4051 Joint Wisdom by Rok


This excellent puzzle from new setter Rok was unique in celebrating a rock album cover as a work of art. The extra letters in wordplay gave SPEAK TO ME, TIME, MONEY, US AND THEM and BRAIN DAMAGE. These are all the names of tracks on the album ‘The Dark Side of the Moon’ by Pink Floyd. The letters given by misprints could be arranged to spell the group’s name. The members of Pink Floyd at the time when the album was issued were WRIGHT, MASON, GILMOUR and WATERS and these names could be discerned in a triangle, echoing the prism on the cover of the album. On the cover white light enters the triangle from the left and comes out as a 6 colour rainbow on the right. To represent this the word WHITE had to be erased and the initial letters of the six colours had to be shaded in the correct colours. They were Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue and Violet in a diagonal line. The title of the album had to be entered in the box at the foot of the grid. The title is a cryptic reference to the artist Hipgnosis who designed the album cover.
Extra letters in wordplay and misprints are shown in []
Across
1 Nation's flagship, or how to steer it? (10)
STATECRAFT STATE’[S] CRAFT
12 B[o]nd - a man found in Costa Rica and Switzerland (6)
CROUCH [bend] CR (Costa Rica) + OU + CH (Switzerland)
13 Look up to friend, but without a trace of envy - he's a naval officer (7)
ADMIRAL ADMIRE less E + [P]AL
14 Large stream cut a cleft in rock (4)
RIVA RIV[E](r) + A
15 Old faith at an end, long ago (6, two words)
OF YORE O (old) + F[A]Y + ORE
17 One who tightens or adjusts propeller; an aircraftsman (7)
SCREWER SCREW + ER[K]
18 It's more honest to talk ineffectually (6)
WHITER 2 definitions WHIT[T]ER
19 To God, observe no end of duty (7)
DEONTIC DEO (to God) + N[O]TIC(e)
20 Perhaps bab[y] is crankier every now and then? (4)
CAKE [BABA} alternate letters CrAnKiEr
23 The majority gossip in this language (6)
OSTYAK [M]OST YAK (gossip)
24 Ignores shoddy airtight seals (6)
O-RINGS Anagram IGNOR[E]S
26 Head of shipping - one who ties the labels on a packing box (6)
SAGGER S(hipping) + [T]AGGER
27 [F]acial tic when worried about losing wife (6)
ETHNIC [RACIAL] Anagram TIC WHEN less W (wife)
29 Partners twice put together plots (4)
WEBS WE (bridge partners) + B[I]S
31 Tale woven on a Sunday in [K]ent (7)
LAETARE [Sunday in LENT]
33 Rook, king and a pawn move almost at random for grandmaster (6)
KARPOV Anagram R (rook) K (king) A P (pawn) + [M]OV(e)
36 Towards the sea, two rivers overflow (7)
OUTPOUR OUT + PO + UR[E] (2 rivers)
39 [D]are to argue - resistance is good! (6)
GEASON [RARE] REASON changing R (resistance) to G (good)
40 Mo[l]es hiding in Flymo died (4)
MODI [MORES] Hidden
41 Pick apart first couple of pieces of music by new composer (7)
UNRAVEL [M]U(sic) + RAVEL
42 Nanny perhaps sees senior nursing officer outside A and E (6)
SAANEN (ref. Nanny goat) A AN’ E in SN[O]
43 New hemp strings knotted - no good fisherman uses these (10, two words)
SHRIMPNETS Anagram N (new) HEMP STRI[N]GS less G (good)
 
Down
1 A thin [p]od is cold, chilly and damp (5)
SCRAW [a thin SOD] ‘S + C (cold) + RAW
2 A noble girl - heart is stirred! (6)
TRISHA Anagram H[E]ART IS
3 Head of tribe, close to Uluru, cultured eucalyptus (5)
TUART T(ribe) (ulur)U + ART[Y]
4 Look, a coin that that may be safely used across Europe? (4)
ECCE EC[U] + CE (Communauté européenne , the mark showing that toys, electrical equipment, etc conform with EU safety standards)
5 They are used to keep flies away from food, and Indian gentlemen (7)
CHOWRIS CHOW (food) + [S]RIS
6 Gunners are almost ready to demolish buildings (4)
RASE R[A] (Royal Artillery) + A (are) + SE[(t)
7 Is loving trouble concerning two partners? (6)
ADORES ADO + RE (concerning) [N]S (bridge partners)
8 One percent of a sum - fairly big one, note! (5)
TIYIN (100 tyins = 1 sum) TI[D]Y + I + N (note)
9 A textural work of art about new face of a building (8)
FRONTAGE N (new) in FROT[T]AGE
10 Martial primarily wrote about Roman life in his knowing Epigrams (7)
WARLIKE initial letters Wrote About Roman Life In [H]is Epigrams
11 They overcharge: "jackets as worn by the Queen" (8)
FLEECERS [E]R (queen) in FLEECES
16 Flotsam disrupted commercial shipping (6)
FLOTAS Anagram FLOTSA[M]
19 Se[n]ate requiring Mussolini to accept end of "Fascismo" (5)
DOUCE [SEDATE] O (last letter of FASCISMO) in DUCE
20 Coax workmate to replace core members of team with old boy (8)
COLLOGUE COLLEAGUE replacing (t)EA(m) with O[B]
21 Indication of quality equipment - take note! (8)
KITEMARK KIT + [R]EMARK
22 An ill-educated person; one travels round about North Arkansas (6)
IGNARO I GO containing  [A] (about) +N (north) +AR (Arkansas)
25 Rhenium, silver and neon are mixed with it to produce a chemical used for tests (7)
REAGENT Anagram RE + AG + NE + [I]T
26 Worship of goddess is tragically mistaken; it has no base (7)
SAKTISM ‘S (is) + Anagram MISTAKE[N] LESS e (BASE)
28 Director takes a heavy blow; one that flattens (6)
IRONER [D]IR + ONER
30 Belgian biologist to supply food to an alien (6)
BORD BO[A]RD + ET
32 Japanese d[i]gs in to sashimi (5)
TOSAS [Japanese DOGS] Hidden
34 Gypsy must meet with this Catholic (5)
ROMAN ROM + [M]AN (must)
35 Moods shown by dizzy naive soprano (5)
VEINS Anagram N[|A]IVE + S (soprano)
37 Loathe party where one may eat free fruit (4)
UGLI UG + LI[G]
38 Lively appeal, not about to sound flat (4)
PLAP Anagram APP[E]AL less A (about)