A Frank Exchange of Views

Depending on your view of Pink Floyd's music and the band's history, you probably have one of three attitudes toward the name 'Roger Waters':

1) He is an ambitious jerk who tossed his friend Syd aside.

2) He is a brilliant musical genius who led Pink Floyd to their greatest triumphs.

3) He is an arrogant bully who couldn't stand to see his former bandmates have any success without him.

But no matter which option you choose, you cannot deny that Roger Waters has played a pivotal role in band's history. In this issue of Spare Bricks, we will examine that legacy, from his earliest songwriting efforts to his greatest masterpieces, from his floundering early solo tours to his acclaimed world tour that has just finished.

But perhaps the most exciting feature of this issue is an in-depth, exclusive interview of Jim Ladd. Ladd is probably best known in Floyd circles as the voice of "Jim" in Radio KAOS, but his relationship with Roger and the rest of the Floyd goes back long beyond that. Jim is, in fact, a true Floyd fan in every sense of the word, and has been a close personal friend of Roger Waters for many years. That Jim was willing to sit down with Spare Bricks writer Johnny Valenzuela and talk on and on about his friendship with Roger, their working relationship, and so many wonderful memories from the KAOS sessions and tour is a real treat for all of us. Thank you, Jim.

And thank you, Roger, wherever you are, for giving us so much to talk about and write about over the past four years.

Now get out there and finish that darned opera!

Mike McInnis is the editor of Spare Bricks.