Customer Reviews

Wall [Vinyl]

5 star:		(766)
4 star:		(106)
3 star:		(70)
2 star:		(36)
1 star:		(34)

 

 

"The Wall," Pink Floyd's 1979 concept album about a rock star's mental breakdown, is a towering monster. It's an album with SO many audio, lyrical, musical & emotional nooks and crannies contained within, that one listen simply will not cut it. "The Wall" is not just an album to listen to, it's an album to be *explored*. It was inspired by then-bandleader Roger Waters' own mental collapse at the end of the Floyd's tour for the "Animals" album. Due to the grind of the mammoth stadium tour for "Animals," and sickened by seeing his own band, in his opinion, become part of the rock business "circus," Waters was mentally & emotionally exhausted beyond comprehension. At the final gig in Montreal, Waters finally snapped, spitting in the face of a young fan sitting up front. Coming home to England to recover, Waters finally decided to exorcise his demons by writing a conceptual piece about his disgust with his life as a rock star, and he began building "The Wall"....With the bulk of the double-album composed by Waters (with a few co-writing contributions from guitarist David Gilmour & producer Bob Ezrin), "The Wall" tells the story of a rock star named Pink and his downward spiral into madness, and all the things in his life that led him there: his father killed in the war when he was only a baby ("Another Brick In The Wall Part 1"), being smothered by his overbearing mother ("Mother"), subjected to abuse at school ("The Happiest Days Of Our Lives"/"Another Brick In The Wall Part 2"), and later, the pressures of his rock-star lifestyle ("One Of My Turns") and the breakdown of his marriage ("Don't Leave Me Now"). Quite simply, "The Wall" is a rock masterwork, and arguably Roger Waters' greatest achievement as a composer. However, to think of the album simply as a "Roger Waters production" would be wrong. Though Waters IS, indeed, the main architect of "The Wall," bravely wearing his heart on his sleeve with his powerful songwriting and tortured singing (not to mention playing a mean bass throughout), the album still would not be what it is without the excellent contributions of guitarist/vocalist David Gilmour, who also shines on tracks like the smash hit, "Another Brick In The Wall Part 2" (featuring his most famous guitar solo ever recorded with the band), "Goodbye Blue Sky," "Young Lust," "Hey You" and "Comfortably Numb" (featuring yet another classic Gilmour guitar solo). Keyboardist Richard Wright & drummer Nick Mason are, admittedly, dwarfed somewhat on "The Wall" by the inclusion of various session players (that's Jeff Porcaro playing drums on "Mother," to name one example). Still, Mason & Wright appear often enough, and they make their contributions count. The production on "The Wall" is also astounding---from the great stereophonic mix of the tunes themselves, to the treasure trove of sound effects & voices (such as fighter planes, helicopters, objects being smashed, singing schoolchildren, a telephone operator, a TV set playing "Gomer Pyle," and on and on), "The Wall" is truly a listening *experience*. Thankfully, Roger Waters, having left Pink Floyd in 1983, is living quite comfortably these days, no longer bothered by his rock star demons, and he continues to make great music on his own (he's also much more appreciative of his live audiences these days, thank goodness). Obviously for Waters, making "The Wall" was much-needed therapy. For Pink Floyd, "The Wall" became one of the group's biggest best-sellers, second only to "Dark Side Of The Moon." For the listener, "The Wall" is a spellbinding musical journey. It's music is at turns beautiful, haunting, and unquestionably powerful, and it's story is an absolutely gripping one. "The Wall" is a timeless, undisputed Pink Floyd classic.

Wow......

