Pink Floyd is my favorite band, too. Piper at the Gates of Dawn was long before my time. Back when I first got into them in the 1980s, I was warded off from their pre-Dark Side stuff by being seriously underwhelmed by Masters of Rock: Pink Floyd’s Greatest Hits and Ummagumma, plus even the band’s own dismissiveness towards their early work. Just a few years ago, now that streaming means you can hear an album without deciding to buy, I’ve rediscovered their early stuff and become like a teenager about them.
For the Beatles, that was Abbey Road. For the Beach Boys, Pet Sounds. And for Pink Floyd, it was Dark Side of the Moon. Nothing can compare. The 1995 tour that produced the "Pulse" DVD/CD demonstrated that they could play that incredible stuff live, too, quite an achievement.
I only saw them live once (that I recall, anyway), at the Spectrum in Philly in the early 70's, and frankly don't remember a lot of details due to my state at the time, but I do recall the scream in "Careful With That Axe, Eugene" being accompanied by a huge explosion of fire in the center of the stadium ceiling where the huge scoreboard was suspended. Might have just been some really bright lights now that I think about it..... I and half the audience lost our collective minds. Ah, the good old days....