2006 North America
Tour Reviews

I went to both the October 6th & 8th shows at the Hollywood Bowl and all that I have to say is, Roger keeps topping himself. The production was way more than I expected - the fireworks & explosions were killer, as well as the piggy, moonman and the backing images. Roger is just an amazing showman and knows perfectly how to do a performance.

The band was tight and killer. So happy that Jon Carin was back on this tour - his talent is unmeasurable. While I did kind of miss Doyle's guitars, but Snowy and Dave were very right on. Dave's tone was as close to Glimours as you could get. Andy is always a godsend, but what I really loved about the performance was how he had solo spots for everyone, including PP Arnold and Katie Kisson. Both of those ladies are so underrated and amazing - they should be touring on their own.

Both shows had some technical glitches (the show on the 8th had some sound problems and pyro problems) but the band played through and made the problems seem minuscule. Which, to me, is the true sign of an excellent band.

"Sheep" was amazing to see live, as was "Fletcher" and "Perfect Sense." My girlfriend, who didn't know the later 2 songs before the show, was ravenously wanting to hear FC &ÊATD when we got home. She became a life long fan at the show.

But, of course, the main attraction which brought the house down was Nick Mason on drums, playing DSOTM with Roger & the Bleeding Hearts. I can honestly say I can die a happy man seeing half of the greatest band in the world play before me - twice. Nick still has it and makes me yearn for the colossal Pink Floyd reunion that we all know won't ever happen - but a true fan can dream, no?

"Leaving Beirut." Man, that song is killer. The live version is so much better than the demos that were released on the net. Between the performance and the visuals, I was proud when most of the audience "got it" and reacted to the anti war theme positively. It's hard to imagine that people wouldn't, but there are a lot of sheep out there. I heard one or two boos the second night, but I attribute that to stoners/lambs who are out of touch and don't pay attention to detail. I mean, Roger has always been anti-war throughout his career - the fact that the complainers got so upset just shows you that half of them don't even know the lyrics to Floyd's biggest hits - they just hold ontoÊthe musicÊas some conduit to their fading youth. Which is sad, because Roger's music in Floyd and solo is like reading an amazing well written novel. It's his opinion, but it's one based on personal experience and the desire to make the world a better place. As far as making a rock show a political rally, wouldn't John Lennon (if still alive) or another great do the same?

But, if any of you know anything about Los Angeles and people out here in general, not too many folks in this town know how to read. Same for their tardiness getting into the show and chit chatting through the first set. LA is a crappy place for music performance because the whole LA vibe is to be here and be seen there, THAN actually experience the performance. It's sad because it's the "Entertainment Capital of the World" but I guess that's the way it would be when you have 3 million wannabe actors and only a handful of true artists that know how to listen.

However, the shows were still the best performances that I've ever seen (though Friday was better - probably because I had 15th row seats) and I hope that Roger continues to be the genius that he is.
All the Best
J.

I just wish Roger (the self proclaimed creative genius of Pink Floyd) would spend more time using his genius to create great music instead of bashing America's President. And is'nt it ironic that David and Roger used the same final (Comfy Numb)encore song. Still, great memories. I can now die happy having seen Pink Floyd again, albeit two different tours.