If Pink Floyd would go on tour again, what is your setlist for a gig?

[daemonspudguy]

For me, Comfortably Numb is an essential track because it's my favorite Pink Floyd song. I don't know why it is, but it is.

[ILuvHoney]

I am realistic enough to realize that this won't happen. Furthermore, David Gilmour has been such an asshole lately that I hope it never happens - I simply don't want to be associated with that kind of a person!

I must admit that I personally am much more of a Roger Waters fan than a Pink Floyd fan really - as far as I am concerned, I see Pink Floyd's 1967-1983 catalogue and Roger's solo catalogue as one thing - namely Roger's songs.

I don't even hope for a Pink Floyd reunion, but I do hope for a Roger Waters tour where he will play all the best songs from his career with the best of the best musicians he has toured with. The setlist will probably seem something like this:

Set 1:
In the Flesh
What God Wants Pt 1
Deja Vu
If
Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun (with no sax solo unlike in most of Roger's tours, but instead featuring an extended psychedelic guitar jam by G.E. Smith and Clapton)
Welcome to the Machine
The Bravery of Being Out of Range (not the version he plays on his current tour, but the original ATD version)
Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V)
Time
Home
Dogs (sung by Jon Carin, NOT Jonathan Wilson!)
The Gunner's Dream (performed like 1984, except that improvised guitar and hammond solos take the place of the sax solos)
Mother (with Katie Kissoon singing the bad man's parts)
Echoes (sung by Clapton and Carin, with Roger joining in on the chorus. Seagull section is omitted to save time, but Roger leaves the rest of the midsection free for improvisation)

Then intermission, and then...

Set 2:
Go Fishing (instead of lip-syncing the high parts, Roger sings them in a lower octave, backed by the backing vocalists)
Towers of Faith
Picture That
interstellar Overdrive (as a jam like in the good old days, with Roger playing bass and improvising along with G.E. Smith, Clapton and Carin - no clicktracks and no visuals except from replica psychedelic light show)
The Powers That Be (in a similar version to the 1999 performances, but probably with a Clapton guitar solo in the middle)
Pigs (Three Different Ones) - mostly performed like in 1977, but with Clapton free to improvise on the solos
Three Wishes - with a long guitar/bass jam at the end, probably extending to 10-13 minutes)
It's a Miracle
Amused to Death
Perfect Sense
Every Stranger's Eyes (for the "from where I stand" part", he leaves the vocals to PP Arnold who certainly can make an amazing take on it; for the rest of the song, Roger sings and plays acoustic guitar in a downstripped version where it's just him and Clapton until the other instruments come in on the high part; Roger also does the role of the tea customer in the intro live like he did in Stockholm 1984. Visuals showing refugees on sea - I am sure that will make the audience get emotional - at least along with this beautiful music! )
Vera/BTBBH (performed approximately like in 2017-18)
Comfortably Numb (Clapton sings the bad man's part and does the solos - I would be very excited to hear that!)
Crystal Clear Brooks

The tour will feature no playback/lip-syncing from Roger's side - he will use his beautiful but aged voice for it all without shame and with pride - and except from Roger himself, the lineup on the tour will include:
Eric Clapton - guitar, vocals
G.E. Smith - guitar, bass
Jon Carin - keyboard, organ, vocals, rhythm guitar
Harry Waters - second keyboardist as in 2006-16
Graham Broad - drums (a date or two with Nick Mason taking over the duties would do no harm however - at least not if this happened on a concert where I had the opportunity to be in the audience! )
P.P. Arnold - vocals/backing vocals
Katie Kissoon - as above

and if she's still in shape for it (I can't find out anything about her whereabouts since 1987), Doreen Chanter can come and sing Molly's Song somewhere inbetween all that! I just love that song, and would love to hear it live! However, listening on bootlegs, it's clear that she had problems singing it already back then, so I would not believe in a million years that she can sing it now - but if she can, I would love if she could do on my Roger Waters dream tour!

And Roger will of course keep it all political like always and there will be visuals supporthing his point (and he will also wear a kaffiyeh for much of the show to show solidarity with Palestine); but he will not play consistently to a clicktrack this time and open the way for improvisation. It will certainly be much greater than any Pink Floyd show or any Roger Waters show in the past!

