Following Bob Dylan's example, Pink Floyd have quietly released 18 bootleg recordings from 1973 on streaming services, in order to retain their copyrights.
The move is a response to a European Union ruling that states that artists must officially issue sound recordings within 50 years of their creation or lose the rights to them.
Pink Floyd, who have been doing this practice for a couple of years, have released live recordings from various venues, such as the Rainbow Theatre in London, the Hollywood Sportatorium in Florida, and the Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.
The recordings feature the band performing their classic album The Dark Side of the Moon, along with some earlier songs, such as "Echoes", "Careful with That Axe, Eugene" and "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun".
However, according to Variety, the quality of the recordings is uneven, and the set lists are almost identical. The magazine also noted that some of the shows were disrupted by unruly audience members, which added an interesting sociological dimension to the music.
The recordings average 16 songs spread over two to two-and-a-half hours.
[Source: Classic Hits Today]