Everything that Roger Waters offered the public had to be as enormous as possible. If Pink Floyd hadn’t had the enormous pig balloon onstage or the main structure of The Wall for the show of the same name, would they have been any more entertaining to audiences for the rest of their lives as a psychedelic progressive band? Although Waters is always focused on the idea of his performance, he needed one big gig to get back on track after going through a slump.
It seemed for the first few years following his departure from Pink Floyd that Waters had become overly weary of the thought of performing the brash rock and roll he was accustomed to. Although there were still fans who were excited to hear what he had to offer. It must have been difficult for him to watch from the sidelines. David Gilmour wrecked every solo he performed at Pink Floyd’s most recent arena tour.
But it doesn’t matter. Although Waters was still capable of producing excellent music, his first few solo albums were somewhat surreal for listeners. Before starting work on The Wall, Waters gave the group a presentation titled The Pros and Cons of Hitchhiking. However, if this was all he had to work with, that album might have been the one that ended the progressive giants’ prolific run of amazing material.
Roger Waters didn’t care that Radio KAOS had a little bit better pacing. By now it was 1990, and he was celebrating the fall of the Berlin Wall by staging a show, resurrecting the set, and bringing in an all-star cast to work with him all day. Due to the intense strain of assembling such a large-scale production, Waters decided to take a break. His obvious contempt towards performers such as Sinéad O’Connor further solidified his decision.
Most people would be happy to have at least those shows under their belts, but Don Henley persuaded Waters to try again with the larger productions. An all-star benefit for Henley’s Walden Woods Project turned Waters around. He appreciated the opportunity to contribute without feeling forced to perform for a high fee.
Waters told Uncut in 2007 that he felt it was the ideal time to return to the big stage spectacles while working with other legends. “He asked me if I’d sing a few songs,” Waters said. Neil Young, John Fogerty, Don, and I were there. Fantastic evening. There was an overwhelming sense of warmth emanating from the crowd. I was like, “Hey, this isn’t too bad.” The thought, “Perhaps I should try some of this again,” persisted in the back of my mind throughout the 1990s. Eventually, in 1999, I decided to take a tentative step and see what happened.”
Once on the road again, Waters warmed up to his legacy songs, which accounted for the majority of his set. These included songs he wrote with Pink Floyd. Even though the band led by Gilmour was still touring extensively, this kind of nostalgia might have set the stage for the unimaginable to occur.
Roger Waters’ bandmates eventually asked him to perform at Live 8. They played a few of their most well-known songs after completing that tour. The group did not end up getting back together permanently. However, we can thank the man behind “Hotel California” for helping Waters at least resume his career as a performer.