[Skinny12]

Again: Language! Final warning as stated in the other post.

[Floydophile]

I certainly would prefer that they offer shows that featured performances of entire albums. Similar approach like, e.g. Steely Dan did in the past.

IT WOULD BE SO NICE, if we would have single nights, dedicated to / clustered around

1) TPATGOD, ASOS, Ummagumma and MORE
2) AHM, Meddle and OBC
3) DSOTM, WYWH and Animals
4) The Wall & TFC
5) AMLOR, TDB & TER

and finally, if pigs may fly:

6) 'Together we stand, divided we fall' or 'Pink isn't Floyd': The Best Of Syd, Nick, Rick, Rog and Dave (Solo material only).

No GREATEST HITS, please!

[Son of Nothing]

That's a fair assessment. Take If off of the original post as well and replace it with GitC for a classic GitC / CWATE performance. I tend to like If better but it's only because it doesn't have the birds on repeat. The birds are fine to start but man, they get to be like nails on a chalkboard to me after a while.

To be fair, I understand you and others may find that bird loop annoying. I guess I don't mind it so much, and when comparing the two (or three, even, if you add in GitC) then lyrically, my personal preference is still for Grantchester. Perhaps we could convince the lads to do it live without the loop?

[aybesea]

Honestly, if I could get the rest of the set list and only have to swap GM for GitC, I would be totally fine with that.

[Son of Nothing]

as far as I am concerned, I see Pink Floyd's 1967-1983 catalogue and Roger's solo catalogue as one thing - namely Roger's songs.

C'mon, you're just trolling now, aren't you? 1967 and Syd was still writing, wasn't he?

[ILuvHoney]

I might admit that I was a bit simplistic. It's true that Syd was the writer in 1967, however, once Syd left Roger became the creative genius behind Pink Floyd. What I actually mean to say is that I see Roger's solo catalog as the continuation of his work in Pink Floyd, and if you ask me what the "next album" after The Final Cut is, I would answer The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking, not A Momentary Lapse of Reason.

[rontoon]

Once Syd left there was no leading "creative genius" for years. They were all struggling to reinvent themselves for the 6 albums that followed their debut. It wasn't until DSOTM that Roger emerged as their leading lyricist and from there on began to take control of the band.

[ILuvHoney]

They all contributed and played a role in the early post-Syd years, but to say that they all contributed equally is a gross exaggeration. All their 1968-onwards albums except AHM and OBC had more songwriting credits to Roger than every other member.

A Saucerful of Secrets: 3 tracks by Roger, 2 by Rick, one by Syd, 1 by Roger/Rick/Nick/Gilmour.

More: 5 tracks by Roger, 6 by all four members, 1 by Nick and Rick, 1 by Gilmour

Ummagumma: 3 tracks by Roger, 2 by all four members, 1 by Rick, 1 by Nick, 1 by Gilmour, 1 by Syd

Atom Heart Mother: 2 tracks by all four, 1 by Roger, 1 by Rick, 1 by Gilmour

Meddle: 3 tracks by all four, one by Roger alone, 2 by Roger and Gilmour together.

Obscured by Clouds: 2 tracks by all four, 2 by Roger and Rick, 3 by Roger and Gilmour, 1 by Rick and Gilmour, 1 by Roger alone, 1 by Gilmour alone (the last time the latter happened)

So the count after those six albums was:

Roger: 14 lone credits, 36 total credits
Rick: 4 lone credits, 24 total credits
Gilmour: 4 lone credits, 26 total credits
Nick: 1 lone credit, 18 total credits

Seems to me that Roger was already heads above the rest already before Dark Side. It's true that all of them collaborated and did things, but Roger was already the creative genius in my opinion. He had more than 50% more lone credits than all other members combined.

