Four years after The Wall, with the enmity between Roger Waters and the rest of the band still unresolved, the scene was set for The Final Cut.
The last Pink Floyd studio album to feature Waters gave him an opportunity to vent his spleen about the Falklands War and exorcise demons associated with the death of his father, Eric Fletcher Waters, in the Second World War.
When The Tigers Broke Free, the only song not on the original album (it was released as a single), tells the story of the annihilation of the Royal Fusiliers Company C. With a nobility and a dignity that cannot be denied, the track leads into The Hero's Return, which presents a chilling contrast between the "banners and flags" at the war's end and an airman's painful memories.
Raphael Ravenscroft's soaring tenor sax on The Gunner's Dream is an effective counterpoint to Michael Kamen's delicate piano work. Subtitled "A requiem for the post-war dream", this re-mastered album, with its rich soundscape, is not a comfortable listen, although there is beauty amid the bleakness.
Updated: 09:33 Thursday, May 20, 2004
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