Pyramid Song

Radiohead recorded “Pyramid Song” during the Kid A and Amnesiac sessions, with the basic track cut in Copenhagen and the strings recorded by the Orchestra of St John in Dorchester Abbey, Oxfordshire. Thom Yorke recorded piano and vocal together with Philip Selway’s drums, while Jonny Greenwood arranged the strings and John Lubbock conducted. Released by Parlophone in 2001 as the lead single from Amnesiac, it reached number 5 on the UK Official Singles Chart. Its slow-building piano, strings and unconventional rhythmic feel marked one of Radiohead’s clearest departures from their 1990s guitar-band profile. The track remains one of Radiohead’s defining post-OK Computer recordings and a central song from the Kid A and Amnesiac era. Its suspended rhythm and orchestral atmosphere have made it one of the band’s most discussed and frequently covered compositions.