Hi Michael. Great job detailing this here. While watching Codger's recent retort, all I could see was his insufferable sanctimoniousness and self-importance. He's grown increasingly ridiculous over time. While I never bought into the whole anti-Semite accusations, Roger has consistently been a top tier a**hole and egotist supreme. And that goes back to the mid-70s. So I suppose we can at least give him credit for consistency, eh? 😜

Wear a jacket that is a parody of natzees=bad; send billions of dollars to actual natzees=good.

Spot on and we'll said, Michael. 👏👍✌️

Mr. Water has money and therefore he is very important to everyone, just ask him. Oh, and he knows nearly everything about everything.

When I was in my last band they said I was very controlling, and that I insisted all decisions be made by me. I said, "I'll tell you guys when I'm being controlling - and after I've made a decision I'll tell you what to do". ------ LOL! BTW, I love your closing dialogue about rocks gods - you are soooo right!

Roger Waters has gotten more press in the last year than he’s received in the last 30 years in my opinion.

Leave Codger alone....we needed him to write lyrics for David Gilmour.....😆

Waters didn't say he got rid of the pig. He said he had the Star of David "scrubbed" off of it.

I think there should be freedom of speech. I was always a David Gilmour fan and thought David’s version of Pink Floyd is the better one. If Roger wants to push the envelope and creatively tick people off then so be it because of a freedom of speech. I remain more of a Gilmour fan than a Waters fan but Waters can be a creative nutcase if he wants.

Michael, great job on this. Perfect example of the negative impact success has on some people.

You nailed it Michael - honest review - gave waters more credit than I would but I’d give him zero.

The number one indicator that Roger Waters is the good guy: He hates Bono.

I saw Waters' recent show in Budapest in April. Wearing the uniform was clearly theatrical, and is clearly part of The Wall. Don't you remember the movie, Geldof is clearly dressed as a nazi at this part of the story? He is anti war, and "the pig" had a wide range of political and religious imagery on it. Having seen the show, again, Waters is NOT pro-nazi in the show. Playing a part does not mean you support what you are portraying. Is the guy who played Hitler in Downfall a nazi?

He has been wearing variations of that uniform for forty year. Yes it did change in the 90's but he wore the Leather coat during the Wall Tour. It was even part of the Floyd exhibition Their Mortal Remains in 2017. As for the crossed hammer, I suppose the video for Another Brick In The Wall is banned?

Michael - spot on sir!

Keep up good work!!!

I have no trouble separating the artist’s beliefs from their music. I really don’t care about the political, racial, or social beliefs and statements of any artist. I love Roger Waters, Ted Nugent, Neil Young and many others that love to give sermons. I just ignore it all, like I do with anyone else be it a coworker, neighbor, or friend. I ignore that stuff whether I agree with a viewpoint or not. I’m sure I wouldn’t like most celebrities if I met them. 🤷‍♂️ I wish artists wouldn’t leave this trash on our doorstep, but it isn’t going to stop. Social media has made it so much worse.

Good commentary on a difficult subject. 🎯

Spot on Michael , the music yes , enjoy ..but the points of view..each to his own , these people are musicians , nothing else

Getting caught up brother on the videos. Right on the money again!

Totally agree on all points. Although, Lennon had he lived long enough would have been worse than waters and bono combined, on the politics etc. surely u see that

Rock stars, like every one else, have opinions, but they are unique in that they are able to reach millions through their music. And that's where their opinions should stay Let the music speak and keep your mouth shut when you're not singing. In my opinion. Great take Michael, !00% agree. Well, maybe 99.999999%. 😁🖖

As we get again look entirely too deeply into ourselves.👎

I like what Alice Cooper says.Anyone in entertainment field need to just shut up because we're all pretty stupid

I have no problem with Roger wearing that uniform as a part of his production. I don’t think he should be canceled for that. I think he should be canceled because the concerts at the heart of all this controversy are mostly LIP SYNCHED.

Well said! P.S. I have never seen The Wall movie.... maybe it is time to.

"More preachier?"

pity some of our leaders havent got the balls roger has, to tell it how it is !

Yeah, Roger. Nixon was victim of circumstance, too. Once again, it's the art, not the artist. "The Wall" is great--it really does achieve what I consider artistic success--it tells a story . that triumphs over suffering. Ta da! It's not his performance , or recreation of the art so much that annoys me, I'm an artist. My heart and mind are open and accepting. It's his insane Holocaust denial , and overzealous calls for the destruction of Israel that tell me that, while he may have "the right" to say what he wants, he does so in a manner that is completely devoid of empathy. I choose to not support him financially, and I'm not interested in promoting his propaganda. Good work, as always, MN! Thanks for the big shout out, too. That was a borderline thrill to see ! In peace, 🤓

🌠 Good one Michael noland/ no where man..beatles guy...I mean that in a good way..floyd are my #3 on my classic rock list..sad that this stuff is goin on..more band drama..seems like there's alot of it lately..hope your doin alright..

