Daily News from New York, New York • 163

BACK COVER 77 i Pink Floyd has the 1 album in the country. That says a lot about the country. By MARTHA HUME where the four original (Syd Barrett led Pink until he was replaced by Gilmour in 1968) got together in architecture school and formed the "underground" Pink Floyd the name taken from a record Barrett owned by Georgia bluesmen Pink Anderson and Floyd Council. Like most British groups of the time, they began by emulating American blues and Gradually, however, Pink Floyd got into electronic things feedback, synthesizers and so on and became a 1966 equivalent of an "underground" band much like James Chance and his various groups are today in New York. Elevation from underground to national idols took awhile specifically from 1967 when the band OF YOU HAPPEN to be a follower of classified advertisements, you are sure to have seen at least one of these during the past two weeks: "PINK FLOYD TICKETS Will pay any price." Ads like these tempt me sorely.

I happen to have two tickets to tonight's concert the first of four sold out Pink performances at Nassau Coliseum and I've seriously considered calling "Will pay any price" and offering my tickets to him for, say. a thousand dollars apiece. I can take Pink Floyd or leave them; with two thousand dollars, I could leave New York and take a nice vacation. But since at least part of my job is explaining such things as Pink Floyd to other people, I'm going to the show. In fact, in this case, I need an explanation for myself.

Because listening to the band's number one record, "The Wall," I cannot figure out just what people see in a menopausal British rock band that seems to be contemplating the Guyana solution as the nearest exit from life. This band must have some incredible light show. The reputation of Pink Floyd who are Roger Waters, Dave Gilmour, Nick Mason and Rick Wright is based mainly on two record albums: 1973 "Dark Side of the Moon" and this year's "The Wall." They've been called "a cult band with a mass audience" for good reason. First, the members of the band are mystery figures, seldom giving interviews or appearing in public; I doubt that there are a hundred people in New York who could name every member of the band without thinking about it for a long time. Second, Pink Floyd music is notable more for technological excellence than for lyrical or melodic wisdom.

Even though they can and do compose many hstenable melodies, the band's forte is in making records with lots of very pompous and very eclectic arrangements. Pink records tend to go from Wagnerian opera to Kingston Trio folkie without warning save for the insertion of such mysteries as tape-recorded trans-Atlantic telephone calls. The band has its origins in mid-'60s London, (Continued on page 15) From left: Dave Gilmour, Roger Waters, Nick Mason, Rick Wright. 1 -'St. 4 I I I 1 i 'ir N.

I unit 1 kfe-. 1 iVr s-'i i p. li'il 1 'iff I i TV WEEK UPDATE TAe following program notes are changes in scheduling and content made available too late to appear in TV WEEK: TODAY 12:30 p.m. (4) Meet the Press. Sen.

Howard Baker (R-Tenn.) 1:00 p.m. (2) Basketball. Milwaukee Bucks versus Kansas City Kings 1:00 p.m. (13) Firing Line. "America According to Three Top Journalists and William F.

Buckley Jr." Guests: Nicholas Von Hoffman, Joseph Kraft, Robert Novak. TUESDAY .1:30 a.m. (4) Tomorrow. Frederick Forsyth, author of the new book, "The Devils Alternative." WEDNESDAY 11:30 p.m. (4) Tonight.

Jim Stafford, Oliver Reed 1:00 a.m. (4) Tomorrow. Tina Lewis Abolafia, Sid Mark SATURDAY 4:30 p.m. (2) Sports Spectacular. Men's i World Speedskating Championshipsfeatur- Aa ine Eric Heiden.

3:15 p.m (2) Sports Spectacular. Light-heavyweight boxing: Michael Spinks versus Ramon Ranquello 7:00 p.m. (2) 60 Minutes. Dan Rather, Morley Safer, Harry Reasoner. Interview with Paul Stras-sells, author of "All You Need to Know About the William Loeb, publisher of the Manchester (N.H.) Union-Leader, an outspoken conservative; shady dealings in wills and estates 1 'Z..