And neither is it that relevant either, when my point is that Roger's solo catalog represents the real continuation of Pink Floyd. There's no doubt that Pros and Cons and Amused to Death sound a lot more like Animals, The Wall and The Final Cut than A Momentary Lapse of Reason, The Division Bell and The Endless River do. Pink Floyd were the greatest band ever, but they are history. Their creative genius, Roger Waters, has continued his work to date however. I think Pink Floyd is a thing of the past and should remain so.
The reason they broke up in 1983 was that they were exhausted as a band. There was only one member (Roger) writing or caring, Roger and Gilmour were both busy with solo projects and they were not going along either on a professional or a personal level, Rick was no longer part of the band... they were a spent force, as Roger said. I don't think they could have kept themselves together anyway, and it was probably for the best that they went their own ways. Today, Rick is dead while Gilmour's hatred of Roger has only grown more intense through the years. In addition, Nick has his own band now - focused on the material that Gilmour and Roger don't play - while Gilmour has retired. Roger is doing his own thing and he's doing it better than ever and seems to really enjoy performing as a solo act. Pink Floyd are a thing of the past, they were great in the 70s, but I see no point in a reunion now, at least not for more than a one-off. Although I appreciate all the great music they released together decades ago, I think some things are better left as they are. I understand that some people might disagree, but I think it's for the best that they all stay solo. There would be no point in reforming a band that outlived its usefulness 40 years ago.

[keleven]

I have a very soft spot for Grantchester Meadows because Fillmore (then misnamed Live at Winterland) was the first Floyd boot I ever owned. In addition to the beautifully performed Grantchester, the transition to Astronomy Domine is just perfect.

[lvri]

@ ILuvHoney : Listing credit like you do has no point. Separating credits with lyrics on one side and music on another would be more accurate... From the departure of Syd to OBC, there is no lead. And a big parts of the following albums won't be the same without the other member, especially David and Rick. You have the right to hate David, but you can't rewrite the story of the band.
(Not very intelligent from me to speak again about this in 2023....)

Back to the subject. Difficult to imagine Pink Floyd as it was before, so I imagine a playlist with the actual members, a simple best of from start to finish except the end :

set 1
Astronomy Domine Remember a day
Green is the Colour
Cymbaline
Atom Heart Mother (partial)
Fat old Sun
Wot's... Uh the Deal
Childhood's End
Echoes

set 2
Breathe - Time - Breathe (reprise)
Shine On you Crazy Diamond (full)
Welcome to the Machine
Dogs
Yet Another Movie
Sorrow
Marooned
High Hopes
Allons-y (1)
Autumn '68
Allons-y (2)

Encores
Hey Hey Rise Up
Comfortably Numb
Run Like Hell

Not a lot of surprises, but let's be honest, even this will stay impossible...
We already have the best on our shelves !

[lennyif]

I'll just take Nick's band's setlist. And Nick's band over a Floyd reunion honestly. Smaller venues, songs I actually want to hear, better ticket prices, and a cooler audience... yeah, no thanks. I simply cannot pay a three digit ticket price to watch someone play Money or Wish You Were Here again without feeling embarrassed.

[Anredeon]

That´s also my view. And to perfectly round it up with guest appeareances from Roger and David.

[Chorale]

I'd agree that if you want to see an early PF concert, NMSOS already have that perfected. So something different...

BBC Promenade Concerts, Friday 12th September 2025
Prom 71 - Pink Floyd

"Live from the Royal Albert Hall, on the 50th anniversary of the release of their classic album Wish You Were Here, we are joined by Pink Floyd, along with the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Ron Geesin, the BBC Symphony Chorus, and special guests..."

Proms regulars will spot that The Wall has been built across the back of the RAH stage - it'll be used for projections throughout.

• The prelude from DSOTM
• In The Flesh?
• High Hopes
• Hey Hey Rise Up - with Andriy Khlyvnyuk on vocals
• DSOTM album - with Clare Torry on vocals for TGGITS, and Dick Parry on sax

Interval, during which the presenter interviews the two authors of a recent book on Pink Floyd's performances at the BBC.

• WYWH album - with Roy Harper on vocals for HAC, and fiddle solo in WYWH (we can't have Stephane Grappelli so I'm going to say Nicola Benedetti instead)
• Atom Heart Mother
• The Trial - with the guests playing parts

The Wall is torn down to reveal Dom Bekin sitting at the organ...

