I love it.” The choices continue to impress as Waters also shows his noted love of freeform music, picking out Ryuichi Sakamoto’s ‘Endless Flight’ as well as Gustav Mahler’s ‘Symphony No. “This song of his, ‘Bird On The Wire’, is so simple, so moving, so brilliant. “ Leonard Cohen and Bob Dylan were the two men who allowed us to believe that there was an open door between poetry and song lyrics,” he said. Including a typically eclectic list of artists, Waters continued with a reference to Leonard Cohen, an artist he would cross paths with on numerous occasions during Pink Floyd tours. It’s extraordinarily moving and eloquent.” I can feel the hairs standing up on the back of my neck now remembering the purity with which he hits the first notes of this song. You feel the man’s integrity and passion. “There is an honesty and a truth in everything that he’s done. His first pick is indicative of the path we’re about to join the musician on, “Neil Young singing ‘Helpless’,” Waters began.

There’s not much left to do but sit back and listen to Waters’ favourite tracks as we’re reminded that, no matter who you are, influence can be found everywhere. Created by Roy Plomley way back in 1942, the format is always the same, each week a guest is invited by the host to choose the eight records they would take with them to a desert island.Īs well as their eight discs, a complimentary collection of the complete works of Shakespeare and a bible, the star in question also gets to choose one luxury item and one book. It’s a time-honoured tradition that has seen Prime Ministers and rock stars alike walk through its studio doors. It’s impossible for us to over-sell the importance BBC’s Desert Island Discs has in the dense tapestry of British pop culture. Reflecting on a career that has seen him change the landscape of music as we know it, Waters sat down with BBC Radio 4 as part of their Desert Island Discs feature to pick out eight songs that he holds dearly. Leaving the band in 1985 amid creative differences (shockingly), Waters went on to enjoy a successful solo career before reuniting with his former bandmates years later for some one-off performances.

It’s a list of performers and rock icons that deserve their accolades as influencing one of the greatest composers in the world. None other than the late Queen Elizabeth II.It’s safe to say his favourite songs are filled with the esteem Waters gave his own work and pays homage to some serious figures of the past, noting their value to the wider musical sphere as well as his own personal progression. In a 2022 interview, Calvin Cordozar Broadus Junior, aka Snoop Dogg, claimed an intervention from on high (no pun intended) meant he narrowly avoided being barred from the UK in the 90s, while he was fighting a murder case for which he was ultimately acquitted. There have also been a few near-bans, with one recent revelation standing out. 'People need to understand if you are going to commit domestic violence and then you want to travel around the world, there are going to be countries that say to you: 'You cannot come in because you are not of the character we expect in Australia,'' she told reporters at the time. Then Minister for Women Michaelia Cash said she had recommended that Brown be refused a visa on character grounds.

In 2015, Brown was not allowed to tour Australia because of his criminal conviction for assaulting pop star Rihanna. Other stars have been banned for criminal reasons, including R&B singer Chris Brown. China views the island as part of its territory, though Taiwan sees itself as sovereign.Īrtists such as Maroon 5, Selena Gomez and Björk have also had run-ins with the Chinese authorities for supporting or engaging with the Dalai Lama, the Tibetan people's foremost spiritual leader. Katy Perry embroiled in Taiwanese political controversy Getty Images

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