You might think education has improved over the last 50 years, but take a good look at the space around you. Is it education? Or mind control?

What exactly do you see? Is it a vibrant class with students, pens in their hands, eager to learn about their favorite things in the world? Or do you see tired teenagers, hunched over their computers with blank eyes, desperately asking their teachers for an extension on their Science Report? (based on a true story)

If you see neither, then you’re obviously not reading this at school.

But the real question stands. When does school become a safe place to learn, make mistakes, and feel completely supported by teachers? Or is it just another brick in the wall? And how many bricks does it take for The Wall to crack?

Rock band Pink Floyd began asking themselves these questions to answer in their 1979 rock opera double-LP, The Wall.

The Wall can be overwhelming, with 26 songs and the diverse themes it encompasses. This article will cover everything you need to know about The Wall, including the themes and message of the album that may resonate with our everyday lives. It’s essential to stay informed about the social, political, and environmental issues in our world; music can make it a little more enjoyable to learn about them.

Background of the Legendary Band

Originally named the Sigma Six, Pink Floyd is renowned for being one of the greatest rock bands of all time. Their discography is vast and spans over 45 years of experimental albums and singles. They are known worldwide mainly for their best-selling album, The Dark Side of the Moon, which also happens to be the third best-selling album of all time.

They released their first album in 1967, and after just a few months, the lead guitarist started acting… a little off. Syd Barrett, who had been with the band since 1965, began performing with his back turned to the audience. In one instance, he kept playing one note repeatedly for the whole show.

It became apparent he was suffering from depression and other mental illnesses that stopped him from being present in the band. So, in 1968, David Gilmour, a long-time friend of Barrett, fully replaced his role in the band.

The band finally became one line-up until 1983, when the band released their final album featuring founding member and bassist Roger Waters, Guitarist David Gilmour, Keyboardist Richard Wright, and Drummer Nick Mason.

The Making of the Masterpiece

The Wall was released on the November 30, 1979, making it almost 47 years old since it debuted. A video on YouTube published by The Beat Goes On, explains that the writing of this album was initially inspired by fan interactions and interruptions during shows. Roger Waters once allegedly spat in a fan’s face after the fan complained about the band not performing an encore at a show.

This later inspired Waters to create yet another concept album (following The Dark Side of the Moon & Animals). The album is based around a story, a story of a character named Pink, based mostly on himsel, Roger Waters. Pink is a rockstar, and like every rockstar, he’s mostly depressed and irritated. And also like every rockstar, he can mostly blame it on his upbringing.

Pink Floyd imagined a world after WWII. The world is just like our world, except nobody thinks about helping others. The world has treated Pink worse and worse as he grows up and with each heartstring pulled, another brick is added to his mental wall. He blocks himself from life.

The special thing about this album is how it tells the story of his life, and how each song work together. This album is made to be listened to from start to finish, with flawless transitions in between almost every song. Most of the time you won’t even know if you’re listening to the same song, or if the song has already finished.

It’s not only an album made to send a message, but showcases Pink Floyd’s best songs. Even Paul McCartney commented that they “made some great records in the 1970s” and described Pink Floyd’s “world was almost extraterrestrial, so it was a nice place to go”. 

Themes of The Wall

This album is special as a rock-opera double album, there’s no other album like it. The transitions are flawless, with some songs having the sole purpose of transitioning between two other songs. 

This analysis takes a lot of inspiration from a video posted on YouTube by a channel called Vinyl Rewind. An article written by Bret Urick, released on a website dedicated to The Wall, also helped gather information.

Here is an explanation of the standout tracks and their messages to our world.

“The Happiest Days of Our Lives”

A song only lasting 1 minute and 51 seconds, this song serves as a sort of interlude connecting Another Brick In The Wall Parts 1 and 2. However, this song should not be seen only as an interlude to skip on the album. It holds a deep message about school and Pink’s upbringing.

