Fans of the legendary rock band Pink Floyd believe a live version of The Wall is the best way to listen.
Often cited as one of the band’s very best albums, The Wall would see Roger Waters write a story following Pink, a fictional rocker. He imparted some personal reflections on the album, which also featured a selection of writings from David Gilmour, as well as instrumental work from Nick Mason and Richard Wright. Fans now believe live versions which followed the release of The Wall are a superior listening experience to the 1979 release. Several adaptations of the album to the stage, some of which are helmed solely by Waters, were among those discussed by r/PinkFloyd subreddit members. A consensus was not quite reached, but one certainly stood out beyond the other suggestions.
A fan asked: “What’s your favourite way to listen to The Wall? Unpopular opinion, but I actually think all four of them offer something fun and a bit different. The original is obviously classic.
“Is There Anybody Out There? – I love the guitar tones and especially the extra piano embellishments by Rick. Live in Berlin is hit and miss, but the hits are great, especially Bryan Adams. Then Roger live just sounds so heavy throughout, especially love Run Like Hell in Drop C. Any thoughts?”
Some are suggesting Is There Anybody Out There? is not just the ideal way to listen to The Wall, but also one of the best live albums of all time. The fan shared: “Is There Anybody Out There? is probably my favourite live album ever. Best Comfortably Numb solo version I can think of, too.
“My parents gave it to me to listen to on a family holiday to Cuba when it first came out. Listened to it for two weeks straight.” Another agreed, adding: “The Is There Anybody Out There? version reinvigorated my love for the album – which I was honestly getting pretty tired of.
“I didn’t own Is There Anybody Out There? until getting it in The Wall Immersion box-set, whenever that was. Obviously Is There Anybody Out There? has Wright present and contributing musically (unlike the studio version) so it’s a full-band rendition of the album.
“And it’s a full recording of the work, with time for the “MC” / surrogate band stuff, Roger’s amusing baiting of the “weak people in the audience tonight” (intro to Run Like Hell) – and tracks like What Shall We Do Now? which is a highlight in the movie version but bizarrely absent from the studio album.”
A third added: “Is There Anybody Out There? is my favourite and the only one I really listen to now. I’ve never thought much of the original version, so it’s surprising in retrospect that I went to see them do it, but there weren’t many chances to see the Floyd live in those days.”
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