I found out about the Roger Waters tour through ZDNet. I found out there was a concert in Grand Rapids on August 25th and got a couple tickets. I'm glad I did!
I saw Roger Waters in Cleveland in 1977, with Pink Floyd during the Animals tour. It was an exceptional show. I also saw Pink Floyd in Cleveland in 1995, without Roger, and that show was exceptional and very memorable.
The show by Roger and his band was equally exceptional, and in some ways, even more memorable than Pink Floyd. I had heard how he didn't plan to have an elaborate light show, but I was very pleasantly surprised by the excellent and even elaborate light show his crew put on! The sound effects and the sound system at Van Andel Arena were excellent! Some of the sound effects equaled the most recent Pink Floyd effects and it is obvious Roger is the equal of Pink Floyd and David Gilmour. The sound clips between the songs on Amused To Death were very easy to hear and amplified somewhat, making the thread of the album and the live songs, much more coherent and easy to understand. The strong anti-war message of his art seems so plain on his last album and it seems to me that his concentration on this subject was probably one of the reasons for the PF split. One gets the impression that the other PF members wanted $$$ and Roger wanted to concentrate on his vision of art and what needed to be said. His sarcastic and biting critique of religion also seems relevant and central to his art, especially in What God Wants. Although the live version seemed a little slow, it was very well done and in many ways better than the album version. Roger did a very artistic rendition of someone praying. This took me by surprise when he sang the 'chorus': "God wants peace/God wants war/ God wants famine/God wants chain stores", all the while cupping the mike with both hands as if praying. Great showman! I used binoculars to watch the entire show and I can still see the veins in his left arm as he clenched his fist and chanted "God wants jihad."
He followed with Perfect Sense, and sure enough, mass chanting resulted. This joyous unison of singing represents a common chord of humanity among us! He thanked us for being there for him (and the band). "And the Germans killed the Jews…." Presented some very fine female singing to compliment Roger's weakening voice. (Probably too much screaming during the PF years.) Anyway, I can still see the dark arena and the stage lights illuminating the thousands, cheering and singing "It all makes perfect sense." But before I lead you astray, Roger's voice on his own songs was very clear and even loud, while he seemed weaker on the PF songs.
As I reach middle age and view live rock shows, I am struck by a common experience with the shows of the early 70s: self-examination during the experience of what is being viewed and it's meaning. Roger Waters' live show elicited some very deep thoughts in me about war & peace, love and hate, evolution vs. religion, what men and businesses want, as opposed to what God wants, etc. Perfect Sense seems like a rallying cry to critique ourselves and our way of life, our violent ways, from humble origins to nuclear submarines. The motif of the ape viewing TV (Amused To Death) and the monkey with the broken bone in his hand are synonymous with our humble essence. The rabid result is propelling us toward extinction and Roger Waters seems to say that in his lyrics and in his stage presence. The light show during PS was very interesting: an image of an oilrig and then a periscope hash line appears. With Marv Albert relating the "sporting event", the sub zeroes in on the rig and blows it up, sending the crowd into thunderous cheers and loud choruses of "It all makes perfect sense/expressed in dollars and cents…"
On the subject of Roger's appearance, I was very surprised to see him so distinguished and mature looking. He was wearing a black, collarless shirt, a fine looking black casual suit, and extremely comfortable looking, shiny black, dress shoes. If he were my close friend, I'd say he were my best-dressed and most colorful friend! His hair seemed light brown and somewhat close-cropped, but longish on the back of his neck. He looked very fit & trim. His hair was styled and not gray. At one point in the show, when the band did Brain Damage by PF, he messed up his hair to give life to the line "The lunatic is in my head." He seemed to really enjoy the crowd response to his performance. I think he looked better that David Gilmour did in his Cleveland performance. David had on a beige blazer and looked like a middle-aged genius but not quite as vital and young looking as Roger….
