Pink Floyd - The Wall
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Free Music Notes for The Wall
Free Music Review: My Favorite Album of All Time...Forever
Hit: 5 Stars
Words can't really say how much I love this album, but I will try anyway.
I was 9 years old when this album came out in 1979. I was only familiar with the single "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2" at first, and I played the '45 until it cracked (literally). I remember the radio playing the entire album late one night (beginning at midnight) and I stayed up until 1:30 in the morning just to listen to the whole thing. Then, my older brother bought the 8 track tape. As some of you who are familiar with 8 track tapes might remember, if you play the thing too many times, the sound begins to warp. Well, I warped my brothers 8 track of "The Wall" pretty quickly. At that point, I had to resort to going to my friends house to listen to the album (he had the vinyl copy). I didn't get my own copy of "The Wall" on vinyl until my birthday in September of 1980. Hey, I was just a 9 year old kid, I had no money to buy my own copy.
I don't really know what it was about "The Wall" that made me love it so much. Maybe it was all the cool artwork when you opened the record up (something you won't get if you buy the MP3 version). Maybe it was the theatrical nature of the album ("The Trial" was one of the weirdest things I had ever heard). My young ears were blown away. To this day, I can still listen to "The Wall" and never get tired of it.
There are numerous classics on this album. "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2," "Mother," "Goodbye Blue Sky," "Young Lust," "Hey You," "Comfortably Numb," and "Run Like Hell" are obvious ones. For me, it was "Side 3" of the record that I loved the most. Starting with "Hey You", a beautiful, haunting ballad sung by David Gilmour that builds to an emotional climax with Roger shouting "Don't tell me there's no hope at all! Together we stand, divided we fall!" Next up is "Is There Anybody Out There?" which has one of the most moving, somber acoustic guitar solo I have ever heard. "Nobody Home", "Vera", and "Bring the Boys Back Home" all flow together beautifully, and you can feel real, deep emotion in Roger's vocals. "Comfortably Numb" ended side 3 on the vinyl version, and this song is truly Floyd's masterpeice. The guitar solo at the end ranks as one of the best ever, by any band.
I'll be seeing Roger performing this album later this year. I was too young in 1980 to catch Pink Floyd's performances of The Wall, but I knew people who did go, and I felt so jealous. Now, 30 years later, I will finally get my chance.
Free Music Review: Pink Floyd's most mature album.
Hit: 5 Stars
Pink Floyd was already on top of the world when they released this album which, in a way, is the most audacious record they ever recorded. This album has more of a unified concept than anything else in the Pink Floyd discography. A rock opera much like The Who's "Tommy", and Genesis' "The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway", this album tells the story of a troubled rock star who becomes emotionally detached and downright sadistic. The album works much like a film: the protagonist, named Pink, goes through a tragic story of metal decline, and eventually redemption. He slowly builds a "wall" around himself, completely shutting himself from the world outside his mind.
Much of the story is based on Roger Water own life. Like Pink, he lost a father during the war, and also like Pink, he became a emotionally disturbed rock star. The main character's story is also much like that of former member Syd Barrett, who left the band after metal illness and drug abuse caught up to him. The album take on a very depressing tone as the protagonist's life spirals out of control. Every horrific event in his life such as the death of his father, the abuse of school teachers, and his divorce install another "brick" in the wall. The concept is unlike anything ever thought of in rock music. You don't even see this kind of story much in film with the exception of a few like "A Clock Work Orange" and "Taxi Driver"; both of which have plots similar to "The Wall".
This plot, however, would not work well if the music wasn't anything exceptional. Yet, the music is some of the best Pink Floyd has ever recorded. Aside from the usual eerie soundscapes, their is a lot of dialog that moves the story along. And then there's David Gilmour's guitar work. His solos on "Hey You", and especially "Comfortably Numb" have become classic rock standards. And of course there's the famous childrens chorus on the second part of "Another Brick In The Wall", which helped elevate that song to legendary status.
This is about as mature as classic rock can get. It has a message, and it goes to the extreme to convey that message to its listeners. The message that redemption can come even for the most destructive of souls is an age old rhetoric that is creatively presented here is an effortless fashion. A must have for those who like to "think" when they listen to rock.
Free Music Review: The Definitive Concept Album
Hit: 5 Stars
Don't bother comparing it with other Pink Floyd albums. Don't listen to people who don't like it because it's "too long", "too weird", "too depressing" or anything like that. This is the definitive concept album of all time. No album has used a story to convey the emotion, philosophy, and overall knowledge of its author than "The Wall".
Roger Waters made a masterpiece here. Some criticize him, saying that he became a control freak and forced his ideas upon the rest of the band. How can anyone blame him? His vision for "The Wall" was so perfect that he did not want it to be tarnished by other influences. Besides, the other Pink Floyd members did not have much quality material to bring to the table anyway, and what little they had (Gilmour's collaborations on "Comfortably Numb", "Young Lust" and "Run Like Hell") Roger Waters gladly accepted.
