THE WALL

First off, when you see that rating up there, please keep in mind that it's actually supposed to be 4.5 stars... I just don't know how to make that 5th star light up only half way. The Wall is one of Pink Floyd's most loved albums, and it's an extremely impressive acheivement, even it's a slight step back musically from their previous efforts, and there are some noticeably dull moments. There are some musical steps forward, though, like the excellent orchestrations, Mason's powerful drumming on "The Thin Ice", Gilmour's guitar work on "Another Brick In The Wall Part 1", and both solos on "Comfortably Numb", and Waters' lyrics are a step forward in terms of creatively and effectively expressing profound and societally important ideas, and the story is extremely deep, but I sometimes wish it would have been developed further into a triple LP with a more complete conclusion. Great songs abound, like "Hey You" and "Run Like Hell", and the songs "Is There Anybody Out There?" and "Goodbye Blue Sky" are essential Pink Floyd. Do include The Wall in your Pink Floyd collection, listen to it many times, and ponder the meaning, but don't just get this one album and think that it's all Pink Floyd have to offer as some have mistakenly done in the past.