Jimi Dean Barrett wrote:Bigmanpigman wrote:
Totally off topic Jimi but you have touched on a potentially golden thread there - 'What the hell happened to Roger to get him that pissed off'. I think that would run for years
It sounds great, but I think there's a lot of projection from the band onto Roger. True, fireworks pissed him off, but then there's David Gilmour in a recent documentary (Dark Side... Classic Albums one?) going "What the fuck do you know?" when people tell him a bad gig (In their eyes) was a great set. No idea if he actually said that to someone or kept it internal. But it's easier to blame it on the big, bad Roger!
I'll take the bait. *shrug*
"What the hell happened to Roger to get him that pissed off?"
Easy:
1.) Success came in the form of DSOTM and wasn't quite what everyone thought it would be. Rather than ending all of their problems, it just presented new ones to replace the ones that success DID take care of.
2.) The success of DSOTM, being everything that a group works for, left them wondering "well...what shall we do now?" (I'm paraphrasing, of course.)
3.) The creation of WYWH involved a great deal of struggle (reportedly,) just to get anything down at all. The failure of the "Household Objects" project must have been a bitter pill to swallow, especially considering how comparatively easy DSOTM had come together. (Though let's not forget that the lines "Breathe, breathe in the air" and the music for "Us and Them" were leftovers from previous projects; and yes, this is my latest "middle finger salute" to anyone who still calls TFC "nothing but leftovers from The Wall.")
4.) While they were struggling to get WYWH put together, bootleggers were scooping them by putting out decent quality bootlegs of their recent performances, which fans were snapping up in the absence of a new album. This was hitting them in the pocketbook and probably a little bit in the "trust in the fans" department.
5.) "Animals" was kind of thrown together at the last minute from WYWH leftovers and recorded in their own recently converted studio, which presented loads of technical problems during the recording.
6.) The tour for Animals was the first time that the Floyd had played stadiums exclusively. This is probably the biggest "what happened to Roger," because he was, by all accounts, pretty miserable for the entire tour. He claimed that it was impossible to make a connection with an audience who seemed to just be there "for the beer," or the hipster cred that going to a Pink Floyd show gave one. Waters has called it a "dehumanizing" experience and he couldn't wait for it to be over with. The infamous "Spitting Incident" was just the first eruption of what would become The Wall.
So...that's some of what happened to Waters. Of course, there were some personal setbacks, as well. His marriage fell apart acrimoniously during (IIRC) the WYWH tour, the recording of The Wall was preceded by the news that the investment company who was supposed to be handling their money had fallen apart, misplaced large sums of cash and now the Floyd were stuck with a looming huge tax bill which would have wiped them out completely had they not opted for the "live abroad as tax exiles" path.
It's very easy for us punters to sit back and wonder why the privileged, spoiled little rock star should feel aggrieved; but without being in their shoes, what we think of their lifestyle and its attendant problems is pointless, anyway. *shrug*
Back On Topic: I don't think there's enough previously unreleased material for the boxed set in question; especially not given that three of the albums released during this period have had the Immersion treatment.
I'd LOVE to have a copy of Rogers original demos for The Wall and PACOHH...but I also know what happens when you wish in one hand and spit in the other.
Reportedly, there was a time when WYWH was to be composes solely of SOYCD, YGBC and RAD, so if there are studio versions of YGBC and RAD, it would be cool of those to get a release. I don't know that DSOTM even HAD a "demo" phase and it's my understanding that WYWH was pretty much built entirely in the studio, so there may not have been a "demo" phase there, either.
I would like to see this "Flight From Fantasy" song that Roger has lightly mentioned in places; which I suspect became "Pigs (Three Different Ones,)" in the end.
I honestly have my doubts that there will be another boxed set like this "Early Years" thing, though. I really don't think there's enough material from the post-DSOTM stage of their career to put one together for each phase like that.
Just my fifth of a dime, though. *shrug*