Roger Waters - The Wall (1990)

The Wall (Live in Berlin) seemed uninspired and gimmicky in 1990 but looks and sounds terrifically compelling on DVD, thanks to its vivid image quality and greatly improved audio mixes. The freshly mineswept Potsdamer platz--a once-thriving plaza destroyed by Allied bombing in 1943--proved the perfect place to mark the opening of the Berlin Wall with an all-star production of Pink Floyd's magnum opus: a Wall for a wall. An unlikely assemblage of musicians augments Roger Waters's impressive house band (led by guitarist Rick DiFonzo and organ wizard Nick Glennie-Smith), with everyone from the Scorpions to Joni Mitchell to the Military Orchestra of the Soviet Army getting in on the rock-opera action. Cyndi Lauper, Bryan Adams, James Galway, Thomas Dolby, and Albert Finney all turn in tasty cameos, while Sinead O'Connor looks unaccountably aloof in "Mother." The documentary is thorough and juicy, and producer Tony Hollingsworth offers an above-par essay in the booklet. --Michael Mikesell Amazon.com

Amazing!

Roger Waters - The Wall (Live in Berlin)

This was incredible. I must admit that the one thing I truly regret in my life is the one thing I had no control over... I was born in 1987. I regret it because I missed some of the most incredible times in music history: The Doors, Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, Woodstock '69, Led Zeppelin, ELP, Pink Floyd, etc...

And, of course, this. I was 3 years old, here, and the only music I knew were the lullabies my Dad would sing to me before I went to sleep at night.

I wish I had seen this amazing show live, but I had to settle for the DVD.

Now, I have about five different video sources of Pink Floyd's The Wall Live, as well as tons of audio recordings (including the studio album and Is There Anybody Out There). With the exception of Van Morrison's performance on "Comfortably Numb," this is my favorite version of the show.

Now, something I'd like to address:
I noticed that, on here and on YouTube comments, a lot of people feel that this was "over-acted," "over-produced," etc. I think what you all don't get is that The Wall is NOT a concert. It is NOT something you simply perform with a band on stage. This is a spectacle, a story, a show... this is a performance. It is something that would work just as easily on a Broadway stage (and Roger Waters should consider that idea, IMO) as it did with Pink Floyd and as it does here.

You can't simply play The Wall live. You have to perform it. You have to have scenes and props and actors. Because that's what The Wall is.

I always thought that Pink Floyd's performance would have been even better then it already was (and it was good) with actual actor's, especially during The Trial. To see that here is an amazing thing. The sheer power and performance of this piece astounds me. I admit I thought the Judge on The Trial could have been a lot better, but he wasn't as bad as some people seem to think he was. And Tim Curry was a great choice for the prosecutor, IMO (if Roger does take The Wall to Broadway, I think he should recast Tim Curry as the Prosecutor).

Now, I must admit that I'm a Waters fan. I was a fan of Gilmour until Floyd broke up. Then I kind of lost all my respect for him as a person (he thinks Pink Floyd was rubbish!) and I can't stand his solo material (as well as Division Bell and Momentary Lapse of Reason), but I do consider him one of the greatest guitarists of all time and "Comfortably Numb" didn't just suffer from Van Morrison's performance, but from the lack of David Gilmour. What I would have loved to see him play off of Snowy White. And only David can sing that chorus correctly.

That said, at the very least, Roger could have, and should have, gotten somebody other then Van Morrison to do that chorus, because Morrison and those other people all but killed it.

However, Roger's performance on the song, and the guitar solo(s) almost make up for it, so they save the song and allow me to give this DVD and show the 5-Star rating it deserves.

And finally, the ending. I admit that I wish they had done "Outside the Wall" first, but I love "The Tide is Turning" and I'm glad it was performed here. I also truly believe that Waters should perform "The Tide is Turning" at Barack Obama's Inauguration because it would fit perfectly.

Over all, I truly enjoyed this performance and consider it the best live performance of The Wall I have ever seen ("Comfortably Numb" excluded). November 6, 2008

The planets aligned

There will probably never be another production with this much magic involved. The time was the Berlin Wall coming down, the place was Berlin. The crowd numbered in the tens of thousands. Luck and God was on their side to pull this off in so little time. AMAZING!!! There could not have been a better celebration of such a historical event in time. June 13, 2008

Unbelievable!

I saw the original broadcast, and it was terrific. After watching this DVD, I was awed and amazed. There probably won't ever be another like it again. A must have, especially for Pink Floyd addicts. April 24, 2008

Great concert!

I heard about this from a German friend. I love Pink Floyd and was skeptical at first because of all the other performers covering their songs. I was pleasantly surprised! Roger Waters kept it real. It was very well done, true Pink Floyd fashion. The staging was spectacular! The concert is long, so the on-going changes to the stage and set keep you intrigued. Wish I could have been there! April 7, 2008

The Wall at the Wall!

WOW!! There is always power in the music of Pink Floyd. Never is this power more poignant than in this story of the mental breakdown of the rock star 'Pink'. And never is this story more powerful than in this re-release of the live concert at the Berlin wall. It's not the wonderfully mixed digital sound though, or the enhanced imagery, or even the all super - star cast. It is the message of breaking down walls, personal walls, political walls, even physical walls. Roger Waters should be proud that his music, and his message, can transend personal egos, and result in a synergistic moment that was, amazingly, caught on video. Whew! See this video- December 18, 2007

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