The Penultimate Cut
It was the sticker that got me. I'd forgotten the thing was even going to be released, to be honest. But there it was, staring up at me as I was flipping through the Pink Floyd section, as I do out of habit in every record store I visit. Why do I bother? There's never anything new, is there? Being a Pink Floyd collector at this point in the band's career is something like wearing Howard Dean for President buttons. That train's long departed, hasn't it?
Except, no, there's hope yet, if by "hope" you mean "things to be bought". Yes, we've been blessed with a "new, improved" re-master of The Final Cut. In their infinite wisdom, the band has decided to integrate "When the Tigers Broke Free" into the running order of the 1983 release, though I suspect it was Roger's decision more than any of his former compatriots, since this is very much his baby. Which makes the choice all the more puzzling. As the one member who has shunned stadium shows, resisted box sets, and even attempted to end the Pink Floyd name for good, the blatant commercialism of this latest move is a head-scratcher. Is ol' Rog out for a quick buck from the re-master train?
It's hard to say, given that I have seen no real discussion in the press about motivations for the song's inclusion.
Maybe I am being too cynical. Perhaps, now that Floyd-related activity on the part of his former compatriots has died down, Roger is trying to bring new attention to a neglected work. Or perhaps he feels that the song belongs thematically with these tracks. Maybe running-time limitations at the time of release prevented the song from being included like Roger wanted. Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps... Hard to say without a definitive word from those involved, and, near as I can tell, no one's talking.
So let's move past the speculation and look at the results themselves. How does it work? The truth is, in my opinion at least, it doesn't. The album grinds to a halt to let this track pass through, like traffic waiting for a freight train. In the context of the Wall movie, where it really belongs, "Tigers" is a preamble and, later, a gentle restatement of themes brought up in "Another Brick in the Wall (part 1)". In terms of pacing, the movie can handle the ebb and flow of moving from a driving rock rhythm to a gentle orchestral piece. But in the context of The Final Cut (at least where the album's producers have seen fit to place it), the song feels like a cul-de-sac, a diversion away from the rest of the song cycle.
It could be a problem of familiarity. In spite of my generally low opinion of it, I know Cut backwards and forwards in its original form. Still, eliminating concerns on a purely musical level, the lyrical continuity is also disturbed. As I understand it, the "story" of The Final Cut is about a teacher who lost his son in the Falklands Conflict. But this new track either shifts perspective awkwardly or just plain ignores what goes with it. Looking for continuity now becomes sheer madness. If this is the teacher from The Wall, as you might be inclined to believe since Waters used the same actor in his videos for Cut, are the leads from these albums now even more closely linked, since they share a song in common? Are we now supposed to believe that Pink, following the collapse of his wall, gave up the rock lifestyle and became a teacher? A teacher who would later victimize... himself?
Okay, so that way lies madness, but what was once a coherent album becomes something of a mess. The lyrics get confused, the pacing is broken, and the song is just plain out of place. Admittedly, it's Waters' mess to make, as it's his house, to beat this metaphor into the ground, and he can do with it as he pleases. But that doesn't mean I intend to visit.
(And the metaphor is officially dead. But I digress...)
 The Final Cut |
Fooling with a beloved work of art is always dangerous, and fraught with the bodies of those who have tried before. And if my admittedly rather harsh comment on the Floyd's latest re-master doesn't convince you, I can prove this theory with two words: Sgt. Pepper's. Whoever let the Bee Gees and Peter Frampton near that album should be taken out and beaten. (You hear me, Stigwood?) Thankfully, the awful film version is largely forgotten, while the masterpiece album remains a staple in CD players everywhere. Yes, successful reinterpretations are rare. Hitchcock managed to remake one of his own earlier works to interesting effect. Mel Brooks took a neglected film and turned it into the biggest Broadway hit in ages. But for every Man Who Knew Too Much or The Producers, there are a dozen "Comfortably Numb"s by the Scissor Sisters. Or maybe it just seems that way.
The Floyd have, until now, wisely managed to avoid the problem by sticking with proven combinations. No unneccessary bonus tracks tacked on to re-masters, no slapdash "appeal to the youngsters" remixes ("Sympathy for the Devil" remixed by Fatboy Slim? Really, guys... you're kidding, right?), just the classics. When they do venture into this territory, it's done very carefully, like the Echoes compilation, or the Dark Side SACD. And I suppose I should give the boys credit for trying, but "close" only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades, right?
The question I have is, what happens now to the old version? Is it going out of print, or will there remain two versions on the market for consumers to choose from? I suspect the former. It appears that the plain CD version of The Dark Side of the Moon is still available alongside the SACD (inexplicably, as the SACD plays on regular CD players, too), but that is a perennial favorite and a strong seller, and can support two formats, especially since both have different artwork. The Final Cut has neither of those things going for it.
There are bound to be, then, fans who encounter this version first, and I have to wonder what their take will be. I know I hear grumblings from Beatles fans who still long for the mono versions of their favorite albums to see release, but their complaints just seem woefully out of step with the realities of the marketplace. And, perhaps, to some young, fresh Floyd fan-in-the-making, my arguments here will just as foolish, too. From the looks of things, I seem to be stuck with the New, Improved, 2004 Waters-Preferred Version.
There is, I suppose, always the skip button.