迷墙 (1979)

The Wall is the eleventh studio album by the English rock band Pink Floyd, released on 30 November 1979 by Harvest/EMI and Columbia/CBS Records. It is the last album to include all four post-Barrett–era band members. A double album rock opera, it follows the story of "Pink", a jaded rock star, as he builds a psychological "wall" of isolation around himself. The Wall topped the US charts for 15 weeks and reached number three in the UK. It initially received mixed reviews from critics, many of whom found it overblown and pretentious, but later received accolades as one of the greatest albums of all time.

The group's bassist Roger Waters conceived The Wall during Pink Floyd's 1977 In the Flesh tour, modelling the character of Pink after himself and former founding member Syd Barrett. Recording spanned from December 1978 to November 1979. Co-producer Bob Ezrin helped to refine the concept and bridge tensions during recording, as the band members were struggling with personal and financial problems. The group's keyboardist, Richard Wright, was fired by Waters during production but stayed on during the tour as a salaried musician.

Three singles were issued: "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2" (Pink Floyd's only UK and US number-one single), "Run Like Hell", and "Comfortably Numb". From 1980 to 1981, Pink Floyd performed the album on a tour that featured elaborate theatrical effects. In 1982, The Wall was adapted into a feature film written by Waters. Some outtakes were used on the next Pink Floyd album, The Final Cut (1983).

The Wall is one of the best-known concept albums. With over 30 million copies sold, it is the second-best-selling Pink Floyd album behind The Dark Side of the Moon (1973), the best-selling double album of all time, and one of the best-selling albums of all time. In 2000, it was voted number 30 in Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums. In 2003, 2012, and 2020, it was included in Rolling Stone's lists of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". From 2010 to 2013, Waters staged a new The Wall live tour that became one of the highest-grossing tours by a solo musician. In 2011, Waters declared The Wall to be his favourite album he recorded with Pink Floyd.

Background

Throughout 1977, Pink Floyd played the In the Flesh tour to promote their new album Animals. Roger Waters despised the experience – angered by the audience's rowdy behavior (such as setting off fireworks in the middle of songs) and convinced that they were not really listening to the music. During the final show on 6 July 1977 at the Montreal Olympic Stadium, a group of noisy and excited fans near the stage irritated Waters so much that he leaned over the side and spat on one of them. Waters said of the incident, "Immediately afterwards I was shocked by my behaviour. I realised that what had once been a worthwhile and manageable exchange between us (the band) and them (the audience) had been utterly perverted by scale, corporate avarice and ego. All that remained was an arrangement that was essentially sado-masochistic." That night, Waters spoke with producer Bob Ezrin and a psychiatrist friend of Ezrin's about the alienation and despair he was experiencing. He articulated his desire to isolate himself by constructing a wall across the stage between the band and the audience. The concept was an instant source of inspiration.