Music Friday: Pink Floyd’s 'Shine On You Crazy Diamond' Fetes Ex-Band Member

Welcome to Music Friday when we feature fabulous songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the lyrics or title. Today we’re privileged to present Pink Floyd’s 1975 masterpiece, “Shine On You Crazy Diamond.”

Written as a tribute to former band member Syd Barrett, who had to leave the group after suffering a mental breakdown, the song includes the famous opening line, “Remember when you were young, you shone like the sun. Shine on you crazy diamond.”

In comparing him to a diamond, the co-writers — all band members at the time — saluted Barrett's exceptional talent and creative genius.

A founding member of Pink Floyd, Barrett was the group’s lead vocalist, lead guitarist and primary songwriter during the band’s early years in the mid-1960s. He is also credited with naming the band, but it wasn’t long before mental illness and drug abuse took its toll.

His behavior became erratic: Concertgoers reported that Barrett would sometimes get on stage and not play a single note. Other times he would play the same note over and over. His stint with Pink Floyd lasted only three years, as the band reluctantly ousted him in 1968. He passed away in 2006.

Running nearly 26 minutes, the nine-part “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” was originally intended to fill the first side of the concept album, Wish You Were Here. Ultimately the band members decided it was best to split the epic song in half and allow it to bookend the album.

Wish You Were Here turned out to be a huge commercial success with more than 20 million copies sold worldwide. Rolling Stone magazine listed it as one of the “500 Greatest Albums of All Time.”

Although the original song officially runs 25:57, we’ve found a radio version that dives right into the powerful lyrics. It runs just 3:29. Enjoy...

“Shine On You Crazy Diamond”
Written by Roger Waters, David Jon Gilmour and Rick Wright. Performed by Pink Floyd.

Remember when you were young, you shone like the sun.
Shine on you crazy diamond.
Now there’s a look in your eyes, like black holes in the sky.
Shine on you crazy diamond.
You were caught on the crossfire of childhood and stardom,
Blown on the steel breeze.

Come on you target for faraway laughter,
Come on you stranger, you legend, you martyr, and shine!

You reached for the secret too soon, you cried for the moon.
Shine on you crazy diamond.

Threatened by shadows at night, and exposed in the light.
Shine on you crazy diamond.
Well, you wore out your welcome with random precision,
Rode on the steel breeze.

Come on you raver, you seer of visions,
Come on you painter, you piper, you prisoner, and shine!

Credit: Photo by Paul Carless, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

For the 2nd Time This Month, Lucara Unveils Mega Diamond From Its Karowe Mine

For the second time this month, Lucara has unearthed a massive top-quality diamond at its Karowe Mine in Botswana.

A few weeks ago, the mining company revealed a stunning 1,080-carat oblong gem that rates as the sixth-largest ever unearthed. On Monday, Lucara unveiled a 692.3-carat Type IIa high white gem from the same source. That diamond, yet to be named, takes its place at #20 on Wikipedia's "List of the Largest Rough Diamonds."

Of the top 20 diamonds ever discovered, seven have come from the Karowe Mine. The largest Karowe finds include the 1,758-carat Sewelô (2019), 1,174-carat unnamed (2021), 1,109-carat Lesedi La Rona (2015) and the 998-carat unnamed (2020).

About the width of a golf ball, the newest find was recovered from the direct milling of ore sourced from the EM/PK(S) unit of the South Lobe at Karowe — the same extraction point as the 1,000-carat-plus diamond introduced earlier in August.

The 692.3-carat diamond measures 46.5mm (1.83 in) by 40.7mm (1.60 in) by 28.4mm (1.11 in). Its Type IIa classification represents a colorless diamond with no measurable impurities. Type IIa gems account for less than 2% of all natural diamonds.

So far this year, Karowe has produced four diamonds larger than 300 carats and 20 larger than 100 carats.

Lucara’s MDR (Mega Diamond Recovery) XRT circuit uses advanced technology to identify 100-carat-plus diamonds. By monitoring the rocky material for X-ray luminescence, atomic density and transparency, the new technology can identify and isolate large diamonds before they go through the destructive crushing process.

