"Southampton Dock" is a song from Pink Floyd's 1983 album, '' The Final Cut''. In

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, many soldiers departed from

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

to fight against the Germans. In the eighties, Southampton was again used as a departure base, this time for the Falklands War. The song describes a woman who "bravely waves" the soldiers "Goodbye again". The song includes a snippet of the theme from the track "It's Never Too Late", a song originally written and recorded for ''

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 ...

'' but was cut before the final band production demo of August 12, 1979. "It's Never Too Late" was later reworked and the melody was incorporated into the second section of "Southampton Dock". Roger Waters repeatedly performed the song on his solo tours; a live recording (prefaced by "Get Your Filthy Hands Off My Desert", another song from ''The Final Cut'') appears on his album

In the Flesh – Live ''In the Flesh – Live'' is a two-disc live album that captures performances from Roger Waters' three-year In the Flesh tour. Overview "My view is that I've been involved in two absolutely classic albums – ''The Dark Side of the Moon'' an ...

Reception

In a review for ''The Final Cut'', Patrick Schabe of ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...

'' described "Southampton Dock" as an example of where the album works best, and described the song's imagery as "subtle, poetic, and effective."

Personnel

* Roger Waters – acoustic guitar, bass and vocals with: *

Michael Kamen Michael Arnold Kamen (April 15, 1948 – November 18, 2003) was an American composer (especially of film scores), orchestral arranger, orchestral conductor, songwriter, and session musician. Biography Early life Michael Arnold Kamen was born ...

– piano and orchestrations

References

{{Pink Floyd 1983 songs Pink Floyd songs Anti-war songs Songs written by Roger Waters Song recordings produced by Roger Waters he:Southampton Dock