1992 - Amused to Death

Release date: August 26th, 1992

Dedicated to Private William Hubbard (1888-1917), Eight Battalion of the Royal Fusiliers, City of London Regiment.

Waters spent about five years on and off this project bumping the release date at least twice. It was not the sales success it was hoped it would be, despite its commercial hype.

They used a mixing process called QSound in it, making an amazing effect.

The title refers to television. Specifically, a book by Neil Postman, called "Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business".

Roger Waters, on "What God Wants": "It is written in response primarily to the notion that human beings can own God, whoever God may be.... We all have our different notions of who God is and what He does. And this song was written, I suppose, as a sort of irritable response to the idea that God can be on somebody's side and not on somebody else's side.... If God exists, my suspicion is that He's not interested whether the Democrats or Republicans win the next election, or whether it would be right or wrong for the allies to go and bomb Baghdad right now, or any of those questions. His mind is on other things. And that is what this song is about in the ludicrous nature of people's adherence to the idea that God can be incorporated in our side."--from an Album Network broadcast.

Roger Waters, on the same song: "All that religious bullshit when it's used to bolster our side in a war is extremely distasteful and offensive to me, and I'm sure to a lot of other people. It certainly ought to be to all Christians, because that wasn't what Christ was trying to teach. And yet here we are apparently, in England and in North America--apparently mainly Christian countries--and we're still going through all this nonsense about God being on our side and I thought the whole point was, you know, that we were supposed to love one another... I'm not a practising Christian myself but it always staggers me that people who claim to be can stand up and spout--like your president, George Bush--can stand up and spout all this bullshit. Which is why the lyrics in this song about 'God want crusades and God wants jihad.' Well, it may well be that God doesn't want either of those things, that they are manifestations of the insecurities of the Muslim and Christian communities on the different sides of the Atlantic Ocean."--Roger Waters: The Beginning, interview by Jim Ladd, circa 1992.

Tracks:

• The Ballad Of Bill Hubbard (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Alf Razzell.
• What God Wants (part I) (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters.
• Perfect Sense (part I) (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters.
• Perfect Sense (part II) (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters.
• The Bravery Of Being Out Of Range (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters.
• Late Home Tonight (part I) (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters.
• Late Home Tonight (part II) (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters.
• Too Much Rope (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters.
• What God Wants (part II) (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters.
• What God Wants (part III) (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters.
• Watching TV (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters and Henley.
• Three Wishes (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters.
• It's A Miracle (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters.
• Amused To Death (Waters)
  
  Vocals by Waters.

Musicians Featured:

• Roger Waters: Vocals, Synthesizers, Bass, 12-string guitar, Acoustic Guitar
• Patrick Leonard: Keyboards, Percussion Programming, Choir Arrangement, Synthesizers, Hammond Organ, Acoustic Piano
• Jeff Beck: Guitars
• Luis Conte: Percussion
• Geoff Whitehorn: Guitars
• Andy Fairweather-Low: Guitars, Backing Vocals, Rickenbacker 12-String
• Tim Pierce: Guitars
• Randy Jackson: Bass
• Graham Broad: Drums, Percussion
• Katie Kissoon: Backing Vocals
• Doreen Chanter: Backing Vocals
• N'Dea Davenport: Backing Vocals
• Natalie Jackson: Backing Vocals
• Lynn Fiddmont-Linsey: Backing Vocals
• London Welsh Chorale: Backing Vocals
• Marv Albert: "Sportscaster" vocal
• B.J. Cole: Pedal Steel Guitar
• Steve Lukather: Guitars
• Rick DiFonso: Guitars
• Bruce Gaitsch: Acoustic Guitar
• James Johnson: Bass
• Brian Macleod: Snare, Hi Hat
• John Dupree: String Arrangements and Conduction
• Tim Pierce: Guitar
• John Pierce: Bass
• Denny Fongheiser: Drums
• Steve Sidwell: Cornet
• National Philharmonic Orchestra: Orchestrations, Arranged and Conducted by Michael Kamen
• Jessica and Jordan Leonard: Screaming
• Charles Fleischer: TV Evangelist vocal
• Don Henley: Vocals
• John Patitucci: Upright and Electric Bass
• Guo Yi & The Peking Brothers: Dulcimer, Lute, Zhen, Oboe, and Bass
• John Brundrick: Hammond Organ
• Jeff Porcaro: Drums
• Jon Joyce: Backing Vocals
• Stan Laurel: Backing Vocals
• Jay Haas: Backing Vocals
• Rita Coolidge: Vocals