I'm sitting in for Bob Cooney for this issue's Top Ten list. Because of the subject matter, Bob was having a hard time addressing the Top Ten, so knowing my history, he asked me to step in. Pink Floyd was the soundtrack to my formative years, and the accompanying drugs were a requirement. Based on that, for me, the Top Ten became an easy assignment. I'm not saying doing drugs is essential to enjoy Floyd. What I am saying is that I found it quite enjoyable. So really then, the way I see it, most of Pink Floyd sounds great when you're high. It's just that some Floyd songs really hit the spot, so much so that you have to wonder how many doobies were being smoked when they were put to vinyl. Here, then, are the ten best Pink Floyd songs to get high to.

I'm starting here with a solo song from Roger Waters simply because it belongs on this list. The sound effects and the classic Waters' vocal gives the song a definite Pink Floyd sound and feel. And the song just seems to envelope you. Why not catch a buzz to it? After all, if you listen carefully, it's what Roger is doing. Listen to him take a toke off of a joint as he reads Winnie the Pooh, "Chapter six in which Eeyore has a birthday and gets two presents..." puff puff "Dad-dy, c'mon Dad."

9. "Grantchester Meadows" from Ummagumma

All of Ummagumma is great to get high to. Even "Sysyphus". Maybe that's the key. In any case, "Grantchester Meadows" is most enjoyable. There's the beautiful strumming acoustic guitar, but it's the lyrics and the sound effects that transport the listener. For the writer/singer the drugs seemingly bring the great outdoors right into a city room. Hear the birds chirping and the fish flopping in the stream? It really does work.

8. "Comfortably Numb" from The Wall

There is no pain, you are receding. 'Nuff said. But now let's add one of Gilmour's most soaring and majestic leads and you have one heckuva drug song. Back in the day everyone associated this song with cocaine. We know that's not necessarily what Roger's talking about, but what did we know? We were comfortably numb.

7. "Any Colour You Like" from Dark Side of the Moon

A great jam song to spark one up to. Even though the whole album belongs here, when the guitars start wailing, and the keyboards wash over your mind, it's the druggie moment to dim the lights, turn on the lava lamp and reach for the lighter. The Dark Side prism poster on the wall even seems to be moving to the music.

The first time I heard this one I was under the influence. I can remember freaking out, wondering what happened to my stereo and why was it making these strange noises. Then I realized it was the machine in the song and thought it was pretty cool. With all the sound effects going on in what seems like surround sound, it's hard to realize that this song is basically just Gilmour and an acoustic guitar. C'mon, they must have been stoned when they recorded this one!

If you really want to enjoy Pink Floyd high, then light one up and take a ride down "The Narrow Way". The frenzied opening and acoustic guitar pickin' intro, the ominous electric guitar in the middle, and soft vocals to close it out all make for one heady trip. The sound effects throughout the opening are enough to freak the listener out, but then it feels like your transported down a dark corridor through the second part. Thankfully Gilmour's voice pulls you out and leads you to safety.

The trance-like keyboards and respirator sound effects make this a favorite kickback Floyd song. The catatonic mood of the song puts you right in the room with our hero as you sink into oblivion with him. It takes the smashing of the TV set to snap you back out of it.

Is it just me, or does Gilmour sound like he's got the worst case of cotton mouth on this song? That's what I thought when I first heard it. I probably had one at the time too. This might be why I fell in love with this song immediately. It has always been and still remains my favorite Pink Floyd song. It's got everything. And all the Floyds seem to me to be at their musical best, cotton mouth or not. Of course, what really makes this a great song to get high to is the middle synthesizer part. Some prefer the pre-Animals version with Gilmour and Wright harmonizing in the middle section, but I still love the Animals version best because it completely sucks me in. Until that hypnotic acoustic guitar reappears from the opening waking you up, you might completely forget where you are. The dogs barking sound pretty real, but if you listen carefully you can tell it's just watered down keyboards. Pretty cool effect.

The entire suite has to be listed here together because it's a classic Pink Floyd epic. By this point in time the band had perfected their unique sound and vision. "Shine On" captures the Floyd mystique in such a way that just might have led to the perception that they were the drug band of the '70s. The spacey lead guitar intro, the steady repeating guitar lick known as "Syd's Theme", and the soft vocals creating the ultimate tribute to Pink Floyd's famous drug abuser, Syd Barrett, make up the first half of the "Shine On" epic. While the first half might totally relax you, the second half eases in with swirling wind noises but immediately picks up the pace with the driving beat and soaring slide guitar. All together, the perfect Floyd song to get high to that probably should be in a tie for the number one slot on this list.

1. "Echoes" from Meddle - This one's my favorite. The performance takes you on a trip whether you're stoned or not. It's just better stoned. Twenty minutes of pure Pink Floyd and a toker's delight from start to finish. Though this song lives up to the Pink Floyd and drugs stereotype, again, it is such a classic trip that it doesn't matter whether you do drugs or not. The band is in glorious Floydian form throughout with jam sections, spacey instrumentals, and perfect harmonized vocals. The thing is, when you get to that middle screeching whale section, you might want to light up. In any case, "Echoes" is the number one Pink Floyd song to get high to.

