"The Thin Ice" is a song by Pink Floyd, released on The Wall in 1979.
The song, which is two minutes and 30 seconds in length, begins with the sound of an infant crying. The main body of the song is a 50s progression, with time signature in 6/8, commonly heard in doo-wop songs such as "Stand by Me", progressing from C Major to A minor, then F Major to G Major, played softly on piano and synthesiser. The first half of the lyrics are sung by David Gilmour in a gentle tone, beginning with "Mama loves her baby", and a refrain of "Ooh babe, ooh, baby blue". A bass guitar creates a dissonant effect mid-song, when it plays an F♯ against an A minor, the major sixth of the chord, and the augmented fourth of the key. Then Roger Waters takes over the lead vocal. The piano becomes staccato, as the lyric takes on a warning tone, with Waters singing "If you should go skating/On the thin ice of modern life...."
As the lyrics end, the diatonic sense of C Major is abandoned, as the melody heard earlier (E, D, F, E, and A) becomes stripped to a simple power chord riff, played loud by distorted guitars, with brief soloing. The song ends on a sustained C Major chord, but through crossfading with the next song on the album, "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 1", a D minor chord is interpolated, contributing to uneasiness intimated by the lyrics.
Thin Ice may refer to:
Thin Ice is a 1919 silent film drama directed by Thomas R. Mills and starring Corinne Griffith. It was produced and distributed through the Vitagraph Company of America.
This film is preserved at Bois d'Arcy Archive, Paris.
Thin Ice (1937) is a United States comedy/romance film directed by Sidney Lanfield starring Tyrone Power and figure skater Sonja Henie.
The plot follows ski instructor Lili Heiser (Henie), who works at a local luxury hotel in the Swiss Alps. She falls in love with a man who goes skiing every morning (Power). She thinks he's an everyday tourist, not knowing that he's actually a prince trying to escape the pressures of royal life.
The movie showcased Sonja Henie's skating talents. After winning gold in the 1928, 1932 and 1936 Winter Olympics, Henie became a professional film actress in 1936.
The film also features Tyrone Power in the beginnings of his career.
The movie was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Dance Direction for the 'Prince Igor Suite'.
Momma loves her baby
And daddy loves you too
And the sea may look warm to you babe
And the sky may look blue
Ooh baby
Ooh baby blue
Ooh babe
If you should go skating
On the thin ice of modern life
Draggin' behind you the silent reproach
Of a million tear-stained eyes
Don't be surprised when a crack in the ice
Appears under your feet
You slip out of your depth and out of your mind
With your fear flowing out behind you
As you claw the thin ice