When the band did It's a Miracle, a beautiful deep blue light lit up the wall behind the stage. The band did this tune very well with a spacious and mellow wall of sound effect. I can still see him mimicking as if diving into the water while singing "They've got Bermuda shorts", as well as spreading his arms out to his sides, singing "Between the Tigris and Euphrates." He seemed alive, vital, aware, and very good at gesturing, so as to add life and substance to his creative and complex lyrics. I thoroughly enjoyed this concert and wish I could see him again…
When he did Amused To Death, a great light show displayed an ape watching TV and semi-naked women parading on the screen. This was animated but very well done and easy to see. Stars in the universe were displayed across the screen, as well as women, objects of materialism, and finally the ape is gone and only the TV screen remains. My feeling is that his light show was first rate!
I also think the band did his songs much better than the PF songs. But one shouldn't conclude the band couldn't do PF songs well. Every player did exceptionally well during all the PF songs. There was only one real slip-up by the keyboard player and that was short-lived. Oh yeah, Roger's voice seemed to crack once, but that also was short-lived. Their encore song was Comfortably Numb and I must say they did that song almost better than PF! The two guitarists slowly climbed the wall behind the playing area and had a duel doing leads during the end of the song. I must admit that their double picking and reprise playing seemed better than David Gilmour's single attempt to send us into guitar heaven. PF used dark green lasers during their performance of this song while Roger's crew displayed very exciting and realistic psychedelic images of oozing bubbles, akin to paint mixing and pulsating bubbles and similar images. I feel the light show during Roger's performance of Comfortably Numb was a notch better and more realistically reflective of what the song is saying…! Pink Floyd used a large disco ball to reflect the lasers and that obviously was first rate! Roger used a disco ball behind the wall, which was about six feet across and covered with small mirrors. The spotlight shone on it during Shine on You Crazy Diamond and it was an excellent addition to their version of that song. During the long intro, the band sat down on two sofas in the middle of the stage, and played cards while the drummer and synthesizer played on and jammed! Their stage was very unique with the two ladies sitting on the right stage, with comfortable chairs, with the organist and synthesizer behind and above them. A rhythm, bass and assorted instrument player was at the rear. Lead guitar (Bramhill) was in front of him next to the women vocalists. To his right was Roger Waters playing bass guitar. On Roger's right were the rhythm guitarist (SnowyWhite) and the drummer behind him. A TV monitor or something was behind the playing area, displaying odd geometric images and faces. I couldn't make out what its purpose was but it was fun to watch. There was a green lava lamp on the table and periodically the members would sit down and relax. It was a very unique stage set. I will never forget it.
Since the band did about 10 Pink Floyd songs from Dark Side of the Moon, Animals, Wish You Were Here, The Wall, and The Final Cut, the show was worth it merely for those performances alone. But the crowning touch of the concert was the renditions the band turned out for Roger's songs, doing exceptionally well for the songs from Amused To Death. In my humble opinion, Roger's voice was more powerful and clearer on his songs than on the PF songs. His band did his songs more competently. Yet, despite my assessment, they did the PF songs about as well as PF did their on material. In hindsight, it was a remarkable and memorable concert. I hope he goes on tour again and I get to hear from him again in a live performance. He is a truly remarkable artist and a genius. Rock on mate!!!
Surprisingly, the traffic getting to the arena was not bad at all. This was good considering my buddy Chris and I covered the eighty or so miles from my home to Van Andel Arena in about seventy minutes.
Alright, on with my observations of the show (broken down by song):
1.In The Flesh
In a true 'life imitates art' moment, the music began on our trip up a set of stairs to our seats. After reaching the seating level, we the crowd began running, not unlike The Wall movie. I half expected to find myself running through a battlefield.
2.The Thin Ice
3.Another Brick in the Wall, Part 1
Nice to hear these played in their proper order.