I've watched the 20 minutes video of Mr Waters...getting old doesn't always mean getting better...agree 100% with you...I also see a lack of empathy...and Waters as an artist,if we look close...has spoken about empathy though some lyrics...and that uniform isn't the same at all...there's is arrogance in my opinion,again...when you know you're gonna hurt...why do it?...why?...right,some laws are here for a good reason...I've always told to myself...have no hero...'cos human changes...you never know...that said I appreciate the talent...and respect the work,yes Mr Waters is a genius...but by his side...there was a genius guitar player,a fine fine keyboards player,and a unique drummer too....without them?...where was the sound of Pink Floyd?...

Waters has been a controversial figure for a very long time. I watched his response video to this subject. I felt he did a good job of explaining the real meaning of the costume(s) and imagery in question. I do believe some do not understand it or mistake it for something that it is not. This is something that is easy to take shots at. Mainly because some people will take the criticism at face value without doing their own research to determine if such criticism is justified. That said, I personally believe that Waters has a incorrect or warped understanding of what fascism and tyranny is. He seems to support ideas that support such things to come about. Performance art such as this is sometimes a good thing for society. It provides a warning by reminding us of dark events in human history that could be easily repeated if we forget such history.

Agree, he has no idea and right to get involved in politics.

Totally agree with ALL of your points. You clearly have the right perspective.

Regardless of any of his history of rants, or anything he's done to bandmates, the man has been anti-war his entire existence. He's not on board with blanket support for Ukraine. That's a major problem with the people who run the world.

I was at his concert in London yesterday and have to say that I was more fascinated by the Pig’s mechanisms from an engineering standpoint than I was with the show.. a real disappointment, not nearly as good as the wall.

Where was Roger during Fidel Castro's reign? Or Saddam Hussein? How about atrocities women face in the Middle East?

Respectfully Michael, being "anti Israel", but not an "anti semtite" is a slippery slope. (usually they go hand in hand)

I don't think he is antisemitic either. Infortunately, labels such as that among others, get thrown around like confetti these days. Name calling is just a way some people avoid rational debates on issues and silence others.

Michael, first of all Roger Waters is a great artist, but as you said great artists also can be giant a*holes. As far as I am concerned Roger as a BDS supporter is an anti Semite because BDS IS antisemitic. Back in 2019 the Bundestag (parliament) of Germany issued a resolution that the BDS movement was antisemitic. Roger or at least his lawyers should know that. Also it is illegal to wear nazi or nazi-like uniforms and show nazi or nazi-like symbols like SS runes. That is also not a new rule. This is a law from 1949. I am old enough to remember when Roxy Music came on TV way back in 1974 and Bryan Ferry wore a brown uniform like the SA did. There was a big outcry in the media and in the public and that's fifty years ago. Even Kiss had to change the style of the last two letters in their band name when they first toured Germany because they looked like SS runes. Back to Roger Waters. He wrote a few of the greatest tunes in Rock music and I won't stop listening to Pink Floyd. You have to separate the person from the artist. For an example Richard Wagner was a great composer and a huge anti Semite. Should we therefore stop playing his operas ? Ike Turner was an a*hole in a different way, but he was also a great musician and I still can listen to his music without imagining him beating Tina up all the time.

The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.

Rogers is a force of nature. I disagree with his one sided take on Isreal. The Pig is equal opportunity and had various religious symbols on it. He has kept the pig from what I understand but removed the Star of David. Not sure about the Islamic symbol. As to the suit... it did morph over time it seems but it does appear in full Hugo Boss inspired fashion in the actual film. I also followed up on Lonewolf's comment below and did see a pic of Roger in the full on suit with armband from the 1981 program tour book. The fact that Rogers angers people on the political right and left is interesting to say the least. 😁

He’s currently in the uk.

Apart from the items above, Michael, what's your take on the royalties Pink Floyd would have received for the Dark Side of the Moon music as used in the soundtrack of the new DC movie 'The Flash'. This will probably cancel any negative backchat Roger gets from anything, anyone throws his way. ✌

The Germans contribution to WW2 ,and what was done to their Jewish population, must never be swept under the rug or glossed over.

The trouble is he's been singing about his dead father for the last 40 years. I take it as he's creatively bankrupt and he cant come up with anything new.

