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Pink Floyd, The Wall (Part 1 of 4)

Written by Roger Waters, and performed by Pink Floyd, The Wall is the very essence of a concept album. An album, and a movie based on the music from the album, The Wall details the story of the fictitious rock star, Pink, from his childhood, to his rock star days, through his collapse into the abyss, his delusions of grandeur, and finally into his attempt to escape the abyss and go outside the wall.

Though there are similarities between Roger Waters and Pink, and Waters wrote the wall, do not think that they are indeed the same person. Waters has on numerous occasions made clear that The Wall is not an autobiography. However, Waters did use many of his experiences as an inspiration for The Wall. In fact, Waters claims that he came up with the idea for The Wall after while on tour, he felt so superior to the crowd, that when a fan tried to crawl on-stage, he spat on him. It was his regret for this feeling of detachment from the world that led him to write The Wall.

Not only is Pink's story not Waters's story, to be more accurate, it is a story of all of us. The main themes of The Wall are internal struggle, self-alienation, and redemption. These themes reflect the struggles of all people, not just Pink.

We are introduced to Pink's story through the story of his father, who was killed in action in World War II, much like Roger Waters's father. Though the song "When the Tigers Broke Free" is not on the album, it opens the movie, detailing how Pink's father died in a bunker at Anzio in World War II. With this immediate backdrop, the album opens with "In the Flesh?" Strangely, the song begins with the words "we came in?"- and the music from the last song on the album "Outside the Wall" is playing. As we will see at the end of The Wall, the final words are "isn't this where..."- and I'll discuss this theme later. In the Flesh? introduces us to Pink and the story he is about tell us. He warns us, by stating "if you want to find out what's behind these cold eyes, you'll just have to claw your way through this disguise." At the end of the song, in the movie, we witness Pink's fathers death, and the album references it with the sounds of a bomber, followed by a baby crying. Many also state that this song represents the birth of Pink, as in the movie he is in a metaphorical womb, the crowd rushing into the crowd represents ejaculation, and the baby crying at the end of the song signifies the birth.

With the cries, the album moves onto "The Thin Ice," which is a softer song than the more harsh lyrics of In the Flesh? The song flashes back to Pink's innocent life with his mother, before his realization that he will live his childhood without a father. However, the song then turns to a more cynical reflection of the world, and "skating on thin ice of modern life." As the song makes this turn, the music itself gets heavier.

It is in this childhood period that we learn in "Another Brick in the Wall Part 1" that Pink begins to formulate the bricks in the wall that he will erect to protect and isolate himself from the world's cruelties. The first of those cruelties to inflict Pink was obviously his father's death, and the sizeable vacancy Pink's father's created. Pink laments "Daddy, what'd you leave behind for me?" Thinking he's protecting himself, Pink turns his father's death into just another brick in the Wall.

At this point, the movie and the album differ in song order. The movie transitions into "Goodbye Blue Sky," while the album moves to "The Happiest Days of Our Lives." Happiest Days chronicles Pink's early school days, where his creativity is thwarted by teachers trying to hurt the students, by "exposing every weakness" the kids have to mold them into "model" students. The title of the song demonstrates that those years that are supposed to be the best of a person's life can be stifled.

From Happiest Days, the album moves straight into "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2," the most recognizable song on the album. The song represents a rebellion against those teachers that attempted to crush Pink in Happiest Days. The "dark sarcasm" and "thought control" by these teachers stifle creativity and development, in favor of making subservient, ground up children. The movie demonstrates this quite starkly by showing faceless children on a conveyor belt, and ground up meat. The rebellion by Pink allows him to maintain his musical creativity, but at the cost of having this experience add more bricks to his wall. His rebellion against authority figures causes him to push himself further behind the wall.

With a deep breath, we begin to learn of Pink's over-protective mother, and the constant approval that Pink seeks from her in "Mother." Throughout the song, Pink asks his mother a series of questions, many seeking her approval or direction, such as "Mother, should I run the President?" and "Mother, do you think she's good enough, for me?" The song also echoes Pink's post-war fears as he approaches adulthood, such as the dropping of another bomb, or being "put in the firing line." Pink's mother responds by trying to soothe Pink, by explaining that she'll take care of him, but will make "all of his nightmares come true," putting "all of her fears into" Pink, and not "letting him fly." Though mother does her best for Pink, her over-bearing ways will ultimately affect Pink in his relationship with women in the future, and will result in a lack of personal development by Pink. Freud would have absolutely loved "Mother."

Though the movie moves into Empty Spaces, the album transitions to "Goodbye Blue Sky." Goodbye was described by Waters as a recap of all the songs up through "Mother." It is a relection of the fears of his childhood, and a prelude to Pink's adult life. Pink is saying goodbye to the blue sky of his childhood. Pink comes to realize that the flames of the war are long gone, but "the pain" of losing his father will "linger on." In the movie, the song is featured through an animation of the destructive force of war, with images such as bombers blotting out the sun, and dead soldiers accross a battlefield. But at the end, there is a dove, representing hope. Unfortunately the hope for Pink is still far off.

With that, the song moves into Pink's adult life, and I will pick up this portion shortly.

Full post as published by The Present Tense on May 16, 2007 (boomark / email).