"The successful track record of delivering some of the world's largest diamonds continues with the recent recovery of a 692.3-carat diamond," said Lucara CEO William Lamb. "The recovery of large diamonds from the EM/PK(S) lithology of the South Lobe strongly supports our expectations for the underground project where the majority of material mined will constitute this phase of kimberlite during the first years of underground production."

The Karowe Mine, which was opened in 2012, had been expected to cease operations in 2025, but an underground expansion at the cost of $683 million promises to extend its productive lifespan until at least 2040.

Credit: Image courtesy of Lucara Diamond Corp.

Too Big for King Kong, Astros' World Series Ring Replicas Are a Sight to Behold

A World Series ring so enormous King Kong would have to see his jeweler to have it sized down was officially unveiled at Minute Maid Park in Houston on Friday.

The replica of the Astros' 2022 championship bling made its debut alongside the team's 2017 edition, providing an awesome photo op for fans entering the stadium from Texas Avenue.

The rings appear to be about three feet tall and match the design of the originals, stone for stone. Each ring stands upright on a circular blue platform on which fans can climb to pose with the ring.

The festive unveiling, which took place from noon to 3 p.m. prior to the game against the Seattle Mariners, included appearances by the Astros' dance team — the Coca-Cola Shooting Stars — as well as the Shuttle Crew, a group of marketing professionals that manned the prize wheel and other activities.

Fans attending the event also got a chance to pose with the actual 2022 World's Series Trophy, which was placed on a podium between the two giant-sized rings.

The Astros' social media team promoted the installation with a Facebook photo caption that simply noted, "The newest addition on Texas Ave. outside of Minute Maid Park." The post was punctuated by an Engagement Ring emoji and a Star Eye emoji.

Crafted by Jostens in 14-karat white and yellow gold and hand-set with 679 diamonds and sapphires, the actual 2022 World Series ring celebrates the Houston Astros’ memorable season and ultimate triumph over the Philadelphia Phillies.

Each 2022 ring features 591 round diamonds, 11 baguette-cut diamonds, 22 emerald-cut diamonds, nine custom-cut orange sapphires, two round orange sapphires, one star-shaped orange sapphire, 42 round blue sapphires and one star-shaped blue sapphire. The total weight of all the gemstones is approximately 15.30 carats.

By comparison, the Astros’ 2017 World Series ring — also designed by Jostens — tells the story of the franchise’s first-ever championship using 225 colorless diamonds, nine orange sapphires and 16 blue sapphires set in 14-karat white and yellow gold. Each ring glitters with 10.40 carats of genuine gemstones.

The Astros' are currently vying for another run at the championship. The team is 70-55, just behind the first-place Texas Rangers in the American League West.

Credits: Giant ring replica images via Facebook / Astros. Actual ring photos courtesy of Jostens.

Music Friday: Brad Paisley Pops the Question After Chance Encounter in 'We Danced'

Welcome to Music Friday when we bring you chart-topping songs with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the title or lyrics. Today, a chance after-hours encounter between a bar owner and a patron results in a marriage proposal in Brad Paisley’s country hit “We Danced.”

In the song written by Paisley and Charles Dubois, the protagonist is cleaning up after closing time when a woman, who had been at the bar earlier that evening, returns to retrieve a misplaced purse. The two get lost in conversation, and the bar owner insists that the only way he’ll return the purse is if she agrees to dance with him.

With the chairs up and the lights turned down, the coupled danced — and instantly fell in love.

Paisley sings, “And from that moment, there was never any doubt / I had found the one that I had always dreamed about / And then one evenin’, when she stopped by after work / I pulled a diamond ring out of the pocket of my shirt.”

In a fun twist, the woman says she’ll accept his proposal under one condition — that he agrees to dance with her.

“We Danced” was the fourth and final single from the 50-year-old singer-songwriter’s wildly successful 1999 debut album Who Needs Pictures. The song went to #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and was nominated for Song of the Year at the Academy of Country Music Awards.

