Written by Roger Waters, he may have drawn his inspiration from works by various great science fiction authors, such as the Barsoom series by Edgar Rice Burroughs and the Rull cycle by A. E. van Vogt. There is also an allusion to Arthur C. Clarke’s Childhood’s End (1953), in which extraterrestrials bring to bear their enormous skills in order to save planet Earth, and the movie The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), directed by Robert Wise, which also deals with the theme of the highly evolved, pacifist extraterrestrial. Thus according to Waters, it is aliens who have the ability to bring enlightenment to the world, or at any rate to add to it, hence the song’s title. This track chosen to open their new album inaugurates the new musical direction taken by the Floyd now that Syd Barrett’s influence had waned. The first session took place on January 18, 1968, just a few weeks after David Gilmour’s arrival, a time when Syd was probably no longer recording with the group. “Let There Be More Light” (then named “Untitled”) was recorded in a single take between 2:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. After various voice and guitar overdubs, the group then laid down a second take called “Rhythm Track,” which would be added in on March 25. Here we have an opportunity to discover David Gilmour as a lead guitarist, as this is where he plays his first solo on disc with the group, on his white Fender Telecaster most probably plugged into Syd’s amplifier, the 50-watt Selmer Truvoice Treble-n-Bass 50. Gilmour still lacks assurance and technical prowess. He is not yet the guitar hero of “Money” (The Dark Side of the Moon, 1973) or “Comfortably Numb” (The Wall, 1979), but his essential spirit is already present, with a style of playing that does not try to dazzle with technical prowess, instead placing an emphasis on emotion and matchless sound quality.