If anyone could sum up this album in one word, that would be it. 'The Wall' is not only the ultimate Pink Floyd album(in my opinion, at least), it is the most creative and awe-inspring recording probably ever. From the explosive opening guitar riff of "In The Flesh?" to the final harmonies of "Outside The Wall", 'The Wall' takes the most extensive journey of the mind, heart and soul of any rock album ever made. With the excellent production of Bob Ezrin (who also produced KISS' classic 'Destroyer'), to the legendary David Gilmour and of course, the brainchild of the whole thing, Roger Waters, The Floyd told the story of a man who was at war his whole life with one person - himself. From the death of his father in WWII, his overprotective mother, his superstardom as a rock musician and the excess which accompanied it, his unfaithful wife, his inability to cope with the rest of the world, and finally, his freefall into insanity, no other recording in history has come as close to telling an actual story so completely and masterfully, in just the confines of music. While experiencing 'The Wall', one can't help but feel the angst of "Another Brick In The Wall Part 2", the confusion of "Empty Spaces", the uncontrollable rage of "One Of My Turns", the hopelessness of "Goodbye Cruel World", and the guilt of "The Trial". This album never fails to get my emotions going, and one of the unique qualities 'The Wall' has, it that one discovers something new in it with each listen. The outstanding production covered all the bases; there are hidden messages behind every background noise, spoken phrase, etc., to help bring the entire plot together. This is without a doubt my favorite album out of my entire catalog, and something I can never let sit long enough to collect any dust. So, in closing, sit back with an open ear, an open mind, take the time to listen to all of the lyrics, and enjoy arguably the best album of all time.

Isn't this where......

I bought "The Wall" LP the week it was issued. A long winter followed, and sometimes three and four feet of snow were drifted up against my doors. I spent many winter hours drinking hot coffee and listening to "The Wall", many times over. As much as I enjoy the warm, smooth sound of a well-mastered LP, the 2011 CD remaster of "The Wall" might sound even better. The remastered sound is warm, open and natural...it does not sound digital, it sounds like a "perfect" LP, without the small "clicks" and "snaps" that even the best LP always have.

The CD also comes with a small booklet with the production credits, and hand-written (albeit unreadable) lyric sheets. A plus, compared with a MP3 version of the album.

Why buy the 2011 remastered CD? Well, I can't find my older versions...are they in a closet? The new CD is in my CD player right now. But, you really need to buy two or three copies...none of the teenagers in your family have heard "The Wall"...a massive gap in their music education. Save them from "Lady Gaga"...give them "The Wall" for their birthday or Christmas.

Actually if I were going to go beyond the idea of a concept album with "The Wall" I would be more inclined to call it an oratorio, similar to Jethro Tull's "Thick as a Brick" or "Passion Play," rather than a rock opera like "Jesus Christ Superstar" or the Who's "Tommy." That is because the over riding unity of the songs in "The Wall" is thematic rather than narrative in nature. The bleak double album is Roger Waters' meditation on the walls human beings build up to ensure their survival in the post-modern world. It is also something of a departure from the group's previous albums, most notably "The Dark Side of the Moon" and "Wish You Were Here," it that the group's signature cosmic rock sound is giving way to some more traditional pop music sensibilities. The compelling electronics and other special effects that had become key components of Pink Floyd's music, and which put "Dark Side of the Moon" on the chart for literally years, now takes a back seat to the themes and lyrics (although there are still some choice moments, such as when Gomer Pyle shows up on "Nobody Home").

The "story," such as it is, concerns a rock star named Pink (no subtlety here, boys and girls), who is disgusted with the lesser human being he has become as a result of his celebrity. The key song in the album is "Comfortably Numb" (co-written by lead guitarist Dave Gilmour), which is one of the classic rock songs about alienation, although obviously the title begs to have it labeled a song about intoxication by the drug on your choice. But the context for lyrics such as "You are only coming through in waves/Your lips move, but I can't hear what you're saying" is clearly about the despair of being disconnected from humanity. It is also a lament about the lose of childhood, which remains in Waters' vision the time when we are at our best as human beings:

When I was a child I caught a fleeting glimpse

Out of the corner of my eye

I turned to look but it was gone

I cannot put my finger on it now

The child is grown, the dream is gone

I have become comfortably numb

The music for "Comfortably Numb" is both operatic and eerie, a paradox that is nonetheless accurate. The relentlessly depressing picture of a rock star's life would have you worrying about the mental health of Roger Waters if it were not for the suspicion he is writing as much about the life in general and former Pink Floyd lead guitarist and main songwriter Syd Barrett as it is an attempt at catharsis by Waters after spitting on a fan during a concert for daring to applaud during an acoustic number. I always was struck by the start of "Mother," with one of the very best examples of a caesura with the extremely effective pause between the first line, "Mother, do you think they'll drop the bomb?" and the second, "Mother, do you think they'll like this song?" There is a world of meaning in the vocal silence there that I have never forgotten.

