In the world of rock, anti-war is always "in." Unfortunately, there have been few pieces of work in the past few decades that have provided anything new to the anti-war sentiment, most of them repeating the basic thought that "war is bad." Culture Club's 'The War Song' is about as bad as Green Day's cliched '21 Guns,' with even intricate efforts like Bob Dylan's 'Masters of War' echoing the same complaint.
Pink Floyd's 1983 release "The Final Cut" is a notable exception. Bassist Roger Waters was ruling the band with an iron fist by now, even having edged out founding keyboardist Rick Wright during the sessions for "The Wall." Wright's departure was only one of the detrimental changes affecting "The Final Cut," as the album was barely musical except in a few places, with Waters' teary vocals providing the forefront to scantly, weakly arranged musical textures. But what the album lacked in the classic Pink Floyd sound, and in musical quality in general, "The Final Cut" more than made up for by containing some of Waters' most effective lyrics, addressing war and inhumanity with a poetic brilliance since - or before - unmatched in rock n' roll.
The personal status of Pink Floyd was in shambles, and almost non-existent. Master guitarist David Gilmour lent his ferocious vocals to only one track, 'Not Now John,' and disagreed so fervently with the musical direction of the album, or lack thereof, he asked that his production credit be removed. Aside from the aforementioned song and the title track, founding drummer Nick Mason appears in mere cameos, adding a few sudden drum parts here and there, and in some cases not at all; his role in the band had been so squashed by Roger Waters that, despite his work on sound effects for the album - even recording many of them in person - whatever he contributed would be listed as "just drumming," and consequently paid for only such work (according to Mason's autobiography "Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd").
So with Waters firmly in control of his solo album, released under the pseudonym Pink Floyd, and aided musically by Michael Kamen, "The Final Cut" progressed from a collection of outtakes from their previous album, the blockbuster "The Wall," and became Waters' personal document to express his anguish at the death of his father at the Battle of Anzio, and his disdain for the loss of human life in conflict, sparked by then-recent military action in the Falklands.
Waters expanded the scheme to include terrorism (touching on the acts of the IRA in Ireland in 'The Gunner's Dream'), exploitation in film (the stunningly raucous - for Pink Floyd anyway - 'Not Now John,' the album's only UK Top 30 entry), and general disillusionment with post-World War II Britain ('The Post War Dream'). And of course, the typical '80s nuclear war fears are addressed in the album's closer 'Two Suns in the Sunset,' on which Nick Mason was replaced altogether. The theme of the human cost of war is strayed from in the personal reflection 'Paranoid Eyes' and the emotional title track, though in shorter songs 'Get Your Filthy Hands Off My Desert' and 'Southampton Dock,' Waters' distinctly British wit and weariness are starkly evident and address the anti-war theme with poignancy and succinctness, as does nearly the whole of the album, something absent from most other "war-is-bad" efforts from major musicians.
One of Pink Floyd's most identifiable attributes had always been their "facelessness," the ability of the band members to remain obscured by the music, which to the record-buying public was somehow greater than those making it. With "The Final Cut" however, a bit of the anonymity was lost; though the record sleeve contained no photographs of the remaining three Floyds, Roger Waters' deeply personal expressions seemed to present the bassist as a tortured artist, almost resembling the character "Pink" from "The Wall." Fortunately, Pink Floyd would go on a four-year hiatus, presumed to have no longer been a working entity at least in Waters' eyes, and return with Rick Wright on board, slowly re-establishing the classic Floyd sound in the late 80s into the mid 90s.
Unfortunately, for Waters, he would continue to relentlessly express his anti-war views in his solo work, alienating many fans who flocked back to Floyd when his former bandmates reunited. His work has since become dated and out of touch, with today's younger fans unable to identify with his frustration with the policies of Margaret Thatcher or Ronald Reagan, or with Cold War bitterness, or indeed unable to tell anyone who Margaret Thatcher is without Wikipedia assistance. Not withstanding, "The Final Cut" is actually a strong statement, stark and bold, and quite a candidate for one of rock's greatest anti-war pieces.