• Celestial Voices - with organ and choir, and extended jam
• Encore: Another Brick In The Wall - with choir and audience

Credits roll over a blues improvisation (so it doesn't matter too much if it gets cut short).

[Journey Man]

And of course the BBC broadcast The Proms live each year so we all get an off-air copy as well. A well thought-out setlist.

[GiveBirthToSmile]

Set 1
1- Breathe Suite (Speak to me/ Breathe/ Any Colour You Like/ Home Again)
2- Us and Them
3- Fat Old Sun (15 min version)
4- Cymbaline (with the footsteps and all)
5- Atom Heart Mother (a shorter version but with Brass and Choir)

Set 2
1- Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Part I-IX)
2- Mudmen (a longer improvised version)
3- Green Is The Colour / Careful With That Axe, Eugene
4- Echoes

Encore
1- Money
2- Celestial Voices

this setlist is around 2hrs and 45 minutes, if it's going to be a longer concert i'd add Comfortably Numb and Dogs and Wish You Were Here to the setlist

[Astronought]

I'm fascinated that in some of these fantasy scenarios, Rick is still dead. If I'm basically given carte blanche to create a fantasy gig where Roger still does the Eugene scream and everyone's cool with solo material in the set, I'm gonna go ahead and resurrect Rick for the occasion.

I get the inclination to make it "realistic", though. Theoretically, Waters/Gilmour/Mason could actually bury the hatchet and go on tour. And Nick's been playing tons of deep, deep cuts with his band, so we know he'd be game for something unpredictable. Rick returning from the dead is objectively less likely than the other three getting together - that's just science.

Nevertheless, my fantasy lineup includes both Rick, who didn't die, and Syd, who not only didn't die, but sorted out his mental issues and became a painter/troubadour back in the 70s.

Syd released a further three solo albums between 1974 and 1981, performing occasionally at intimate venues in Cambridge and London, and even making a few guest appearances with his old mates when they came through on tour. During Floyd's four-night stint at Earl's Court in 1976, Syd joined the lads every night for an encore of Lucifer Sam, See Emily Play and Octopus. For most of the 80s and 90s, Syd enjoyed comfortable semi-retirement in Cambridge; painting mostly for pleasure, but also dabbling in graphic design and computer animation as a side gig. He remained friendly with both factions of the band following their mid-80s split, and dutifully turned up for the one-off reunion at Live8 to sing "Emily"; his mirror-bedecked Telecaster now bouncing off a considerable paunch, but his jolly grin and mischievous glint undimmed.

Then, fast-forward through years of reissues, box set and public mud slinging, and now it's this! A completely out-of-the-blue announcement: Pink Floyd are getting back together for ONE LAST JOB. And it'll be in a lovely English field, around sunset, and the crowd will be exclusively comprised of cool, attractive people who get it. Not fat middle-aged men in embarrassing jackets and grey pony tails. No, this is a groovy crowd, very much like the beautiful people Floyd were playing to back when they were 25. Gorgeous, twinkle-eyed hippie chicks and chill stoner dudes, who know not to be chattering when the magic's happening.

Of course, as showtime nears, there is an electric buzz humming through the crowd. They say Syd's gonna show up! They say Roger wanted a podium and twice the money! They say the Von Trapp Kids are opening! The air is thick with anticipation and weed smoke. The stage is shrouded in darkness, a shapeless mound of equipment and scaffolding.

And then! Just as the sun dips below the horizon, a pale green spotlight appears near the lip of the stage, and psychedelic sound effects appear to fade in from all around. Ringing bells, animal noises. Shadows shuffling in from stage right, and then David Gilmour steps into the light with his red and white Strat. An unseen acoustic guitar starts playing somewhere in the darkness, as David grips the microphone and starts crooning...
FAT OLD SUN! Yaaay! Fans roar in appreciation, then quickly quiet down as delicate stage lighting reveals Roger, Nick and Rick hunched over their instruments, and the mystery guitar player seated between the drums and keyboard rig, strumming intently as David finally powers up the Strat and unleashes a gloriously lyrical solo into the pinkish twilight. As Rick takes over on the organ, the mystery man parks his acoustic on a stand and quietly slips offstage. Guess he was just a guitar tech or something.