Starting off with the soft guitar from the previous song, there are sounds of a helicopter and shouting. The shouting is actually there to resemble a teacher shouting at a child who is supposedly misbehaving. When the shouting stops, the bass leads us into the song with a loud crash.

Lyrics like “There were certain teachers who would hurt the children in any way they could” make the connection to school obvious. It’s here where we see Pink being bullied and tortured by teachers who seem like they want to hurt the children without any good reason.

It looks like Pink Floyd is poking at the fact that most teachers don’t actually nurture school children, like they’re paid to. They take advantage of their “every weakness no matter how carefully hidden by the kid”. This is an important message as students are mostly taught to never talk back at their teachers, in order to show them respect, even if the respect is not shown mutually. The title of the song is almost laughing in your face, sarcastic, a reminder that our childhood is supposed to be the happiest and most carefree time in our lives. But it isn’t for most.

The final lyrics are especially powerful and impactful as they reveal the teacher who hurts Pink goes back home to his wife, who “would thrash them within inches of their lives”. It serves as a hard realisation that hurt people hurt people, and the cycle of hatred and unhappiness goes on.

There were certain teachers who would hurt the children in any way they could

“Another Brick In The Wall, Pt 2”

“Another Brick In The Wall, Pt 2” is their biggest single to date, their only song to ever reach number one on the U.S. Billboard 100 chart. It follows up on “The Happiest Days of Our Lives”, continuing on the theme of education.

This is supposedly Pink’s second brick in the wall that he’s slowly building up for himself. The wall that will also supposedly protect him from the very things that are building it up, bullies, tormentors, and ghosts of his father he never met (but we’ll get into that later). 

A loud and high-pitched scream introduces us to this song, as the singing tell us that “we don’t need no education”. A sign that Pink is fed up with his teachers and feels as if he doesn’t need them telling him what to do anymore.

Other lyrics like “we don’t need no thought control” and “no dark sarcasm in the classrooms” connect education to something manipulative and evil. Insinuating schools only take away children’s curious behaviour and innocent humour.

“All in all, you’re just another brick in the wall” reminds us of the impact this has on the children, who go to school to learn about their interests, but end up learning how to obey. Soon, the students turn into robots following orders rather than inquisitive students. Is this what teachers want us to become? Or are they stuck in their own cycle of sorrow?

Hey! Teacher! Leave those kids alone!

“Mother (& Feature of Another Brick In The Wall, Pt 1)”

Following the second brick in Pink’s wall, this song features lyrics that sound like dialogue. Pink is distraught and hurt, so he goes to his only parent for comfort. His father died in WWII, which was his first brick in the wall. 

The third song in the album, “Another Brick In The Wall, Pt 1″, represents how Pink’s father’s dying plants his first brick in the wall. Pink wasn’t around for WWII, and he doesn’t know how it affected the world or his mother. Pink questions “Daddy, what’d you leave behind for me?” in an attempt to connect to the only father figure he will never have.

Two songs later, we see the attempt he makes to find comfort in a place that will reinforce the wall he’s building. The strumming guitar and soft synthesizer in the background enforce a comforting and almost optimistic tone, which comforts even the listener. 

“Mother” features lyrics that tell Pink, “Mama’s gonna put all her fears into you.” “Mama’s gonna make all your nightmares come true.”

These lyrics reflect a thought that sometimes, parents “mess up” their children in terms of passing down fears and nightmares they’ve had. “Mother’s gonna keep you right here under your wing” is a reminder that it’s easy for mothers to become possessive and controlling, rather than helping their children grow from pain and mistakes.

When Pink asks, “Mother, should I build the wall?” she responds, “Of course, Mama’s gonna help build the wall,” because it’s easier to protect him from everything harmful than to face the problem and learn from it.

Mother, do you think they’ll like this song?

