Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Discussions about Pink Floyd and Solo Official Album CDs and DVDs.

Rate this album

5 - Best
57
50%
4
29
26%
3
16
14%
2
5
4%
1 - Worst
6
5%
 
Total votes: 113

RonToon
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by RonToon »

Some great moments with lots of "filler"
Still, his best solo work by far.
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Stephen
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by Stephen »

One thing I have wondered about is what is the significance, if any, of the Floydian sounds about 18 seconds in from the start of What God Wants Part 3?. There are what sounds like the start of Shine On plus a couple of Echoes-like 'pings' before the song starts at around 36 seconds.
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by Hudini »

David Smith wrote:Oh, and another question, can someone tell me why Three Wishes is on the album?
It may appear out of concept, but it's still in place if you ask me. It's the most personal song Waters ever wrote and I believe he included it on the album to add some first person view of a little man, on the album that deals with little people but from the perspective of an omniscient narrator. Just my opinion though, you may disagree. I elaborated more in that thingy I'm translating at the moment and hope I'll post it soon.
RonToon wrote:Some great moments with lots of "filler"
Just out of curiosity, what exactly you consider filler on "Amused To Death"?
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by Idisaffect »

Here's what I think is filler:

Late home tonight has 2 parts. It only needs one. Some of those lyrics are Waters worst. I'll refrain from repeating them. YAWN.

Too much rope has a good song in there somewhere. I love the "fuck it up" part but that whole Vietnam vet, tender tv shit is THE worst Waters lyrics I've ever sat through. Way too wordy. And overwrought. And bad. Worse than stethoscope or give birth to a smile. Filler! I love the "you don't have to be a Jew to disapprove of murder" line but then it gets dragged down with bad lyrics. He should have kept it simple. Like Brain Damage.

I can live without WGW part 3 and don't tell me it's crucial to the "story". Whatever.

Three Wishes is definitely filler. I like it, though. Is it blues? Does Waters even play on this track? I don't care.

Watching TV could have been shorter for my tastes. Don Henley could have stayed home.
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by The Gunner's Dream »

I listened to this album once all the way through when I bought it a few years ago. I wasn't impressed. Last week I listened to it again, and I disliked it even more. Waters' voice was dreadful on this album. Watching Tv is actually a terrible song...I hate it so much. I do, however, like the song Amused to death. It's the only song that I can tolerate on the album. Three Wishes is ok but boring. I'd also have to dissagree about this song being his most personal. Pick anything from The Final Cut if you want to listen to Waters at his most personal.
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by PublicImage »

I cannot say I like it very much. Gus is right about Waters' vocals: they sound awful throughout the album. I also don't understand why so many people on the first page were praising the sound quality. I've always found it to sound excessively 'dry' and lifeless, with no real dynamic range. Typical '90s overproduction, if you will.

The lyrics are fine, but I don't think the music is good enough to justify listening to more than once every five years. Great lyrics with poor music does nothing for me.
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by Hudini »

Idisaffect wrote:Three Wishes is definitely filler. Is it blues? Does Waters even play on this track?
Waters plays on only 6 songs on the album:

"What God Wants Part I" - EMU synthesizer, bass
"Perfect Sense" - synthesizers
"The Bravery Of Being Out Of Range" - 12-string guitar
"Watching TV" - acoustic guitar
"It's A Miracle" - bass
"Amused To Death" - acoustic guitar
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David Smith
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by David Smith »

Idisaffect wrote:I can live without WGW part 3 and don't tell me it's crucial to the "story". Whatever
Actually i really quite like that song. It's one of few songs on it that doesn't sound totally overblown and has a really strong vocal performance along with a lovely set of lyrics
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by moom »

Btw, why Roger kinda dropped bass...
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by J Ed »

I hadnt realised Rog only played an instrument on 6 songs
they are the best songs but still thats surprising
Im guessing he's more interested in the soundcollages and production trickery, and he can afford to hire more talented musicians to properly play what he hears in his head

I like parts of the record more than others, and find it emotionally exhausting when I pay close attention to it all the way through
I think it works best as an audio op-ed piece
I played it for a few friends in university who werent familiar with the personalities in Pink Floyd, they were poli-sci types, and they were blown away by it, that someone could make such a powerful indictment of freemarket economics in the form of a quasi-cinematic audio experience, theyd assumed Pink Floyd was just drug music
shame he never toured the album cuz Id love to see him perform it end-to-end on the same scale as the Pros&Cons tour
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by Hudini »

Well, he did promise to tour the album once it sells over a million copies, but I believe it sold that much years ago.
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Stephen
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by Stephen »

The four songs featured on In The Flesh (Live) were great versions of them in my opinion, especially Amused To Death. The only thing I would have changed on that whole show would have been to have more of Snowy White's guitar playing rather than Doyle Bramhall II.
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Idisaffect
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by Idisaffect »

Stephen wrote:TThe only thing I would have changed on that whole show would have been to have more of Snowy White's guitar playing rather than Doyle Bramhall II.
Hell yeah!
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by Zack »

As I have posted before, much as I try, I cannot get into this album, nor even get through it. How can one defend the horror of the Marv Albert bit? Or "hold the front page boys, got some great pictures comin' in" or "give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up." What, the rope? (This stolen from Q magazine). What species besides us ever had any "rope" anyway? (Original thought).

Above all, it's just plain boring, and the vocals are largely horrible raspy whispers. I'm going to listen again, however. Or try to.
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Re: Roger Waters - Amused To Death

Post by Hudini »

Zack wrote:"give any one species too much rope and they'll fuck it up."
Give any man too much space to do anything he wants to and he'll fuck up everyone's lives besides his own. 8)