Take It Back

For other uses, see Take It Back (disambiguation).

"Take It Back"
Single by Pink Floyd
from the album The Division Bell
B-side	2-track "Astronomy Domine" (Live) [1] 3-track "Astronomy Domine" (Live) "Take It Back" (Edit) [2]
Released	23 May 1994 [3]
Recorded	1993
Genre	Progressive rock
Length	6:13 (album version) 4:55 (single edit) 7:07 (extended version on French promo single)
Label	EMI (UK) Columbia (US)
Songwriter(s)	David Gilmour Bob Ezrin Polly Samson Nick Laird-Clowes
Producer(s)	Bob Ezrin David Gilmour
Pink Floyd singles chronology
"Lost for Words" (1994) "Take It Back" (1994) "High Hopes" (1994)
Music video
"Pink Floyd - Take It Back (Official Music Video HD)" on YouTube

"Take It Back" is a song by English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released as the seventh track on their fourteenth album, The Division Bell (1994). ^{[4] [5]} It was also released as a single on 23 May 1994, by EMI (UK) and Columbia (US), the first from the album, and Pink Floyd's first for seven years. The single peaked at number 23 on the UK Singles Chart, the fourth highest in the band's history, below 1979 number 1 hit "Another Brick In The Wall" and 1967 top 20 hits "See Emily Play" and "Arnold Layne". ^[6] The music for the song was written by guitarist David Gilmour and album co-producer Bob Ezrin, with lyrics by Gilmour, his wife Polly Samson and Nick Laird-Clowes. Its accompanying music video was nominated for Best Clip of the Year in the category for Rock at the 1994 Billboard Music Video Awards. ^[7]

Lyrics

The lyrics were written through the point of view of a dysfunctional relationship, used as an allegory for how humans treat the planet.

During its instrumental section, a barely audible rendition of the nursery rhyme "Ring a Ring o' Roses" can be heard.

Equipment

Guitarist David Gilmour used an E-bow on a Gibson J-200 acoustic guitar that is processed through a Zoom effects box, then directly injected into the board. ^[8]

Personnel

• David Gilmour – lead vocals, guitar, Ebow
• Richard Wright – keyboards, Hammond and Farfisa organs
• Nick Mason – drums, percussion

Additional musicians:

• Tim Renwick – additional guitar
• Jon Carin – Synthesizers, keyboards, loops
• Guy Pratt – bass
• Bob Ezrin – keyboards, percussion
• Sam Brown – backing vocals
• Durga McBroom – backing vocals
• Carol Kenyon – backing vocals
• Jackie Sheridan – backing vocals
• Rebecca Leigh-White – backing vocals

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1994) Peak position Australia (ARIA) [9] 64 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [10] 43 Canada Retail Singles ( The Record ) [11] 8 Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) [12] 9 France (SNEP) [13] 50 Germany (GfK) [14] 75 Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40) [15] 19 Netherlands (Single Top 100) [16] 23 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) [17] 7 UK Singles (OCC) [18] 23 UK Airplay ( Music Week ) [19] 28 US Billboard Hot 100 [20] 73 US Mainstream Rock ( Billboard ) [21] 4 US Cash Box Top 100 [22] 65

Year-end charts Chart (1994) Position Canada Top Singles (RPM) [23] 71 US Album Rock Tracks (Billboard) [24] 23

References

1. Take It Back (CD single notes). Pink Floyd. Columbia Records. 1994. 38K 77493 – via Discogs.
2. Take It Back (CD single notes). Pink Floyd. EMI. 1994. CD EMS 309 – via Discogs.
3. "New Releases: Singles". Music Week . 21 May 1994. p. 35.
4. Strong, Martin C. (2004). "Pink Floyd". The Great Rock Discography (7th ed.). Edinburgh: Canongate Books. pp. 1175–1178. ISBN   1-84195-551-5.
5. Mabbett, Andy (1995). The Complete Guide to the Music of Pink Floyd. London: Omnibus Press. ISBN   0-7119-4301-X.
6. Pink Floyd UK Singles Chart, Official Charts Company, retrieved September 23 2023
7. Russell, Deborah (15 October 1994). "Music Video Award Nominees Named" (PDF). Billboard . p. 12. Retrieved 30 May 2025.
8. "Sounds of Silence" interview ^{[ usurped ]}, Guitar World , September 1994. Retrieved 28 July 2010.
9. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 218.
10. "Pink Floyd – Take It Back" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
11. "Hits of the World: Canada" (PDF). Billboard . 27 August 1994. p. 50. Retrieved 20 May 2025.
12. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2536." RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
13. "Pink Floyd – Take It Back" (in French). Le classement de singles. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
14. "Pink Floyd – Take It Back" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
15. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 Vikan 19.5.–25.5. '94". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 19 May 1994. p. 20. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
16. "Pink Floyd – Take It Back" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
17. "Pink Floyd – Take It Back". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
18. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 September 2022.
19. "The Airplay Chart" (PDF). Music Week . 11 June 1994. p. 22. Retrieved 23 May 2025.
20. "Pink Floyd Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
21. "Pink Floyd Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved 10 March 2021.
22. "USA Cashbox Charts Summaries". popmusichistory. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
23. "RPM Top 100 Hit Tracks of 1994". RPM . Retrieved 20 July 2025– via Library and Archives Canada.
24. "The Year in Music: Hot Album Rock Tracks". Billboard . Vol. 106, no. 52. 24 December 1994. pp. YE-62. Retrieved 20 July 2025.

External links

• "Take It Back" on YouTube