Careful With That Axe, Eugene

"Careful with That Axe, Eugene" is an instrumental piece by the British rock band Pink Floyd. It was recorded in November 1968 and released as the B-side to the single " Point Me at the Sky", and featured on the 1971 compilation album ''Relics''. It was re-recorded for the 1970 film ''Zabriskie Point'', retitling it "Come In Number 51, Your Time Is Up"

The song became a live favourite for Pink Floyd. Live versions can be found on various releases, such as the live half of the double album ''Ummagumma'' and the film '' Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii''. It was performed sporadically after 1973, with a final one-off performance in 1977. Various versions, both live and studio recordings, were released as part of the 2016 box set ''The Early Years 1965–1972''.

Composition and recording

The original studio recording was made at Abbey Road Studios in a single three-hour session on 4 November 1968 and produced by Norman Smith. It was created as part of a desire for Pink Floyd to move on from the early Syd Barrett-written songs and produce new music, adding a more advanced dynamic range compared to a typical pop song, though drummer Nick Mason later admitted this was just "quiet, loud, quiet, loud again".

The music consists of a light, organ-based jam, with keyboardist Richard Wright using the Phrygian mode and an accompanying bass guitar playing just one tone (in this case, D) in octaves. It starts off quietly, before settling into a soft backbeat. This leads up to a segue into the only lyrics: the title of the song, whispered; followed by bassist Roger Waters' inhaled-scream. The song becomes much louder and more intense before gradually settling down again. In the heavier parts and later, quieter parts, guitarist David Gilmour sings scat vocals in unison with lead guitar lines. It was one of the first extended instrumentals recorded by the group, which would be a recurring theme over the next five years.

For the soundtrack to the film '' The Committee'', recorded in early 1968, one piece has the band playing a long instrumental featuring a very similar riff. The song was re-recorded in December 1969 for the 1970 film ''Zabriskie Point'' and retitled "Come In Number 51, Your Time Is Up".. Director Michelangelo Antonioni had been interested in working with Pink Floyd after hearing "Careful with That Axe, Eugene", and the re-recording was placed in the film's climax where the heroine imagines a villa in Death Valley is exploding in slow motion. A further remake was attempted during the ''Zabriskie Point'' sessions, and was eventually released as "Explosion" on ''The Early Years 1965–1972'' box, as part of the ''1970: Devi/ation'' volume.

Live performances

Pink Floyd performed the piece frequently in concert from 1968 to 1973, and it became a live favourite. Concert performances gradually became significantly longer than the recorded version, often around ten minutes, and some performances feature different spoken lines by Waters.

An embryonic form was performed on 31 May 1968 at the Paradiso, Amsterdam, under the original title of "Keep Smiling People", which was filmed by NTS and broadcast on 5 July. Another version was recorded on 25 June 1968 at the BBC
...