4.The Happiest Days of Our Lives
5.Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2
You couldn't help but not get excited during this portion of the show. Especially since all of the losers in attendance (i.e. drunk, stoned, both, or lacking mental capacity) knew the words. Roger seemed to really ham it up, even going as far to include another chorus. It was at about this point where I started to notice the "big boned" woman next to me, who from this point forward will be referred to as Pig (One Additional One) or P1AO. Needless to say, P1AO and her equally cool husband/back door man (resplendent in his "Black Sabbath Vol. 4" T-shirt) had a few too many cold ones before the show. Anyway, P1AO really enjoyed this tune.
6.Mother
A great ballad that Dave & Co. probably couldn't pull off, the P.P. Arnold and Katie Kissoon did a great job with the mother vocals. P1AO went to the bathroom during this one.
7.Get Your Filthy Hands Off My Desert
8.Southampton Dock
This was a nice taste, albeit short, of the Final Cut. It helped to calm the place down, which I appreciated.
9.Pigs on the Wing, Part 1
10.Dogs
Excellent. Since I had seen previos set lists, I knew these would be played. Jon Carinon the Vocals/Acoustic/Keyboards/Lap Steel was amazing. From where I was sitting (Almost directly to the side of the stage) I could see him playing his keyboards with the acoustic still around his shoulders, which I thought would be rather difficult ergonomically. I also enjoyed the way in which Graham Broad stood to hit his tamborine or whatever that was, but could still hit the kick drum. I think that P1AO went to the bathroom during this one, as well.
11.Welcome to the Machine
WTTM with the drums and the female backing vocals was great.
12.Wish You Were Here
"Wish" was nice musically, but Gilmour was missed on vocals.
13.Shine On You Crazy Diamond, parts I-IV, VI, VII, reprisal of part I
Good job all the way around on "Shine On." They really seemed to keep things moving, which was probably a good thing. Roger singing it was an improvement, over PULSE.
1.Breathe
2.Time
3.Breathe (Reprise)
Cool rendition. I especially enjoyed seeing Graham Broad on the Roto-Tom solo before Time. It was cool to see him turning the head of the drum to get different pitches and to make a flawless transition back to the kit when the vocals started.
4.Money
I remembered hearing something about a synth-sax solo here, but I must have missed it or something, because I believe Doyle Bramhall ripped into his solo right after the first verse. (By the way Lansing, MI radio station WJXQ played his new song today, which seems to be pretty un-Floydian)
5.5:06 A.M. (Every Stranger's Eyes)
I've only heard Pros and Cons on the ill-fated Floydradio, but I was never much of a fan. I really liked Roger's high vocal parts here. I think that P1AO went to the bathroom during this one, too.
6.The Powers That Be
Don't shed a tear for Paul Carrack, P.P. Arnold and Katie Kissoon were better.
7.What God Wants, Part 1
The programmed drums before the song were cooler than the album, unfortunately the higher parts of the opening riffs seemed to be missing. It also appeared that Doyle was playing a pale blue Japanese guitar here.
8.Perfect Sense, Part 1
9.Perfect Sense, Part 2
I'm guessing that ninety percent of the audience hadn't heard these before. Thanks to Roger's encouragement, everyone seemed to get the words by the end, even P1AO. If Mr. Gilmour is reading, please take note, this is what you have got to get your backup singers to sound like. P.P. Arnold's part blew the roof off the place and put even the best "Who-who" to shame.
10.It's A Miracle
Towards the end of the song Roger took his mic and walked to the side of the stage to apparently shake some hands. P1AO hoped he "wasn't singing to them guys!"
11.Amused to Death
I'm afraid that the message of the song/album was lost on the crowd, but it was a nice rendition nonetheless. P1AO asked me if this was a new song or an old one. I went with new.
Band Intro.
12.Brain Damage
13.Eclipse
"The Lunatics are in my Hall." I agree. Good to hear Roger sing this.
Encore
Here Roger made a comment about restoring a connection that was lost under the crunch of numbers. He also made the point to say "thanks for listening."
1.Comfortably Numb
I enjoyed the dueling guitars on the catwalk. It would have made my life, however, if Snowy and Doyle would have disappeared, and Dave Gilmour had magically appeared.
