Mojo magazine re-working of Pink Floyd's The Wall

[Buzzer]

Absolute nonsense, Herbicide. Yes, it's unique but as long as one artist has written songs, another has covered it. I've got a rare cover of "I put a spell on you" by Pink Floyd. Should that have not been done? What about all those other great covers of great songs? Are you telling me that you don't have or listen to any cover versions?

None of the bands have claimed to try and improve the Wall. It's a re-working. Nothing more or less. As long as the band covering it bring something new to the table and it's not just a karaoke cover then I see no problem. Imitation is the sincerest form etc etc

Tell you what - why not have an open mind, listen to it and then make judgements?

 

[Peteinblack]

Not sure that he was a nasty piece of work as much as a flawed human being, he wasn't dealt the best hand as a youngster was he, especially with his disability. More of a revelation to me was what a bunch of tossers my childhood heroes Led Zeppelin were, John Bonham was basically a violent drunk, Jimmy Page liked whipping teenage girls and as for the Mud Shark Incident....

Aparently, in an interview in Sunday Times magazine this week, it said that when they showed Dury's wife the original screenplay, she said 'oh, he was more of a c**t than that'!

Ah yes: 'How would your red snapper like to meet this red snapper' (as told in Stephen Davis's Led Zep biography Hammer of the Gods).

Yes, Bonham was reputed to be a heavy-drinking bully, and not someone you'd want to get on the wrong side of.

Mind you, Zep's manager, Peter Grant, didn't suffer fools gladly, but looked after the band well; allegedly pulled a gun on someone selling unathorised Zep posters and t-shirts at a gig once, apparently. If he thought anyone was ripping the band off, he went after them big-time.

Back to the Floyd album and covers - one of my all-time favourite cover versions is 'Comfortably Numb' performed live only (never recorded on disc) by the Sisters of Mercy; they opened their set with it in the early 1990s - a very dark, doomy and heavy version of the song.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

And the revelation in the review of his biography that Ian Dury was basically a nasty piece of work really was a revelation. I kind of presumed he was a nIce bloke, universally loved.

There's a reason they've chosen GOLLOM to play him in the film!

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

Absolute nonsense, Herbicide. Yes, it's unique but as long as one artist has written songs, another has covered it. I've got a rare cover of "I put a spell on you" by Pink Floyd. Should that have not been done? What about all those other great covers of great songs? Are you telling me that you don't have or listen to any cover versions?

None of the bands have claimed to try and improve the Wall. It's a re-working. Nothing more or less. As long as the band covering it bring something new to the table and it's not just a karaoke cover then I see no problem. Imitation is the sincerest form etc etc

Tell you what - why not have an open mind, listen to it and then make judgements?

I've got a Cure covers CD which has a foreword by Mr Smith about covering songs. Amongst other things he says covers are not necessarily meant to replace or improve on the original. Some are meant to though. And you can cover songs for any number of reasons..... and it might just be you love playing the song-nothing more and nothing less.

What I'll add is that once a song is published, it's game to cover, by the very definition of publishing.

I do wonder why some artists cover particular songs though...Guns n Roses Sympathy for the Devil springs to mind. Equally Johnny Cash has done some really moving covers which in my mind improve on the originals.

 

[herbicide]

Absolute nonsense, Herbicide. Yes, it's unique but as long as one artist has written songs, another has covered it. I've got a rare cover of "I put a spell on you" by Pink Floyd. Should that have not been done? What about all those other great covers of great songs? Are you telling me that you don't have or listen to any cover versions?

None of the bands have claimed to try and improve the Wall. It's a re-working. Nothing more or less. As long as the band covering it bring something new to the table and it's not just a karaoke cover then I see no problem. Imitation is the sincerest form etc etc

Tell you what - why not have an open mind, listen to it and then make judgements?

Why would I need to listen to it? I like the original.

I do take back what I said about the Mona Lisa, though...

 

[algie]

A very very fine magazine and IMHO a brilliant re-working by lots and lots of different bands (absolutely none of which I've heard of). Particularly like the Goidbye Cruel World and a band called North Sea Orchestra doing Vera/bring the boys back home.

And on the subject of the original album: just how cool is it? 30 years on and still got lots of relevance. Shame that Waters had to basically re-do it and do it badly with the final cut.

Also been listening to Syd Barrett's album Barrett. It really is a grower isn't it?

(apologies. Am on a v long train journey and feel the need to talk music, sad man that I am)

The Final Cut album is actually a quality piece of work.More of a solo album i agree.I listen to this album more then any other Floyd one.

 

[herbicide]

Waters wrote the best lyrics ever put on record, in my opinion.

Pink Floyd recorded the best album ever written (Dark Side of the Moon).

What's the use of a cover version that doesn't improve on the original?

 

[jakarta]

I'm clearly a bad Pink Floyd Fan as I really can't listen to The Wall (or Roger Waters first solo album as I prefer to call it) these days, Comfortably Numb apart and that is only because of Dave Gilmours magnificent guitar.

I just find it one long self-pitying whine from a very rich man (Waters) who didn't like his job and his life when being in the incredibly fortunate postion of being able to change both.

Not really like the sadness of Syd Barretts decline described in Wish You Were Here or the general state of humanities woes in Dark Side of the Moon, nor the comparatively cheerful insanity of the Barrett albums....

On the other hand my favourite Floyd Track is Alans Psychedelic Breakfast off Atom Heart Mother (Marmalade, I like Marmalade) which puts me in a very small minority!

Anyway back to work while listening to a forgotten '70's band I love - The Pink Fairies Never Never Land - Here Comes That Snake!

 

[Poyetry In Motion]

Waters wrote the best lyrics ever put on record, in my opinion.

Pink Floyd recorded the best album ever written (Dark Side of the Moon).

What's the use of a cover version that doesn't improve on the original?

the easy star all stars did a pretty good version called Dub side of the moon - i assume they were'nt trying to improve it, but just recorded a different sound and style