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THE GREAT GIG IN THE SKY (Wright)
And I am not frightened of dying, any time will do I don’t mind. Why should I be frightened of dying? There’s no reason for it, you’ve gotta go sometime. I never said I was frightened of dying.
The themes of old age and religion lead us into the next song on the album, ‘The Great Gig in the Sky.” This next “pressure” explored is death. Waters was quoted, "Are you afraid of dying? The fear of death is a major part of many lives, and as the record was at least partially about that, that question was asked, but not specifically to fit into this song.” This song was initially called “The Mortality Sequence,” and has no lyrics, but with vocals by Clare Torry. ‘The Great Gig in the Sky’ is also the last song on the first side of the LP, which some believe furthers the representation of death.
It is interesting that the sound clips chosen for the song both state that they are not frightened of dying. This is in line with what seems to be the message of the song. The title also ‘The Great Gig in the Sky’ seems to be a positive portrayal of death. The name certainly has religious undertones, suggesting an afterlife in heaven. This may imply that the end of ‘Breathe’ (Reprise) is not a criticism of people’s tendency to use religion to seek comfort from the fear of death. Conversely, the title could also be interpreted sarcastically, as a further mockery of religion. The idea of a ‘Great Gig in the Sky’ does seem to trivialize heaven, which most religious people take too seriously to call ‘The Great Gig in the Sky.’
The music of the song is both soothing and uplifting even if the singing sounds pained at times. The vocals were improvised by Clare Torry with some guidance from the band. This song suggests that while there will always be sorrow surrounding death, it is not to be feared.
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