As the final "sing to me" refrain brings the song to a triumphant close, the air is once again filled with surround sound effects; slightly more menacing this time. A frantic voice appears to be listing celestial bodies as bizarre swoops and whooshes ping pong across the crowd. The stage lights turn a deep blue, with flecks of purple and rapid red and green flashes. The spotlight turns to Rick, who is throwing switches and pulling levers like he's about to fly a Star Destroyer into the audience. And wouldn't you know it? It is, in fact, the introduction to...
ASTRONOMY DOMINE! OMG are you kidding me? Nick must've been hitting the gym, because those drums are pounding like never before. David is slashing at his guitar like a handsome Pete Townshend, but why is he backing off from his mike? Why, it's that mystery guitar player from before, and he's got an electric on him this time - one with an unmistakable decor - but he's letting it hang off his shoulders as he takes the final step up to the mike with arms raised, Christ-like, to his sides. Yep, it's Syd Barrett alright, and all of a sudden it's like someone teleported the entire UFO club into this remote field. Strobes and projections fight it out as the five-man Floyd flit effortlessly between pulverizing space rock and ethereal ghostliness for ten magical minutes.

"Blimey, that was loud", quips a beaming Barrett. "Don't know how these guys got so loud, but they're gonna tell you all about it. I'll see you all in a bit, yeah?" And with that, he skips offstage, still with the trademark bounce in his step. Fans are elated and slightly confused. Now what? Once again, the sound effects give it away. The birdsong and braying sheep from earlier return, and then Rick starts tinkling his Fender Rhodes, letting everyone know the next song is
SHEEP. Finally, it's Roger's turn to sing lead, and the morphing of his voice into the Moog has never sounded more seamless. It's almost suspiciously good, some killjoy reviewers will later remark, but that's by the by. It's an excellent rendition, with all the fire and bile of the original.

Next up is HAVE A CIGAR, featuring special guest Snowy White on searing lead guitar (turns out he was also playing bass on the previous number). And who's this Gandalf-like creature wobbling on stage to handle the vocals. It's only Roy bloody Harper! Cor! Two special guests on one song? That's proper value for money, that is. Speaking of...

MONEY,that's also the name of the next song. It's a hit, it's gotta be in there. And the guest stars keep coming. Here's old mate Dick Parry and his wacky sax, honking like a champion. Importantly, there are no backup singers, and no "woo-woo"s. Not even a single "woo" is uttered at any point in the performance, just so that's absolutely clear. The more jaded segment of the crowd draws a sigh of relief when Money doesn't segue into "Us And Them", and instead fades into yet another sound effects collage, heavy on wind sounds. Just as the Money jam is about to die out completely, a thundering, echoing bass note rings out. A B note, to be specific. Which can only mean it's going to "b"...

ONE OF THESE DAYS. Which confirms what we suspected: Nick is fuckin ripped! His powerhouse pounding transcends even the much-loved Pompei performance, and makes this officially the best version ever. Some audience members are literally too stunned to applaud, staring open-mouthed at the stage for several moments before exploding with loud, wild approval. Jesus! How are they going to top this?

Answer: they're not. It's time to give the crowd a bit of a breather, so they do it like the album, and segue into the world live premiere of

A PILLOW OF WINDS?!? Don't lie to me: You did not see that coming. But it's happening. During the wind effects and roaring applause, David and Roger have set up on a couple of stools, nearer to Rick and Nick, and Syd is back in his seat, playing acoustic guitar as David handles the slide work. Almost in an instant, the stage has transformed from a terrifying Thunderdome to a tiny laidback folk venue. It is now dark outside, and the circle of musicians onstage become as a welcoming hearth of harmony. The music is gentle and soft, but piercingly clear in the late night air, and the entire crowd is absolutely spellbound. This is unexepected, but we want more of it, they think. The Floyd oblige, as Rick wheels out a set of vibes and starts playing the motif from...