That album helped launch a long and successful career that yielded 35 Top-10 singles on the US Billboard Country Airplay chart, 20 of which have reached #1. Paisley has sold more than 11 million albums, won three Grammy Awards, 14 Academy of Country Music Awards, 14 Country Music Association Awards and two American Music Awards. At the age of 28, he became the youngest artist ever to be inducted into the Grand Ole Opry.

A West Virginia native, Bradley Douglas “Brad” Paisley was introduced to country music by his grandfather, Warren Jarvis, who gave the youngster his first guitar, a Sears Danelectro Silvertone, when he was just eight years old. Jarvis taught his grandson to play, and by the age of 10 Paisley was performing regularly at his church.

While in junior high, Paisley was doing a show at a local Rotary Club, when he was discovered by a program director for a Wheeling, WV, radio station. He was invited to be a guest on the popular radio show “Wheeling Jamboree” and the rest is history.

Paisley currently has tour dates scheduled in Niagara Falls, NY; Redondo Beach, CA; Hartford, CT; and Tampa, FL.

Please check out the audio track of Paisley’s “We Danced.” The lyrics are below if you’d like to sing along…

“We Danced”
Written by Brad Paisley and Charles Dubois. Performed by Brad Paisley.

The bar was empty, I was sweeping up the floor
That’s when she walked in, I said, “I’m sorry but we’re closed”
And she said, “I know but I’m afraid I left my purse”
I said, “I put one back behind the bar, I bet it’s probably yours”

And the next thing that I knew
There we were, lost in conversation
Before I handed her her purse
I said, “You’ll only get this back on one condition”

And we danced
Out there on that empty hardwood floor
The chairs up and the lights turned way down low
The music played, we held each other close
And we danced

And from that moment, there was never any doubt
I had found the one that I had always dreamed about
And then one evenin’, when she stopped by after work
I pulled a diamond ring out of the pocket of my shirt

And as her eyes filled up with tears
She said, “This is the last thing I expected”
And then she took me by the hand
And said, “I’ll only marry you on one condition”

And we danced
Out there on that empty hardwood floor
The chairs up and the lights turned way down low
The music played, we held each other close

And we danced
Like no one else had ever danced before
I can’t explain what happened on that floor
But the music played, we held each other close
And we danced, yeah, we danced

Credit: Photo by Crisco 1492, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Actress Zooey Deschanel Shows Off Colorful Floral-Motif Engagement Ring

"Forever starts now!!!" exclaimed actress Zooey Deschanel and TV personality Jonathan Scott in a jubilant joint Instagram post seen by their combined 10 million-plus followers on Monday.

The New Girl star and Property Brothers twin announced their engagement while showing off a unique engagement ring featuring a series of floret-style gem clusters set on a white metal band.

Their post was punctuated with an infinity sign bookended by a pair of "Smiling Face with Hearts" emojis.

Deschanel's unorthodox engagement ring seems to have no primary center stone. Instead, the central element looks like five purple stones (possibly amethysts or sapphires) in a petal arrangement.

The florets to the left and right seem to be set with all diamonds, except for a single pink stone perched symmetrically on the upper left of one and the lower right of the other. The pink accent stones might be sapphires, as well.

(Some outlets are reporting that the white gems to the left and right of the purple grouping are actually large, single diamonds. Take a look at the closeup view and give it your best guess.)

While most of the Instagram comments regarding her ring choice were upbeat and positive, one user comically warned, "That ring is gonna unravel many a sweater!"

People magazine reported that Scott's proposal took place this past Sunday during a trip to Scotland, where Deschanel's kids participated in the celebration. The actress shares a daughter, Elsie, 8, and son, Charlie, 6, with her ex-husband and film producer Jacob Pechenik.

Deschanel, 43, and Scott, 45, had met during an August 2019 filming of James Corden's Carpool Karaoke — an appearance that included the couple's famous siblings, actress Emily Deschanel and Property Brother Drew.

According to published reports, the newly engaged couple started dating shortly after her separation from Pechenik in 2019 and then the couple spent two years renovating a 1938 Georgian-style dream home in Los Angeles.

Credits: Images via Instagram / zooeydeschanel.