Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk
| "Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk" | |
|---|---|
| Song by Pink Floyd | |
| from the album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn | |
| Released | 4 August 1967 |
| Recorded | 20 and 29 March 1967, 18 July 1967[1] |
| Studio | EMI, London (Studio Three) |
| Genre | Psychedelic rock |
| Length | 3:05 |
| Label | EMI Columbia |
| Songwriter | Roger Waters[2] |
| Producer | Norman Smith |
"Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk"[a] is a song by English psychedelic rock band Pink Floyd from their debut album The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967).
Background
"Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk" was originally titled "Doctor, Doctor".[4] The song's title is a variation of John 5:8, a verse of the Bible detailing the healing of the paralytic at Bethesda in which Jesus instructs the paralytic to "take up thy bed and walk".[5][6] It was the first song written by Roger Waters to be recorded by Pink Floyd.[1] The phrase "doctor, doctor" would be re-used in Waters's 1992 solo album Amused to Death.[1]
Reception
When Andy Greene of Rolling Stone Australia ranked fifty terrible songs on great albums, he placed "Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk" at number twenty-eight, calling it a "grating tune" and "Judging by this song alone, nobody would have ever guessed that its author would take over the band in the seventies and turn them into one of the biggest acts in rock history. They were more likely to assume he was on the verge of a complete nervous breakdown."[7] Waters later called it a "very bad song".[8] When Nick Mason was interviewed about the Pink Floyd box set The Early Years 1965–1972, he thought it was "a really average song."[4]
Personnel
According to authors Jean-Michel Guesdon and Philippe Margotin:[1]
- Roger Waters – bass, lead vocals
- Syd Barrett – electric rhythm and lead guitars, backing vocals
- Richard Wright – organ, backing vocals
- Nick Mason – drums
Cover versions
At the Drive-In version
| "Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk (BBC Sessions)" | |
|---|---|
| Song by At the Drive-In | |
| from the album This Station Is Non-Operational | |
| Released | 24 May 2005 |
| Genre | |
| Length | 5:03 |
| Label | Fearless |
| Songwriter | Roger Waters |
| Producers |
|
American post-hardcore band At the Drive-In covered the song during their BBC sessions but never went released until their 2005 compilation album This Station Is Non-Operational.[9]
Other versions
Ty Segall, alongside Mikal Cronin covered the song on his 2009 album The Traditional Fools/Reverse Shark Attack.[10]
References
Notes
Citations
- 1 2 3 4 Guesdon & Margotin 2017, p. 62.
- ↑ Blake 2008, p. 91.
- ↑ Povey 2008, p. 343.
- 1 2 Grow, Kory (2016-11-18). "Pink Floyd's Nick Mason on 'Early Years,' Syd Barrett, Band Tensions". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
- ↑ Kopp, Bill. "The Top 5 early compositions by Roger Waters". Goldmine Magazine: Record Collector & Music Memorabilia. Retrieved 2025-12-08.
- ↑ "Bible Gateway passage: John 5:8 - King James Version". Bible Gateway. Retrieved 20 May 2026.
- ↑ Greene, Andy (17 February 2025). "50 Terrible Songs on Great Albums". Rolling Stone Australia. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
- ↑ Mabbett 1995, p. 8.
- ↑ Crock, Jason. "At the Drive In: This Station Is Non-Operational". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
- ↑ Minsker, Evan. "The Traditional Fools / Ty Segall / Mikal Cronin: The Traditional Fools / Reverse Shark Attack". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2025-06-06.
Sources
- Blake, Mark (2008). Comfortably Numb: The Inside Story of Pink Floyd. Da Capo Press. ISBN 978-0-306-81752-6.
- Guesdon, Jean-Michel; Margotin, Philippe (2017). Pink Floyd All The Songs. Running Press. ISBN 9780316439237.
- Mabbett, Andy (1995). The Complete Guide to the Music of Pink Floyd (1st UK paperback ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 978-0-7119-4301-8.
- Povey, Glenn (2008) [2007]. Echoes: The Complete History of Pink Floyd. Mind Head Publishing. ISBN 978-0-9554624-1-2.