In The Flesh
Tour Reviews

I arrived at the venue about one half hour before the show began.I parked, and began to travel via foot to the concert, humming Moby Dick (via Led Zeppelin) between breaths. Suddenly, bloody shrieks of murder issued forth through the cool air, piercing my brittle spine like a hot knife through a stick of butter (or margerine, pick your poison, heheh, lol). My spidey sense tingling, I whirled around not unlike a vengeful tornado to see what all the commotion was about. Hello, what was this?A tiny, white bunny lay crippled on the unforgiving ground. "Who'sresponsible for this?!" I demandingly inquired. It met my gaze withitsown pathetic one, its grey pleading eyeswailing with the utmost sound and furry (no pun intended, tee hee hee!) into mine, "Blech, aaack, help meeeee..."Turning away from the woodland creature's hypnotic stare,I weighed mybrief list of options. The bunny obviously needed medical aid, but the friggin concert was about to start! Perhaps somebody else would come along and assist the broken rabbit. At that moment David Gilmour's failing voice tore through my brain, "No more turning away, from the pale and downtrodden..." Well, that made sense enough, but-- but this was a Roger Waters concert, damn it! But what if the rabbit's dead body was discovered later? What would the authorities think?? Surely they would have questions- "Was foul play involved?"-and surely their blasted questions would be directed at me, the prime f***ing suspect of the damned case... good grief.

Desperate situations call for desperate measures.Hurriedly, I tossed theinfernal bunny in the glove compartment of my car, where I assumed it would stay warm and dry. As I slammed shut the compartment, Icaught a fleeting glimpse out of the corner of my eye of the dying creature wink at me, it's eyes now smiling-- the wretchedhare knew that it had made me late! Haulingbutt into theampitheater, I was furious to discover that Roger and the band had already launched half way into Dogs. Finding my seat in the fifth row center (an exercise in aggrivation due to the darkness), I took a load off and was transported to a visual and audio induced utopia. The band was tight and Roger remained in perfect form as the concert progressed. My favorite tune of thenight was, uh, Comfortably Numb, yeah, with the dueling guitars and all. Although I was held hostagebymany a spellbinding, captivating song and sight on this frosty eve, the biggest(literally) highlight of the show for me occurred during intermission. Proceeding to therefreshmentstand to pick up a nice, tallcup of soda pop, Ibrainlessly and blunderingly walking straight into a massive, blubbery wall offlesh. Dazed, I looked up and who did I see but the five time all-star future hall-of-famer power forward of the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers, Shawn Kemp! I was about to scream with delight when "The Reignman" garnered up a wad of black bellylard in his meaty paw and crammed it in my mouth. Looking down at me from the heavens with the "all-too-knowing"smirk of a veteran he quietly said, "Now you listen here youngin. I don't know yous, but I knows that you knows me, and one thing I tells you, brotha is thatwe gotta be free.You jiggy with that, mistuh?"Beaming with pure adulation at the sight of this high-flying terror, Iattempted to smile (try doing that a pound of corrosive fat down in your mouth!) and instead just nodded. "Goo, then we be headed our own ways now; jus' try and tell me diff'rent," he boomed, the smirk still imbedded on his oily face. Again, I nodded, this time out of desperation; the fat had begun to cut off my air supply. Sure, enough though, Kemp sucked his belly back in and stomped away, making a "b-line" for thefood stands. Having had chewed the fat with "The Reignman" however, my apetite had been satiated and then some!>

Overall, I would give the concert an 11 on a scale of 1-10. Thank you Shawn Kemp! Er, no, I mean thank you Roger Waters!

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by John Bechtel - Pacific, MO

In some musical circles it is said that "progressive" rock was born, flourished, and died, in the 1970's. Its death the result of having become fatally overweight. Pink Floyd represented this best, its decade finale performances of "The Wall" in 1979 and 1980 were so big that they played only in New York and Los Angeles (in the US). For a while it seemed that maybe Roger Waters hadn't heard that giant balloons of pigs and schoolteachers weren't what concert goers may want: His "Berlin Performance of "The Wall" was astronomically huge, and not well received (critically, anyway).

Maybe Waters has learned something. Relying on crack musicianship and a (by Floyd standards) barren stage show, Waters gave a crowd pleasing performance at Riverport on Friday night. His song selection, concentration on the music, attention to the crowd (in a most un-Waters way), and the aforementioned musicianship, all produced a truly memorable experience for both the casual Floyd listener and the hardcore Waters fans.

Waters opened, appropriately enough, with "In the Flesh", the opening track from "The Wall" (actually, he played the reprise, from side 4, but it conveyed the same sense of birth). After moving through more of side one, finishing with "Mother", Waters played what fans had never heard live before; music from the "Final Cut". Though it was a medley, consisting of parts of "Get Your Filth Hands Off My Desert" and "Southampton Dock", it represented a historical first. This fact was apparently lost on a segment of the crowd that took the opportunity to get more beer, piss, or chat loudly about other things. It was sad that the crowd was so rude during such a significant piece. (it might also be said at this juncture that the crowd was quite talkative throughout the show).

The rest of the first set saw Waters take a step aside as the band showed off its prowess. "Dogs" and "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" allowed the crowd to become acquainted with guitarist extraordinaire Andy Fairweather-Low, as well as seeing former Floyd collaborator Snowy White's ability to translate Floyd material as the second lead.