There are two pitfalls to "The Wall." The first is that Pink Floyd released a rare single with "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2," which mean that school children rebelling against the system now had something to sing throughout the year while waiting for the end of the year to do Alice Cooper's "Schools Out." Consequently, in the popular consciousness "The Wall" was boiled down to the following potent lyrics:

We don't need no education

We don't need no thought control

No dark sarcasm in the classroom

Teachers leave them kids alone

Hey! Teachers! Leave them kids alone!

All in all it's just another brick in the wall.

All in all you're just another brick in the wall.

Yet taken in its totality it can hardly be said that the primary purpose of this double-album was an attack on the educational system in England. In song after song the "character" is blaming others for his troubles, so it is not surprising that teachers end up on that list. But the success of the single made it seem this was what the whole thing was all about. For that matter, there are more songs concerned with the threat of nuclear destruction ("Mother," "Goodbye Blue Skies") than education. By the time you through Waters' paranoia over Great Britain becoming fascist ("Run Like Hell") the whole indictment of education seems like just another, well, you know what (which would be the point, right?).

The second concern is that the disparity between the highs and lows on this album are rather substantial. It is rather like sitting through an opera and some of recitatives (e.g., "Goodbye Cruel World") to get to the arias (e.g., "Hey You"). The best tracks on this album are as pretty good, but you still have to sit through some less than stellar sections (e.g., "One of My Turns"). The loose narrative is not enough to help us connect the dots and I suspect it is only by really getting totally into the album and trying to achieve consubstantiality with the creative vision of Roger Waters that you can really make sense of it all. This is why the production values of "The Wall" as performed by Pink Floyd in concert tended to replace the psychological dimensions of listening to it in the dark in your room.

The key thing here is that there are moments in "The Wall" that match its ambition. The sum is greater than the total of the parts, but there is certainly nothing wrong with that being the case.

Becoming one of the world's biggest bands had nearly destroyed Pink Floyd. Since the Floyd, a band whom had merrily produced experimental rock all over the musical map, since their writer of fairy tale, psychedelic pop songs, Syd Barrett had become undependable, had become megastars with the release of 1973's Dark Side of the Moon, the intrusive attention they received, the ever growing business aspect of their careers, spite from cult musicians and, depending on who you ask, either Rogers Waters' ego or the band becoming completely dependent on Waters for creative direction saw the friendship between band members dissolve and the loss of fun and enjoyment from making music, problems which fueled two excellent but very bitter, post-Dark Side albums, 1975's Wish You Were Here and 1977's Animals. So one would perhaps think the band's aching was settling in 1978, when they took some time away from each other, allowing David Gilmour to release his self-entitled solo debut and Richard Wright to release his first solo album, Wet Dream, both pretty somber records, while Roger Waters took refuge in a serene log cabin, recording demos for the next Pink Floyd album or a possible solo album.

But such was not the case. As bitter, sorrowful and angry as their past few releases had been, nothing could have prepared fans for the Wall, the album Waters was writing locked inside that cabin. In the guise of a song cycle about a dejected, celebrity rock star who was adored by many but all alone when he really needed someone, 1979's The Wall was a rage filled, autobiographical tour de force that allowed Waters to scream like an animal at his country, his wife, his fans, his self and even his old school teachers. As the record reaches its second disc, (which sees Gilmour, not fading behind Waters without a struggle, delivering a divine guitar solo through the drug filled haze of Comfortably Numb) the story shifts into the ultimate fascist fantasy/parody as the rock star goes off the edge and calls out for more blood and destruction from his fans. Although, at some points the songs get self-indulgent and the story lost, The Wall still stands as the ultimate fists-in-the-air, dark, hard rock fantasy. Even within the ranks of Pink Floyd's acolytes, the album is a cult classic for the more embittered listener.

The album is even a sort of essay on the rock phenomenon. As concerts like Alamont were becoming tragedies, as bands like Black Sabbath and Alice Cooper were accused of enflaming young minds with evil, as stars like Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison and even Floyd's own Syd Barrett seemed bent on self-destruction, the Wall seems to be rock and roll's definitive inward investigation.