The album focuses on themes of alienation and the metaphorical walls that we build around ourselves to protect ourselves from the harsh realities of life. Each traumatic event in our life is a building block for this wall. Roger Waters' motifs and symbols have been interpreted by hundreds and are still analyzed to this day. The amount of complexity in the lyrics is staggering. This album has the literary effect that any classic novel can bring, along with music that rivals any band at their best.
Musically, this album has no equal. It is not the dreamy, atmospheric sound of "Dark Side of the Moon". It is much more dark and melancholy than that album. It also tends to be more rock-oriented, shedding psycadelic tendencies for arena rock-esque riffs and rocking songs. But that shouldn't turn any "Dark Side" fans away. It's just as significant as that album was. It has production and musicianship that surpasses anything the Floyd had previously done. This album proves that Pink Floyd could work in a variety of different sounds, yet still retain their trademark sound, as "Dark Side", "Wish You Were Here" and "Animals" did.
This album has changed my life. It's made me more aware of the effect that the past can have on our lives, and the consequences of loneliness. There's too many insights that I've gained from this album, and they're probably different for everybody else anyway. Basically, this album needs to be given a chance by everyone. It's sheer brilliance will really astound you.
Free Music Review: there are albums then there are works of art...
Hit: 5 Stars
basically music is the center of my line of work...that said, I take it very seriously and I feel safe in assuming I listen to more music in a year than most people do in a lifetime...in a world where the words "legendary" and "masterpiece" are certainly used much too often it is hard to discern true greatness from simple hype...I choose these words very carefully in reference to art/music and in the case of music I can surely count less than 10 truly legendary artists within the classic rock/rock genre of post 1960...the group Pink Floyd is on that list and this album is a true piece of art that can be called a masterpiece...If you are a true music lover and your preference is classic rock then you will own this album at some point in your life-even if you think you won't, eventually you will in one form or another...it is almost inevitable...so I feel no need to say "buy this album" or "you must own this" because I know that if you appreciate this type of music it will find you long before you find it...in time, the true legends always shine above the rest and their light does not fade, it only grows stronger...and you will learn to appreciate this at some point in your life...so one day you will be driving down the road late at night on your way home and you will pop this cd in the radio and you will say to yourself "this group has true greatness"...and you will understand...few have indeed reached this level of musical art, I believe Led Zeppelin have in their own way along with certainly the Beatles and the Rolling Stones...and only a very select few other than this...in my opinion it can only be explained by simply saying works of art such as The Wall, Dark Side of the Moon, the White Album, Exile on Main Street, Led Zep IV, etc. are what other musicians in this field will always aspire to and compare their life's achievements against...as artists do in regards to the mona lisa or athletes will in regards to Michael Jordan...and on a final note, I will predict that one day many many years from now the works from the likes of Pink Floyd, the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, John Lennon, and the Rolling Stones will be at the very top of the list of most sold music on the earth...you must understand it is inevitable...they will truly shine on...Free Music Review: Round and Round
Hit: 5 Stars
This is Pink Floyd on the brink - of madness, of splitting up, of civil war, of literary profundity (or as near as rock music gets to it). It's almost a Roger Waters solo project, and occasionally has that feel about it, but the other three quarters of the band always add something extra, which elevates above anything remotely normal. The album is a precarious balancing act between Roger Waters sort-of life story and a generalised ode to the evil of human existence. Roger/"Pink" is gradually screwed up by anyone who cares to know him - a father killed in the war ("daddy what you leave behind for me?"), an overbearing mother ("of course mama's gonna help build the wall"), teachers from hell ("pouring their derision on anything we did"), wives, doctors, fellow rock musicians, and various addictive substances. Brick by brick The Wall is built, completing Roger/Pink's alienation from society, until he becomes a lonely, isolated, worn-out, scarred, broken man. It's a sad story of rocking excess, parental mistreatment and psychological damage. Roger/Pink eventually falls back into a form of proto-fascism, as he forgets the words to his songs and "the worms" of madness enter his head.
This is a highly ambitious project, and sometimes is doesn't quite come off. All PF albums were marked by some light touches, but it's a fine line between light touches and pathos, which The Wall sometimes falls into. But the album is carried by brilliance in almost every department: there are lyrics that stay with you forever, and even phrases are laced with genius ("hey you", "comfortably numb", "is there anybody out there?", "we don't need no education"); the music is incredible, and some guitar riffs rock you like you ain't never been rocked before (Hey You, Comfortably Numb, In the Flesh); the instruments and voices are all in fine form (particularly the hilarious Trial); and the sound effects are as superb as ever.
Listen to this album, it's important: a) it says something about life, art, and the dangers of both; b) the music and lyrics are both amazing. The Wall is not just about Roger/Pink, but about us all - we can all decline, get screwed up, and act like this. Hey you - watch out . . .