Roger Waters' THE WALL TOUR portends to be the greatest stage spectacular in rock'n'roll history. In 2010 Roger Waters took his celebrated theatrical rock presentation to cities throughout North America and now again in 2011 the brings The Wall to Europe.

On Roger Waters' official website he explains why he decided to tour The Wall.

"Why am I doing the Wall again now?

I recently came across this quote of mine from 22 years ago:

"What it comes down to for me is this: Will the technologies of communication in our culture, serve to enlighten us and help us to understand one another better, or will they deceive us and keep us apart?"

I believe this is still a supremely relevant question and the jury is out. There is a lot of commercial clutter on the net, and a lot of propaganda, but I have a sense that just beneath the surface understanding is gaining ground. We just have to keep blogging, keep twittering, keep communicating, keep sharing ideas.

30 Years ago when I wrote The Wall I was a frightened young man. Well not that young, I was 36 years old.

It took me a long time to get over my fears. Anyway, in the intervening years it has occurred to me that maybe the story of my fear and loss with it's concomitant inevitable residue of ridicule, shame and punishment, provides an allegory for broader concerns.: Nationalism, racism, sexism, religion, Whatever! All these issues and 'isms are driven by the same fears that drove my young life.

This new production of The Wall is an attempt to draw some comparisons, to illuminate our current predicament, and is dedicated to all the innocent lost in the intervening years.

In some quarters, among the chattering classes, there exists a cynical view that human beings as a collective are incapable of developing more 'humane' ie, kinder, more generous, more cooperative, more empathetic relationships with one another.

I disagree.

In my view it is too early in our story to leap to such a conclusion, we are after all a very young species.

I believe we have at least a chance to aspire to something better than the dog eat dog ritual slaughter that is our current response to our institutionalized fear of each other.

I feel it is my responsibility as an artist to express my, albeit guarded, optimism, and encourage others to do the same. To quote the great man, "You may say that I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one.""

- Roger Waters, 2010

Fallen Loved Ones

'Fallen Loved Ones' is a request, from me, reaching out to ask you to provide a photograph and personal details of a 'Loved One' lost in war. Your 'Loved One's' pictures and details would be included, along with those of my father Eric, in my up coming show THE WALL, as an act of remembrance. The 'Fallen Loved One' does not have to have been a soldier. Civilian deaths are equally, if not more, harrowing.

I make this request to you in light of my belief that many of these tragic losses of life are avoidable. I feel empathy with the families of all the victims and anger at 'THE POWERS THAT BE', who are responsible, in equal measure. Please join me in honouring our dead and protesting their loss.

Roger Waters

HUMANS need the protection of THE RULE OF LAW. The trick would be for US to agree upon what THE LAW should be NOW, (something WE have been working on for a few hundred years), but also to agree that as WE develop OUR understanding of both OURSELVES and OUR surroundings, WE will have insights and may need to modify THE LAWS that govern US. THE LAW should not be written in STONE. Please take note all followers of MOSES and other dead prophets.

Which leads me neatly to my next point.
In my view, RELIGION provides A WALL between US and the reality of OUR lives. Also, There is a WALL between: RICH and POOR, NORTH and SOUTH, THE OLD and NEW WORLDS and THE THIRD WORLD. It is A WALL of FEAR and GREED!

There is enough of everything in THE WORLD for us all to have enough to eat, to be warm and dry and to have a colour TV and a car. WE are taught to FEAR that if WE share what WE have with THEM, WE won't have anything left for US.

WE also FEAR that THEY may try to take what WE have away from US, so WE spend WAY more than THEY would need to feed, house, clothe, and EDUCATE THEMSELVES, on weapons to prevent THEM from taking what WE have away from US.

There is another WALL between US and the reality of OUR lives. This WALL is called the THE MEDIA. This WALL is a tool that is used to divert US from inconvenient truths.

Perhaps I should stop now, before I alienate anybody.