"Goodbye Cruel World" is a song by Pink Floyd. It appears on their 1979 double album, ''

The Wall ''The Wall'' is the eleventh studio album by the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd, released on 30 November 1979 by Harvest/EMI and Columbia/ CBS Records. It is a rock opera that explores Pink, a jaded rock star whose eventual self-imp ...

''.

Composition

A quiet song, the Prophet-5 analog synthesiser provides the D

major chord In music theory Music theory is the study of the practices and possibilities of music. ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' describes three interrelated uses of the term "music theory". The first is the " rudiments", that are needed to understan ...

sequence: D, G, D, A, D, while the bass guitar plays the

root note In music theory, the concept of root is the idea that a chord can be represented and named by one of its notes. It is linked to harmonic thinking—the idea that vertical aggregates of notes can form a single unit, a chord. It is in this sense ...

s and their octaves. A similar bass riff was used in the earlier Pink Floyd songs " Careful with That Axe, Eugene" and the fade-out of "

See Emily Play "See Emily Play" is a song by English rock band Pink Floyd, released as their second single in June 1967. Written by original frontman Syd Barrett, it was released as a non-album single, but appeared as the opening track of the U.S. edition of ...

Plot

As with all tracks on ''The Wall'', "Goodbye Cruel World" relates to the listener a segment of Pink's (the album's protagonist) story. More specifically, this song expresses Pink's recognition of the completion of his mental wall, and acknowledgement of his thorough isolation from society.

Live versions

In all performances of ''The Wall'', both by Pink Floyd and in Roger Waters' solo career, the song represents the end of the first half of the show. The wall is built, apart from one brick. Waters appears in this small gap and as he sings the final word, "goodbye", the last brick is put into place, ending the first half of the show.

Personnel

* Roger Waters – bass guitar, vocals * Richard Wright – Prophet-5 synthesizer, organ Personnel per Fitch and Mahon.Fitch, Vernon and Mahon, Richard, ''Comfortably Numb - A History of The Wall 1978-1981'', 2006, p. 89

Cover versions

Anathema Anathema, in common usage, is something or someone detested or shunned. In its other main usage, it is a formal excommunication. The latter meaning, its ecclesiastical sense, is based on New Testament usage. In the Old Testament, anathema was a cr ...

covered the song for the re-release of their album, ''

Alternative 4 Alternative 4 is a band formed by Duncan Patterson, known for his work with Antimatter, Íon, and Anathema. The band's name is taken from the Anathema album '' Alternative 4'', an album written largely by Patterson, whose title in turn derive ...

''. * Korn's cover of "

Another Brick in the Wall "Another Brick in the Wall" is a three-part composition on Pink Floyd's 1979 rock opera '' The Wall,'' written by bassist Roger Waters. "Part 2", a protest song against corporal punishment, and rigid and abusive schooling, features a chil ...

" on their album '' Greatest Hits Volume 1'' includes this song at the end. *

Noel Gallagher Noel Thomas David Gallagher (born 29 May 1967) is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. He was the chief songwriter, lead guitarist, and co-lead vocalist of the rock band Oasis until their split in 2009. After leaving Oasis, he formed ...

of Oasis covered the song in 1995 as a guest of an American radio station. *Musician Orlando Francisco Garcia performs an acoustic version of this song.

References

*Fitch, Vernon. The Pink Floyd Encyclopedia (3rd edition), 2005. *''Pink Floyd: The Wall'' (1980 Pink Floyd Music Publishers Ltd., London, England, SA for "Goodbye Cruel World" *''Pink Floyd: Anthology'' songbook (1980 Warner Bros. Publications, Inc., Secaucus N.J.) for "See Emily Play"

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Goodbye Cruel World (Pink Floyd Song) Pink Floyd songs 1979 songs Songs written by Roger Waters Song recordings produced by Bob Ezrin Song recordings produced by David Gilmour Song recordings produced by Roger Waters Songs about loneliness Songs about suicide