I go to many many concerts. I `ve seen Pink Floyd and Roger Waters shows. And I love seeing that pig flying about the arena. Very fun and a highlight. I remember one time in Toronto when they were blowing the pig up, it hit some lighting rig in the parking lot and caught on fire, blew up and crashed. Fantastic. That`s a great concert. ( I truely hope nobody was hurt )

Spot on Michael. It's a sad fact of life that sometimes our heros turn out to be douchebags. Sadly, for me, Roger has been sitting in that category for awhile now. His musical genius I'll never dispute but would I want to have a beer with him? Nah pass.

What does the pig mean other then to freak you out when your buzzed out at the show.

I'm not saying that I agree with Roger Waters' recent political preaching, but I always thought that the "Nazi" section of 'The Wall' was a satire of the Nazis and of rock stars. When Germany censors artists, they prove themselves no better than the Nazis. The only difference is which group is being targeted.

(Hi, This is Brad-K. YT changed my handle) While RW is about the last person I would choose to hang out with, and while I, back in the day, destroyed my LP of The Wall because its' absolutely depressing drivel, I did see RW's The Wall live show, twice (on separate tour legs, the second time was actually much more 'not-see' ). I do think you're reading too much into his portrayal of the "Pink" character. For instance, that original uniform, perhaps due to budget constraints of the time, appears to have come from military surplus, while the newer one appears to be custom made for the show. The whole show is like that...with progressing production values. Yes, I did see the pig with the star of David, but there were a LOT of other symbols, especially the Christian cross, which appeared in the hundreds. There were also corporate symbols maligned. Basically, while RW is a jerk,j he's an equal opportunity jerk.. Not a Roger Water fan, but that really is an artistic statement about the personal descent of a (semi) fictional character.

Condemning an oppresive Zionist regime is not the same as being an antisemite and disliking jews. The uniform he's wearing on stage is a parody of an nazi type dictator. It's not implying that he's a nazi sympatizer. His dad was killed by nazis during WWII. But saying this doesn't apologize his behavior towards his former bandmates Gilmour and Wright and taking full credit for writing their most famous albums. Just my humble opinion.

Roger Waters is just tiring & boring - - time to move on....

Roger Waters has a big ego and I'm not with him on all of the Pink Floyd stuff. But he's dead right on this issue. There's no way that Waters is anti-semitic. This has been an issue in the UK Labour Party for some time. Being g critical of the Isreali government does not make you anti-semitic just like criticism of Donald Trump doesn't make you anti-American.

With a net worth of $300m, and numerous flights on private jets....I'm more interested on his views about global warming and greedy rich people

You said ' if I had my way.....' WW2 wasn't about killing Jews, my father was pow in Poland for 4 years, my mother was polish, ask yourself, who has killed the most people and nobody ever talks about it? Roger is reminding people of fascism, that's the problem because it's never gone away, we've always had a mild version of it in the UK. The easy answer is, don't listen to anymore pink floyd music, do people still listen to Gary glitter music? He was huge. Roger is a defender of the innocent, that takes balls, he doesn't have to do it, why does he? He could have a nice easy life, meanwhile the big fish are laughing their bollocks off at us all bickering

Waters is full of himself, he’s thinks his double talk is undetectable and he thinks he’s the smartest guy in the room - therefore he believes everything he says is the way it is. Hmmm sounds a lot like a narcissist. You can have all the talent in the world, but if you’re not remotely likable it shows that all the talent in the world means nothing. I’m sorry I just can’t stand the guy.

Waters lost his mind totally during The Wall, when the rest of the band refused to elect him King Socialist, he has never even been close to another popular album or song even. Not one.

I don't like Roger Waters for his arrogance and narcism, but he is not an anti-semite, and I tend do side with him on this current issue. The crossed hammers have been around since The Wall, which was an antifascist film. The pig has been floating around since Animals, which had no anti-semitic overtones and was based on George Orwell's famous novel. This hullabaloo is all part of the current and rather pathetic trend that isolates individual statements or symbols, and ignores the context - all part of the snow-flake, woke ideology which is strangling common sense and our society as a whole.

Not looking for a whole thing, but before we add more height to Lennons pedestal we should recall that he admitted to being a serial abuser of his romantic partners, which was confirmed by said partners. He's no Saint, and RW being, well RW, doesn't change JL status.

I believe Waters is absolutely nuts. He thinks way too highly of himself.