“Comfortably Numb”

Another successful single off the album, Comfortably Numb, is a bass-driven, solo-riddled song that transports listeners to another world. Waters’ voice in the verse, Gilmour’s whispery vocals in the chorus, both wrap up the song in a beautiful, melancholic, and subversive rhythm.

The song is on the second half of the album, where Pink already has his wall built up. The chorus tells us how Pink reminisces about his childhood and how he feels similar. But in a way that “you would not understand.”

The first verse calls out asking, “Is there anybody in there?” asking Pink if he can “Show me where it hurts.” As if there is someone, a voice, calling out from outside Pink’s wall, asking if he’s even there anymore. Pink responds in the hypnotizing chorus, “There is no pain, you are receding.”

Pink is telling the person, “Your lips move, but I can’t hear what you’re saying.” He’s distancing himself from the situation at hand, and now he desires to be in the silent comfort which his walls. He confesses that “I have become comfortably numb,” and he’s living in a state of comfortable ignorance of the outside world.

His wall is built and now allows him to ignore everything else happening in his life. The people who call out to him aren’t important and are only risks of pain and hurt. Although technically protected, the reality is that he’s isolating himself. “Numb” isn’t supposed to be comfortable, because it isn’t anything.

This song stands as a blissful melody to distract from the real problem that Pink has isolated himself, too far gone. It also stands as a reminder, or a wake-up call to listeners, that it’s not the right path. Pink Floyd is reminding us to feel, even if it hurts, because it’s better than not feeling at all.

I have become comfortably numb

AISB’s Thoughts on The Wall

It’s no secret this album has connected with millions across the world, but what about our community? Do any of our students relate to the isolation Pink yearns for?

Grade 10 student Brendan O., self-labeled Pink Floyd fan, is happy to share his view on The Wall, which he calls his favorite album ever:

It’s my favorite album because it has so much significance in my family, and not only is the music good, but it has such an inspirational atmosphere. It’s a bit about the struggles of life, because that’s all the traumas that kind of make him build up this wall. He had really bad teachers, and they kind of bullied all the kids. That’s that’s what it is to me —struggles of life and putting yourself away from them. And how that’s not the right thing to do. You have to kind of face it. Because when you just wall yourself off like that, like in the movie, you see Pink himself and when he had the wall fully built, he’s just sitting in his room kind of brainless, staring at a TV because he’s just trying to protect himself from everything by not thinking about anything. And when you do that, that’s not really living, right? You’re just kind of an empty husk of a person. Not living, you’re just killing time.

Grade 10 student Brendan O.

In addition, Secondary Music teacher Eric Murray was open to talk about the time the album was released, and why it was important to the music industry: “It’s this really important cultural event. You know, that’s what I’m saying, that it’s not just music. It’s way beyond that. And it’s gone on to be super influential in society, even around the world. It’s become an internationally recognized work of art.”

Is The Wall Really That Good?

Not only was The Wall a huge success, but it’s also the best-selling double album of all time.

It’s packed with twenty-four songs with each a different message, different theme, and different underlying topic, which is too much to unpack in one article. People have tried, but instead of analysing albums like you’re in a science lab, just give it a listen. Listening can connect you far more to a song than any piece of text written online.

The Wall is special in a way that it provokes thoughts, ideas, and questions most of us don’t think about day to day. We’re too busy with our summatives, extended essays, or personal projects. We don’t stop to question if we’re being tortured or sucked from the life we had as children. These are supposed to be the‘Happiest Days of our Lives’, so isn’t it time for a change?

Isn’t it time school became a place to learn, not worry? Isn’t it time teachers became allies, not enemies? And if they do, will we finally be able to tear down the wall?

I could write all day about the significance and importance of this album, and how it impacted millions of people, but it wouldn’t matter. Music isn’t supposed to be justified, it’s made to be listened to. So instead of listening to me, just listen. Music can be the only thing that understands us sometimes, so don’t build a wall, and let your emotions take over sometimes. It’s better than being “Comfortably Numb” your whole life.