The Final Cut

[buffalofloyd]

That's what most of us said about Dark Side but here we are.

I have to admit, I haven't heard any of the Redux album. I'm just not really interested in a new version of an album I already considered perfect, I'm weird like that. I don't want my view tainted.

[Paul]

Careful With That Final Cut Eugene.......

[Skinny12]

Funnily enough after recording the latest episode (to be released soon) in which we talk about TFC a bit and being lucky to have the 1992 Doug Sax version now…this is my most regular spin right now. Love it. At least most of it ( and accepting the fact it’s a RW solo work)

Best
Nils

[Floydfan2410]

I have loved The Final Cut ever since I found the record in my fathers rack and put it on his turntable. I had no idea what it was about, i just thought it had a great energy and some really good songs.
it kinda reminded me of Them Wall in some places (obviously). I especially love The Post War Dream, Your Possible Pasts and The Final Cut (title track).
MY least favourite song is Not Now John, it's too upbeat for my taste and doesn't really fit the rest of the songs imho. I listen to it way more than The Wall which is an album I have trouble getting through (the live album is much much better though).
Overall The Final Cut is an amazing album imho.

[DaveTheRave]

MY least favourite song is Not Now John, it's too upbeat for my taste and doesn't really fit the rest of the songs imho.

Interesting take. The title track is amazing with lots of raw personal emotion from Roger (marriage breakup, and what sounds like a suicide attempt??). Right after that you need an angry rocker like Not Now John to break out of the depths of despair. Then the album ends on the more pensive track Two Suns in the Sunset.

The combination of those last 3 songs is fantastic…quite the musical and lyrical rollercoaster.

[Nodak]

I really do love this album, a lot, and also consider it more of a solo album by Rog, because it really kind of is. I also try to not compare it against the rest of the catalog and just appreciate for what it is.

Roger, if you're reading this, please don't mess with the album and try and remake it. Let these documents stand as they are.

Im on my 3rd play through of The Final Cut on vinyl right now. Its the new pressing you can get anywhere. I got mine in ebay. It was dirty as hell and had a couple of nasty pops when I got it. Ive been judicious in cleaning it and made a real difference in how it sounds. Its a good listen now even with the flaws it still haves.

But it has When the Tigers Broke Free on it and it doesn't work for me. I love the song but it doesn't fit. Ive been listening to this album my whole life and its never been there before.

Ive just completed my collection on vinyl and Ill be damned if wasn't the first one I have to upgrade. Yep that is upgrading a brand new album because it wasn't perfect. Ill be buying a 1rst pressing in NM this time. Thank god so many people hate this album Ill actually get it cheap compared to the rest of the catalogue.

I just love this album.

[David S CA]

I completely agree with your opinion of “When The Tigers Broke Free”. The song is a passionate and heartfelt ode to Roger’s father and to all the soldiers who perished during the Battle of Anzio, honoring their sacrifice by surrendering their lives as a result of following the order of their higher commanders.
The song fits well in its place in ‘The Wall’, the movie. And the arrangement on the standalone single nearly brings me to tears every time I play it. But it did not fit well when it was added to later versions of ‘The Final Cut’.
I love the entirety of TFC. Because of all the drama between the band members surrounding this album’s creation and the polarization that ensued amongst critics and Pink Floyd fans following its release, which endures even now, this was the very last album of the band’s entire catalog that I gave a listening to. With all that controversy, I expected I wasn’t going to like the album at all. But after that first hearing of the album, I was blown away by how good it was. Roger’s writing on this album is brilliant. All the songs on the album’s original running order support the concept “A Requiem to the Post War Dream.” And I don’t at all think this is a Roger Waters solo album. Sure, Roger is credited for having written it all, but Dave’s guitar work here is as excellent as ever, as is his vocal performance on “Not Now John”. Imagine if Roger had sung that song. It wouldn’t have nearly the punch that Dave gave it.

It sounds like you’re dedicated to getting an original pressing of TFC on vinyl. But I think you should reconsider. I’ve compared an excellent needle drop of a Japanese vinyl first pressing to my own copy of the Doug Sax remaster on the 1997 US CD. The Doug Sax CD remaster is the winner for sound quality and clarity of expression along the entire tonal range.