Of coarse, the Wall, a double album, colossal stage show featuring an actual 50 foot wall and a motion picture, would lead to more complex money matters, more spite from poorer musicians, more egos clashing (Waters fired keyboard player Rick Wright halfway through recording) and would heighten the attention Floyd received to fascination. Things just got more frustrating for the Floyd causing, depending on who ask, Waters to quit the band or Gilmour and drummer, Nick Mason to dupe Waters into thinking Pink Floyd was over and then stealing the band's name from him in the mid-80s. Still, if you were willing to allow a record to be so completely in your face, 1979's the Wall is an intense and absorbing listen.

It had been at least ten years since I listened to _The Wall_. Vinyl copy lost to divorce, tape copy eaten by car player--you know. One recent day I felt the urge to hear it. Ordered it on CD, waited impatiently for its arrival . . . but waited for the right time to pop it into the player.

"Look, Mummy; there's an aeroplane up in the sky.

"D-d-d-did you see the frightened ones . . . D-d-d-did you hear the falling bombs . . . D-d-d-did you ever wonder why we had to run for shelter when the promise of a brave new world unfurled beneath the clear blue sky?"

Now I know why I wanted to hear it again, after 9/11, that crushing loss of innocence. I sat riveted, unable to do anything but listen to a life shaped by horrific events, wondering how many walls are building out there.

The poetry is heart-wrenching. The musicianship is as solid as anything in rock history. This album is as vital, as necessary, now as it was when I first heard it some 20 years ago.

"The basis of great literature is that it speaks to the universal human condition," said my college Lit professor.

Listen to this. It speaks.

There is little that I can add to the many voices who have praised this great work. But I feel compelled to do so. Largely the work of composer/lyrical genius Roger Waters, the sheer scope of 'The Wall' is breathtaking in its ability to move and shock you, an effect that has not diminished as it now enters its 27th year. Mixing semi-biographical material with knowing fiction, Waters weaves a tale that is equal parts grim satire, near-operatic melodrama and gut-wrenching anger. Waters attacks the capitalist cynicism of the music business, the oftimes cookie-cutter putting-down of schoolkids, and most significantly, the complexity and pitfalls of familial and married life. And of course, the bitter futility of war, which is as relevant now as it was in 1944 or 1979. 'The Wall' has been and always will be a soundtrack for the angry and the disaffected. But don't get me wrong, there are moments of musical beauty that will stay with you long after the anger has faded. Water's voice flexes its considerable emotional range across a variety of moods. Guitarist David Gilmour's melodic lead playing sizzles with passion and power. His intensity and soaring tone makes 'The Wall' arguably his finest recorded performance. And his vocal contributions to the album also cannot be overlooked. Keyboardist Rick Wright and drummer Nick Mason make important musical contributions and Wiz Producer Bob Ezrin ties it all together into a soundscape that is timeless. 'The Wall' will take you on a journey through light and darkness, and you will emerge outside 'The Wall', like Roger Waters, better for the experience. One of Rock's true masterpieces and certainly not the least of them.

I'm amazed that this album has actually received bad reviews.

Has our culture become so banal that Spears/Jackson pop music is the base line? This is art folks. If you have any self awareness, this album will affect you. Damn it, it should make you, at the very least, teary eyed.

I admit that I blur the album and the film into one experience. The whole project is amazing - that includes the live DVD performance in Berlin.

War, insanity, drug use, fame, authority figures who don't give a damn, (that includes your precious, little mommy), self-absorption, and the desperate need for longing - come on folks, you got to be kidding when you trash this album.

How can one not feel when Pink calls home and his wife's lover answers the damn phone? Then again, maybe you've never been completely betrayed during a moment of adulterated innocence and weakness.

Sure, I have every Pink Floyd album and then some. The Wall isn't the typical psychadelic, experimental mastery that one might typically equate with this band. But, the apparent simplicity is the genius.

This is Pink Floyd. This is a masterpiece.

Centuries from now adolescents, and adults who can empathize with that angst of just being, will embrace this album.

Buy it...

