The “cantankerous” view of bassist Roger Waters is because he was “acerbic and sharp”, according to The Wall songwriter.
It may not be the reason people dislike Waters now, given his comments on his former bandmates and music legends like Ozzy Osbourne, but the bassist believed a reason he wasn’t well-liked is because he doesn’t “suffer fools gladly.” The Pink Floyd founder’s outspoken comments have landed him in hot water in the past, but during his early years the negative perception was due to how Waters was seen as a “leader”, he claims. Waters says this as he believes he was somewhat “sharp” with those he had to communicate with in the early years of Pink Floyd. This view of himself in the early years comes during a reflective period for the bassist, who also shared he regretted giving writing credits to Nick Mason, Richard Wright, and David Gilmour.
Speaking to Word Magazine, Rogers said: “Well, certainly when I was younger, I could be a bit acerbic and sharp in terms of the way I communicated with people, and it is true that I don’t suffer fools gladly.
“When I left the group, there was a lot of bad feeling and a lot of mud-slinging in both directions. I think some of the criticisms they levelled at me were a way of reducing my power. ‘OK, well, he is the leader and he does make the decisions, so let’s call him an egomaniac.'” This version of events from Waters comes as The Wall writer says he regrets giving his bandmates a writing credit on The Dark Side of the Moon.
In an interview with Uncut Magazine in 2003, Waters confirmed he “regrets” the decision to credit his Pink Floyd bandmates. He said: “This album is my baby. In terms of what the records were about, they were my ideas and I wrote them. Dave, particularly, but Rick as well, had major, important contributions.”
Though he was thankful for the contributions made by Gilmour and Wright, Waters remained clear in his belief that it was a mistake to credit them as writers for the album. Waters went as far as to single out a credit given to Mason which he had come to regret.
Waters shared: “I’ve regretted it rather a lot since, but I’m over that now. I went through many years when I really regretted having given away half the writing credits, particularly [Nick Mason’s solo credit for] Speak To Me. I gave it to him. Nobody else had anything to do with it at all.”
The songwriter behind Amused to Death and The Wall said he doesn’t care about Black Sabbath and that he “couldn’t give a fuck” about their musical legacy. Waters, who is no stranger to controversy, went on to say he had “no interest” in the group’s decades of activity, and also referenced the infamous bat-biting moment.
Osbourne would claim in interviews after the incident that he believed it was a fake, rubber bat thrown onto the stage. Nonetheless, it did not impress Waters, and his comments did not impress Black Sabbath fans, with many suggesting it was “too soon” to criticise Osbourne.
