Roger Waters Explains ‘F—ing Mad’ Decision to Re-Record ‘Dark Side of the Moon’
Roger Waters made headlines recently when he shared he re-recorded Pink Floyd’s iconic 1973 album The Dark Side of the Moon. In a new social media post, he explains why he decided…
Roger Waters made headlines recently when he shared he re-recorded Pink Floyd's iconic 1973 album The Dark Side of the Moon. In a new social media post, he explains why he decided to do so.
Waters explains the idea to re-record the album came when he was recording Lockdown Sessions, an album of reworked songs from his time with Pink Floyd and as a solo artist. Among the songs re-recorded is the classic Floyd track "Comfortably Numb" from The Wall.
"It occurred to me that 'Dark Side of the Moon' could well be a suitable candidate for a similar re-working, partly as a tribute to the original work, but also to re-address the political and emotional message of the whole album," writes Waters. "I discussed it with [producer] Gus [Seyffert] and [filmmaker] Sean [Evans], and when we'd stopped giggling and shouting 'You must be f---ing mad' at one another we decided to take it on."
Waters is in the process of wrapping up mixing the re-recorded album. He does note about the project, "It's not a replacement for the original which, obviously, is irreplaceable. But it is a way for the seventy-nine-year-old man to look back across the intervening fifty years into the eyes of the twenty-nine-year-old and say, to quote a poem of mine about my Father, 'We did our best, we kept his trust, our Dad would have been proud of us.'"
RELATED: Roger Waters is a Massive Fan of David Gilmour's Guitar Solos
He concluded, "And also, it is a way for me to honor a recording that Nick [Mason] and Rick [Wright] and Dave [Gilmour] and I have every right to be very proud of. Happy 50th to 'Dark Side of the Moon.'"
The tone of Waters' explanation seems very different compared to when he first talked about re-recording The Dark Side of the Moon. Last month, he said in an interview with The Telegraph, "I wrote 'The Dark Side of the Moon.' Let’s get rid of all this 'we' crap! Of course we were a band, there were four of us, we all contributed – but it’s my project and I wrote it. (It should be noted that in the album's credits, Waters is credited for writing all the lyrics. Gilmour, Mason and Wright have various music credits on the album, along with Waters.) Waters then added of his former bandmates, "Well, Nick never pretended. But Gilmour and Rick? They can’t write songs, they’ve nothing to say. They are not artists!"
Pink Floyd: Their Best Songs, Ranked
Nearly 40 years after their main songwriter Roger Waters left the band and nearly 30 after their final real album (1994’s ‘The Division Bell’) Pink Floyd remain one of the most popular rock bands of all time. As their masterpiece - or one of their masterpieces - ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ turns 50, we’re counting down their greatest songs, from their early Syd Barrett era to their post-Waters days.
We are combining titles here: “Brain Damage” and “Eclipse,” for example, are hard to separate. “Pigs On The Wing (Part One)” and “Pigs On The Wing (Part Two)” kind of go together, as does the whole “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” suite, and we wish they’d put out a track that includes all of the segments of the song together. Anyway, check out our list of our favorite Floyd jams.
40. “Southampton Dock” from ‘The Final Cut’ (1983)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music39. “On The Turning Away” from ‘A Momentary Lapse Of Reason’ (1987)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music38. “Outside The Wall” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music37. “Sheep” from ‘Animals’ (1977)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music36. “The Trial” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music35. “Lucifer Sam” from ‘The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn’ (1967)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music34. “Run Like Hell” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music33. “Arnold Layne” (single release, 1967)
Pink Floyd Music32. “Is There Anybody Out There?” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music31. “If” from ‘Atom Heart Mother’ (1970)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music30. “Goodbye Blue Sky” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music29. “Dogs” from ‘Animals’ (1977)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music28. “Empty Spaces”/”Young Lust” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music27. “Careful With That Axe, Eugene (live)” from ‘Ummagumma’ (1969)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music26. “Hey You” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music25. “Pigs On The Wing 1”/”Pigs On The Wing 2” from ‘Animals’ (1977)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music24. “One Of These Days” from ‘Meddle’ (1971)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music23. “The Thin Ice” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music22. “Echoes” from ‘Meddle’ (1971)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music21. “Not Now John” from ‘The Final Cut (1983)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music20. “Us And Them”/”Any Colour You Like” from ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ (1973)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music19. “Interstellar Overdrive” from ‘The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn’ (1967)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music18. “The Great Gig In The Sky” from ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ (1973)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music17. “Astronomy Domine” from ‘The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn’ (1967)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music16. “In The Flesh?”/”In The Flesh” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music15. “See Emily Play” (single release, 1967)
Pink Floyd Music14. “Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun” from ‘A Saucerful Of Secrets’ (1968)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music13- “Speak To Me”/”Breathe (In The Air)”/”On The Run” from ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ (1973)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music12. “Nobody Home” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music11. “Have A Cigar” from from ‘Wish You Were Here’ (1975)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music10. “Pigs (Three Different Ones)” from ‘Animals’ (1977)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music9. “Mother” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music8. “Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Pts. 1-5)”/”Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Pts. 6-9)” from ‘Wish You Were Here’ (1975)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music7. “Brain Damage”/”Eclipse” from ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ (1973)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music6. “Another Brick In The Wall, Part 1”/”The Happiest Days Of Our Lives”/”Another Brick In The Wall, Part 2” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music5. “Time” from ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ (1973)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music4. “Welcome To The Machine” from ‘Wish You Were Here’ (1975)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music3. “Comfortably Numb” from ‘The Wall’ (1979)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music2. “Money” from ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ (1973)
Pink Floyd Music/Song Music1. “Wish You Were Here” from ‘Wish You Were Here’ (1975)
Pink Floyd Music/Sony Music