[buffalofloyd]

I agree about WtTBF, I prefer the album without it. For this specific album I found "The Final Cut (1983 Japan CBS-Sony - 25AP 2410)" to be the best source I could find. I went through it using ClickRepair and also manually after using ClickRepair to remove some of the more distracting disturbances for myself. I did this with all the albums.

I actually took a solid couple months to find some of the best vinyl sources for each album and clean them up, and have to say I prefer the vinyl sources to any other. I think it's me getting older and appreciating the original analog sound to sterile digital sources. I'm not saying cd's are bad or anything, not at all, but vinyl and to some degree tape just has a presence and warmth you don't get from digital. I'm not saying anything new here but in the last few years it has been more of a revelation to me, and there are some very good rips out there if you know where to look. I just don't have the means or time to get a whole phono setup for myself, source all the records and do transfers, otherwise I would definitely do this.

I do also have "The Final Cut (2017 US Pink Floyd Records - PFRLP12)" and these newer LP's I think are very good actually. Some say, and it's probably true, that all those newer LP's are digitally sourced and pressed to vinyl. This is not a practice I condone but for the most part, at least in the case of the re-releases of these Pink Floyd albums, I think they sound pretty darn good.

[Nodak]

@buffalofloyd

Thanks for the tip, Ive known you long enough to just trust what you say. I now have that Japanese pressing in EX coming straight from from Japan. It only cost $37 shipped.

For me personally, I still think digital is superior to vinyl in every way, but, I'm on a kick about getting rid of technology in my life in any way I can. I haven't had any social media on my phone for years now and haven't owned a TV for most of my life. This is mostly about my rejection of a society that cant cope without constantly looking at their phones etc. What Ive found is I am now listening to music a lot more, and my kids are actually shutting off their computers to come listen to music with me. That never happened when I was streaming this stuff from my computer. I also just love it when people come to my house and are fascinated at the fact that someone has a record player and then I make them pick an album to listen to and their jaw drops when they hear how good it sounds.

David S CA

I actually do have the Doug Sax version. I bought it about 20 years ago when I went on a kick trying to get all the best sources and you are right, its been my go to version ever since then. If I was to limit myself to just the best sources, I probably wouldn't have any vinyl, but its just not about that anymore for me.

Beside the writing on this album, which is bloody brilliant, I think that this was probably their best produced album. It has an absolute ton of dynamic range, great stereo separation, all the sounds and instruments are really well defined without stomping on each other. Im not sure what they did on this album but some of it sounds 3D, you dont get just a left and a right channel, the sounds seems to move forward and backward too.

[Skinny12]

Oh you guys might love the next episode of the Fingal's Cave podcast ...

[NuffM]

The combination of those last 3 songs is fantastic…quite the musical and lyrical rollercoaster.

100% agree. Not really a fan of the album at all besides those final 3 tracks. The title track has easily one of David's best solos, and the next track has one of his best lead vocal tracks. Two Suns is raw and sad, a masterpiece in writing. Genius.

The rest of the album I really cannot say I enjoy.

[geoffers]

has anyone tried home-brewing a comp of 'the wall' and 'TFC?' (i love 'TFC' but struggle to get through/around/under/over 'the wall,' as i get older.)
i'm thinking the last three songs on the latter would be a better ending to the former. (re-arranging the running order might be required, since the concepts are fairly loose and somewhat disconnected, anyway...)

[NuffM]

has anyone tried home-brewing a comp of 'the wall' and 'TFC?' (i love 'TFC' but struggle to get through/around/under/over 'the wall,' as i get older.)
i'm thinking the last three songs on the latter would be a better ending to the former. (re-arranging the running order might be required, since the concepts are fairly loose and somewhat disconnected, anyway...)

Way too many people have tried this. Sadly though most of it is children that have way too much time on their iPads or laptops and whose goal is to just extend the Wall as much as humanly possible, using Wall, TFC, PAC... (I've even seen some people include David's debut, Wet Dream, About Face, all of the Wall demos..... WHY???!?!?)

You can find these atrocities easily with a basic YouTube search.

[m20gull]

has anyone tried home-brewing a comp of 'the wall' and 'TFC?' (i love 'TFC' but struggle to get through/around/under/over 'the wall,' as i get older.)
i'm thinking the last three songs on the latter would be a better ending to the former. (re-arranging the running order might be required, since the concepts are fairly loose and somewhat disconnected, anyway...)

