2006 Europe
Tour Reviews

So when he toured Europe a few years back, my wife and I packed a few small pieces of luggage and went off to Barcelona to watch him perform at the Olympic Pavilion. It was like living in a dream for the whole duration of the concert.

Then the unthinkable happened. It was reported on a local site that Waters was coming to Malta to perform on the 10th of July 2006. I immediately logged onto the official website, however, Malta was not included in his tour, and I thought, well, what was I thinking? Why would Roger come to Malta. A few weeks later, NG promotions announced during a press conference that the great Creative Genius was in fact coming over to our island, and that he will be performing on the 10th of July.

Louise (my wife) and I were both ecstatic, and so were thousands of local fans. A dream come true to thousands of Maltese huge supporters of Pink Floyd and Roger Waters. Obviously the tickets were not going to be cheap as we're a small country, and the company organizing the concert had to at least break even. However the prices did not deter the loyal fans from purchasing their tickets to watch the greatest show ever to be staged on our island.

Although I don't have the official figures, I estimated a crowd of 15,000 that turned up for the concert. Now, keeping in mind the small population of Malta, I believe that was a very good turnout. That is 3.75% of the population; which would result in a crowd of over 2 million people in the UK.

Roger started his set with the explosive "In the Flesh" track from The Wall. More tracks from The Wall followed. We were then taken back to the late '60s with "Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun."

It was incredible to see the various ages in the crowd; from teenagers to 60 year olds, all enjoying themselves with the great performance. Roger and his band performed some great numbers from albums such as 'Wish You Were Here,' 'Animals' and 'The Final Cut.' I was eagerly waiting for a few numbers from 'The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking,' and 'Radio KAOS,' however the only solo tracks we were entertained with were "Perfect Sense" from 'Amused to Death,' and before the break, he played "Leaving Beirut."

The crowd seemed ecstatic. No one seemed to move from their places. There was such a spirit of excitement and camaraderie. All the faces in the crowd showed their extreme enjoyment.

The second part was a complete run-through of the 1973 classic 'The Dark Side of the Moon.' The 360 degree quadraphonic sound system sent shivers down every body's spine. The tiny hairs on the backs of our necks were all standing up. The excitement grew from track to track. The crowd erupted after each and every song, and sang along to each and every track from 8:45 PM until midnight.

Obviously we were never going to let Roger off the stage without and encore. The cliche shouts of WE WANT MORE echoed for around a minute before we saw the shadowy figures of the band taking their places once again on the stage again. Unfortunately after the encore, the WE WANT MORE shouts fell on deaf ears, as Roger and his Band left the stage for good, for a well deserved break after a great... the greatest performance ever to be performed in our country.

It seemed that Roger had enjoyed himself. Hopefully he enjoyed himself enough to make him come again someday in the future. It was an incredible experience. Even though we did see him perform in Barcelona, seeing him in Malta was so much better. For a man of 63 years of age, his charisma is still as great as it was when he first founded Pink Floyd back in 1965.

From: Jesmond V. Zerafa (Edited by Anthony Zarb Dimech)
OH WHAT AN EVENING! WHAT AN EXPERIENCE! A UNIQUE VOYAGE...

Every aspect of the organisation of the concert went smooth, except for some tinyfeedback from an odd speaker that added to the atmosphere. The punctuality and timing were inch perfect. The concert took off as the day entered to a close and the sky was adorned and illuminated witha clear moon that took over from the sun. Itgave justenoughnatural powerto lighten up the sky together withthe effective light effects created by the spectacle. All these natural and technical effects put together purposely gave the evening a spectacular dress that shone over the arena just like a 'crazy diamond'.

The first musical notes of In the Flesh put everyoneon their feet, but in order to respect the persons behind everyone sat down. The excitement created surely does not permit that a concert of this nature can leave anyone seated for long.

As soon as 'Mother'was being played, I did not realise what was happening around me,and I never cried so much in my life as during the performance of this song. I started to feel pity for my country and for myself. I came back to myself when the Maltese Prime Minister, who was presentwas booed when the verse: "Mother shall I trust the government" weresung by Waters.

One song after the other,taken from most of Pink Floyd's and solo albums were played. What surprised me most was that Waters played nothing from Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking, and I thought that he was going to play a small part of the Opera CA IRA.

I had hardly noticed that one and a half hours had already passed and the break had arrived... (20 minutes to the second). My bladderwas nearly ready to explodeafter downing some pints of beer, it was quite obvious I suppose! I put myself in the queue as I continued to listen to the Dark Side of the Moon. Over my shouldersand high in the sky, I could see the bright side of the full moon that was following the concert from up there.

During the song "Us and them,' I went to empty again in the lou. It was eerie darkness inside, but such was nature's strong call, little didI notice the place I had entered.

After Dark Side, came the obligatory encores, especially of Comfortably Numb. ...and then... it was over...

It was a grandiose spectacle, marvellous, unforgettable. I could feel a happiness in my sadness with a consoled and fresh mind. It took me some time to come back to my usual self after hours in space. The feeling was that of being an astronautcaught inspace between one kaleodkoiskic cell and another surrounded by every type of space craft in the infinity of the universe.

It was around twelve midnight when I pulled over my car. Due to the intense traffic, I had to divert to other roads less frequented by traffic so as to avoid some unexpected collision.

I walked a few metres down the street, when, throughtheglass window of the lobby of a bar in a luxury hotel, I spotted the brownish figure of P.P Arnold. I recognised her. It quickly made sense that the Roger Waters' band was there and I asked for him. I was told that he was present, and I did not notice him as I was still under the effect of the concert.

Relaxing on a sofa after a two and a half hour show, deserving of some privacy and rest, I saw himconversing with two of his colleagues. It stillhad not clicked in my mind that I was so close to him. I went closer to the glass pane and took out my REG - The International Roger Waters Fan Club Membership Card and using sign language, Iasked him to jotsomething on it. We both smiled at each other and exchanged hand gestures.

No one, except residents could enter the hotel. The lobby bar was reservedfor the members and crew of the Roger Waters' band.The security personnel had made it clear that no one could enter. Soon after, the security officer called the person responsible for passing messages to Roger Waters. Messages were flowing continuously to Waters at this stage. I was feelingvery embarrassed having to pester a person who wasresting.

AfterRoger Waters attention was drawn to my request, my REG membership card was taken and it seemed like an interminable period until it was given back. Iwas already beginning to think that I would never see it again. But then I saw that there was movement going on inside and my membership card was returned with Roger's autograph on it!

I quickly realised that in order for Roger to autograph my card he required a permanent marker and not a simple biro because the membership card is made of plastic. This was the reason of the delay. I thanked him and made my way out leavingRoger and his teamdiscussingwhat is considered to be one of the greatest and prestigious concerts everheld in Malta.

Tuesday morning, 12 July 2006: I woke up with a headache but not the piercing kind.My mind was quite heavy, but tranquillity reigned over me. I began to put together the previous evening's memories. It had felt almost spiritual, as if the church's congregation had been filled up with a legion of Pink Floyd fanatics lost in a delirium of the live atmosphere.

What a great midsummer's night!!.......How canI ever forget it!!!