It reached number 36 in the US Billboard album charts and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in March 1994.

As explained in a note on the back cover of the US edition, songs dropped from the original US LP, "Flaming", "Astronomy Domine" and "Bike" were restored for this re-issue.

"Interstellar Overdrive" fades out slightly early (as it did on the original US LP) and adds a few seconds of silence before "The Gnome" rather than the immediate segue found on the UK version.

Initial copies had a picture of a Mr. W.R. Phang's dental surgery on the cover (a genuine business photographed in Hammersmith, west London), but Dr. Phang objected because NHS dentists were not permitted to advertise, and the picture was replaced with one of a gargling monk.

The album was the band's next US release after The Dark Side of the Moon, and introduced new fans to the earlier psychedelic sound of the Syd Barrett period of Pink Floyd, which contrasted greatly to the style of their more recent work.