He isn’t an anti-Semite, he does support BDS. Specifically, he is of the belief that the Palestinians are being treated unfairly. I suspect it is pretty hard to make the argument that he supports fascism, given the fate of his father. The pig, is from Animals, an appropriation of a George Orwell theme. As for the length of time, I guess he would say the character ‘Pink’ has been wearing the uniform for that long. BUT... Anyone who is a fan of Roger Waters or Pink Floyd (post Syd) is probably aware of his views on politics, and other things. These people (and I happen to be one of them) don’t need my limited time with Roger Waters taken up with his political message. That is not what I am paying him for. As for Roger presenting at the UN, that is just a clash of ego and ignorance. Sure, great lyricist, great conceptual artist, probably even pretty widely read. BUT, a scholar or diplomat he isn’t. I suspect if any of the legacy acts has one great album left, that it is Roger Waters. I for one want that album, not news articles debating the choices of a musician.

Yes because safe and empathy make great art right? BTW though he does have empathy for certain things Palestinians and victims of war and empirical govts to name a couple. Also every US President in the last few decades IS a war criminal. Nothing wrong with reading and forming your own opinions either.

Well democrat candidate RFK Jr. supports Waters. And whaddaya know his tweet was deleted. Go figure........

Are you kidding me Mr Noland , Germany trying to loose its Nazi image 😂 have you not listened to the German midget recently he gave a speech reminiscent of the Austrian painter and don't get me started on supporting Nazis in ukraine! God bless Roger Waters.

Roger Waters is a dinosaur and is basically irrelevant nowadays. He crash-landed with The Wall and every Pink Floyd album after that was crap as were his solo albums. Politics absolutely ruins rock. Bono & Springsteen are two others who actually think their political opinions matter to us.

I have to say that in listening to your explanations you are not accurate in your statements. Look at Pink Floyd The Wall shows in 1980. YES the crossed hammers were part of it. They were included in every tour since then and even included in 1990’s Wall in Berlin show. You then go on to stat Roger stayed Bull Shat when he stated (as you put it) “he was not aware of the pig and what is implications were” is incorrect. Roger did state he put the Star of David on the pig with the crucifix, crescent moon, dollar symbol, etc. and did not know the implications of that. No one accused RW of being anti-Christian or anti-Muslim! It was his statement on how religion can play a negative role in the world (no question on this fact-and yes there is lots of good too). As soon as it was made an issue of he removed the star from the pig! He also changed the visuals during goodby cruel world but kept the Star of David in that portion. You are correct in being anti Israel is different than being anti-Semitic.

The trope of the genius who has great skill in some art, yet acts like an ass to everyone not in his entourage owes its existence to that entourage methinks. No star like comrade Waters exists in a vacuum. Surely every artist who writes all the lyrics in a band has accolades whispering in their ears about their superiority. I see no reason why great art can only be made by psycho assholes, nor do I really dig the Pink Floyd much anymore, after decades with some of their discs on high rotation. So what if it's super popular and iconic, I'm sick of it. I could go the rest of my life not hearing The Wall, or Dark Side and not miss it. But then cats like Peter Gabriel never got so dickish as this guy, thing is that if there were less tolerance for assholes in art I for one wouldn't miss their input. My favorite artists in recent years are not just geniuses in music, but good people. Robert Fripp and Toyah Wilcox, what an amazing couple! Pink Floyd without Roger did some beautiful music, right up until Endless River. Sure, it didn't have the sizzle the lost mates added to the mix, but it shows that asshat Waters never did anything totally alone, no so called genius ever does. A real genius in the ancient sense gives praise to the lineage and the Creator, and takes no personal credit for the greatness of the Craft. To my senses Roger's influence on the Floyd got worse the further it went, so that their last album together is a depressing turd, even though the music is good. The fact of The Wall being a dismal experience for the people who made it is part of why I can't stand listening to it anymore. When I was young I didn't have the senses I now have. I mean, Roger Waters' voice shines in the Rock genre as iconic, but I can hear the tones of his asshat in the way he sings and I really don't like it. David Gilmour and Rick Wright sound just great to me. Mr. Gilmour gave us Kate Bush for one thing.

sorry Michael this whole Roger Waters topic is becoming dull. We know he is a bit psychotic and loves to court controversy and speak about topics he clearly has little knowledge of (Russia / Ukraine war for example). Even stating that the lyrics are more important than the music. Well Roger write a book or create poetry if that is your view. Just let him fester in his own world view and not give him the oxygen of publicity. With luck he will bugger off and take his overblown dreary music with him.

He is an antisemite. That doesn't mean I think he openly hates Jews or wishes them harm. But he is openly apathetic, and at times hostile, to their needs and concerns. To me, that crosses the bar to being antisemitic.