In the world of rock, anti-war is always "in. " Unfortunately, there have been few pieces of work in the past few decades that have provided anything new to the anti-war sentiment, most of them repeating the basic thought that "war is bad. " Culture Club's 'The War Song' is about as bad as Green Day's cliched '21 Guns,' with even intricate efforts like Bob Dylan's 'Masters of War' echoing the same complaint. Pink Floyd's 1983 release "The Final Cut" is a notable exception. Bassist Roger Waters was ruling the band with an iron fist by now, even having edged out founding keyboardist Rick Wright during the sessions for "The Wall. " Wright's departure was only one of the detrimental changes affecting "The Final Cut," as the album was barely musical except in a few places, with Waters' teary vocals providing the forefront to scantly, weakly arranged musical textures. But what the album lacked in the classic Pink Floyd sound, and in musical quality in general, "The Final Cut" more than made up for by containing some of Waters' most effective lyrics, addressing war and inhumanity with a poetic brilliance since - or before - unmatched in rock n' roll. The personal status of Pink Floyd was in shambles, and almost non-existent. Master guitarist David Gilmour lent his ferocious vocals to only one track, 'Not Now John,' and disagreed so fervently with the musical direction of the album, or lack thereof, he asked that his production credit be removed. Aside from the aforementioned song and the title track, founding drummer Nick Mason appears in mere cameos, adding a few sudden drum parts here and there, and in some cases not at all; his role in the band had been so squashed by Roger Waters that, despite his work on sound effects for the album - even recording many of them in person - whatever he contributed would be listed as "just drumming," and consequently paid for only such work (according to Mason's autobiography "Inside Out: A Personal History of Pink Floyd"). So with Waters firmly in control of his solo album, released under the pseudonym Pink Floyd, and aided musically by Michael Kamen, "The Final Cut" progressed from a collection of outtakes from their previous album, the blockbuster "The Wall," and became Waters' personal document to express his anguish at the death of his father at the Battle of Anzio, and his disdain for the loss of human life in conflict, sparked by then-recent military action in the Falklands. Waters expanded the scheme to include terrorism (touching on the acts of the IRA in Ireland in 'The Gunner's Dream'), exploitation in film (the stunningly raucous - for Pink Floyd anyway - 'Not Now John,' the album's only UK Top 30 entry), and general disillusionment with post-World War II Britain ('The Post War Dream'). And of course, the typical '80s nuclear war fears are addressed in the album's closer 'Two Suns in the Sunset,' on which Nick Mason was replaced altogether. The theme of the human cost of war is strayed from in the personal reflection 'Paranoid Eyes' and the emotional title track, though in shorter songs 'Get Your Filthy Hands Off My Desert' and 'Southampton Dock,' Waters' distinctly British wit and weariness are starkly evident and address the anti-war theme with poignancy and succinctness, as does nearly the whole of the album, something absent from most other "war-is-bad" efforts from major musicians. One of Pink Floyd's most identifiable attributes had always been their "facelessness," the ability of the band members to remain obscured by the music, which to the record-buying public was somehow greater than those making it. With "The Final Cut" however, a bit of the anonymity was lost; though the record sleeve contained no photographs of the remaining three Floyds, Roger Waters' deeply personal expressions seemed to present the bassist as a tortured artist, almost resembling the character "Pink" from "The Wall. " Fortunately, Pink Floyd would go on a four-year hiatus, presumed to have no longer been a working entity at least in Waters' eyes, and return with Rick Wright on board, slowly re-establishing the classic Floyd sound in the late 80s into the mid 90s. Unfortunately, for Waters, he would continue to relentlessly express his anti-war views in his solo work, alienating many fans who flocked back to Floyd when his former bandmates reunited. His work has since become dated and out of touch, with today's younger fans unable to identify with his frustration with the policies of Margaret Thatcher or Ronald Reagan, or with Cold War bitterness, or indeed unable to tell anyone who Margaret Thatcher is without Wikipedia assistance. Not withstanding, "The Final Cut" is actually a strong statement, stark and bold, and quite a candidate for one of rock's greatest anti-war pieces.