The Wall, inspired by the experiences of Roger Waters is truly a dark masterpiece of Rock music.

This album's storyline: about a troubled rock star whos scarred psyche finally gets the best of him. The death of his father, overbearing mother, opressive schoolteachers, fractured marriage, alienation from his music and his fans combined with drug usage leads him into a dark journey through his isolation and the numerous demons that continue to haunt him.

The Wall is truly a musical masterpiece, filled with explosive and subtle songs that tell the story of "Pink Floyd" and his descent into a madness that only he can climb out from. Roger Waters who developed the story which stemmed from his alienated experience of Floyd's overwhelming stadium tour of 1977.

Waters, with David Gilmour and producer Bob Ezrin create a unforgettable musical journey that is searingly dark yet filled with universal human emotions. Another Brick In The Wall pt 2, Mother, Goodbye Blue Sky, Young Lust, Hey You, Comfortably Numb, Run Like Hell and The Trial are the standout songs that make up the ambitious story.

The accompanying film does a excellenct job in capturing the nightmarish journey that "Pink Floyd" puts himself through. However bleak and depressing the story may be, there is powerful message of fighting through one's pain and not giving in to the demons that will lead one on to better days ahead.

As a depressed, immature, drug-addicted teenager, nothing spoke to me quite like the manipulative lyrics of "The Wall." As a happy, relatively mature, sober adult, they readily reveal themselves to be less profound than originally thought. That being said, I have spent more money on this album and the film companion than any other single work of music (and this includes a recording of Berlioz's "Damnation of Faust" on which I appear). I have owned it on vinyl, cassette, CD (twice - after one copy was stolen from my car), and the film on VHS and DVD. Why do I keep going back? Two reasons: no matter how confused I think some of the lyrics are now, there is no denying the soul poured into them; and this album is undeniably an essential work in defining the (albeit flawed - much like this album) history of rock and roll in all its self-indulgent glory. Students will be listening to this album 200 years from now (if we still exist on the planet), and despite our short-sighted present day society, that says something.

OK - let's get to brass tacks. Why will this album continue to be heard? Grandeur. While really only being the story of a boy who lost his father in WWII, then lost his soul to the excesses of rock and roll, lost his wife in that process, then, ultimately, lost his marbles, "The Wall" sprays to all fields, touching on themes of fascism, the judicial system, and nuclear war. It doesn't matter that a lot of these themes miss their targets, it was ambitious enough to try. The songs are connected the way that the songs in any decent Broadway musical are: similar melodies, similar voices, similar endings. Not a lot of rock musicians (people most comfortable with a 4/4 tempo and a tonic, fourth, fifth chord progression) could even come close to the cohesion present here.

My personal favorite "song" on this album has always been "Nobody Home" - while not the melodic masterpiece that "Comfortably Numb" is - "Nobody Home" so accurately describes the general hopelessness of a drug induced depression both in lyric and in melody, that I find it somehow strangely comforting. "And I got a strong urge to fly/But I got...nowhere to fly to" - truer words have yet to be spoken about the funk that drugs can lead to. I appreciate that Roger Waters wasn't just writing about drug use, but albums ultimately speak to the listener through their own personal experience, and that was my personal experience with the lyrics he wrote.

As I have only given this album four stars, I must explain. There are too many songs on this album that force me to hit fast forward. "Nobody Home" is followed by "Vera" and "Bring the Boys Back Home" which leads into "Comfortably Numb." Huh? I appreciate breaking up a theme, but jeez, I thought we were done with the WWII talk on side 1 of this work. Also, it galls me that one of the finest works in the film (and one of the songs that actually connects some themes) is left off the studio album. "The Tigers Broke Free" is a great piece of music, and more in tune to the concept of the album than "Bring the Boys Back Home" ever could be. I also (despite the fact that it is a really good song) find "Hey You" an unnecessary element to the album. It just doesn't fit. "Master of the House" is a great bit of theatre in "Les Miserables" - but it is there ONLY to create a hit - and that's what "Hey You" is.

To sum up - this is an essential bit of music to own if you truly want to represent music in your collection, just be aware that no matter how great it seems, it fails on several levels. Buy this album and decide for yourself.