Dark Side of the Moon / Wizard of OZ Connection

Was it a mere coincidence or a brilliantly planned episode of songwriting?

The fact that there are at least five occasions when the music and/or lyrics from "Dark Side of the Moon" coincide perfectly with events happening at the same time in the movie "The Wizard of Oz" seems, to some, to be too much of a coincidence.  Some think it was written that way.  If this is the case, then bravo Roger!

In fact the tornado scene goes perfectly with "The Great Gig In The Sky", then the Scarecrow singing "If I Only Had A Brain" with "Brain Damage", and finally Dorothy listening for the Tin Man's heartbeat to (you guessed it) the heartbeat at the end of the album.  There are probably many more, but those seem to be the most prevelent.

When questioned about the strange phenomenon, Roger Waters denied any intentional similarities between the album and the movie.

Try it sometime! Start the CD at the 3rd roar of the MGM lion in the opening credits and put it on continuous play all the way through.  See what you think.

Update:

I have recently been getting so much email regarding this that I thought I would start adding the coments of people's letters to this page.  I have since deleted a lot of the letters, but I will start from here.  If anyone that has emailed me previously reads this, please resend your views to me.

Note:  If you wish your name not to appear on the site, please mention that in your email message.

Another thing you should put in there about wizard of oz and dark side is that when dorothy opens the door to munchkin land, the cash register for Money kicks in right perfect when you see all the gold in oz. also, the munchkins dance along to the beat perfectly. just thought it was quite prevalent in addition to the things already listed.

Jack Butler

Just after the tin man / heartbeat scene, the tin man performs a funky dance that matches perfectly with the rhythm of Breathe. Even his swaying from side to side is matched with Dave Gilmour's slide guitar part.

Then there's my favorite: On the second spin of the album, when the line in Brain Damage is sung - "you raise the blade, you make the change" - the tin man & friends poke their heads up over a rock right after beating up some of the witch's soldiers. All of them are dressed up in soldier garb -- and armed with large and pointy weapons.

-Jon Laux

Hey, just thought I would mention this to all the fans out there. This has to do with the DSOTM and Wizard of Oz. Almost at the end of the movie, when Dorthy wakes up and all of her family is standing around her, the song "Time" is playing. After her eyes open, the song says "home, home again." Just thought I would bring that up!

Paul W.

Hey, regarding DSotM and the wizard of Oz... What about the cover of pulse? Anybody else see dorthy just between 11 and 12 o'clock? How bout the bicycle directly opposite of the little girl in red shoes at about 5 o'clock? You tell me...

Chad Morrill

Try Playing "Breathe", as soon as Dorothy leaves the Magician's cairrage. The guitar swaying matches the tornado - Its cool !!!

John Turi

In the dark side of oz. (You know when you play oz to DSOTM. You can't for get to mention when dorthy is standing tall pig pin. Roger Waters sings "Balanced on the biggest wave", then she falls and Waters continues with "you race toward an early grave"

Harley

Dark Side of Oz. When the wicked witch pops up for the first time, "and who knows which is which and who is who" plays from "Us and Them"

Jason Cinnamond

When you are playing DSOTM and the Wizard of Oz at the same time, towards the beginning, when Miss Gulch is riding her bicycle, the second she gets on the screen all the alarm clocks from "Time" go off, that is my favorite part!

Jay Hummel

I read through all of the comments on the page and I didn't see anybody mention the part that stands out most to me. Every time I have watched the movie with the CD, just when the wicked witch jumps out for the first time, the bells from the beginning of time start going off like crazy. That is the one thing that stands out the most in my mind when I think about it. Hasn't anyone else noticed?

LP - (the DuckMan)

This message is reguarding DSotM and The Wizzard of Oz phenomenom. Have you ever noticed the markings on the iris of the eye, from the jacket to  Pulse? I have been able to see a few items that directly corellate to The Wizzard of Oz. The tin man's axe, a bycicle with a basket on it, and most stricking, Dorthy and her Red slippers. There are a couple more that I cant remember now, but check it out yourself. This to me, is deffinatley proof that there was some planning for the album to coincide with the movie. Let me know what you think! -Brian

Brian Wisniewski