In all, I would have to say that that was an excellent concert. I hope that I can see him again in the future.
Shine on,
Mark
by Tim De Groot
I'm 35 years old and to this day remember picking up "The Wall" on vinyl, forking over what I thought to be an outrageous price of 12.99 for a double LP in 1979. I now own the laserdisc of the movie and two sets of it on a special gold cd. I know that album inside and out. I saw Pink Floyd (without Waters) in Detroit at the Silverdome in 1994 during their Division Bell tour on the second evening of two performances. They were incredible. We were amazed when the entire Dark Side Of The Moon was played live (only one of two times ever done in over 20 years, the other being in Los Angeles). Those who want to hear what I heard are able to by purchasing Pink Floyd's "Pulse" which contains the culmination of both L.A. and Detroit's performances of DSOTM. I consider THAT Pink Floyd experience to be the best concert I have EVER been to. Although I was sad that Waters was not with them.
I went to the Waters show last night at the Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I have now been baptized in the church of the Waters. I'm glad that I read the reviews of previous concerts because I might have otherwise missed the beginning of the show. I mean, who ever heard of a concert starting on time? The tix sure enough state on them, "Show starts promptly at 8:00pm". At 7:05 my cousin Carl and I are sitting down waiting for the show. At 7:32pm an announcement was made "Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Roger Waters". A roar happened and then confusion. The lights didn't go down and no Roger Waters. Oh. It's only 7:32. Heheheh. In the mean time we were treated to various tunes by John Fogerty, Neil Young and Pearl Jam. The last song to play was that tune by John Lennon, "Watching the wheels go round and round".
Finally the moment arrives. I'm verrrrry dissapointed. It is 8:03 before the show starts. Hey, PROMPTLY at 8!! Heheheh. All is forgiven when out of the shadows and onto the platform to the rear of the stage steps out the maestro himself, Mr. Roger Waters. "Eins, Zwei, Drei, Vier!!!! So ya, thought ya, might like tooooo.......go to the show!!! To feeel the warm thrill of confusion, that space cadet glow" (Chill number one) My cousin and I kept showing each other our arms and all the hairs standing on end. "Can you freaking believe this shit!!!!!" "That one looks Jewish!!! And that one's a Cooooooon!!!! Who let all this riff-raff into the room!!?? There's one smoking a joint!!!! And another with spots!!!!! If I had my wayyyyyyy, I'd have all of ya shot!!!!!" I cannot believe that THE VOICE is actually HERE singing this stuff!!!!
Roger Waters. In the flesh. What a great name for a concert. A very cool video projector display was happening all the while during the concert. Now familiar images of The Wall were shown during the first 25 minutes of the show while "In The Flesh", "The Thin Ice", "Another BITW part 1", "The Happiest Days..", "ABITW P2" and "Mother" were performed. Bit by bit a wall was being built behind the band during those songs. Then an explosion and the words were yelled, "Get your filthy hands off my desert!!!" The audience went nuts at this point. Then the image on the screen turned to scenes of burned out buildings while they went into "Southhampton Dock" from The Final Cut.
The scenes changed now to the familiar pig in the sky from Animals while the band played "Pig On The Wing, Part 1" then "Dogs". The audience here didn't seem that familiar with these songs. At 8:48 they went into "Welcome To The Machine", at 8:56 "Wish You Were Here" and then at 9:01 the screen was filled with the image of Syd and they went into "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" ending in a very touching array of photos of Syd. A really cool shiny diamond rose from the stage and pelted the audience with an array of beams reflecting from the spotlights shining on it. When the diamond sank down like a setting sun, the audience was in a tizzy. The lights came up and Roger said thank you and stated that the band would be back in ten minutes, this is at 9:17. The first set clocks in at 1 hour and 14 minutes.
After a 21 minute intermission, the lights went down.
