DICK PARRY- A GRAFTON ACRYLIC ALTO "DONOR SAXOPHONE.

Consisting of a saxophone body, three clear acrylic panels and an assortment of keys, the saxophone body 54cm high, 112cm wide, 20cm deep Richard “Dick” Parry (1942–2026) was an English saxophonist and session musician best known for his distinctive performances with Pink Floyd. Although never an official member of the band, Parry made an unmistakable contribution to some of Pink Floyd’s most celebrated recordings, including Money, Us and Them and Shine On You Crazy Diamond. Born Richard Parry on 22 December 1942 in Kentford, Suffolk, he became involved in the Cambridge music scene during the 1960s. He played saxophone with the Soul Committee and was a friend of David Gilmour, who was then performing with the Cambridge band Jokers Wild. That friendship would eventually lead Parry to one of the most important recording sessions of his career. In 1973, Gilmour brought Parry into the sessions for Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side of the Moon. Parry played tenor saxophone on two of the album’s defining tracks, Money and Us and Them. His forceful, blues-influenced solo on Money provided a striking contrast to the song’s angular rhythm, while his playing on Us and Them was warmer and more spacious, complementing Richard Wright’s piano and the song’s atmospheric arrangement. The enormous success of The Dark Side of the Moon meant that Parry’s saxophone playing was heard by millions of listeners around the world. He subsequently joined Pink Floyd on stage, performing with the group throughout its major tours between 1973 and 1977. Parry returned to the studio for Pink Floyd’s 1975 album Wish You Were Here. His saxophone is particularly prominent in Shine On You Crazy Diamond, the extended composition written as a tribute to the band’s former leader Syd Barrett. His playing became an important part of the piece’s gradual transformation from its restrained, atmospheric opening into a more rhythmic and soulful performance. During Pink Floyd’s 1977 In the Flesh tour, Parry’s role expanded beyond saxophone and included additional keyboards. His ability to move comfortably between jazz, blues, soul and rock made him particularly well suited to Pink Floyd’s increasingly elaborate live performances. His career, however, was much broader than his association with Pink Floyd. Parry worked as a session and touring musician with a variety of artists. His recording credits included musicians and groups such as J. J. Jackson, Quiver, Mike Vernon, the Bonzo Dog Band, John Entwistle and Bloodstone, while in 1979 and 1980 he toured as part of The Who’s brass section. For a period Parry stepped away from the music business and worked as a farrier, but his connection with Pink Floyd was far from over. In 1994 he returned to play on Pink Floyd’s final studio album with Richard Wright, The Division Bell. Parry performed the saxophone solo on Wearing the Inside Out and also joined the band on its extensive world tour that year. Another historic appearance came on 2 July 2005, when Roger Waters, David Gilmour, Richard Wright and Nick Mason reunited as Pink Floyd for the Live 8 concert in London. Parry joined them for Money, once again performing the saxophone part he had first recorded more than three decades earlier. His friendship and musical relationship with David Gilmour also continued independently of Pink Floyd. Parry appeared at Gilmour’s concerts in 2001 and 2002 and subsequently joined his 2006 On an Island tour. In addition to saxophone, Parry contributed keyboards and glass harmonica. Performances from this period were documented on releases including Remember That Night and Live in Gdańsk. Parry continued to pursue music outside the Pink Floyd circle as well, including touring with the Violent Femmes in 2009. Dick Parry died on 22 May 2026 at the age of 83. His career illustrates the enormous contribution that a gifted supporting musician can make to recordings that become part of popular culture. He was never one of Pink Floyd’s four principal members, yet his sound became inseparable from several of their best-known compositions. For many listeners, the moment the saxophone erupts from Money, drifts through the melancholy landscape of Us and Them, or emerges during Shine On You Crazy Diamond is as recognisably Pink Floyd as David Gilmour’s guitar, Richard Wright’s keyboards, Roger Waters’ bass or Nick Mason’s drums. That is Dick Parry’s remarkable legacy: a musician who spent much of his career outside the spotlight, but whose saxophone helped provide the emotional voice of some of the most enduring recordings in rock music.

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