The second set concentrated predominately on Waters' solo material. A beautiful rendition of "Every Strangers Eyes" was followed by a up-tempo version of "The Powers That Be" (the only song of the night that strayed from the studio cut).

The audience, perhaps from its lack of familiarity with the solo material, seemed unenthused at this point. It was, again, the musicians that really got to the crowd here. During "Perfect Sense", one of four songs from "Amused to Death" they played, singer P.P.Arnold revised her solo from the album in stunning fashion.

The set closed with a stirring rendition of "Brain Damage/Eclipse", then the band encored with "Comfortably Numb". During "Comfortably Numb" Waters again seemed almost forgotten about while the two lead Guitarists sizzle, trading licks above the stage.

While Floyd purists may argue with Waters aficionados about whether Waters should have concentrated on his solo work versus playing "Money" or "Another Brick In The Wall pt. II", and some may not have liked the showmanship of Andy Fairweather-Low, there can be no doubt that Waters has discovered the fans again. His aloof, almost arrogant attitude towards audiences is gone. He has warmed to the idea that he is a rock star, for good or ill. And because of this "new found faith", progressive rock has, at least momentarily, given birth to a smile.

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by Anita Denise Dykstra

I was hoping to read other reviews of the St. Louis show, by people more qualified than me to tell about it! Where are the St. Louis fans??? This is my first time at this & I don't even have a set list, but will give it a try anyway.

The show was Friday night, August 27, 1999, at Riverport in St. Louis. I didn't get my ticket until the day of the concert, so I really lucked out! I waited to see who may want to go, but in the end, I went alone. Their loss!!! I was shocked that I could still get a decent seat at that late hour! When I called I was told the best available seat was in row FF, but by the time I worked half a day, went home for a while & got to Quincy to get my ticket after I knew no one else was going with me, they must have released a new batch of tickets. I was in the center section, SECOND row! I have never even been in that section, let along up front! It was amazing!!! I always thought those seats were reserved for season ticket holders, rich people, etc. But I lucked out big time!

I can't claim to be a Pink Floyd or Roger Waters expert. I only came to be a real fan in the mid-80s. Before that it seems all I ever heard on the radio was "Money" and "Another Brick in the Wall". But once I heard "Comfortably Numb" I paid more attention. That song gave me goose bumps before I ever even knew what it was about. We were lucky enough to see Pink Floyd tour, (without Roger), when they came to Ames, IA & it was FANTASTIC! I went thinking I'd like some of the songs, but that the rest may be too much for me. I was wrong! The whole show was amazing! So this time I wanted to see what it would be like from Roger Water's perspective. And while David Gilmore has the soothing voice and amazing guiter skills, and they had the technical special effects, Roger Waters is the soul of the music. The songs seem to come from his heart & soul & you feel moved. The crowd obviously loved him! He seemed appreciative, walking across the stage saying "thank you" as he walked all the way across. He accepted a rose from a fan, and after holding it awhile, he carefully laid it on the table at the back of the stage where they sat & played cards (something I'd never seen at a concert before!) and picked up his guitar again. He seemed moved by the fan's enthusiasm.

My personal favourites were "Mother", "Wish You Were Here", & "Comfortably Numb", with much audience participation on songs like "Another Brick in the Wall", "Welcome to the Machine", and others. There were times couldn't hear what he said for all the applause, screaming, and whistling in the crowd. I am so glad I went!!! I had always thought of Roger as the dark, gloomy figure, so I'm glad I read the reviews of the Chicago show & gave him a chance myself. I'm not specifically a Pink Floyd vs. Roger Waters fan, or vice versa. I think they both have the magic. Roger is more intense while David is more soothing, but I highly recommend both if you ever get a chance to see them perform. I don't think anyone would regret it! After the last set, before the encore the crowd roared, pounding the backs of chairs to make more noise to bring them back. I love an enthusiastic crowd! Actually we were doing it again after the encore, until the stage hands came out to take the equipment down. I think the crowed liked the back drop of Sid Barrett too. Another special touch. I'd love to read other reviews from St. Louis, so come on people, write! I know you can do better than I did! But for anyone thinking about going to a show, but not sure yet, don't hesitate! It's worth it!

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by Bill Lomprez

I went to the show on august 27 in st louis. I've read the other reviews and this one didnt sound anything like the others. It was really loud and there was a cool light show. He sounded really good. the powers that be kicked ass and ive never heard it before untill last night. It was pretty smoky there for an open air concert hehe. When I first saw the stage I thought where the hell are the band gonna be because there was so much stuff on stage. There was the equipment and there lighting stuff. I really think the guitar players gonna be going somwhere because he kicked all kinds of ass. Gilmour's better but he still was good. It seemed like there was a massive party in the parking lot before the show because everyone was drunk as hell.

The coolest thing was when we all sung wish you were here, comfortably numb, money, what go wants and shine on u crazy diamond. I think it was a pretty full show. At the end they left for about 4 minutes and the crowd went nuts there was cheering for about hour it seemed like but they came back out and played CN. Roger Waters said to us that this the connection he was looking for with the audience. This was that magic he wanted. I loved his show it was the greatest thing I have ever been to. Now all we need is a full blown pink floyd reunion tour or something. I would go to see him again if I had the chance. Oh and I think someone threw a rose up on stage and he picked it up and smelled it and started singing with it in his hand. There wasnt one song I didn't like, it was all great. Roger Waters Kicks Ass.