I might be tempted to give that a go. These are my least favourite Floyd albums (that doesn't mean I don't like them!) and I've been down the route of extending the Wall but recently found I enjoy it more when distilled to a single album. I have a Spare Bricks playlist and a hybrid of TFC and AMLOR so I'm up for the challenge.

My single album Wall doesn't include Run Like Hell or Comfortably Numb as they don't really add much to the narrative so they would be there with the three mentioned plus the Tigers/Heroes Return single and, following Roger's lead, finish with Outside the Wall.

[geoffers]

Way too many people have tried this. Sadly though most of it is children that have way too much time on their iPads or laptops and whose goal is to just extend the Wall as much as humanly possible, using Wall, TFC, PAC... (I've even seen some people include David's debut, Wet Dream, About Face, all of the Wall demos..... WHY???!?!?)

You can find these atrocities easily with a basic YouTube search.

i should have been more specific: has any one of our esteemed forum members tried this? the people who know the band and music (and the editing tools) inside out (as far as i'm concerned). i've sampled a few "fanmade" floyd efforts on youtube, and even i could throw together something disjointed and unfocused! but that's not what i'd be interested in listening to, otherwise i would just generate a playlist and randomize it, lol. one of my favourite examples of a really great "expanded edition" is 'the power of the dark side,' which i now listen to more than the original album...

[geoffers]

I might be tempted to give that a go. These are my least favourite Floyd albums (that doesn't mean I don't like them!) and I've been down the route of extending the Wall but recently found I enjoy it more when distilled to a single album. I have a Spare Bricks playlist and a hybrid of TFC and AMLOR so I'm up for the challenge.

My single album Wall doesn't include Run Like Hell or Comfortably Numb as they don't really add much to the narrative so they would be there with the three mentioned plus the Tigers/Heroes Return single and, following Roger's lead, finish with Outside the Wall.

"comfortably numb" is essential to any 'wall' related mix, i believe. it's not just the highlight of the album, but a highlight of the entire history of the band. but please share any of your ideas! i'm extremely interested in how TFC and AMLOR (might) go together! i would never have thought to try that...

[geoffers]

as an addendum, i've always thought 'the wall' could use a "fifth side," sandwiched somehow between "the show must go on" and "run like hell." basically, more of fictional pink's live performance. "biding my time" has always been a favourite of mine (all but forgotten by everyone in the band, even roger), and it (or a faux "live version") would work well as a syd tribute song, in that fictional universe, as "astronomy domine" is/was in real life. to unpack roger pretending to be syd (but using one of his own semi-silly songs) is an entirely different discussion, of course!

[m20gull]

"comfortably numb" is essential to any 'wall' related mix, i believe. it's not just the highlight of the album, but a highlight of the entire history of the band. but please share any of your ideas! i'm extremely interested in how TFC and AMLOR (might) go together! i would never have thought to try that...

I've got there with my Wall/Final Cut compilation. I've gone to town using singles, live and movie bits. I've kept it to single LP length and, in my version, I've edited down so the tracks on side 1 flow better

Side 1
When the Tigers Break Free Pt 1 (from the movie so you get some Vera)
Southampton Dock
Vera
Bring the Boys Back Home (I used the album version but the movie version might be better)
When the Tigers Break Free Pt 2 (from the Final Cut to lose the baby cry at the end)
Comfortably Numb (Live version)
The Heroes Return P1 & 2 (single version)
Goodbye Cruel World

Side 2
Hey You
Run Like Hell
The Final Cut
Not Now John
Two Suns in the Sunset
Outside the Wall (live version, edited to lose the crowd noise)

Side 1 looks at the loss from a whole range of perspectives. Although I'm not a huge fan of the Final Cut album I absolutely adore Southampton Dock and it covers the missing, their widows, and the following generations all in one song. I always thought of the Hero as a flyer but now can see him as artillery hearing the gunners over an intercom.

I kept the Goodbye Cruel World/Hey You split from the Wall and the finishing run suggested from the Final Cut with a merge to Outside The Wall, as per Roger.

I'm happy to try any suggestions.

I have done a Final Cut/AMLOR single LP comp and it works, especially with the AMLOR remix so you get some Rick.