Pink Floyd fans split on which solo is better between Comfortably Numb and Pigs

Fans deciding between the solo works heard on two all-time great Pink Floyd songs are split on which is better.

The band’s songs, Comfortably Numb and Pigs, were discussed in a post to the r/PinkFloyd subreddit, where listeners assessed which of the two tracks has the stronger solo. One user wrote: “Unpopular opinion (maybe). The solo at the end of Pigs (Three Different Ones) is at least two times better than Comfortably Numb. I don’t know why, but it just speaks to me more than either solo in Comfortably Numb. Maybe it’s the amazing bass and drums playing under it that brings David Gilmour‘s pristine, heavenly guitar back down into the mud with the pigs. What are your thoughts?”

Praise for both Gilmour’s guitar work and Roger Waters‘ bass-playing was seen in the comments, though it appears most had a preference for The Dark Side of the Moon than Animals.

One user wrote: “I love that album and it is a great solo. I would still pick Comfortably Numb, but there are a few factors there. The Comfortably Numb solo is way better mixed, he’s a bit buried in places in Pigs. The tone. I like the tone in Pigs for the grit and it fits that album, but as a guitarist… it’s not one of his [Gilmour’s] better tones.”

A third reason suggested by the user as to why Pigs may sound better than Comfortably Numb is exposure to it. They added: “You’ve probably heard the Comfortably Numb solo so many times that it’s lost some lustre.”

Others say they appreciate the improvised-like sound of Pigs, and it is a leading reason as to why they prefer it over Comfortably Numb. One wrote: “Personally, I think the Pigs solo sounds much more improvised, whereas the Numb solos sound (to me) much more refined, rehearsed and really work with the underlying chords/structure.”

Though the debate was between Comfortably Numb and Pigs, some users suggested neither comes close to the quality of Time. One user explained: “Time is his best by a decent margin. Tone wise I love fuzz tone sounds more than Big Muff, the delay on Time is also incredible. Time spans the whole fretboard and nearly every position over seven different chords, whereas Pigs is mainly played on the same spot over two chords.

Unpopular opinion (maybe): The solo at the end of Pigs (Three Different Ones) is at least 2x better than Comfortably Numb
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“Most importantly though, the way the Time solo develops is incredible. Going from the screaming highs to meditative, melodic lows all with probably the greatest climax ever in a guitar solo. Pigs is amazing but I don’t think it’s in the top three. For me, the top three is Time, Shine On You Crazy Diamond, second solo, and Any Colour You Like.”

Another summarised the Pigs and Comfortably Numb debate. They wrote: “It’s a great solo, it has an angry raging vibe to it, where it verges in metal with the ferocity.

“Is it better then Comfortably Numb? that’s hard for me to choose, I’ve listened to Comfortably Numb so much it’s made me kind of numb. Still amazing though. What also works for it is the baseline underneath, I hum it a lot, in fact I’m thinking of it now!”