Pink Floyd Keyboardist Richard Wright Passes Away at 65
December 10th, 2009
Pink Floyd keyboard player and founder member Richard Wright has died aged 65 from cancer.
Wright appeared on the group’s first album, The Piper at the Gates of Dawn, in 1967 alongside lead guitarist Syd Barrett, Roger Waters and Nick Mason.
Dave Gilmour joined the band at the start of 1968 while Barrett left the group shortly afterwards.
Wright penned songs on classic albums including Dark Side Of The Moon and Wish You Were Here.
Wright’s spokesman said: “The family of Richard Wright, founder member of Pink Floyd, announce with great sadness that Richard died today after a short struggle with cancer.
“The family have asked that their privacy is respected at this difficult time.”
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Statement from Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour:
“No one can replace Richard Wright. He was my musical partner and my friend.
In the welter of arguments about who or what was Pink Floyd, Rick’s enormous input was frequently forgotten.
He was gentle, unassuming and private but his soulful voice and playing were vital, magical components of our most recognised Pink Floyd sound.
I have never played with anyone quite like him. The blend of his and my voices and our musical telepathy reached their first major flowering in 1971 on ‘Echoes’. In my view all the greatest PF moments are the ones where he is in full flow. After all, without ‘Us and Them’ and ‘The Great Gig In The Sky’, both of which he wrote, what would ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ have been? Without his quiet touch the Album ‘Wish You Were Here’ would not quite have worked.
In our middle years, for many reasons he lost his way for a while, but in the early Nineties, with ‘The Division Bell’, his vitality, spark and humour returned to him and then the audience reaction to his appearances on my tour in 2006 was hugely uplifting and it’s a mark of his modesty that those standing ovations came as a huge surprise to him, (though not to the rest of us).
Like Rick, I don’t find it easy to express my feelings in words, but I loved him and will miss him enormously.”
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December 16th, 2009 at 9:51 am
Rick Wright was my inspiration from my teenage years….my pride was being his namesake & choosing to play keyboards….like him! As David said beautifully, the most beautiful Pink Floyd songs are the ones where Rick wright is at his best artistically…..with his last major effort, “Wearing the inside out” from Division Bell, and the subsequent live versions on Gilmour’s albums/tours, being one of the best Floyd songs of all time.
Rest in peace Rick. You will be in our hearts with loving and adoring thoughts forever…and THANK YOU for your music.
December 18th, 2009 at 9:23 pm
Richard Wrights’ keyboards filled the songs of Pink Floyd with amazing depth, fullness and often mystery, often a spiritual sound that will forever move my soul. I cannot imagine the years to come without his creativity, knowing just what to do to play off the sounds of the rest of the band – elevating songs to a much higher level of excellence and inspiration. Disagreements within the band are ultimately meaningless. The music, lyrics, and thoughts of Pink Floyd (and those that helped create the sound) as a whole are the magic of the age. His passing is truly sad to me as I have been listening to Pink Floyd for over forty years. Thank you, Richard Wright, for having the courage to share your gift. May you rest in peace.
January 6th, 2010 at 8:24 am
I didnt grow up with pink floyd but when i met my husband he surely was and still is, in fact he is the one who introduced to me pink floyd and was watching concert from the Pulse video and just stare in awe and amazement on how their music is so mesmerizing to me. I just found this website and saddened to find out that Mr Wright died from cancer. I am so sorry to the Wright Family I’m crying as i post this Thank you Richard for changing my view on music and getting to know you
January 10th, 2010 at 5:56 pm
A terrible loss….but he died on 9/15/2008.