At 8:38 the first notes of "Breathe" were performed. Followed by "Time", "Breathe (reprise)", "Money" (By the way on the screen were some of the finest pair of titties I have ever seen, followed by an ass that left every male in the audience with a stiffy), and "5:06 a.m. Every Stranger's Eyes"(the drums were absolutely amazing). At this point I was hesitant as to how the audience would respond to songs in the set that the average Pink Floyd fan wouldn't be familiar with if they didn't listen to the Roger Waters solo albums. Boy was I surprised. And I even felt that Roger himself was surprised by the magnificent response he got to the following songs, "The Powers That Be", "What God Wants, Part 1" (The audience was in a frenzy, almost a religious experience. Arms waving, people shouting), "Perfect Sense, Part 1", "Perfect Sense, Part 2", "It's A Miracle" and "Amused To Death". At this point Roger thanked the audience and introduced the band.
The time is now 10:38 and they went into "Brain Damage" and ended with "Eclipse" at 10:44. The lights went up and the band got together and bowed. Everyone around me thought that the show was over and started leaviing. I kept shouting at people that there was going to be one more song. The lights stayed on and the band left the stage so even I thought that maybe the show was over. After a long, grueling 3 minute wait, the band came back on stage and Roger Waters addressed the audience one more time saying thank you for coming and thank you for listening to the music. He was saying something to the affect that over the years he was dissappointed that people kept associating him with Pink Floyd and Pink Floyd songs only, but that tonight he's recognized that this audience truly was listening and responding to HIS songs and for that he was greatful. Then he said that this was to be the last song, then kicked into "Comfortably Numb". What a perfect song to a perfect evening of music. I lost chill count on my arms at 28 times so I figure I got at least a buck a chill out of the concert. At the end of CN, Roger and the other lead guitarist did a sort of dueling guitars which was really cool.
I've seen Rush, Smashing Pumpkins, Bush, Stone Temple Pilots, Live, James Taylor, Journey, Garbage & Van Halen at this venue, which is only 3 years old and I have never seen a response from the audience like I saw last night. As we were walking out, the people walking in the halls kept cheering out. I think that absolutely everyone there (except maybe for the one girl I saw being escorted out ,obviously tripping on some drug, by her boyfriend during "Brain Damage". How ironic) had a fantastic time.
I hope that this wasn't too long for you. I still have Roger Waters afterglow.
Keep it up Roger and band.
by Brian Kossen
I went to see the Roger Waters show August 25th in Grand Rapids. I went with a friend and I live about a thirty minute drive from the arena. I parked the car and we got out and got a few blocks from the arena and my friend realized he left his ticket at his house. I called him a few explitives and we sped back to get it. Luckily we had two hours to kill before the show started!
I also saw the July 27th show in Cleveland.That was a good show but Grand Rapids much better because I was about thirty feet from the stage. The sound was the best I have ever heard at a concert which covers 11 years and 15 concerts including Pink Floyd July 14, 1994 in Pontiac, Michigan.
The band was much tighter than in Cleveland. Jon Carin gets to show that he's as good as Rick Wright was back in the old days but his playing sounds better than anything either one of them did on the '94 tour. Snowy White is an amazing quitarist. It was great to see him playing with Waters again. Graham Broad pumped some life into the old Floyd tunes.
Doyle Bramhall was a breath of fresh air.His solo on "Time" was note perfect to the album version.
The set list is as follows with my rating:
In the Flesh?
The Thin Ice
Another Brick in the Wall part 1
The Happeist Days of Our Lives
Another Brick in the Wall part 2
Mother (Roger sang verse 1 and 3, Bramhall sang verse 2 and 4
with back up singers) Final Cut Medley: "Get Your Filthy
Hands off My Desert", "Fletcher Memorial Home"
2nd verse, "Southhampton Dock" 2nd and 3rd verse
Pigs On the Wing part 1
Dogs (Roger sang all vocals)
Welcome To the Machine
Wish You Were Here
Shine On You Crazy Diamond parts 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7
Roger announced, "Were going to take a 10 minute breat and come back out and play another set."
