Pink Floyd is not only known as one of the all-time greatest rock bands, but they are also very well known for having some of the longest songs out there. They even have a song that reaches a jaw-dropping 23 minutes and 31 seconds.
The band formed in 1965 in London and they were active until 1994, and then had a few more reunions in the 2000s and even as recently as 2022. They are truly a timeless legend of the rock and roll world.
Pink Floyd was a pioneer of experimental music, they were just seeing how far they could go with their creativity. This often resulted in some of the best long songs.
So without further ado, here is my list of the 10 longest Pink Floyd songs!
1. Wish You Were Here – 5:41
Album: Wish You Were Here
Released: 1975
Not only is “Wish You Were Here” the best Pink Floyd long song but it is also deemed by many to be their best song of all time. I would tend to agree with this. The track showcases Pink Floyd in all of their brilliance, along with a more emotional and deeper side which many of their other songs don’t have.
It has been voted the 18th best rock song of all time and it’s on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list.
Although 5 minutes and 41 seconds is not the longest song, or even in the longer category by their standards, by most conventional standards, it is pretty long.
2. Another Brick in the Wall – 8:28
Album: The Wall
Released: 1979
“Another Brick in the Wall” is also one of the band’s most well-known songs. However, most people probably only know a part of it, the part where protest is made against corporal punishment. In fact, “Another Brick in the Wall” is a 3 part composition that has a total run time of almost 8 and a half minutes.
Part 2 is the most famous part so it was also released as a single and went on to be nominated for a Grammy Award and made Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list.
3. Comfortably Numb – 6:21
Album: The Wall
Released: 1980
“Comfortably Numb” is also one of Pink Floyd’s most well-known and best-performing songs. It is also one of their best long songs with a run time of over 6 minutes. Part of that is because it contains two of the all-time most epic guitar solos, something that Pink Floyd is very well known for.
The YouTube video shows the version that was recorded in 2005 in Hyde Park where the band performed. This is 25 years after the original release of the song.
4. High Hopes – 8:31
Album: The Division Bell
Released: 1994
At 8 minutes 31 seconds, “High Hopes” is one of Pink Floyd’s longer songs and it came as the closing track on their fourteenth studio album, The Division Bell. It was also the last original recording by the band until 2022 when they did “Hey, Hey, Rise Up”. Not bad to be recording 57 years after the band first started.
5. Us and Them – 7:49
Album: The Dark Side of the Moon
Released: 1974
“Us and Them” was written by Richard Wright, the keyboard player for Pink Floyd, with lyrics by Roger Waters, the bassist.
The track is a power ballad and it is the longest song on The Dark Side of the Moon album at 7 minutes and 49 seconds.
“Us and Them” also has a shortened version that was edited as a single.
6. Time – 6:53
Album: The Dark Side of the Moon
Released: 1974
Another Pink Floyd classic is “Time”, a 6-minute and 53-second rocker that reflects on the passage of time. The track was written by keyboardist Richard Wright and bassist Roger Waters.
The intro might give you a shock, as the alarm bells go off. After that, it settles into the mellow guitar that leads out the powerful vocals.
7. Welcome to the Machine – 7:25
Album: Wish You Were Here
Released: 1975
There is definitely no shortage of epic long songs by Pink Floyd. It can almost be said that all of their greatest songs are long songs, but of course, their short songs are also great!
“Welcome to the Machine” was released in 1975 as part of the Wish You Were Here album. The track has heavily processed synthesisers with acoustic guitars and tape effects. Everything was written by Roger Waters.
8. Marooned – 5:28
Album: The Division Bell
Released: 1994
Here we have another of Pink Floyd’s newer releases coming in 1994. “Marooned” is a completely instrumental song, so no vocals are present.
This was the only Pink Floyd track to win a Grammy Award. That just goes to show the class of their musical ability.
9. Coming Back To Life – 6:19
Album: The Division Bell
Released: 1994
The number of Pink Floyd songs that have a run time of over 6 minutes must be record-breaking. “Coming Back To Life” is another one of these and it is also the only track on The Division Bell album that is solely credited to David Gilmour.
10. Keep Talking – 6:10
Album: The Division Bell
Released: 1994
Last but not least of the best Pink Floyd long songs, we have “Keep Talking”. The track is also from their 1994 album, The Division Bell. It would seem that they have become more and more fond of longer songs as the years went by. “Keep Talking” combines all the core elements that Pink Floyd is loved for and gives it in this beautiful masterpiece.
Alex is a man of many talents. He’s been playing music since he was young, and has been the main content writer at Tone Start for the past few years. Alex loves to play around with different styles of music and enjoys listening to anything from country to classical.