CRYING SONG??? WTF? If you'd told me, at any point, that I would one day get to see and hear a five-man Pink Floyd play an acoustic set that featured A Pillow Of Winds and Crying Song, I'd've told you you were crazy, and that's gotta be some stupid made-up fantasy. But here we are, and they are playing "Crying Song" like it's the most natural thing in the world. And they're not done. The acoustic segment continues with yet another surprise:

GRANTCHESTER MEADOWS. Only slightly less surprising than the two preceding numbers, this is especially lovingly arranged and performed, with three-part harmonies on the choruses and very subtle acoustic slide guitar. As it settles into a hypnotic pulse near the end, strange ethereal sounds once again appear out of nowhere, and like in a magic trick, the Grantchester riff is suddenly transformed into the riff from...

SET THE CONTROLS FOR THE HEART OF THE SUN. We're officially back from spooky acoustic ballads to spooky electric space rock, and it's a performance for the ages. The lighting is minimal, deep reds and oranges. Roger's gong suddenly appears centre stage as the instrumental buildup commences, and bursts into flames near the climax. The middle section is where the lasers and lights truly come into their own, as the musicians more or less disappear in the shadows between the eyecandies. Much like on the album version, it's tough to work out which noises emanate from which of the guys, but there's at least five of them up there. After nearly 15 minutes, the song fades out and the stage goes dark. There are no sound effects. Was that it? A full minute passes, during which only occasional faint white blips of light dart across the stage. Then the blips turn pink, and smoke starts pouring from the stage. Then the next pink blip is accompanied by a distinctive, high-pitched "ping", and everyone knows what's coming next:

ECHOES 'Nuff said. No Syd. No sax. Just Roger, David, Nick and Rick doin' it old school. 25 minutes of perfection, after which the stage once again goes dark. Was that it? Will there be encores?

Well, it'd be a strange fantasy concert if they didn't even do an encore. So no one's too surprised when the stage lights reappear, and the core four stride back onstage and immediately launch into COMFORTABLY NUMB. We've had some deep cuts and a few surprises. Now it's time for a predictable big hitter. And it predictably hits big - to the point where people are already declaring this the best concert by anyone ever.

C. Numb is followed by a few more moments of darkness, then the stage is bathed in blue light, with a white spotlight on Rick, now seated at a piano. He starts playing, and while everyone recognizes the chords, it's only when David's sumptuous wah-wah guitar sneaks into proceedings that everyone realizes it's bloody
STAY! From the Obscured By Clouds album! Well, that's a nice surprise, and a really sweet note to end on.

Except of course it doesn't end there, and Syd comes back out for
ARNOLD LAYNE
LUCIFER SAM and
SEE EMILY PLAY

And then everyone won the lottery, all the wars ended, and climate change sorted itself out.

The end

[Skinny12]

Crazy but cool!

[aybesea]

I love it. When I asked "what if", it seems you thought it through. Very, very nice!

[Anredeon]

I very like these passionate words.

[Llama]

Setlist:

01 In The Flesh
02 Run Like Hell
03 The Nile Song
04 Atom Heart Mother
05 Obscured By Clouds
06 When You're In
07 Corporal Clegg
08 Astronomy Domine

Intermission

01 Welcome To The Machine
02 Have A Cigar (w/ Roy Harper)
03 Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-IX)

(stage goes dark... the screen starts showing videos of the band performing live from all of the different eras, stopping on different songs and then fast forwarding or reversing to another one. The crowd goes wild as each different song plays for 30 seconds or so... the stage goes dark again. The laser lights start changing colors as they go through all of the colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple. Then, a heartbeat circles around the stadium as the lights mimic this. The crowd goes crazy as the band is illuminated and Roger Waters is on stage for the rest of the show.)

04 TDSOTM

Encore

01 Pigs (Three Different Ones)
02 One Of These Days
03 Comfortably Numb
04 Careful With That Axe, Eugene
05 Embryo
06 Echoes (played with audio and video of Rick from Pompeii)

[Anredeon]

Well why not Corporal Clegg? Roger always says to like this song. Otherwise a very ecclectic setlist. Nile Song should be a liveclassic.

[Anredeon]

Are there still some tunes not mentioned? Personally I would also love to hear Oneone/Fingals Cave live.