Breathe (Bramhall on vocals)
Time (Roger sang verse 1 and 3, Bramhall sang verse 2 and 4 with
back up singers)
Brethe (Reprise Roger on vocals)
Money (Bramhall played the first solo and Fairweather Low played
the second solo)
5:06AM (Every Strangers Eyes)
The Powers That Be
What God Wants
Perfect Sense I & II
It's A Miracle
Amused To Death
Brain Damage/Eclipse
The band all held hands and bowed, waved and Roger said, "Thank you for coming".They left the stage. The place went nuts screaming our heads off.
The band came back out and Roger announced, ""Thank you. Thank you for coming. And Thank you for listening! I once thought that the magical connection between the band and the fans was lost forever by the success of my last band. Tonight you fans have proved that that magical connection is still there. Thank You."
Comfortably Numb
The crowd was very into the show and I was suprised how everybody reacted to the solo stuff that I'm sure not everybody had heard. "Dogs" was the best. This just blew me away because Jon Carin's synthesizers were sping tingling and the guitar and drumming was so dynamic. This just happens to be my all-time favorite song.
There was no worst song.
I think I could write all night about this show. Thanks
by Rob Andretz
I attended the show at the Van Andel
Arena in Grand Rapids, MI on 8/25/99. I was so excited to actually
get tickets to this show since his other Michigan appearance
at Pine Knob was sold out long before I tried to get tickets.
I sat way back in the floor seating, and, being short, it was
difficult most of the time to see the stage and Roger. However,
the sound was incredible!
When I closed my eyes it was as if
I was transported to the front row! Roger really seemed to connect
with the audience, though I'd say about half of the audience
didn't seem to be there to concert with him. It was a varied
crowd comprised mostly of people in their early 20's with a few
older fans. Tons of people in Pink Floyd T-shirts as well as
other bands. When Roger came out he walked across an elevated
platform so the whole audience could see him clearly. It appeared
as if he was walking through thin air because of the way the
projection screen worked.
The set list was identical to the Atlanta
concert on 8/22. As soon as he came on the stage the crowd in
the floor seating stood up and never sat down. Doyle sounded
like Stevie Ray Vaughan at times during his solos. Snowy has
a much cleaner British bluesy sound.
The encore, Comfortably
Numb, ended with incredible dueling guitar solos between Doyle
and Snowy. I never saw Roger sit on a couch or play cards as
was stated in previous concert reviews. This was a balls-out
performance. I did see him drinking something to keep his voice
great. He hit a lot of the high notes, although some of the higher
parts were covered by the phenomenal female vocalists! It was
so incredible to be immersed in the sound of the songs I hold
so dearly.
I hadn't heard any of Roger's solo work before so
it was a real treat hearing it for the first time! He put a lot
of his heart into the solo stuff. You could tell he really felt
the words he was saying. He was really reaching into the audience.
The projections were incredible - a visual feast! Lots of familiar
animations from The Wall and a trippy oil slide. At the end of
the show Roger said, "Thank you for coming. And thank you
for LISTENING" I thought that was so cool. He really appreciated
the smaller venue. The show was over about 11pm. Truly a magical
evening!
Roger Waters' live renditions of the music he made with Pink Floyd and as a solo artist on this tour were certainly faithful to the originals by way of how much they moved the listener. The numbers he chose to play, however contained enjoyable and effective new touches to them by virtue of the contributions from Katie Kissoon and PP Arnold as backing singers, and shoot-out style guitar soloing from Snowy White and Doyle Bramhall. As well as the usual assortment of Pink Floyd songs we've become accustomed to in recent years, some welcomed surprises such as side one of Floydís 1977 album Animals and a new beefed-up version of The Powers That Be from 1987ís Radio KAOS were also included. Numbers from Watersí most recent album, Amused To Death receiving their first airing on tour also came across well, particularly in Perfect Sense, where PP Arnold filled the arena with a vocal performance at least on a par with Clare Torryís stunning effort on The Great Gig In The Sky.
