WAITING FOR

SOMEONE OR

SOMETHING TO

SHOW THE WAY

MILE STONE AFTER STONE

IF YOU SURVIVE UNTIL TWO THOUSAND

THE TIDE
IS TURNING
(AFTER LIVE 8)

WHY CAN’T

WE STAY

THIS WAY ?

IF YOU SURVIVE UNTIL TWO THOUSAND

THE TIDE
IS TURNING
(AFTER LIVE 8)

1974
Faced with the difficulty of writing and recording the follow-up to their masterpiece, the band engaged in delaying tactics (« The household objects », « Dune »). But without artistic aim, the tensions between the members, previously focused to the creative process, took a more personal turn in the absence of a project

«Rockspeak», BBC Radio, October 1974

We've been talking about it lately, actually, about...maybe it's about time

that the Floyd, say, work for six months months as a group, and another six months as individuals, where anything can happen - maybe two of the members play together, maybe we'd form other bands in that six months, whatever, you know. Jefferson Airplane I guess is the nearest thing to it. And I think it's a good idea, I mean, we've been playing for eight years. Eight years. Long time. And all of us, I think, have got plans that we want to do that don't necessarily involve working with the group. And I think if we could get rid of this and release these things we want to do, it'll help the group as well

«The 30th year technicolour dream», Uncut, July 1995.

After «The Dark Side of the Moon », we had a bit of money and I bought

a house in the country - I had two young children. Roger sat down and said to me, «I can't believe you've done this, you've sold out, I think it's disgusting ». Six months later he went and bought a much bigger house in the country. I said, «Remember what you said ? » He said, «Ah yes, but that's because my wife wanted it, not me ». Absolute bullshit. I found him rather hypocritical. That's what angered me about him

«David Gilmour», Guitar World, February 1993.

« Did the prospect pf having to follow the huge success of «Dark Side of

the Moon» create a lot of pressure on you (…) »
It's about that feeling we were left with at the end of Dark Side - that feeling of «What do you do when you've done everything ?»

«The Man Behind Pink Floyd's The Wall», Greg Knot, 1999.

If you read old interviews, they actually say that. I can remember

interviews from «Dark Side of the Moon», where Rick was saying, « We
really don't care about the lyrics ». They remain connected to the numbers, the money, and so that's what you get, that's what you feel through it all

1974
The band discovered that Steve O'Rourke had hired the band to tour as part of the French 'Gini' drinks deal. The Floyd use this tour to get back to work. For the November-December UK tour, the band decided to document it by asking Storm Thorgerson and Nick Segdwick to write a book as a biography.. Waters was pleased with the book, the guitarist was not.

«The show must go on», Rock Classic, January 2000.

We all sat down and read it, and it was fascinating. Dave read it and said « yeah » and then just a couple of days later, he just exploded. He started

saying things like « if this is true then i might as well not be in the band » because it didn't fit with how he talk of himself and his role in the band. It described me as the leader. So, the whole book was suppressed

«Special Animals », Mojo, April 2017.

I didn't think it portrayed us accurately and certainly not kindly, but

I haven't read it forever

MB

«Special Animals by Mark Blake », Mojo, April 2017.

Backstage, Waters accuses the band of being lethargic ans David Gilmour accuses Waters of « sounding patronising ». Meanwhile, their wives bicker

and their roadies complain about the lack of sex. Nobody, especially

Pink Floyd, seems to be having a good time. This might have been considered schoking in the mid'-70's, but not after Gilmour and Waters' subsequent, very public falling-ou

«Pigs might fly», Mark Blake, 2006.

(...) it does display the dynamic in the group at that time. I had tapes of certain discussions, some arguments. At times, people perharps said things they wished they hadn't

«Interview with Pink Floyd’s drummer Nick Mason», Rogerwatersonline Website, November 2004

I think David (Gilmour) didn't like it, but (…) I thought a lot of it was really entertaining if sometimes biased.(…)

January 1975
Plagued by multiple fractures, not reassured by a press that erected the band during the English winter tour, the band found

itself in the studio to record the successor to "Dark Side of the Moon" without much enthusiasm

«David Gilmour», Guitar World, February 1993.

That was the difficulty of the album, I think; Roger's big concern, anyway.

That's the feeling we were left with after « The Dark Side of the Moon »: that feeling of « what else can we do now that we've already done everything? »

«The Third Coming», Mojo Magazine, May 1994.

This was much a more difficult record to make. Roger was getting crosser. We were all getting older. We had children. There was much more drama between us, people turning up to the studio late, which we generally hate. There was more pressure on me to make the drumming more accurate and less flowery

«Interview w/. Philippe Constantin», june 1976.

We were there, four poor lost souls, waiting God knows who or

whatever (...) . I was the only one to offer pieces, which at least one should have pleasing Dave since he brought a beautiful chord sequence: You gotta be crazy. But Nick and Rick didn’t like it: too rough, too personal... Well, then why we should to be here, if both of us wants to make music and two other less ?

