Well, add
'Meddle' to your list. There is absolutely no doubt in the minds of most Pink Floyd fans that this is one of the pinacles of their work. 'Echoes' is just, simply put, an incredible song, and the rest of the music is stellar as well. This shows a more moody and chilled out kind of aspect to Pink Floyd's sound, and it should not be missed. After that, I would suggest picking up
'Obscured By Clouds' which would, to me, sound all like early Beatles songs if the tempo was sped up and the lyrics changed. However, there's enough experimentation in the album to strike a good balance between accessibility and coolness. This is actually a soundtrack to the film 'La Valee', but it is still one of Pink Floyd's best efforts. The singing and drumming are praticularly strong in this album. The tunes on this album are incredibly catchy.
I chose these based on both beginner's experiences I have had and my favorite albums. When I introduced a friend to Pink Floyd a year and a half ago, I put him straight to 'Piper at the Gates of Dawn', and went up the list until he heard something he truly loved. He liked Piper a lot, but the band is much different now than it was back then with the absense of Syd Barrett. He heard 'A Saucerful of Secrets' and thought it was a little too amateur-ish for him. Then he went up the list until he hit Meddle and Obscured By Clouds, in order, and loved them both. He went up to Dark Side of the Moon and loved that too, and Animals, and then hated The Wall and everything past that. He still hates the Roger Waters dominance material, but loves everything else now
If you buy these two albums I suggested above, I'd suggest these purchases in this order:
-Piper at the Gates of Dawn
-Animals
-Atom Heart Mother
-A Saucerful of Secrets
Hope this helps.