It seemed as though Brain Damage and Eclipse were to be the set closers, but a well crafted version of Comfortably Numb featuring complementary grand finale soloing from White and Bramhall added further spark to the attendeeís desire to blare Waters-penned tunes from within their cars on the way home.
by Bob Smith
I am a Roger Water's fan, there is no doubt about it. I have been listneing to Pink Floyd since the beginning and started buying Roger's solo stuff on vinyl. I am a devoted fan that is addicted to his work, especially "Amused to Death".
This concert was magical. The song selection was perfect, although, I would have preferred a little more of his solo work (Amused to Death is my all time favorite album). Roger looked and sounded terrific!!!!!! There was no glitz. The lighted background that changed frequently was simple but effective. The focus was obviously on the music. Roger appeared to be having fun as was the rest of the band.
Thank you Roger for coming to Grand Rapids, I was planning on traveling to Pittsburg to see you, until Grand Rapids was added to the tour. I feel priviledged to have seen you in concert, especially from the 4th row.
The show August 25 in Grand Rapids was as amazing as i expected. Kudos go to Roger and the rest of the production team for changing up the set lists and projection slides for this show, since i went to the Columbus show too.
The crowd was really up for the show. I thought there were a few too many loud drunks. But they were intelligent compared to most concert crowds. The environment at Van Andel arena could have benefitted from turning down the house lights. Especially for the diamond effect in 'Shine On'. The sound, however, was loud and clear. Not nearly as loud as a metal concert or anything. But loud enough to overpower the always-shitty acoustics of sports arenas.
The band was on!. After hearing Jon Carin sing 'Dogs', I had to wonder why he didn't sing more of Gilmore's vocal pieces. It became obvious to me, however, that Doyle Bramhall was the man for the job. Filling Dave's shoes is a formidable task. Quite simply, Bramhall is a motherfucker!. I look forward to checking out a lot more of his guitar work in the future. P.P. Arnold gave us a couple tastes of her incredible vocal talents. I couldn't have been the only one who tried to imagine her rendition of 'Great Gig in the Sky'. But hey, they played like two and a half hours. I can't complain.
Amazing tour, Roger.
by John Savale
The show in G.R was GREAT, AWESOME and every thing an old Pink Floyd fan could ever ask for!! Roger was in truly spectacular form. The multi-media part of the show was visually satisfying also, nice art and BIZARRO pix. THE SOUND WAS—VERY,VERY GOOD for an arena show!! If you're an old or new Pink Floyd fan, GO SEE THIS SHOW!! The young gen X-ers an Y-ers were floored—not bad for an old "progressive rock fossil" (HEH,HEHhh)!!! This old 47yr old hippy LOVED it. BRAVO, Roger, ROCK ON, OLD MATE!!
Van Andel Arena, Grand Rapids, MI.
The show started exactly at 8:00, we were a little bit late.
We headed up towards our seat, as the song "In the flesh"
played on, and the smell of sweet smoke carried on. Waters and
the band were awesome, and the projector screen tripped out.
I would've pay just to see that screen. This concert was just
totally awesome, everything was cool, everyone was getting high,
old and young people. You coulda got high just sitting there,
I did. The whole atmosphere was cool, it was more like a show,
full of music, lights, images, rather then just a concert.
Waters
had a good setlists of songs. He mixed some Pink Floyd songs
and some of his own songs like "What God wants". One
of the highlights were when they played "Shine on, you crazy
diamond", at the end of the song, y know when they all jam
out and then it fades. Well, a big diamond shape mirror-like
ball came out from the screen, and rotated, shinning rays of
light everywhere in the dark arena.
Later on, Waters thanked
the crowd, which was cool, and he closed with "Comfortably
numb", as that bass intro came on, it was like another high
came on, that closing song ended with them jamming and their
big shadows on the screen. The two guitar players were playing
the solos like cutting head, each of them playing a killer lick
and at then ending in unison. I have to say this was an awesome
show, I know this might not sound like a good review, or maybe
I was on acid, but Roger Waters In the Flesh concert is one of
the best concerts imaginable.