If I had a dime for every time some pot-head told me that Pink Floyd is a drug band (or something along those lines), I would have an awful lot of dimes. Quite frankly, the notion that the band is a drug band, that the fans are regular drug takers, and that the music is best experienced with drugs is crap. Crap enough that I am willing to write this on behalf of the multitude of fans and music lovers who can listen to Pink Floyd without drugs. They can go to a show without taking drugs. They can have a Floyd conversation without even mentioning drugs, or when someone else does, they can dismiss it. Pink Floyd is not a drug band, their music is not improved by taking drugs, and on the whole, their fans are not druggies.

Most readers are familiar with Syd Barrett's experience with LSD. The general consensus among those who knew him seems to be that he was inevitably going to end up the way he did, but the LSD helped him there so much quicker. Whether you consider him to be an acid casualty or a run-of-the-mill schizophrenic, the facts remain that he took a lot of LSD, couldn't cope with life, and withdrew from his friends, his fans, and ultimately from music altogether. It is a safe bet that the drugs and the mental breakdown go hand-in-hand.

The various other instances of the band's taking or not taking drugs pale compared to Syd's efforts. Other band members have described their experiments with LSD and marijuana, with none of them going past the experiment stage. David Gilmour has recently confessed to having had a cocaine habit in the late '80s and early '90s, before being rescued from it by his wife (then girlfriend), Polly Sampson. For that alone we can be forever in debt to the dear lady.

My point is this: most fans will happily acknowledge that although Syd took LSD, it wasn't good for him, it wasn't perpetuated by the rest of the band, and the vast majority of the wonderful work he did with Pink Floyd was done before he started on drugs in a big way. So did drugs influence what he wrote and recorded, and how they played? Well, yes. But only to a small degree, and not in a good way. Clearly, Pink Floyd was not a band of drug-takers, especially after Syd Barrett left.

Nick Mason's description of the 14-Hour Technicolour Dream is priceless. The band had literally just arrived from a show in Holland during the event, and had to set up and perform yet again. The last thing they needed was drugs. On the whole issue of drugs he describes the band members as having been in the 'eye of the storm', so to speak--surrounded by drugs on all sides, but not using heavily themselves. This is also supported by the fact that in the history of the band, they were never busted for drugs... unlike The Beatles, The Stones, and so on. The notion of Pink Floyd as a drug band is a myth created by the fans, for the fans.

So, to the fans. Non Floyd fans seem to think Pink Floyd are a drug band. As such, by association their fans must be into drugs as well. From my brief experience of live concerts before smoking bans came into being, it is fair to say that many Pink Floyd fans are. At concerts, people love to drink, take drugs, and generally 'party'. But I'm not convinced that they should, and I'm definitely put out when others think I do. Even with alcohol, I still sit in amazement at punters who go for drinks during a show, often more than a few times. However, this is not limited to Floyd fans; it happens at most concerts.

Maybe things sound better for those who take drugs. When I think about albums such as Music from the Body or Profiles, maybe drug takers aren't that silly after all, although I imagine no amount of chemical help would improve Identity. Others would happily lump the studio half of Ummagumma in there, a lot of More, and even the popular ones such as Dark Side of the Moon or Wish You Were Here. Some will even argue that the only reason they are popular is because so many folks listened to them taking drugs. But I would wager that there many more of us who know and love these albums without a helping hand.

Are the drug users really getting a better experience? Are they remembering the album listening or concert they went to, or simply remembering that they had a good time? All too often we read of experiences at shows, whether on the current Roger Waters tour or some dim memory of the 60s, where the experience is wonderful, but the recollection of why is not.

I suspect that people inclined to use drugs will use them at any concert or party, Pink Floyd or otherwise. For every person like me who hasn't touched drugs or alcohol at a concert over some 30 years, there must be those who have never been to a show clear-headed. Maybe my drug is the music itself.

Some, on the other hand, will say they don't like Pink Floyd or that they find the music depressing... it doesn't have a beat you can dance to. Logically, does this feed the need to take drugs to make it sound better? Or, ironically, does it cause depression to such an extent that folks end up taking drugs? Either way, I'm still drug free.

My dislike for the drug-oriented approach to Pink Floyd comes from the simple fact that I have never done drugs. Never been tempted even. I proudly join the crowd that says "don't do drugs". And it hurts me to the core to know that so many people need to do drugs to make Pink Floyd's music--to me are the most glorious sounds created by anyone in the history of our species--sound 'better'.

Does that give me the right to question one side of the argument? I don't know, and I don't particularly care either. Drugs are dangerous. There is a long line of famous folks who have wrecked their lives either temporarily (David Gilmour) or permanently (Syd Barrett) because of drugs. And most folks know of others in their own lives who have been affected to some degree. Sure, there are some whose lives haven't been negatively affected. But it is even easier to say that there are no lives that have been ruined by not taking drugs.

For those of you do take drugs in one form or another to help the music along, I challenge you to stop and make the music your drug of choice.