Pink Floyd Announce Animals 50, Unveil “Sheep (Original Radio Edit)”: Stream

Developing story first seen 3 hours ago

Consequence · 3 hours ago

New details about Pink Floyd’s Animals 50 collection set out the archival material and formats planned for its 22 January release. The anniversary edition celebrates the band’s 1977 album, and a newly unveiled “Sheep (Original Radio Edit)” shortens the original track’s atmospheric passages.

The three-LP set includes the original mix, the 2018 remix and five rare tracks, including early versions of “Sheep” and “Dogs” and an unheard Roger Waters song. The five-CD edition adds a recording of the band’s 9 May 1977 Oakland concert and a Blu-ray with 5.1 and Atmos mixes; the deluxe box set also includes a 64-page book and material about the album’s cover.

Sources: 5
Outlets: 5
Left · Centre · Right: 0 · 0 · 0

In short

Animals 50 is due on 22 January.
The editions include rare recordings and archival material.
A five-CD set adds a 1977 Oakland concert recording.

How this story developed

7 minutes ago New details about Pink Floyd’s Animals 50 collection set out the archival material and formats planned for its 22 January release. The anniversary edition celebrates the band’s 1977 album, and a newly unveiled “Sheep (Original Radio Edit)” shortens the original track’s atmospheric passages.
23 minutes ago Newly added details show Animals 50 will include extensive archival material, alongside the previously announced “Sheep (Original Radio Edit)”. The collection celebrates Pink Floyd’s 1977 album, with multiple editions due on 22 January.
1 hour ago Pink Floyd have announced Animals 50, a multi-format reissue marking 50 years since the release of their 1977 album. The collection is due on 22 January and is accompanied by a newly released “Sheep (Original Radio Edit)”, which cuts back the original track’s atmospheric passages.

5 Nov, 15:09Pitchfork Pink Floyd Reissuing Animals for 50th Anniversary
5 Nov, 15:10Stereogum Pink Floyd Announce Animals 50th Anniversary Box Set With Previously Unreleased Tracks
5 Nov, 15:11Louder Pink Floyd announce Animals 50 reissue across various formats
5 Nov, 16:16Far Out Pink Floyd announce ‘Animals’ 50th anniversary box set
5 Nov, 16:37Consequence Pink Floyd Announce Animals 50, Unveil “Sheep (Original Radio Edit)”: Stream

Full account

Pink Floyd have announced *Animals 50*, a new anniversary collection for their 1977 album, due on 22 January through Sony Music. The band have also released “Sheep (Original Radio Edit)”, a previously unavailable promotional edit that shortens the song from around ten minutes to roughly four and a half. By trimming much of its atmospheric build-up and bridge, the edit puts the track’s driving rock arrangement to the fore.

The collection will be sold in several formats, with contents varying by edition. The three-LP set pairs the original album mix and the 2018 remix with five rarities, among them early versions of “Sheep” and “Dogs” and an unreleased Roger Waters song, “Young Nicholas Jon”. The deluxe edition adds a recording of the band’s 1977 Oakland Coliseum Arena concert, captured by teenage bootlegger Reinhard Hohlwein, and a Blu-ray with the audio material, including surround and Dolby Atmos versions of the remix. Other editions offer selections of the album, rarities and concert recording.

A 64-page hardback book in the deluxe set includes new notes by author Jonathan Lethem, an interview with Hohlwein and an excerpt from Hipgnosis designer Aubrey “Po” Powell’s memoir about the cover. The accompanying photographs include unpublished images from the album sessions, the Battersea Power Station cover shoot and the tour. The album’s cover, featuring a pig floating above the power station, remains a defining image associated with *Animals*.

David Gilmour has described the record as more aggressive and stripped back than *Wish You Were Here*, and suggested that punk’s arrival in 1977 influenced the band’s approach. The reports place *Animals* between that 1975 album and *The Wall*, released in 1979. While some accounts emphasise the record’s political concept and its debt to George Orwell’s *Animal Farm*, others focus on the newly available radio edit, the archival material and the reissue’s elaborate formats.

Where outlets differ

From the full account, which is AI-written from the sources:

The reports disagree on the Oakland concert date: Sources 1 and 4 give 9 May 1977, while Source 3 says 5 May. Source 2 calls it a full recording; Source 4 specifies a two-disc set.

The contents and formats are described with different levels of detail. Source 4 says the digital edition also includes the Oakland show; Source 1 highlights the 3-LP, 5-CD and Blu-ray configurations; Source 3 describes the most expansive set as five discs before separately mentioning the concert recording.

Sources 1 and 2 say the book contains an excerpt from Audrey “Po” Powell’s memoir, while Sources 3 and 4 use Aubrey. Source 2 also names Sony as the release label; Source 1 foregrounds the preceding *Dark Side of the Moon* anniversary edition, and Source 3 stresses the album’s political concept and commercial standing.

Explained simply

Pink Floyd are a British rock band whose 1977 album Animals drew on George Orwell’s novel Animal Farm. Its songs use animals as figures in a broader portrait of power and class in society. The album includes “Dogs”, “Pigs (Three Different Ones)” and “Sheep”.

The main figures behind the record were guitarist David Gilmour, bassist and singer Roger Waters, keyboardist Richard Wright and drummer Nick Mason. Waters wrote most of the lyrics, while the band developed the music together. The album’s striking cover shows a pig floating between chimneys at Battersea Power Station in London.

Coverage · 5 sources

Entertainment Music

Read the full article at the source →

Share: Email Bluesky X Facebook WhatsApp Reddit