Roger Waters says Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour is ‘irrelevant to his life’

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Despite their decades of work together, Roger Waters says Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour is “irrelevant to his life”.

Waters, who left Pink Floyd in 1985, did not mince words when it came to talking about his current relationship with former bandmates. Though he would be delighted by the band’s reunion at Live 8, and even suggested he would be open to playing with the band again. That never came to be, but Waters said he would jump on the chance to play with the band again in a “heartbeat”. In that same interview, he hit out at his ex-bandmates, saying he was “never really friends” with both Gilmour and Richard Wright. Waters’ disinterest in the lives of his Pink Floyd bandmates did not mean the pair weren’t cordial, though, with the bassist saying he and Gilmour’s social circles were hardly

He told Word Magazine: “I think it would be very cordial if we ever spoke to each other, but we don’t inhabit the same world socially. Rick and I were never really friends, and Dave and I were never really friends, so the fact that we are still no longer really friends is kind of irrelevant to all of our lives.”

It may not come as a surprise to some, as Gilmour’s wife and songwriter, Polly Samson, confirmed the mood before their Live 8 set was icy to say the least. Samson shared the awkwardness between the four was in full swing during the build-up to their charity performance. Not only was small talk off the table, but “big talk” too, as the band found themselves with nothing to say to one another.

Samson did say, though, that the group could still communicate well on stage. Live 8 marks the final time Pink Floyd performed together as a four-piece. It is also the final time the group performed together, with Wright’s death in 2009 ruling out any chance of future reunions of the band.

The group very nearly did not get back together, either. Gilmour was unconvinced by the reunion and infighting in the rehearsals for their performance was frequent.

Samson, speaking to Louder, said: “David wanted something as a full stop to the whole Pink Floyd thing. So, without a piece of music, I wrote Louder Than Words. It was an easy lyric to write because for years I’d noticed this thing. If you’re in a room with David, Nick [Mason] and Rick, or as I was in at Live 8 with David, Nick, Rick and Roger [Waters], nobody speaks.

“There is nothing but awkward silences. They have no small talk with each other, they have no big talk with each other, they just do not speak. If you happen to be the unlucky person in the room, it’s the most awkward feeling you can imagine.

“And then they get onstage with their instruments and suddenly they’re so eloquent, and the way they communicate is beautiful. And so I wrote Louder Than Words just to express that feeling.”