Roger Waters: In The Flesh

(Columbia)

Herald rating: * *

Review: Russell Baillie

Former Pink Floyd bassist, vocalist and writer of its most successful albums, Waters has had one of the longest running fits of pique in rock history since his attempt to split the band in the mid-80s left the
others carrying on regardless.

Meanwhile, ever since staging The Wall live in Berlin in 1990, Waters' solo career has gone nowhere. Which probably explains why he headed out on tour in the States two years ago — armed with much of the Floyd canon — and this subsequent double live album.

So, The Best Live Pink Floyd Tribute Double Album in the World, Ever? Sort of. As the liner notes say: "There are some omissions of course, most conspicuously from the Dark Side of the Moon and The Wall. Dark Side of the Moon has been performed almost ad infinitum by another band ..."

Here instead, it's ad nauseam — the performances of Waters' Floyd classics are really quite dull. And this odd, over-extended collection isn't helped by the inclusions of a couple of uncelebrated songs from his ever-earnest solo career. Only for the devoted Floyd fan and likely only a once-through-and-file even for them.