PINK FLOYD - ANOTHER BRICK IN THE WALL

ANOTHER BRICK IN THE WALL

PINK FLOYD

SONGWRITER: ROGER WATERS

COUNTRY: U. K.

ALBUM: THE WALL

LABEL: HARVEST RECORDS

GENRE: ROCK

YEAR: 1979

 

             Pink Floyd were an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic groups, they were distinguished for their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philosophical lyrics and elaborate live shows. They became a leading band of the progressive rock genre, cited by some as the greatest progressive rock band of all time.

     Pink Floyd were founded in 1964 by Syd Barrett(guitar, lead vocals), Nick Mason (drums), Roger Waters (bass guitar, vocals), Richard Wright(keyboards, vocals) and Bob Klose(guitars); Klose quit in 1965. Under Barrett's leadership, they released two charting singles and the successful debut álbum The Piper at the Gates of Dawn(1967). Guitarist and vocalist David Gilmour joined in December 1967; Barrett left in April 1968 due to deteriorating mental health. Waters became the primary lyricist and thematic leader, devising the concepts behind the band's peak success with the albums The Dark Side of the Moon(1973), Wish You Were Here(1975), Animals(1977) and The Wall (1979). The musical film based on The Wall, Pink Floyd – The Wall(1982), won two BAFTA Awards.

            Following personal tensions, Wright left Pink Floyd in 1979, followed by Waters in 1985. Gilmour and Mason continued as Pink Floyd, rejoined later by Wright. The band produced two more albums—A Momentary Lapse of Reason(1987) and The Division Bell(1994)—and toured in support of both albums before entering a long period of inactivity. In 2005, all but Barrett reunited for a one-off performance at the global awareness event Live 8. Barrett died in 2006, and Wright in 2008. The last Pink Floyd studio album, The Endless River(2014), was based on unreleased material from the Division Bell recording sessions.

         By 2013, Pink Floyd had sold more than 250 million records worldwide, making them one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Wish You Were Here, The Dark Side of the Moon, and The Wall are among the best-selling albums of all time, and the latter two have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Four of the band's albums topped the US Billboard 200, and five of their albums topped the UK Album Chart. Hit singles include "See Emily Play" (1967), "Money" (1973), "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2" (1979), "Not Now John" (1983), "On the Turning Away" (1987) and "High Hopes" (1994). The band also composed several film scores. They were inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996 and the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2005. In 2008, King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden presented Pink Floyd with the Polar Music Prize for their contribution to modern music.

           The Wall is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 30 November 1979 by Harvest and Columbia Records. It is a rock opera that explores Pink, a jaded rock star whose eventual self-imposed isolation from society forms a figurative wall. The album was a commercial success, topping the US charts for 15 weeks and reaching number three in the UK. It initially received mixed reviews from critics, many of whom found it overblown and pretentious, but later received accolades as one of the greatest albums of all time and one of the band's finest works.

          Bassist Roger Waters conceived The Wall during Pink Floyd's 1977 In The Flesh tour, modelling the character of Pink after himself and former bandmate Syd Barrett. Recording spanned from December 1978 to November 1979. Producer Bob Ezrin helped to refine the concept and bridge tensions during recording, as the band members were struggling with personal and financial issues at the time. The Wall was the last album to feature Pink Floyd as a quartet; keyboardist Richard Wright was fired by Waters during production but stayed on as a salaried musician.

        Three singles were issued from the album: "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2" (Pink Floyd's only UK and US number-one single), "Run Like Hell", and "Comfortably Numb". From 1980 to 1981, Pink Floyd performed the full album on a tour that featured elaborate theatrical effects. In 1982, The Wall was adapted into a feature film for which Waters wrote the screenplay.

          The Wall is one of the best-known concept albums. With over 30 million copies sold, it is the second best-selling album in the band's catalogue (behind The Dark Side of the Moon) and one of the best-selling albums of all time. Some of the outtakes from the recording sessions were used on the group's next album, The Final Cut(1983). In 2000, it was voted number 30 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums. In 2003, 2012, and 2020, it was included in Rolling Stone's lists of the greatest albums of all time. From 2010 to 2013, Waters staged a new Wall live tour that became the highest-grossing tour by a solo musician.

We don't need no education

We don't need no thought control

No dark sarcasm in the classroom

Teacher, leave them kids alone

Hey, teacher, 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

 

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 those kids alone

 

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

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

 

Wrong, do it again

If you don't eat yer meat, you can't have any pudding

How can you have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat?

You! Yes, you behind the bikesheds, stand still laddy!