September 09, 2000 Roger Waters has announced the first dates for the Capitol Records Celebrates the 25th Anniversary of Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here'' in September Well-Known Pink Floyd Cover Artist Storm Thorgerson To Develop A New Animated Video in Honor of the Anniversary Sept. 12 marks the 25th Anniversary of the release of Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here," and the EMI Music Catalog Marketing Group has assembled an extensive plan to celebrate the Capitol Records' release into the fall. A highlight of the celebration will be a new digitally animated music video of the title track by longtime Pink Floyd creative artist Storm Thorgerson. It will have its exclusive bow on Shockwave.com and then be re-formatted for release through traditional video promotional outlets. It marks the first time a music video is being produced for a record, 25 years after the album's initial release. In addition, there will also be a TV special and a nationally syndicated radio special hosted by Alan Parsons and produced by Denny Somach Productions, airing in more than 100 markets on Halloween eve, Oct. 30. The special will also be streamed on Lycos and feature not only an additional half-hour but a chat with Parsons too. There will be extensive print advertising calling attention to the poignant lyrics from the album in national print, music placement in more than 13,000 movie theatres in the U.S. making note of the anniversary and an extensive direct mail campaign to fans through a number of Internet partners. Special anniversary elements and art are also being featured on hollywoodandvine.com. EMI Music Distribution has partnered many key retailers with the consumer activities. Once described as "elegant melancholia" by Melody Maker, "Wish You Were Here" was the first album Pink Floyd released after their record-breaking smash, "Dark Side Of The Moon." Like its predecessor, "Wish You Were Here" also made No. 1. The centerpiece of the recording was the nine-part "Shine On You Crazy Diamond," a tribute to Syd Barrett, who co-founded the band with Roger Waters in Cambridge, England in 1965. Barrett's experiments with LSD and his own mental instability caused him to leave the group in late 1967, and he has continued to live as a recluse ever since. His replacement was David Gilmour, who joined Waters, Rick Wright and Nick Mason in the line-up. "What was so amazing about Syd's songs," Waters once told Rolling Stone, "was through the whimsy and juxtaposition of ideas and words, there was a very powerful grasp of humanity. They were quintessentially human songs, and that is what I've always attempted to aspire to. In that sense, I feel a strong connection to him." Barrett's fate could also have inspired two of the album's other tracks, "Have A Cigar" and "Welcome To The Machine." "Have A Cigar," a rare example of Pink Floyd humor, includes the famous line, "Oh, by the way, which one's Pink?" and features a guest vocal by British folksinger Roy Harper. "Welcome To The Machine" also describes the perils of the music business. The final track is the title track, "Wish You Were Here," featuring an introductory orchestral snippet from Tchaikovsky's Fourth Symphony. "In a way, it's a schizophrenic song," said Waters.> "It's directed at my other half if you like...the battling elements within myself. There's the bit that's concerned with other people, the bit that one applauds in oneself; then there's the grasping, avaricious, selfish little kid who wants to get his hands on the sweets and have them all. The song slips in and out of both personae so the bit that always wants to win is feeling upset and plaintively saying to the other side, ` wish you were here.'" "Wish You Were Here" and the entire Pink Floyd catalog are included in EMI Music Distribution's Choice 2000 campaign, the biggest catalog deal ever, which allows retailers to choose the deal -- the discount, the dating, even the titles -- to meet their needs. "`Wish You Were Here' is a landmark album," stated Marc Rashba, vice president, Catalog Marketing Group. "We are proud to call attention to this milestone to remind fans of its significance and to introduce it to some new ones." Track Listing 1. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Part One) 2. Welcome To The Machine 3. Have A Cigar 4. Wish You Were Here 5. Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Part Two)