pinnacle of folly was perhaps reached with the improvised gospel vocal in the coda from 3:22. However, we must not fail to emphasize the excellent production work (in particular on the backing vocals) of Norman Smith, who must have found the song not too remote in spirit from those he was to record as a solo artist under the name Hurricane Smith.