«Interview with Chris Salewicz», Q Magazine, June 1987.

It was a horrible time. We were all fighting like cats and dogs.

We were finally realising - or accepting, if you like - that there was no band.

It was really being thrust upon us that we were not a band and had not been in accord for a long time.

« Us and them », Mark Blake, May 2023.

We were a tough, cruel bunch,Led by Captain Roger, who was

the toughest and cruellest of the bunch."

«The Third Coming», Mojo Magazine, May 1994.

(...) There were three long tracks, including Shine On You Crazy Diamond,

which I wanted to record, and Roger said, No, let’s take Shine On, divide it into

two, and put in other material around the same theme. And he was right, I was wrong

«David Gilmour», Guitar World, February 1993.

For me, « Wish You Were Here » is the most satisfying album. I really like it.

I much prefer it to « The Dark Side of the Moon ». (Who was) too lyrically driven; because of that, the music was sometimes neglected. For me, one of Roger's faults is that he puts too much emphasis on the lyrics - the music sometimes suffers as a result

«Interview w/. Roger Waters», SWF 3 Radio., 18 September 1992

(And) I think (Wish you were here, the song) was the best thing... one of

the best things that Dave and I ever did together. I like this song!

«Interview w/. Philippe Constantin», june 1976.

I wanted to take drastic measures, either by laying down arms right

away, at the top of our carrer so to speak ; either by go out of the crisis by

the top, which mean to work twice as. There, of course , a secret fear has emerged, hand in hand with the stinginess: no question of break up when money coming like never before! Hence tensions, unspoken compromise: it would therefore continue without enthusiasm and at the cost of internal damages (...) It was a sickening sadness. I would have preferred a big fat conflict, it is in my nature ... but not in that of Dave who, as the musician he is, from all his bones, immersed himself in his guitar as if he would breaks this burden of sadness

«Gilmour: Full of Secrets», Guitar Part, December 2006.

« How do you react when you see this picture from 1975 from

the inside cover of « Wish you were here » «

Nice picture. It must have been a good time, right? It's easy to think that with all the bile and nonsense that went on for twenty years, there was never a friendship between us or a happy time. We've often had some really good times together. All of us. We lived and breathed Pink Floyd and we were... mates... in a way.

«The dream is over», Mojo, December 2008

I mean, I can't speak for myself but... I couldn't believe it when

Roger said that he was the genius of Pink Floyd. I thought, «How can

anyone actually say that and not feel embarrassed by it?" Absolute bullshit! He was part of Pink Floyd, and he played a large part.

When someone wrote that Roger was the engine and David was the heartbeat, I thought that made a bit more sense. I don't want to blow my own trumpet, but I do believe, certainly all the way up to Wish You Were Here, that what David is saying... Well, I'm very happy to hear he said (I’m the soul of the band). But then I would say exactly the same about David. He's been the soul of the Floyd since Syd left

«30th Technicolour Dream»,MOJO Magazine, July 1995.

Roger was much more interested in the grand plan if you like. He did have

vision and, right from the beginning when we just had strobes and oil lights,

all of us were pushing for that (…) mainly because of Roger each tour we did

the show got bigger

«Pink Floyd – Danger, Band imploding!», Mojo, November 1999.

It’s true there had always been a sort of philosophical division within the band: Roger and I were seen as the ones who liked the special effects, the show, the technology, the non- music in a way, whereas Dave and Rick took a more musically pure position

« The third coming», Mojo Magazine, May 1994.

Roger is not a generous spirited person. I was constantly dumped on. And

to get my point across I had to make increasingly histrionic, stubborn gestures

« The third coming», Mojo Magazine, May 1994.

We would never have been friends if it weren't for the band

« Feeling better; Roger Waters likes to play his music again », Guitar & Bass Magazine, 2000.

David Gilmour always tried to knock me down, pretending I'm good in

visual things, but a miserable musician. Until I finally believed it myself

« Feeling better; Roger Waters likes to play his music again », Guitar & Bass Magazine, 2000.

The idea, which David tried to propagate over the years , that he's somehow more musical than I am, is absolute f******nonsense, it's an absurd notion, but people seem quite happy to believe it

«Roger Waters says Gilmour and Wright were …. » , Guitar World, 17 September 2021

I was in a very toxic environment. I was around some people, well,

David and Rick mainly, who were always trying to drag me down. They were always trying to knock me off whatever that perch was. I always felt insignificant and somewhat inept

« Interview w/. Roger Waters »,Q Magazine, June 1987

We rarely used to see each other socially, although I used to get on with

Nick Mason alright. For a limited time, in the early days of the group, we

did mix socially. Because there is something rather appealing about a group together on the road. But that soon palls. And things like families make sure that cycle comes to an end

« Roger Waters No post-Pink Floyd regrets », Daily Record 8 August 1999

Before I found my voice, there were orchestral experiments that sound

Pretty lame now, and on albums like « Meddle » you can detect a groping for form. But most of the songs survived reasonably