 Owing to the combination of Pink Floyd 's partial breakup and Waters ' dominance on the project , The Final Cut is sometimes viewed as a de facto Waters solo album . The personal quality assigned to the lyrics are related to Waters ' struggle to reconcile his despair at the changing social face of Britain , and also the loss of his father during the Second World War . Gilmour 's guitar solos on " Your Possible Pasts " and " The Fletcher Memorial Home " are , however , sometimes considered the equal of his best work on The Wall . More recent reviews of the album have weighed its importance alongside the band 's breakup . Writing for AllMusic , Stephen Thomas Erlewine said " with its anger , emphasis on lyrics , and sonic textures , it 's clear that it 's the album that Waters intended it to be . And it 's equally clear that Pink Floyd couldn 't have continued in this direction ... " , Stylus Magazine wrote : " It 's about pursuing something greater even when you have all the money that you could ever want . And either failing or succeeding brilliantly . It 's up to you decide whether this record is a success or a failure , but I 'd go with the former every time . " Rachel Mann of The Quietus said " flawed though it is , The Final Cut remains a tremendous album " and " still has something fresh to say " . Mike Diver of Drowned in Sound was less generous : " Rays of light are few and far between , and even on paper the track titles – including ' The Gunner 's Dream ' and ' Paranoid Eyes ' – suggest an arduous listen . Q Magazine once compiled a top ten list of depressing records , and this was on it . Enough said , I think . " 
