RIP: Dick Parry, Saxophonist On Pink Floyd’s Dark Side Of The Moon, Dead At 83

Dick Parry, who created some of the most iconic saxophone solos in rock music history on Pink Floyd’s albums Dark Side of the Moon and Wish You Were Here, died Friday May 22 at age 83, Variety reports. 

The saxophonist was particularly known for his work with Pink Floyd and frontman David Gilmore, a longtime friend. His iconic saxophone solos are featured on songs such as “Money” and “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” as well as “Wearing the Inside Out” from 1994’s The Division Bell. Parry also worked on John Entwistle’s Mad Dog, Rory Gallagher’s Jinx and Mick Grabham’s Mick the Lad. 

Variety shared that Parry was famous among some fans for strapping on two saxes at once on stage to switch between a baritone and tenor partway through his “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” solo. 

Longtime friend David Gilmore announced Parry’s passing on Friday afternoon in a heartfelt Instagram tribute: 

“My dear friend Dick Parry died this morning. Since I was seventeen, I have played in bands with Dick on saxophone, including Pink Floyd. His feel and tone make his saxophone playing unmistakable, a signature of enormous beauty that is known to millions and is such a big part of songs such as Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Wish You Were Here, Us and Them and Money. He played in the last band I had that included Rick Wright for the On An Island Tour and at Live 8 with Pink Floyd,” he wrote in the caption. “Here are some pictures of him, including one of him and me playing for the ABC Minors at the Victoria Cinema in Cambridge in 1963.”