Wish You Were Here (Pink Floyd album) the UK, and on the following day in the US. In Britain, with 250,000 advance sales, it went straight to number one, and demand was such that EMI informed retailers that only 50 percent of their orders would be fulfilled. With 900,000 advance orders (the largest for any Columbia release) it reached number one on the US "Billboard" chart in its second week. "Wish You Were Here" was Pink Floyd's fastest-selling album ever. On release, the album received mixed reviews. Ben Edmunds wrote in "Rolling Stone": "Melody Maker" reviewer wrote: "From whichever direction one approaches "Wish You Were Here", it
Wish You Were Here (Pink Floyd album) a music industry more interested in greed and success) and ends with a party, the latter epitomising "the lack of contact and real feelings between people". Similarly, "Have a Cigar" scorns record industry "fat-cats" with the lyrics repeating a stream of cliches heard by rising newcomers in the industry, and including the question "by the way, which one's Pink?" asked of the band on at least one occasion. The lyrics of the next song, "Wish You Were Here", relate both to Barrett's condition, and to the dichotomy of Waters' character, with greed and ambition battling with compassion and idealism. The